• Ganga108 on September 22, 2023

  In 3 or 4 recipes in this book, the author equates Horse Gram with black chickpeas. It may be because one name for black horse gram is kala ghoda chana, while black chickpeas are kala chana - prone to confusion for sure. Adding to the confusion, one recipe (P41) seems to indicate horse gram as the correct ingredient, while the other 2 appear to mean kala chana (P 318 and 401).

• Ganga108 on August 07, 2021

  A beautiful book indeed, but there are a few errors in the content.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Healthy horse gram soup (Gahat ka shorba, rich in protein)

  • Ganga108 on September 17, 2022

    Wow, a beautiful shorba - a North Indian broth-like soup generally consumed in smaller amounts than we might consume a non-Indian soup, and eaten before or during a main course (it can vary in different countries where shorba is common). This one from Himachal Pradesh uses the beautiful lentil horse gram, a much loved favourite here. It is a wintery weather dish - I added a tiny bit of chilli and a good amount of black pepper to amp up the mustard and heat. The recipe equates horse gram and channa dal, but they are different lentils entirely. Horse gram is the protein-packed lentil. It is likely to work with either but Gahat means horse gram. I also left the soup somewhat chunky with tomatoes and onions, but it can also be blended for a beautiful thick broth.

  • Ganga108 on September 23, 2023

    Last time I made this with the more commonly available (locally) brown horsegram. I found some black horsegram recently, so am making it again. Always delicious. I add chilli to the recipe.

• All-time favourite butter-rich black lentil (Dal makhani)

  • Ganga108 on March 10, 2026

    Not a Dal Makhani but one of the other variations of that recipe - there are many recipes that vary the combination of lentils, spices, butter/cream etc. Still, urad lentils are delicious so I am making this version, sans the cream and not so much butter/ghee. Adapted to the Instant Pot, will refrigerate and cook for a couple of hours in the slow cooker tomorrow. Urad really benefits from a bit of slow cooking. I feel the ratios of ingredients is sometimes way out in this book. 2 cups of urad to 7 cups of water and 2 cups of tomato puree in a pressure cooker for a porridge consistency? I reduced the liquid a lot - I soaked the beans before cooking, but it still seems an incredible amount of liquid.

• Chickpeas flavoured with fennel seeds (Lahori chana)

  • Ganga108 on November 14, 2023

    Lahor has fabulous food, and this is a cooked "smash" or "crush" that is pretty tasty. (chickpeas are cooked with spices then smashed/crushed, before being simmered with tempering.)

• Traditional dal served at gurudwaras (Langarwali dal)

  • Ganga108 on February 07, 2025

    Nice, I enjoyed it. I cooked the dal in the Instant Pot (10 mins with FNR, would do 12 next time) and then added the tomato-spice base to continue cooking for 20 mins on the saute setting. It is relatively easy to make. I find this book often understates the serves. This one says serves 2. It will serve 4 depending on what you serve it with. Also, next time I'll cook the dals in the IP in the morning, add the tomato-spice mixture, and then put on the slow cooker setting (normal) for the rest of the day. Urad benefits from long slow cooking and to be breaking down into the dal. Recommended also trying Madhur Jaffrey's Amritsari Dal in Flavours of India (the same dish as this one) which adds onions, garlic and green chillies.

  • eclairea on December 12, 2025

    Not bad! The urud dal was especially buttery. Not sure I liked it enough to make it again, though. It also made WAY more than 2 servings!

• Spicy fried okra (Punjabi bhindi masala)

  • SuzyP on October 29, 2023

    Excellent! Made the recipe as is. A repeat

• Street-style spiced flattened rice with fennel (Indori poha)

  • Ganga108 on December 03, 2024

    Nice. I would like a little less poha for the seasonings or increase the onion, garlic, ginger and chilli. Also, the recipe serves 4, not 2 as stated in my book.

• Masala omelette burger with ketchup and mint chutney (Egg banjo)

  • Ganga108 on July 10, 2025

    What a way to start the day, over-the-top deliciousness that hums in the mouth - spicy eggs with spicy condiments, tomato and onion on buttered buns. We also needed a gluten-free option, so made it without the buns, but with 2 smaller omelettes pp, and layered chutneys and veg between them. Gorgeous and gluten free. Or could use GF wraps/flatbreads/buns instead. Also, could just make as a folded omelette with everything in the middle.

• Dal spiked with whole spices (Burhanpuri dal)

  • Ganga108 on November 09, 2024

    A lovely dal using whole unskinned urad dal, and a recipe that does not appear in many books. There are a couple of videos online for Burhanpuri dal but they use other dals. I *suspect* that urad is the traditional one. I gave bonus points to the recipe for using a pressure cooker. I soaked the dal overnight, but it is probably not necessary. I cut down on the cinnamon powder, it seems a lot - next time I'd use half cinnamon and some coriander powder. Also half the garam masala in the sauteed spices, and then 1 - 2 tspn stirred in at the end (as Garam Masala is primarily a finishing spice). I sauteed for a couple of minutes instead of 6 - that seemed too long - next time I'd keep the saute function on low. Also needs more chilli. As the dal was already soaked, I cooked for 7mins in the Instant Pot with full NR. It is nice to see an urad recipe without loads of cream or butter (altho it does have a healthy amount of ghee :). Delicious and a favourite.

• Bite-sized chickpea and yogurt rolls tempered with sesame seeds (Khandvi)

  • mjes on July 25, 2021

    I've been using an online khandvi recipe and thought it was time to test recipes from my cookbooks ... there might be a better recipe. I think I prefer the recipe with coconut and ginger from https://www.eatyourbooks.com/library/recipes/2025190/khandvi This recipe is quite good ... just not exactly the flavor profile I wanted

• Egg in a spicy tomato mixture (Lagan na tarkari pe eda)

  • Ganga108 on July 12, 2025

    This is no doubt a Parsi recipe. The author doesn't mention, but the recipe is from Gujarat and "My Bombay Kitchen" has a lot of these "Eggs on Anything" recipes. This one is very good, perhaps a little more spicy than the ones in My Bombay Kitchen - exactly the way I like it. Because of the nature of these dishes - eggs on any base - the recipe is flexible. I added a handful of left-over rice and it was excellent.

• Healthy flattened bread made with a combination of flours and spices (Missi roti)

  • Ganga108 on April 16, 2023

    Lovely with a chickpea and eggplant saucy curry.

• Tamarind drink (Amalvaniya)

  • Ganga108 on November 09, 2023

    It is our first 40C day this season, very early in the season indeed. So my focus on cool drinks during Summer is beginning. Today, it is Amalvaniya, ready in the fridge for afternoon refreshments.

• Steamed dumplings with vegetables (Kuzhi paniyaram)

  • Ganga108 on February 16, 2024

    Delicious! Not really steamed - cooked in a paniyaram pan with a little ghee. Wonderful mid-afternoon snacks.

• Cabbage rolls with minced meat in a curry (Gosht keema kozhumbu)

  • mcvl on February 25, 2022

    I used this recipe only for the spices -- I was working with a cabbage puree and I wanted to make it Indian and serve it on top of rice. Nice combination. I wish I had figured out in advance to use coconut oil for all the lipids -- the coconut flavor could have been stronger.

• Horse gram cooked in coconut milk (Kadala curry)

  • Ganga108 on July 27, 2021

    The recipe asks for horse gram, but calls it kala chana, a very different lentil. Traditionally this Kerala curry is made with black chickpeas (kala chana).

• Kolkata egg roll: street-side egg roll with a dash of mustard

  • Ganga108 on November 18, 2024

    I finally got around to making this, and it is dynamite! I used some store-bought, GF paratha as a base, made the eggs and topping as per the recipe, and added some hot local mustard. SO good.

• Egg roll from Ranchi: local style omelette wrapped in paratha

  • Ganga108 on December 06, 2024

    Yum yum. As good as the Kolkata Egg Rolls in the same book (and same page).

• Tasteful medley of horse gram and spices (Bihari ghugni)

  • Ganga108 on May 10, 2021

    There is some confusion in the recipe in my book as it specifies horse gram lentils as kala channa (black chickpeas). They are different. It is more traditional with black chickpeas than horse gram (both available at Indian groceries). Most variations use larger pulses like dried peas (yellow, green or white) - not smaller lentils like horse gram. However it'd probably be Ok with horse gram, just a different textured dish. Describing this dish as "Tasteful" is a lovely older use of the word, and taken literally (rather than modern usage) is so good. Probably best translated as "Extremely tasty". This dish is also a street food, much loved in parts of India, and very tasty.

• Deep-fried rice and dal dumplings (Dhuska)

  • Ganga108 on August 08, 2021

    The recipe missed out vital steps in the deep frying of these fritters. Note the possible misspelling of the recipe name in the book - Dhuska is probably meant to be Dhuksa. A google search will set you on the right track of how to fry these fritters.

• A variation of the simple fried dumplings (Dhuksa/Dhuska with green peas and spring onions)

  • Ganga108 on August 08, 2021

    Not only does this recipe over-promise and under-deliver (it doesn't contain any peas or spring onions), the recipe is an exact duplication of the Dhuska recipe on P402 except that it is cooked like a dosa. Note also the different spellings - Dhuksa and Dhuska. Also, the promise of dumplings doesn't quite deliver (although that is the interpretation of the indexer not the author). The original Dhuska recipe is more like deep fried fritters, and this "variation" is for dosa style items.

• Naga-style pork curry: spicy pork curry best served with steamed rice

  • meginyeg on February 25, 2026

    This was decent. A bit boring but everyone ate it with no issues. I put it in a slow cooker instead of using a pressure cooker. Let it go on low for 8 hours.

• Paneer and pea curry: paneer curry cooked in a creamy milk gravy

  • lean1 on March 09, 2025

    Didn't really become a gravy. needed to cook longer or add less milk. Otherwise very flavorful. First time cooking with Paneer. I have much to learn.

• Tomato relish (Golbhenda ko pakaeko)

  • Ganga108 on September 23, 2023

    An easy chutney to go with anything Nth Indian or non-Indian. I made it to go with some Australian-style vegetarian burgers I am making.