Notes about Recipes in this book

• Stir-fried paneer & peppers in a kadhai masala (Punjabi kadhai paneer)

  • Stephenn31 on August 29, 2024

    A nice vegetarian dish with paneer. The tomato sauce pulled it all together. The ginger added some nice heat.

• Stir-fried spinach with ginger & coconut (Tamil keerai poriyal)

  • mjes on March 23, 2022

    My son loves poriyals so I chose this as a quick recipe to try a new cookbook. I used frozen curry leaves - quite standard for me because its 40 miles to fresh leaves. I used all Kashmiri chilies. An excellent recipe that will be repeated many times.

  • Silus2008 on February 08, 2023

    There's an editing mistake where ginger is left out in the ingredient and recipe itself but included in the name of the recipe

• Spicy cauliflower with chilli & tomato (Rajasthani gobi rajwadi)

  • etcjm on March 15, 2022

    Excellent. Great depth of heat and flavour. Use a big pan or you make a mess when you coat the cauliflower. I really do recommend this dish and will definitely do again. I used half a tin of good chopped tomatoes as I didn't have fresh.

• Home-style chicken curry (Tariwalla murgh)

  • joneshayley on March 04, 2022

    Really homely and comforting curry. Very mild, but hearty and warming. I increased the potato and decreased the chicken, to no detriment. Very nice

  • Stephenn31 on November 14, 2022

    Very comforting and mild curry. I reversed the potato and chicken ratio and it was still very good

  • ozfoodie on June 18, 2024

    I was pretty happy with this. As an everyday curry it hit the spot! I used chicken thigh fillet cut into chunks instead of bone-in pieces.

  • spvla on January 19, 2026

    Not my favorite of her curry recipes, a bit too bland. Needed something more.

• Parsi creamy chicken curry (Parsi kaju ma murgi)

  • etcjm on March 08, 2022

    Very good indeed. I used 10 chillies and it wasn't overly hot. (it also wasn't as dark red as the picture so maybe my chillies were small?). Was lovely and creamy and it will definitley be done again. Complex in flavour. I cheated and popped in the oven as had other things to cook on the hob - it didn't seem to make a difference.

• Stir-fried chicken with whole spices & green chillies (Rajasthani khade masale ka murhgh)

  • Silus2008 on February 08, 2023

    The recipe hasn't turned out like the picture at all. I've attempted the recipe a few times but have been disappointed everytime at how different it turns out then what is described and shown

• Curry leaf & ghee fried chicken (Mangalorean ghee roast chicken)

  • dosojosazules on February 13, 2023

    This did not turn out as expected. The chicken is not fried as the title suggests. It simmers in the paste and cooks in its own juices and yogurt marinade. The flavor was okay, kind of sweet and sour at the same time. Don’t think I’ll make this again.

  • Idril on July 06, 2024

    For me this was the best recipe so far from an amazing book. I loved the flavours which I found unique, different from your usual curry and rich and creamy. Will make again for special occasions. I used skinless bone in thighs for this.

• Slow-cooked lamb & chickpea curry (Bengali mangsho ghugni)

  • joneshayley on March 02, 2022

    I was quite dubious as it is quite a thin, even so far as very thin, curry, but the flavour is there. The recipe instructions include ground coriander that isn’t listed in the ingredients so I added an equal amount to the cumin. The lamb is tender and the chickpeas add substance. The onion/ lime/ coriander topping adds a fresh dimension. I really enjoyed this.

• Chickpea & tomato curry with ginger & dried mango (Punjabi khatte chole)

  • Nichill on February 08, 2025

    Absolutely superb. Made as a filling for canapé cases, with a reduced amount of water, and slightly heavy-handed spicing. Topped canapés with a little yoghurt and mango chutney and a coriander leaf. Very successful. Remainder was reheated with spinach mixed in, and eaten on its own for lunch.

• Spiced paneer with tomato & green peas (Punjabi matar paneer)

  • Lepa on May 25, 2022

    This was good. I didn't precook the paneer and instead cooked it in the gravy.

  • dosojosazules on January 01, 2023

    Great dish. Found there to be too many peas when using suggested amount. I’d probably half it next time

  • Idril on September 24, 2025

    This was oddly disappointing. The balance of spices just didn’t quite taste right and even with a lot of seasoning tweaks at the end (salt, sugar), the tomato taste just wasn’t very nice. Obviously using better quality tomatoes might help, or perhaps cooking them longer? I tried it twice and felt the same both times. Love this dish whenever I’ve eaten it out so need to find a better recipe. I should say that I usually love Maunika’s recipes (hence trying this twice for good measure). Made this for a thali alongside several other of her recipes and frankly this just paled in comparison.

• Classic coconut fish curry (Kerala fish moilee)

  • etcjm on March 15, 2022

    Used frozen basa fillets as I wanted to use them up and they held up well surprisingly. It was good, but I don't think I have found a stand out fish curry yet. Did enjoy it - might try with different fish once more. Not bad at all - but not fab. Easy though - and leftovers were good!

• Stir-fried ginger & green chilli prawns

  • etcjm on March 08, 2022

    Really good. Quite complex in flavour and crunchy with the number of whole seeds and the ginger matchsticks (not in a bad way). Will most certainly do again, and I think next time I'll get the bigger prawns as I think it would be even better.

• Crispy fried lentil patties (Andhra masala vadai)

  • etcjm on March 08, 2022

    I didn't really know what these should have been like. Easy to do - but I think they were far too dry. I did cook and then pop in the oven for a short while - it might have been that. You need the chutney or a saucy curry. Leftovers weren't useable. I may or may not try again.

• Layered flatbread with carom seeds (Ajwain paratha)

  • Charlotte_vandenberg on March 24, 2022

    Delicious.

• Vegetable fried rice with ginger & turmeric (Vegetable pulao)

  • ania.s on April 13, 2023

    Basically halved the recipe. Made with 200g rice frozen and defrosted and 200g leftover Sunday veg ( carrots, spring greens, cauliflower,) frozen peas Halves the amount of spices. Definitely a new family favourite and good use of leftovers. Made other pulaos, this is the best so far.

• Spicy aubergine raita (Baingan raita)

  • Charlotte_vandenberg on August 12, 2022

    Delicious. Definitely making this again, the combination of spices, roast aubergine and Greek yoghurt is fantastic.

• Kavey Eats

  There’s a boatload of vegan and vegetarian inspiration in Thali, and most of the recipes are gluten free. Maunika also uses her recipes to give pointers on alternatives and accompaniments...

  Full review