• Ganga108 on December 20, 2023

  I adore this book. It is one of the very few that discuss the rich sub-cultures and their different cuisines, even within a quite small area of India. My copy was published in India and the pages hold the aroma of old bookshops in India. I open the book and breathe deeply. It is such a beautiful book and contains recipes that you won't find anywhere else.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Cabbage salad (Thoran)

  • Ganga108 on June 07, 2024

    Thorans are perfect in this extremely hot weather, and Cabbage Thoran transforms this humble vegetable. An unusual recipe for thoran as the cabbage is marinated or cured with lime juice for several hours before a 2 minute stir-fry. A simple set of ingredients compared to other cabbage thoran recipes (fewer spices, a simpler tempering) and thus a lot lighter, but delightful with the marination and tadka. What else is needed in this horrific heat? It would be perfect as a salad-type side dish for robust curries.

• Spicy whole green moong dal (Spicy pachai payir)

  • Ganga108 on October 07, 2025

    Excellent! Such lovely flavours. I used split unhulled mung and it cooked (3m in Instant Pot) softer than the recipe, but the flavours and texture of the result was wonderful. I didn't use coconut, and added some coriander leaves to the cooked dish. Also added a chopped tomato to the tadka after the onion was almost cooked and let it soften. Fantastic result. NOTE the specified pressure cooking times in the recipe seem too long to me. I used 3 mins in the Instant Pot. Also, I had to add more water than the recipe as there is a min water requirement in the IP - this probably contributed to the softness of the dal, but didn't impair flavours.

• Tellicherry lentils (Tellicherry dal)

  • Ganga108 on June 07, 2024

    A lovely dal based on toor dal. Simple to make. I froze leftovers with rice for those busy days ahead.

• Chicken curry (Kozhi saaru)

  • jenburkholder on June 02, 2026

    Very tasty and pretty easy. More than the sum of its parts. I omitted the fried onions on top as I was feeling lazy, but I’m sure they would make the dish even nicer.

• Vegetables in a curd base (Avial)

  • jenburkholder on June 02, 2026

    I like the avial recipe in Vibrant India better, but this was still generally enjoyable. Used a mixture of green plantain, bell pepper, and carrot.

• Pepper water (Rasam)

  • Ganga108 on June 07, 2024

    Lovely rasam with toor dal. Some rasams can be thin, tangy and delicious, but when they are made with (enough) toor dal, they are thicker, tangy and delicious. I added a few more spices to this recipe, as it felt like I needed it. Gorgeous! Delicious! Hit the spot. (I was reminded yesterday that I like to throw the tomatoes for rasam and lots of other Indian dishes, into a small processor or chopper, and process them until fine but not puree. Recipes won't say this but it gives a better dish.)

  • jenburkholder on June 02, 2026

    Great simple rasam recipe that doesn’t require a pre-prepared rasam masala. I added a bit more toor dal for a thicker texture and more protein.

• Mixed vegetables (Thoran)

  • Ganga108 on March 24, 2025

    Yum! Thorans are always classic recipes. I made a version of this with just cabbage, and used ghee. Delicious.