Wonderful introduction to great Indian food
I caught Madhur Jaffrey on an episode of the PBS cooking show "Sarah's Weeknight Meals" and Madhur cooked several recipes from this book. I couldn't believe how simple and straight forward they were and trotted over to my computer to check out this book on Amazon. When it arrived, I read it through and started cooking: first up, the onion fritters in the first chapter. They are simple to make (if you don't have besan flour, you can use all purpose white flour, but it won't have the wonderful nutty flavor) and my "boys" -- the hubby and my son, loved them. I served them with a quick raita I whipped up out of yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, tomato and onions (no cucumbers in the house). Next night we had the cauliflower with ginger, garlic and green chilis as a side dish. Tonight we'll try the Royal Chicken, made with yogurt. All of the ingredients in this book are readily available from a grocery store with a well stocked ethnic food aisle or on the web and none of them requires exotic equipment. You will enjoy cooking from this book.
Excellent introduction to Indian cooking!
I am a born and raised American married to an East Indian. Shorty after our wedding, my husband and I were having a bit of a cultural clash with meals. I was trying to feed him grilled chicken, salads, pastas and all the basics I grew up with. He found them all very boring and was craving a taste of home. A dear mentor and friend of mine took pity on me and gave me a gift she received at her wedding years ago, a copy of Madhur Jaffrey's original "Invitation to Indian Cooking," published in 1975. It appeared to be a fabulous book, but several of the recipes looked intimidating so I decided to see if Madhur Jaffrey had published anything a bit less intense, and boy has she ever! Although I had already ordered a different beginner's Indian cookbook, I figured the more the merrier and the minute I saw "Quick and Easy" in the title, I was SOLD!
I love this cook book! The recipes are simple and fun and are truly great for a beginner. Having been born and raised in India, and also being a terribly fussy eater, my husband does have a few criticisms. He feels the meals are Americanized versions of Indian food, and he also doesn't feel that any "authentic" Indian cook book would have beef as an ingredient in any of the recipes. (I beg to differ as Muslim's eat beef and also reside in India.) Either way, both of his concerns were easily addressed. I simply double the chili powder or garam masala in the recipe or add extra green chilies to kick it up a notch. His only other issue is that there were a few recipes he didn't recognize. This could easily be explained by regional differences.
Regardless of his nit picking, he can't argue that the meals are absolutely delicious, especially when adjusted to his personal taste. I love how this cookbook helped ease me into Indian cooking and introduced me to many different spices, helping me build my now impressive supply of various ingredients. This book held my hand through the learning phase, showed me that using more than five spices isn't scary. (Although I will always treasure Ruhta Kahate's "5 Spices, 50 Dishes" as it walked me through my very first Indian meals.)
Although this is a fabulous book, I'm proud to say I'm now comfortable enough to move on to more complicated recipes and am currently going through Ms. Jaffrey's original 1975 cook book I mentioned earlier. Yes, the same one I originally found intimidating! Also, for those looking to build their collection, another fabulous cook book is "From Mom With Love . . .: A Complete Guide to Indian Cooking and Entertaining" by Pushpa Bhargava. My fussy husband loves most every single recipe in that book and I don't have to adjust the heat at all. It would also be good for a newer cook as the recipes are non-intimidating, although I'm personally pleased I had worked with both Ruhta and Madhur's recipes first to kind of ease in slowly.
So, bottom line, this is great Indian cook book for beginners with tons of helpful tips. Definitely a must have for your cook book collection. Even when you're past the beginning stage, you'll still head back to this book occasionally just for the fabulous taste!
Delivers as promised
I have made three meals following the recipes from this book. In each case, I found the directions straight forward and the results delicious. I appreciate the extra commentary she adds. In particular, I opted to up the level of heat on the vindaloo to make it more authentic. I also appreciate her use of western ingredients (e.g. grainy mustard) to make it easier to find all of the required ingredients or simplify the preparation.
I would recommend this to anyone who loves Indian food and is just starting to cook it.
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