Features
Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: Cookbooks; 1st ed edition March 1998
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0688156908
ISBN-13: 978-0688156909
Product Dimensions:
9.6 x 7.8 x 1 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
Product Review
When Neelam Batra moved to the United States from India in 1973, she hardly knew how to cook a frozen pizza, let alone the many wonderful delicacies her mother had prepared for her back home. But though she didn't know much about preparing great food, she knew what she liked and set about educating herself. Several years and many culinary experiments later, Batra began to teach cooking in Los Angeles and eventually wrote her first cookbook, The Indian Vegetarian. In her second effort, Chilis to Chutneys, Batra brings an Indian sensibility--and palate--to typically American foods. In Batra's kitchen, hamburgers are served with scallions and garam masala; pasta is topped with garden-fresh tomatoes, ginger, and mint; and pizza is topped with green cilantro chutney in place of the usual pepperoni or sausage. But Batra doesn't stop here; having imported Indian spices and seasonings to American dishes, she's equally happy to introduce something new to her own cuisine, thus you'll find such varied ingredients as wonton wrappers, tortillas, and premade pizza crusts figuring prominently in Batra's Indian recipes. In addition to these innovative, tasty, and--for the most part--low-fat dishes, Neelem Batra offers advice about where to find ingredients, suggestions for preparing all types of foods (from meat to grains), and insight into traditional Indian cooking techniques and procedures. From Basmati Risotto to French Fries with Chaat Masala, these 200 recipes will imbue even everyday cooking with the spice of adventure.
The New York Times Book Review, William Grimes
[Batra] writes in a relaxed, unpretentious way. Readers may find it frustrating, however, when they try to locate the more exotic spices like carom seeds, mango powder or dried fenugreek seeds.
Reader Reviews
So far I have made the Chicken Curry with Biryani Rice -- excellent, and the cardamom biscotti -- out of this world fantastic. Probably the most tasty and exciting biscotti I have ever tasted. It is true that this cookbook likes to mix Indian flavors with other cuisines in some of the recipes, but the results are no accident. I have tried other Indian cookbooks, but only this one seems to turn out first rate results. The Chicken Curry with Biryani Rice seems Indian enough to me. I brought it to work and an Indian co-worker said it seemed authentically Indian to her. So I feel I can vouch that some of the recipes must be true to Indian cooking, while others (biscotti) are creative adventures with Indian flavors!
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