Made in India: Cooked In Britain Recipes From And Indian Family Kitchen

by Meera Sodha

MADE IN INDIA : the top ten bestselling Indian cookbook that will change the way you cook, eat, and think about Indian food, forever.

**Look out for FRESH INDIA, Meera Sodha's new cookbook, coming summer 2016**

Real Indian food is fresh, simple and packed with flavour and in MADE IN INDIA, Meera Sodha introduces Britain to the food she grew up eating here every day. Unlike the stuff you get at your local curry house, her food is fresh, vibrant and surprisingly quick and easy to make.

In this collection, Meera serves up a feast of over 130 delicious recipes collected from three generations of her family: there's everything from hot chappatis to street food (chilli paneer and beetroot and feta samosas), fragrant curries (spinach and salmon or perfect cinnamon lamb curry), to colourful side dishes (pomegranate and mint raita, kachumbar salad), and mouth-watering puddings (mango, lime and passion fruit jelly and pistachio and saffron kulfi).

'This book is full of real charm, personality, love and garlic. The best Indian food is cooked (and eaten) at home' Yotam Ottolenghi

'Wonderful, vibrant...deeply personal food, alive and authentic - the best sort - and, frankly, I want to cook everything in this book' Nigella Lawson

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction, India, Reference, Culinary

320 pages, Hardcover

First published July 3, 2014

About the author

Meera Sodha is a home cook and an occasional chef at the Michelin-rated Indian restaurant Gymkhana in London. When Made in India was published in the UK, it became an instant top-ten bestseller and was named one of the year's best books by many newspapers and periodicals.

Reviews

[Annet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this cookbook! And I love Indian food :-) I bought this book at Waterstones Cambridge and the cover was pretty damaged. So I got a deal, 50% or so off after some negotiating. Good deal, but I would have bought it anyway I think ;-). Best cook book in a long time I say. The excellent feature of this cook book is that the recipes are not only excellent and delicious, the descriptions are also really clear, easy to follow. Results are really good!
So, this book is regularly sitting on my couch, because I'm browsing through it for the next recipe to try. Here's three tips: Mum's chicken curry (easy and delicious), Bombay eggs (wow a really surprising one-pot brunch, delicious!) and, simple but really good: spinach with black pepper, garlic and lemon. For those who love Indian food, recommended!!!

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want to make the majority of these recipes. Well, actually, I want a disciple of Meera's to open a Fresh Indian restaurant in my city, so s/he can make them for me. They look *almost* easy enough for me to succeed in making. Most of the ingredients are in my pantry already. Very many of the recipes are vegetarian friendly, quite a few are even adaptable to vegans' diets.

Four stars because I need to buy a copy of this so I can try the recipes, and because there are some things I think are too 'gourmet' to be in the book, like lamb and recipes that are, after all, complicated. But it might actually deserve five stars. It does have lots of helpful appendices, and lots of stories.

Homemade Paneer: 1/2 gal. whole milk, 4T lemon juice
(Although, it looks like many paneer recipes would actually be a good way to use Tofu.)

Add ginger to lemonade.

Grow your own bean sprouts, try lentils instead of hunting down mung beans. Also, eat when sprouted; don't necessarily wait until there's no bean left.

Coconut-Milk Fudge:
1.5 C condensed milk - Simmer, add 2 C dessicated coconut and 1/2 t ground cardamom.
Keep simmering until it resembles a soft dough, cool and test a pinch to see if you can roll a ball from it. When ready, cool (in a fresh bowl). Form 25 to 30 balls, roll in 1/2 C des. coconut, chill.

Roast Cauliflower with a drizzle of spiced oil (5T oil to 1/2 t turmeric, 2 t cumin seeds, ground w 1.5 t salt, 1 t chili powder). Squirt w/ lemon juice, serve.

Saute fresh green beans with ginger (and mustard seeds?), then add a bit of tomato paste & turmeric, salt & pepper.

'Cole' Slaw: add radish, red onion, mint, cilantro, lime juice.

Cabbage (that looks like Pad Thai noodles):
2 t mustard seeds, cook to 'pop' in 2 T oil
Add: 1 large onion, sliced, then 1/5 lbs cabbage, same.
Steam (in a bit of water, lid on skillet) then
Add 1/2 t turmeric, 1 t salt, 1 t cumin, 3/4 t chili powder, 1 T tomato paste,
Serve when completely tender. I suggest serving w/ lime and chopped peanuts!

Pickle 2 red onions in 6 T lime juice, 1t salt. Ready in an hour in the fridge.

Savory (Ugandan) 'French' Toast: chili powder and minced cilantro.

[Kamakana · Rating 5 out of 5]

if you like this review, i now have website: www.michaelkamakana.com

210930: excellent cookbook. if you like indian food and like to cook you will love it after this cookbook. recipes, ingredients, techniques are all possible, some inspiring photos, lists of basics at end, divided well into meat, fish, vegetables, grains, desserts, drinks. weekly grocery shopping with my mom, then cooking, we are moving through this book, not all too hot/spicy, all fun to make. fingers still slightly of ginger, garlic, green pepper mashed into paste by mortar and pestle, after making coconut fish curry yesterday... best recipe we have done so far is package of fish in mint cilantro coconut garlic...

[Benjamin Chandler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every recipe I've tried in this book has been delicious, yet easy to make. These are not complicated recipes—Sodha's instructions are clear and prep time is short—but they still provide a great deal of flavor, sometimes in surprising layers.

I especially recommend the beet & feta samosas.

[Grace Kwan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great cookbook for beginners to Indian cuisine. Love that the book has tons of options for meat-eaters and vegetarians alike, and that most of the recipes can be made in 30 minutes. Once you have a few of the pantry basics Meera recommends, the ingredient lists are remarkably unintimidating. This book is perfect for weeknight dinners! I only wish that more of the recipes had pictures – only about half, or maybe a few less, have photos.

[Martijn van Duivenboden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Iedere dag feest met dit boek. De recepten zijn niet moeilijk, wel lekker en gezond. En dan is het ook nog meer dan de geijkte curry. Wij gaan hier nog veel meer uit maken. Kom gerust eens langs.

[Julie Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is engagingly written and full of common sense tips to get authentic Indian food on your table. Authentic in this case means Gujarati Indian via Uganda via England. Global Indian food in other words which should feel right at home in an American kitchen.

Full disclosure, I haven't cooked from it yet but will be doing so this very week. My oldest daughter saw the book in the kitchen and said, "That's the cookbook I've been using. It's fantastic!" (Here's one of the recipes she made.) Nuff said.

UPDATE
We've cooked many recipes from this cookbook and all are wonderful.

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I checked this book out of the library after reading about in on Food52's The Piglet contest. It was so good I am now going to have to buy it as there are way too many recipes that I didn't get a chance to try. I can recommend the Roasted Marsala chicken and her recipe for Naan. Her technique for cooking perfect basmati rice is how I will do it from now on. Finally, the layout of the book is great with ideas for menus and side dishes for everything and a lot of really pretty images and photos.

[Kiera Beddes · Rating 4 out of 5]

SO DELICIOUS. Easy to follow recipes and so authentic. My one complaint is that filo dough is literally the most difficult thing to work with, but the samosas were delicious!

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finally have an answer to where someone trying to learn how to cook like an Indian should start.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been a long time since I last bought a cookbook.... Maybe since my wedding? 🙈 This was worth every penny! We've already made several recipes in this book, and each one has been requested by my family to be a regular part of our rotation. I appreciated the cultural insights, not only into Indian food and culinary tradition, but also into this author's family life. Beautifully photographed with helpful input for a non-indian, amateur cook who is quite inspired by Indian cuisine! YUM!

[Sarah Grider · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was intimidated to attempt cooking Indian food since I've never tried before, but I love eating it! This is a great introduction to a lot of different dishes including sides, entrees, desserts and drinks. She makes it really easy to substitute anything you might be able to find at our local grocery store. Loved this cookbook!

[Alyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Mum’s Chicken Curry” may be the most delicious food (other than ice cream) that I have ever eaten. And it’s only the beginning-the naan is to die for. This book has taught me that you don’t need to cook for hours to make exceptionally tasty Indian fare.

[Cristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love indian food but it can be tough to make at home. The beauty of this book is that the recipes are pretty simple, with ingredients which are easy to find and the results are always delicious. If you love indian food, this is the book to own!

[Jo Dennis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything is amazing, and pretty straightforward to make. Thank you!!!

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to make at home recipes packed with flavor.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Want to try them all!

[Val · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! Beautiful photos and accessible recipes. Cooked a big meal from this book and loved it all.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

For the most part, fairly simple recipes with limited ingredients.

[M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent cookbook with easy-to-follow directions and beautiful photographs. I've made the chicken tikka, Mom's chicken curry, coconut tamarind curry, naan, roti and chapati and they've all turned out pretty well. I'm a novice home cook and Sodha's recipes were simple enough for me to follow.

[Darbin O’Gill · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a masterclass in Indian cooking for the British Palette. Now the Brits I estimate are further along in their popularity with Indian food than we, as americans are. Even though the relationship is definitely different than American's to Mexican food, I would equate the level of comfort with that of the Brits and Indian food. Would it be wrong to estimate this as authentic? I don't know, cause I eat McDonalds weekly.
I made about 5 recipes out of this book repetitively because I had to tone down the spices for my dinner party. I personally loved it strong and loved the idea of the dish is one component of the meal, you can have the spicy protein because you have a cooling salad, sure the samosa might be dry but that is why you have chutneys to dip.

I recommend this book for the adventurous cooks that don't have to host a dinner party for white people (with love, they are my friends).

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rare cookbook where I might actually make decent use of the dessert chapter.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Made in India
Author, Meera Sodha, grew up in England, the daughter of indian immigrants. These recipes reflect her mother’s cooking knowledge and her own love of cooking. A glossary of indian ingredients is included. And there is a list of menus. Recipes have a Gujarati and Parsi emphasis which many cooks will find unusual if they are used to Punjabi cuisine. There are even a few Ugandan recipes reflecting her parents background.
Sodha includes lots of pictures of the cooking in process and the final dish. This is a good cookbook to get if you want to broaden the traditional indian repertoire. The desserts combine the authentic with familiar dishes that most cooks can tackle including a cardamom cake and a passion fruit jello.
Sodha supplies detailed steps and easy prep tips to make the more complicated dishes easier.
There are some really interesting chicken dishes I haven’t seen elsewhere including a chicken with pistachios and another with figs. The range of diverse dishes is one of the greatest strengths of this cookbook.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Saved Recipes:
1. Palak Paneer (Fresh Spinach and Paneer)
2. Roasted Aloo Gobi Salad
3. Masala Phool Kobi (Roasted Cauliflower with Cumin, Turmeric and Lemon)
4. Chaat Salad
5. Masala Chai :P
6. Coriander Chutney Chicken
7. Mint and Yoghurt Chutney

Drooled all over the Pulses and Grains section which came with some wise tips on cooking the perfect rice. But I particularly loved reading the short notes found at the appendix section of quintessential Indian ingredients, such as spices, herbs and leaves, vegetables and roots, pulses and grains, flour, milk, and yoghurt. <3 Charming!

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was really late in discovering this book . It should be for everyone interested in dipping into Indian cooking for the first time. With a lot of recipe books I end up making one or two items, but with this I have made well over 75% of them. Recipes are easy to follow and tasty- especially the vegetarian options. Most of the recipes can be made in 30mins and you don’t need a host of specialist ingredients. Looking forward to get Meera’s second book “Fresh”

[Penny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fantastic cookbook. Recipes are well-chosen, easy to follow, and delicious. The author includes a ton of information on ingredients, spices, even wine pairings and damage control. Everything I've made from here has turned out beautifully, and a few are already regular features. My personal favorite is probably the spring vegetable curry, but I haven't tried any of the desserts yet so that could change. Recommended for anyone who loves Indian food, including beginners.

[Lauren Keller · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing cookbook. I used to think I didn’t like Indian food, but then I realized I was cooking from this book at least once a week. Her black dal, salmon and spinach curry, and naan are absolute bangers. Start with those and branch out from there. Even if you’ve never tried your hand at international cuisine, this is a very approachable way to start. Also, many of the recipes take an hour or less (the black dal isn’t, but it mostly babysits itself all afternoon and is so worth it).

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the simplicity of most of the recipes with some interesting twists to some classic recipes coming from the author's family history of living in Uganda and the UK.
like most uk cookbooks there is a lot more use of wt in measurements which if you don't have a kitchen scale requires some work converting.

[Coco · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this indian cookbook. Recipes are achievable. We tried the "Corn Cobs with Chilli Garlic Butter" searing the corns on the barbecue. It was the tastiest corn cob recipe I have tried. It was also a very easy recipe to make.We served it with Sausages and mash. Some of the recipes can be served with a non-indian meal.

[Jillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a novice at cooking Indian food, and this cookbook is a fabulous help. The writing is engaging, the recipes are clear and straightforward, and every dish I made was delicious:
1. Creamy Chicken and Fig Curry
2. Beet and Feta Samosas
3. Chili Paneer
4. Chana Ka Chips
Looking forward to many more recipes out of this one.