My son had another of his interesting encounters with grandmothers and food. As background, when he was five or so his aunt took him to a Chinese friend's house to dip Easter eggs. There he met a Chinese grandmother who spoke no English but was pleased at the quantity of rice he ate. Three weeks later I got a call asking if I could bring my son over so Grandmother could cook rice for him. He was so much more appreciative than her grandchildren.
Fast forward, now my son is in his 50's, taking his family to a Texas wild animal park. He walks by a South Asian family eating a rice dish he'd never seen before, does a double take, and asks if that is some form of a briyani. Grandmother, who spoke with a very heavy accent, pleased that he'd recognized the dish, insisted he try it, try the side dishes that really had to be served with it... She was so pleased to find someone who really enjoyed her food... he ended up with a great meal from the extreme South of India while his family enjoyed the animals.
First thing when he got home, he called me with the ingredients for the dishes ... the Indian names of the dishes he couldn't recall. I used EYB to search my recipes ... and sticking to recipes from Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Sri Lanka, we managed to find probable matches for everything in his accidental meal. Just got the report back. We nailed it on most the dishes ... and know the required modifications on the others. I'm sure grandmother would be pleased to know she's taught another white American her traditional food.