NYT’s best cookbooks of the year (gift link). Most surprising to me? An apparently authentic regional Chinese/Chinese American cookbook from America’s Test Kitchen, not known for its facility with recipes outside the American tradition.
I already had library holds on Snacking Bakes (long wait), Bake Smart (currently on order and I’m fourteenth on the hold list, so also a long wait), and Ever-Green Vietnamese.
Thanks for sharing this. I’m picking up Snacking Bakes from the library tomorrow and it turns out that Indian Flavor Every Day is (supposedly) on the shelf - I’ve been looking for a beginner Indian cookbook.
I’d also recommend checking out Made in India by Meera Sodha. This was a very successful COTM several years ago on Chowhound, and the recipes are quite approachable.
I just got Snacking Bakes from a friend: can’t wait to crack it open! The Toronto Public Library is STILL recovering from a hacking, so no holds can be placed. I have a very lengthy list when they are back up and running…
I got this from the library and made the chickpea/potato curry for lunches. Yum! I’m seriously considering getting the cookbook although nobody else here will eat any of the dishes, those scaredy-cats…
I created a new discussion for 2024.
Hmm, could you try Mum’s Chicken Curry on them as an entry point?
I didn’t see that in this cookbook - same author different source? I could probably get them to eat a tandoori chicken dish if I call it something different. It’s all about branding…
Oh, I thought you were referring to Made in India, but maybe you meant Indian Flavor Every Day. Mum’s Chicken Curry isn’t tandoori, it’s chicken braised in a spiced tomato sauce.
What’s the issue? “Don’t like indian food” or something more specific with spice or flavor profile?
Life is too short to try to convince someone of something they’re dug in on.
(My best friend from college still says she “doesn’t like indian food” though she eats anything Indian-leaning I cook or order, or another Indian-origin friend of ours cooks.)
I’ve run into a few people who say they don’t like curry (or sushi, or spicy food, or perogies ).
The “no curry of any kind” comment happened on a couple dates in my 30s, and in 2 instances, I took it as a flag that the fellows were more closed minded than I’d like.
If you dont want to acquire another tome, Meera Sodha has tons of recipes on the Guardian website.
I had borrowed Indian Flavor Every Day. (If you have that, the chickpea/potato stuff was good!)
Very good questions. My fellow diners are:
(1) DH, who grew up in a very Midwestern household with two parents who cooked for sustenance not for fun. His palate has expanded in our 20 (!) years together, and he learned that he loves some Thai dishes, but Indian scares him, I think.
(2) DS13, who in some ways is a typical teenage boy (burgers and nachos). He’s pretty good about trying new forms of ingredients he knows he likes - eg chicken or tomatoes - but has clear dislikes and forms opinions quickly on the basis of absolutely nothing. Did I mention that he’s a teenage boy?
Neither of them have had any exposure to Indian food beyond the few (very few) dishes I have tried to make. And I don’t know the cuisine well enough to help them navigate. In the past, I’ve gone to buffets and tried all the dishes that looked interesting… unfortunately I can’t do that anymore.
I think tikka kabob and sheek kabob might be gateway dishes.
In Canada, butter chicken is the gateway dish. Butter chicken lasagna and butter chicken poutine have become things. You’ll now see butter chicken at many mainstream mid range chain restaurants, next to the shepherds pie, club sandwiches and fish and chips.
Samosas, too.
Definitely. Our Whole Foods, back before the Amazonization, always had them fresh in the store. My indulgence of choice!
IMO they are all gateway dishes. Pakkoras, rogan josh, baingan bharta, lamb shahi korma, mango pudding…ultimate comfort foods.
Lamb and eggplant freak out most plain-eating Canadians. Chicken tends to be the gateway protein up here.
Mutter paneer, aloo gobi and palak /sag paneer are probably the most popular veg dishes for non-South Asians here.
I’ve never seen Mango Pudding at an Indian restaurant in Canada!
Lots of kheer and Gulab Jamun, sometimes carrot halwa.
