Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)For years, I only cooked to survive: fried eggs, pizza, pasta, or at most stir something my wife was making.
After visiting the Benares restaurant in London, [...], I immediately bought this book...with hopes someone else more skilled would take over. After helping cook 6 of the recipes for guests, I discovered once you have the ingredients (not expensive in an Indian or Asian grocery store) on hand, many of the recipes are quite easy and always worth it. These are fresh, multi-faceted flavors that make cooking fun and worth the effort. Since Nov 2005, I've been making at least one recipe a week, sticking exactly to the book, and the five-star Benares restaurant has a branch in my home now. I take no credit. These recipes are the only ones worth making. I look at others in other books and see the difference upfront: they are either fatty, bland, colorless or canned, all of which are incentives not to cook. My wife has stepped aside; (well, most work nights she's a life saver, and she'll greatly appreciate a break on Saturday.) In fact she's calling from the kitchen right now asking for one of the khajoor ka khaja (date & orange pastries) in the fridge.
Cooking these recipes is one of the few things that actually takes my mind completely off work. The sequence of adding exotic spices to a hot pan makes me feel like a sorcerer. So far, most recipes do not use the oven, which is good because with an oven you do not get the joy of watching the concoction evolve before your eyes and nose.
I could easily list 30 recipes in this book to die for, but if you're wondering where to start, something that is simple, try the Doi Maach (spiced fish with yogurt), which only takes about 30 minutes to reach the dinner table. The sweet tomato chutney is a staple around here now, and I cook double portions once a month and give jars away as gifts. Finally, I recommend growing coriander yourself, since it is used in everything. We use an extra coffee bean grinder to grind dry spices. A mini-processor is also a must-have. Enjoy!
Click Here to see more reviews about: Indian Essence: The Fresh Tastes of India's New Cuisine
Indian food has undergone big changes in the past few years. A new generation of chefs trained at India's major hotels are reviving classic dishes and creating a new haute cuisine. Michelin-starred chef Atul Kochhar aims to break the perception that Indian food is difficult to cook at home with Indian Essence, a hands-on guide to exploring India's rich and varied cuisine in your own kitchen.This book contains more than 140 recipes drawn from the restaurants, street stalls, and homes of every region of India. There are rich, meaty dishes from the Moghul region, vegetarian delights from Tamil Nadu, coconut-based curries from Goa and Kerala, and seafood dishes from Calcutta. Atul provides insight into India's diverse food cultures and traditions and explains how to put together authentic menus, from a Kashmiri wazwan-a traditional Northern feast-to a Gujerati thali-a selection of Southern dishes served on a banana leaf. Thoroughly researched and illustrated with color photographs, Indian Essence shares Atul's passion for a great cuisine.Atul Kochhar is one of the only Indian chefs in the world to be awarded a Michelin star. Originally from India, Atul trained as a chef in New Delhi before moving to London to become head chef at Tamarind. His recipes now appear in national magazines and newspapers, and he recently opened his own restaurant, Benares. He is currently a consultant to the Almond Board of California.
Click here for more information about Indian Essence: The Fresh Tastes of India's New Cuisine
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