Customer Reviews

An Invitation To Indian Cooking

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm from Delhi myself, and I grew up with excellent North Indian cooking every day of my life. This is the cookbook that I recommend to my friends. Indian cooking is so very different from region to region that not every recipe is how I myself would make it ("kheer," for example, varies tremendously throughout India and though I make it completely differently from Jaffrey, her recipe is still tasty). But they're all good, they're all authentic, and they're all very easy to follow. I totally disagree with the person who said this is Americanized Indian cooking -- this is extremely genuine North Indian cooking. It's not South Indian or West Indian or Punjabi, and you can't expect it to be. (I have tried Julie Sahni's cookbooks, too, and I didn't keep them because I thought they were awful.) The only book is use more is Jaffrey's "World-of-the-East Vegetarian Cooking" which is probably my favorite cookbook in the world. But I think this book still is truly the best introduction to Indian cooking, and it's an enjoyable read in its own right (don't miss the "foreward").

This was the first Indian cookbook I ever bought back in 1978. I've since bought over 100, but this is still my favorite, in fact I've had to replace it two times since then (the last time I got it in hardcover).

Don't listen to the fool here who said this is "watered down" or "Americanized" Indian food. This fellow apparently thinks that Indian food must be blazingly hot to be "authentic." Nothing could be further from the truth. The recipes here are all authentically Indian although, yes, they reflect Ms Jaffrey's personal tastes. Of course, that's what makes this cookbook so charming.

If you must buy one Indian cookbook, it should be this one. It is absolutely indespensible for any good kitchen.

After spending some time in England, and falling in love with the Indian and Pakistan cuisine, I found myself wanting to make some of these dishes at home. My wife purchased An Invitation to Indian Cooking for me. I cannot begin to offer high enough praise for the book. Ms. Jaffrey makes the complex recipes of this part of the world not only reasonable for the average American cook, but gave my family and I the chance to try some fun and delightful recipes. All the recipes are translated to western measurements, and where possible into western ingredients (be prepared to track down a local Indian food store for some of the ingredients. Interestingly, some of the spices you might find at your local grocery store are usually cheaper at the Indian food stores).

After returning from a trip to India,
I decided I must learn how to cook the delicious
foods that I was able to sample in various regions
of that diverse and fascinating country.
"An Invitation to Indian Cooking" is the
book I bought, and it was clearly a great choice.
The book has been very carefully adapted by
the author for American kitchens - this in no
way "waters down" or "Americanizes" the recipes
as some other reviewers falsely assume has
been said. The book DOES, deliberately,
modify recipes so that they will be
authentic despite the differences in the
American market (our meats are more tender
and have more moisture, for instance, so the
methods for browning meat must be different
than a cook would use in Delhi). These changes
and adaptations are absolutely necessary to
assure the dishes will taste and appear as they
would in India. Ms. Jaffrey has done a marvelous
job and her instructions are not only easy to
follow, but the explanations are easy to under-
stand and appreciate. By all means, if you want
to try cooking Indian, buy this book - and her
others as well.

When I came across Madhur Jaffrey cookbooks, I was dilighted. That also includes the book titled 'Invitation to Indian Cooking' It reminded me of the days when I was introduced to Indian cooking in Newcstle upon Tyne )England). Superb way of explaining and directing Indian cooking. I recommend All of Mdhu Jafreys cookbook to everyone, but I am afraid that I do not recommend her ready made curries available on the shelfs of the supermarkets around the world.

I bought this book based on a review I read at RecipeDelights.com. I just wanted to share it with you- Madhur Jaffrey is an international authority on Indian food and the host of several tandoori-driven TV shows. This illustrated book, with more than 200 recipes has been written especially for non-Indians. She walks you through each step of the process. Just follow her detailed directions and you will end up with mouth-watering dishes. HTH.

Madhur Jaffrey is an international authority on Indian food and the host of several tandoori-driven TV shows. She walks you through each step of the process. Just follow her detailed directions and you will end up with mouth-watering dishes. Recipedelights.com recommends this illustrated book with more than 200 recipes, to non-Indians.

............Madhur Jaffrey brings us the cooking she grew up with in Delhi in this wonderful cookbook in which she offers us not only great recipes, but an introduction to Indian cooking and sample menus. She also proudly imparts her own story of why she became a cookbook writer. Her pride in her culture and in the food of Delhi really shine through and make us want to share in her joy of preparing marvelous recipes.

A few recipes from this book that I truly recommend are: Lamb Korma (can't be beat), Pork Chops Cooked with Cabbage, Lamb do Pyaza, Koftas, Tandoori Chicken, Fried Eggplants, Potato Patties and Kheer (corrected version). I'm sure, too, that there are many others contained in this cookbook that I have yet to discover!

A few notes on the downside: there are no pictures in this cookbook. I personally enjoy beautiful photos to guide me through a recipe to its finished product. Some cooks may not be bothered by their absence. I have also found an error in a recipe (and honestly don't know if there may be more). The Kheer recipe clearly should call for more than a tablespoon of rice! Jaffrey's tone could sometimes also use some adjusting at times. It grated on my nerves tremendously when she referred to American rice pudding as "stodgy" and insisted that accidentally referring to kheer as rice pudding was insulting. She does this in several places throughout the book. This may not bother many of you who will really love this cookbook. Between my husband and I, Jaffrey's arrogance has sort of become a joke - as we read her occasional imperatives while we follow a recipe, we laugh, imagining that we are kids again, being yelled at in the kitchen by our mothers!

Anyway, Jaffrey's faults aside, I strongly recommend this cookbook.

This book contains recipes for nothing but "watered-down" Indian food. Madhur has "Americanized" every dish, right down to the menu suggestions My question is why? Isn't this supposed to be an Indian cookbook? If you really want to eat REAL Indian food, I'd recommend buying a book by Shehzad Husain or Julie Sahni (author of Classical Indian Cooking, the best Indian cookbook out there!). Husain and Sahni don't water down their recipes, they add just as much spice as a cook in India would to their recipes, and the recipes are truly authentic.

I must say, the recipes in Madhur's book are not atrocious, they all turn out quite tasty, and my "American" friends enjoy the food as well as my Indo-Pak friends. However, they don't taste "Indian", but rather like a hybrid of the two styles of cooking.

I'm glad I only spent $... on this book. I saved the big bucks for Sahni and Husain's books.

I've owned my battered hardback copy ... since 1976. We use itconstantly. Virtually every page is marked with notations on lengthof time for preparation and cooking as well as what we've served withit. One of its greatest values is her menu suggestions since Indianfood is best when complementary dishes are eaten together. I've boughtmany of her other cookbooks and with the exception of Quick Cooking(which is an excellent distillation of more complex dishes into oneswith shorter preparation time), a number of them don't include menusuggestions.