Kimi's Kitchen: An Ocean Woman's Guide to Wild Home Cooking [A Cookbook]

Dive into the abundance of the ocean and reconnect with nature through food in this deeply personal guide to wild cooking, with more than 80 recipes inspired by the memories and ingredients that have shaped Hawai‘i-born spearfishing champion, chef, and award-winning environmentalist Kimi Werner.

“Kimi is a world-class freediver, a skilled huntress, a true artist with food, and a guardian of the earth. She lives what she teaches. This book is her invitation back to simplicity and balance, to living in rhythm with the natural world.”—Jason Momoa

“The best thing that could happen for you is getting invited to Kimi’s for dinner. The next best thing is to cook from this book.”—Steven Rinella

Kimi grew up getting lost in the magic of the ocean while tagging along with her dad on his spearfishing dives off the coast of Maui. Upon returning from freediving, Kimi's family would prepare his catches into wholesome meals. Though her family drifted away from this simple lifestyle, she reconnected with these practices at the age of 24—and is now one of the most celebrated spearfishers in the world.

Kimi’s Kitchen, a collaboration with award-winning filmmaker Nicole Gormley and food writer Jennifer Fiedler, is both an intimate biography and a collection of recipes drawn from adventures around the globe. Her Simple Fried Fish is a generational recipe that made the whole family happy when she was a kid and now does the same for her son Buddy. Her mom's Ugly Dumplings were constantly requested at potlucks, and are a delicious way to elevate a variety of fish. With Lettuce Wraps, Kimi revisits her travels through Southeast Asia while dressing up wild game with fresh herbs and tangy dipping sauce. Every chapter is full of practical swaps and simple techniques, making the book accessible to beginners, seasoned cooks, and hunters alike.

Through 100 breathtaking photos, Kimi and her team take you on dives and into her kitchen, presenting a vibrant view of sustainable living. Her grounded, easygoing spirit reminds us that it’s okay to slow down and break a few rules. In cooking a little more wild, we might just rediscover something essential in ourselves.

Kimi Werner is a national champion free-diving spearfisher, chef, and an advocate for environmental conservation. She has been featured in Bon Appetit, Outside, Sports Illustrated, USA Today, as well as on National Geographic, Fox, the BBC, Gordon Ramsey: Uncharted, and Padma Lakshmi’s Taste the Nation, She lives in Waialua, HI, with her husband Justin Turkowski and son, Buddy.

Nicole Gormley is an award-winning filmmaker, photographer, and ocean advocate dedicated to telling stories that inspire people to rethink our relationship with the natural world. She has produced and directed projects for the world’s leading media outlets, including Netflix, PBS, and National Geographic, and received the Tribeca Film Festival’s Award for Best New Documentary Director.

Jennifer Fiedler was born and raised on O‘ahu. She is a Hale‘iwa-based food-and-drink writer, recipe tester, and author of The Essential Bar Book and co-author of Lei Aloha.