From Mom With Love . . .: Complete Guide to Indian Cooking and Entertaining

This is quite a wonderful cookbook. I had been cooking Indian from the website "manjulaskitchen" for several years before I decided that it was time to branch out. Nearly every night of the week I cook from either From Mom with Love or from Manjula's Kitchen. I have tried recipes from Indian food blogs, which never seem to taste as perfect as Bhargava's or Manjula's. Perhaps they just weren't tested enough. I've tried other N. Indian cookbooks only to be disappointed about the lack of heat and the general flavors I expect from N. Indian food. I bought this cookbook after sifting through many, many reviews of countless books and I have not been disappointed. Something especially nice is her list of tips in the back of the book. She writes, for example, that if you over-salt a dish you can add a raw, peeled potato to the boiling mixture and the potato will absorb the salt. Well, I didn't over-salt and Indian dish, but I did over-salt a different recipe one day. Sure enough, her potato tip saved dinner.My favorite recipes include :-nariyal chutney/coconut chutney (pg 133)-dahi bhat/South Indian style rice with yogurt (pg 108)-Dahi ke Alu/potato subzi with yogurt sauce (pg 48)---recipe reproduced below-Chatpate Alu- spicy potato from Uttar Pradesh (pg 46)---recipe reproduced belowNote about yogurt recipes: I learned to cook North Indian food from a North Indian woman. I had fallen in love with Indian food long before that, but cooking with Geeta showed me that, as long as you have the right spices (buy them in large quantities at the Indian store, pour them into small jars, and store the rest in the freezer to keep it fresh. Also, by a coffee grinder that you use exclusively for grinding spices. They are only about $15) Indian food needn't be scary to cook. Geeta also told me that if an Indian recipe calls for yogurt it is best to either make your own (Bhargava provides a homemade yogurt recipe in the book) or to use buttermilk, as Indian yogurt is quite different from what we have in Europe or N. America.Note about breads: making roti/chapati will be much easier if you buy an Indian rolling pin. The super thin kinds are about $1 and the larger ones (still small compared to N. American pins) are about $5. They make a huge difference and rolling breads is much easier with them. Also, do not try to use regular whole wheat flour for roti/chapti. I've done it before and it does not work well. Buy atta flour from the Indian store._______________Critical Notes:The only dish that has not been successful is the Dal Makhani (pg 73). I also take issue with the precooked masala in the book. It tastes too much of cinnamon for me. I had been cooking Manjula's recipes for so long that perhaps I got used to her masalas and cannot switch over. For the recipes that call for precooked masala I generally cook Manjula's version or I use Bhargava's version but Manjula's spice mix.My biggest criticism is not about the book but about the author: she has not written a second cookbook. Why hasn't she written another cookbook? Every so often I come back to her author page to see if another book is listed there yet, but From Mom with Love is the sole item. It's extremely disappointing, as I'm sure she has many other wonderful recipes that she is keeping to herself! I sincerely hope she will continue writing cookbooks so I can discover more wonderful Indian cuisine._______________Potato Recipes to Try--they are my absolute favorite. I dare you to not buy the book after you make these.Dahi ke Alu/potato subzi with yogurt sauce (pg 48)4 med. potatoes1 tsp salt1/4 tsp turmeric1/4 tsp cumin1/4 tsp red chili powder1/2 tsp garam masala4 whole cloves4 tables thin yogurt (I use buttermilk)1 tbsp oil or ghee1 cup water1 tbsp coriander, choppedBoil potatoes until soft. Peel and crush into small pieces. Whisk buttermilk and water. Heat oil in pan over med-high heat and add cumin and cloves. When seeds start to pop add turmeric, red chili powder, and buttermilk mixture along with potatoes. Stir until mixture comes to a boil. Add salt and garam masala and reduce heat to low and cook for another 8 minutes. Garnish with coriander.serving suggestion: serve with plain parathas and a green vegetable-Chatpate Alu- spicy potato from Uttar Pradesh (pg 46)4 med potatoes1 tsp salt1/4 tsp turmeric1/2 tsp cumin1/4 tsp red chili powder2 whole red dried chilis2 heaping tsp coriander powder1 heaping tsp mango powder (amchur/amchoor)1/4 tsp garam masala3 tbsp mustard oil2 c water1 tbsp fresh coriander, choppedfor tempering:1/4 tsp paprika1 tbsp oilDo not peel potatoes. Cut into vertical slices about twice the thickness of average french fries.Heat mustard oil in saucepan on med-high heat. Add cumin and whole red chilis. When cumin seeds start to pop add turmeric powder and coriander. Roast for 1-2 mins. Add red chili powder, potatoes, water and salt. Stir and turn heat to high until mixture starts to boil. Reduce to med-lowand cover. Stir occassionally until potatoes become tender (about 15-17 mins).Add dry mango powder and garam masala and reduce heat to low.In small frying pan add the other tbsp of oil and paprika and fry on med heat stirring constantly until paprika turns dark red. Add this oil mixture to potatoes.Garnish with fresh coriander.serving suggestion: serve with kachori and/or poori with fried ginger on the side

The book starts with a number of lists and instructional color photos, to help the new cook around a somewhat Americanized Indian kitchen. There are lists of typical ingredients, translating them from the Hindi; storage suggestions for the pantry, shopping lists for the well-stocked Indian pantry, menu suggestions, and weights and measures conversion charts. Unfortunately, there are no suggestions for reasonable substitutions for the more difficult-to-find ingredients (more on this later). Though I'm no rookie to cooking, I found some very useful and practical organizational, storage, and prep ideas -- particularly the make-ahead components of a number of other recipes (eg. precooked masala, and paneer). For these efforts, I give the author an "A-" -- it's a very good beginning, but I am a bit disappointed that there were so few of these make-ahead options included. I was left wondering that if one could make a good pre-cooked masala, why not a number of other basic sauces? Yes, fresh cooking is always best, but in our modern lifestyle, who wouldn't appreciate authenticity mixed with some time-saving elements? I imagine this is especially true for young adults, juggling college and/or full-time careers. To be fair, in a number of the recipes, there is a small, "TLC" tip about freezing a certain recipe for use later, etc., but that is a small footnote to the particular recipe. For the ease of any cook, I would respectfully suggest expanding the section on items that can successfully be prepared in advance. As it is currently formatted, these handful of recipes come under "Miscellaneous." As to the array of recipes themselves, I have mixed feelings. Here's why. . . I appreciate that this is a very personal selection of recipes that come from the heart and from the author's own regional traditions. That is more than fair enough. They do not read like the menu from your local Indian restaurant, though there are some iconic recipes included that everyone will, I feel sure, recognize. That's absolutely fine, so long as you know what you are getting (and what your are NOT getting) if you buy this book. For instance, you won't find a recipe for lamb vindaloo, but there are a number of recipes for breads -- alu parantha and nan, for instance. Further, there are some unusual (to my experience, anyway) recipes, such as Karela, (Spicy Bitter Melon) and Kathal Subzi (Spicy Jack Fruit). My problem with these recipes is that, depending upon where one lives, the principal fresh ingredients will be difficult, if not impossible, to source. Naturally, a number of the recipes rely on components that will require a very good, local Asian market. Many of the dry ingredients, of course, can be sourced through the internet. I do wish that among the tips and lists offered, there might be included suggestions for substitute ingredients, wherever possible. Finally, I wish there were an index to help one quickly find what one wants. Overall, then, I'd give this book a "B". It is a very good start, but with a bit of tweaking, future editions (and may we hope for future installments?) could be even better. I would also refer interested readers to The Indian Slow Cooker by Anupy Singla. The goal is a similar one -- translating authentic Indian recipes to a more Americanzied lifestyle and kitchen.)

The kindle edition of this book is useless. Instead of creating a new kindle version - it is just screen shots of the pages and thus virtually useless.

es ist ein tolles Buch.Ich würde es jederzeit wieder kaufen. dkdk dkdki kk kk kk kik kkk zu lange Bewertung