Best Of Lord Krishnas Cuisine: Amazon.ca: Yamuna Devi: Books

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India's vegetable cuisine is the world's most varied. That was proven by Yamuna Devi's encyclopedic Lord Krishna's Cuisine: the Art of Vegetarian Cooking. Drawing on it, The Best of Lord Krishna's Cuisine presents 172 meatless dishes--detailed, wide-ranging recipes that focus on lightness and cooking ease. Readers seeking an introduction to the vibrant cooking of India's vegetarians (many Krishna devotees) as well as those wishing practical recipes for sophisticated meatless cooking will be delighted.

Divided into chapters exploring dals (legumes), pilafs and vegetable dishes, salads, and snacks and desserts, among others, the book beautifully balances accessible recipes with lively investigation. (Devi examines, for example, the place of dals in Indian culinary tradition, their kinds and uses, nutritional value, and various preparation methods, including pressure cooking.) Equally useful are the recipe head notes, which offer extensive tips on techniques; flavor information; ingredient profiles and serving suggestions. Worth trying immediately are Devi's Curried Potatoes with Eggplant; Baked Bananas with Tamarind-Flavored Coconut; and Zucchini Pakoras with Crushed Peanuts, one of many delectable fritter recipes. Among the chutneys, the sweet tomato with fennel and the golden papaya chip would make exciting accompaniments. The desserts, including Cardamom Shortbread Cookies and Pistachio Milk Fudge, challenge the usual Western indifference to Indian sweets. The author also offers chilled drinks like the intriguing Perfumed Sandalwood Crush. Concluding with a comprehensive glossary, the book provides a window on an ancient culinary art made modern by Devi's inquiring spirit and practical know-how. --Arthur Boehm

Book Description

A recognized genius of Indian vegetarian cuisine presents 172 of her award-winning recipes. Accompanied by a new introduction, these are the best recipes from Devi's 824-page original volume Lord Krishna's Cuisine: The Art of Indian Vegetarian Cooking, referred to as "The Vegetarian Bible" by the Philadelphia Inquirer.

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Customer Reviews

13 Reviews

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Average Customer Review

3.2 out of 5 stars (13 customer reviews)

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1.0 out of 5 stars Authentic? Depends on your perspective, Aug 31 2003

By

chefdevergue (Spokane, WA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Best Of Lord Krishnas Cuisine (Paperback)

If you are more concerned with adhering to Vedic principles than in creating interesting Indian food, then by golly, this is the cookbook for you. Probably you don't consider other Indian food to be authentic (just the way Texans don't consider Kansas City or Carolina barbeque to be REAL barbeque), but let's face it: most Indians no longer adhere strictly to the Vedic principles when it comes to food preparation. No onions, no garlic? I don't think so.

This is a cookbook more concerned with Vedic hair-splitting than with creating decent recipes. I found that most of the recipes I tried were unnecessarily complicated, if not downright unworkable, and the results, more often than not, were totally bland and uninteresting. After several unsatisfying attempts, I abandoned this cookbook as a hopeless case, and it has gathered dust on my bookshelf for the last 7-8 years.

Keep in mind that the author (the former Joan Campanella) is a convert to what we commonly define as the Hare Krishnas, and that the followers of this movement comprise a tiny fraction of India's population. They are like Vegans, as compared to your average Vegetarian, and their food cannot by any definition be called the food of the average Indian.

It amazes me that the recipes of a western convert are called more authentic than the recipes of native Indians, but then again, it is most likely only other converts to the Krishna Consciousness movement saying that.

If this belief system appeals to you, then by all means, use this cookbook with great relish. There is plenty of Vaishnava musing to be found within this book's pages. The rest of us prefer not to die of boredom or frustation from unworkable recipes.

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1.0 out of 5 stars not authentic, not very indian, Aug 31 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Best Of Lord Krishnas Cuisine (Paperback)

I

That book that:

"A decade ago Yamuna Devi's Lord Krishna's Cuisine was named Cookbook of the Year by the International Association of Culinary Professionals "

was given that award when it was practically the only indian cookbook on the shelf back in the late 70's. Back then people didn't know what real indian cuisine tasted like.

As an indian I will tell you, these recipes are NOT authentic indian at all. Although they follow strict VEDIC indian food guidelines, in that there is no garlic, onion, meat, eggs etc., they could be much, much better.

This is more like very bland (remember no onion etc.) AMERICAN FOOD that follows VEDIC indian GUIDLINES with a few indian spices thrown in. What a mess!

Unless you are a really following vedic guildlines for religious reasons and have tried everything else, there are much better books to buy.

If you ARE following vedic guidlines I would suggest you do a search on the internet for vedic indian cookbooks (from India) because this is the only one I've come across here and its really bad. I mean really bad :(.

If you are just looking for indian cookbooks buy a Muthu Jaffrey's cookbook (indian)to get started or Neelam Batra's (fusion indian) are really delicious too!

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5.0 out of 5 stars Authentic, Tasty and Healthy, Aug 28 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Best Of Lord Krishnas Cuisine (Paperback)

Quite frankly I'm baffled by other reviewers who find this cookbok to be difficult or disappointing. Someone who finds the taste of oily, non-descript, and "curry" flavored foods you find in many Indian restaurants as excellent examples of Indian cooking might be confused by Yamuna Devi's presentation of subtly spiced and well balanced dishes. I grew up in India and traveled throughout much of the country. I can attest that the author has beautifully captured the wonderfully deep culinary tradition that India has to offer. On a side note, I quite enjoy the personal way Yamuna Devi relates her culinary voyage to her readers. She writes thoughtfully of sources and inspirations for recipes. It seems that her spiritual awakening is tied to her cooking and therefore it seems natural that she would relate these personal reflections to her readers.

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful and authentic cookbook
As a person of western origin who learned to cook in India,by Indians, I feel I must say that this book is undeniably authentic. Read more

Published on Nov 17 1999

3.0 out of 5 stars A disappointing and hard-to-use book.
Like languages in India, it is impossible to make generalizations about Indian food because there are simply too many regional and ethnic variations. Read more

Published on Oct 19 1999