Recipe Book 4 'proper' curries

Zziggi · 20 August 2005 at 10:42PM

I've been on the look out for ages for a 'proper' indian cook book. I'm looking for the sort that makes authentic indian dishes - not indian food for the western palate.

A pakistani friend of mine had one that was given to her by her mum when she got married. I lost touch with her so i can't ask her what it was called. It was in english but had all the indian names for spices etc etc and made the real McCoy curries, samosas etc etc. I've been on the hunt for something like this for a good couple of years and never found anything that is an indian cookbook aimed at British Asians rather than a cook book aimed at the general British public.

Any one suggest anything?

I'm also looking for a good old standard cookery 'Bible' that i can keep and dip into. The best i've got so far is an old booklet that came with a Thorn cooker a friend had. It's very good but am now looking for a cookery book with a larger range of dishes.
Thanks
Zziggi

squeaky · 21 August 2005 at 9:22AM

Apart from the World Famous Curry Recipe by Curry Queen in our Old Style Recipe Collection?

Complete Indian Cookbook Michael Pandya ISBN 0 600 34918 7

apprentice_tycoon · 21 August 2005 at 2:12PM

There were lots of authentic curry-type recipes written up about 4 weeks ago by a new MSEer with an Indian or Pakistani mother, Squeaky might have not found them yet to index. I'll have a look

edit..found it

competitionscafe · 21 August 2005 at 2:18PM

Zziggi wrote:

I'm also looking for a good old standard cookery 'Bible' that i can keep and dip into.

You can't go far wrong with Delia - not the how to boil an egg book, but this one: Delia's Complete Cookery Course Delia Smith:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0563362499/

For authentic Indian Food :
This book was listed on Waitrose Food illustrated's list of 'The Most Useful Cookery Books Ever':
50 Great Curries of India by Camellia Panjabi

"Panjabi demystifies Indian cooking, explaining, say, the role of souring ingredients, thickening agents, and colour. Her writing on spices is brilliant, revealing how the order in which they're added can have a huge effect on a dish. Few Indian food fans will need to look beyond her repertoire of recipes from across the subcontinent."
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1856265463/

table of contents:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/reader/1856265463/ref=sib_rdr_toc/202-2080687-3227856?%5Fencoding=UTF8&p=S007&j=0#reader-page

Or you could try Cooking Like Mummyji by Vicky Bhogal:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0743239822/

henhog · 21 August 2005 at 3:12PM

I've got the Camilla Panjabi book an it is very detailed and good - I got it from the Book People at work so it was reduced. You can find them on line as well.

miacat · 21 August 2005 at 5:14PM

i,ve got abook, "Indian Cooking " by Lalita Ahmed, had it a long time but it,s got everything in, breads,samosas,daals currys. she,s one of the best asian cooks.

Alison_B · 21 August 2005 at 9:07PM

I have got a vegetarian one that is brilliant. It is called Vegetable Curry Bible and it is by Pat Chapman.

krishna · 21 August 2005 at 10:16PM

Try Mama's Vegetarian Cookbook: South Indian Meals by Stephanie Ramamurthy
ISBN 1-903918-20-0

These are genuine tried and tested home recipes by the author. Easy to follow and produce good results. Published price is £8.75, but you can get it for around £7 incl postage direct from the author. PM me if interested. I should be able to give you their contact details since the author is my mother.

Krishna

Mumoffour · 21 August 2005 at 10:38PM

an indian book written by indians specifically for indians is a book called indian delights written by zulekha mayet. this book is the real mccoy and is one that i always refer to when I'm stuck, its a heirloom handed down two generations,hth

Zziggi · 22 August 2005 at 1:20AM

thanks everyone for your tips!

I've seen the mummyji book in WHSmiths once but the others i'll look into a bit more.

I must have missed bigmuffins posts! (how did that happen?) have already printed them off to add to my growing cooker print-offs file

MrSmartprice · 22 August 2005 at 2:35AM

Madhur Jaffrey's "Indian Cookery" has been around for years. It was originally for the BBC programme she did, and is still around. The recipes are all authentic.

Her more recent one is called "Flavours of India" and again has some superb recipes, along with lots of tips and techniques. It should be easy to find.

PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING

Recipe Book 4 'proper' curries

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