Notes about Recipes in this book

• Orissan Jagdish saag aloo

  • lorloff on March 25, 2017

    Really delicious I used much fewer potatoes than called for but they add a texture to the dish that is hard to describe and delicious. The spices are also perfect. Will make again

• 'Buddhist meat' and shiitake mushrooms

  • London_Mummy on December 03, 2025

    This is a decent recipe for seitan, but it is very similar to many other tofu stir-fry recipes. I did not have shiitake mushrooms so substituted frozen sliced mushrooms. I did not have readymade hoisin sauce so I read the hoisin sauce recipe in "The Veggie Chinese Takeaway Cookbook" then added some white pepper, soy sauce, Chinese five spice, rice vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, chilli bean oil, garlic & ginger. These substitutions were all fine. A family member said, "I love seitan!" after eating it : )

• Chayote in cinnamon-spiced tomato sauce

  • London_Mummy on March 30, 2026

    I found chayotes in the supermarket, so I cooked & ate them for the first time. They were very similar to marrow in taste & texture. As suggested in the recipe, I served this dish with sweet potatoes mashed with thyme. If I made it again, I would add some beans for protein.

• Cauliflower, fennel and pea tagine

  • e_ballad on August 13, 2016

    As a side dish, this was ok, albeit a little bland. As a vegetarian main course, this wouldn't have enough substance or flavour to be truly satisfying.

• Chickpea, date and pine nut pilau

  • VineTomato on November 17, 2017

    Made a few substitutes: used beluga lentils in place of green and paneer in place of chickpeas (in a strategy to get Mr VT to eat it). The spice blend was so fragrant makes the dish extra special. All in all it was nice but I’m not sure I will make again. If I did I would probably stick to the recipe with regards the lentils but adding the pan fried paneer at the end was a nice touch I would repeat. I served with the recommended rocket and orange salad which went well (minus the rose water - yuk).

• Baked sweet potato with West African spiced peanut butter (Tsire)

  • VineTomato on June 18, 2017

    Best recipe in the book. I've made this many times over and serve with a green salad, tomatoes and a rich, sticky basalmic vinegar.

  • e_ballad on December 21, 2017

    This is a really interesting dish. We served it alongside lamb & it didn’t really marry together, but in isolation (or perhaps using chicken as the protein), this was very tasty.

• Polynesian maa Tahiti tempeh

  • VineTomato on September 22, 2017

    I only recently discovered tempeh and I am glad I did not start my journey with this recipe! The flavour of the marinade was lost and the tempeh tasted terrible. I served this with the sweet peppers and haricot beans, which surprised me in being wonderful - after a few bites I threw the tempeh out and subbed in some avo with the beans that was wonderful! Tempeh can be so delicous too - what a let down.

• Sweet peppers and haricot beans

  • VineTomato on September 22, 2017

    Wonderful! I did not expect to like this dish at all looking at the ingredient list. I still however push myself to make new and different things - as we have made some wonderful discoveries that way (beetroot curry, tuna and squash bake, gado-gado to name a few). Loved the flavours but I left out the sage and reduced the cinnanom (for hubby's sake). The reduced wine really adds a delicious depth of flavour that is unexpected and complimentary to the dish. Will make again, skipping the tempeh and served with some sliced avo. Might try a different bean - I wonder how a black bean would fare?

• Caribbean pepperpot

  • London_Mummy on March 11, 2026

    This came out spicier than some family members preferred but it was a good, complex flavour & easy to prepare. As suggested, I substituted seasonal vegetables, which meant frozen broad beans instead of okra. I also substituted 1 tsp of Scotch bonnet jam for the Scotch bonnet chillies.