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Indian for Everyone: The Home Cook's Guide to Traditional Favorites
The bestselling author of The Indian Slow Cooker and Vegan Indian Cooking serves up a stunning and comprehensive cookbook that “may be her best yet” (Publishers Weekly, starred review).Anupy Singla is America’s favorite authority on Indian home cooking, and her expertise with delicious, healthful recipes has endeared her to fans the world over. This new book opens up the true simplicity and flavor of Indian food for anyone, regardless of dietary restrictions, expertise, or familiarity.Singla has chosen the cuisine’s most popular dishes and, unlike other Indian cookbooks, embedded different preparation styles and ingredients into every recipe. Included are quick-and-easy adaptations for making a meal vegetarian, vegan, or gluten-free, as well as alternatives for the slow cooker. Beginners appreciate the book’s step-by-step instructions, while veterans find it useful as a reference point for their favorite dishes, including little-known instructions and standard cook times. The book also caters to healthy eaters and folks with allergies and dietary preferences.With deeply personal, detailed stories behind these recipes, readers see how traditional Indian cooking helped connect Singla and her daughters to their cultural heritage. More than the next great Indian cookbook, this is the next great American cookbook—sure to become a staple of every family’s collection.“Indian for Everyone has recipes for native Indians, non-Indians, vegetarians, vegans, and meat-lovers; it offers dishes from restaurant menus and simpler ones prepared at home.” —The Boston Globe“Only have room for one go-to book for Indian home cooking on your shelf? This is it.” —Booklist, Top Ten Food Books of 2015
454 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 22, 2014
104 people are currently reading
166 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
October 19, 2020
By far, the easiest and most delicious Baingan Bhartha (roasted eggplant) dish I’ve made which is why I’ve made it five different times in the past couple of months (: I also enjoyed the cucumber yogurt dip.
April 6, 2017
If you don't already have an Indian-oriented kitchen, cooking any of these recipes will require a substantial investment in the right ingredients, particularly spices. So worth it, though.
June 5, 2025
This book, written by a woman raised in an Indian home in the US, strikes a middle balance between strict authenticity and accessibility to today's US cook. The framing is that you can get ingredients specific to Indian cooking, but you are not going to spend half the day grinding and layering spices. You're going to spend maybe 1/8th of the day. ;-)
January 5, 2018
I received this as a gift and have made a half dozen recipes from this book. All of them came out great. The instructions are very clear
I do recommend that if you are not used to heat, to reduce the hot spices
I do recommend that if you are not used to heat, to reduce the hot spices
September 23, 2018
A decent modern cookbook with a better than average explanation of how to make chapatis and some other Indian breads. Includes a fair number of meat recipes and a few fusion recipes. The one recipe I've cooked so far came out medium spicy and tasted decent.
September 11, 2020
Literally everything I have made out of this cookbook is delicious. I've made quite a few things and am not afraid to try new things because I have confidence they will taste amazing! I definitely recommend this cookbook for Indian food.
March 7, 2019
I enjoyed this book. It has nice little insights into Indian cuisine and culture with lots of recipes that look great and beautiful pictures. Can't wait to make all the food.
March 6, 2020
Loving this cookbook. Totally accessible and Singla seems like a kind and wonderful person. Will likely be buying this or her other cookbooks because my rental from the library just isn't cutting it.
August 15, 2025
Some yummy sounding recipes.
October 11, 2014
I have fond memories of going to a huge Indian festival in Texas (of all places!), and just enjoying the culture and food--especially the food! Real curries, kabobs and the most incredible desserts have long remained a delicious memory for me. I was delighted to receive this book to recreate some amazing Indian food for myself and my family.
This beautiful book is well laid out in a very thoughtful manner. You start with 'Tools of the Trade', letting you know what tools are necessary for recipes in this book. From there you move to 'Indian Spices and Herbs', a sort of glossary of the different spices used. 'The Fridge and Pantry' come next, and then you move right into the recipes. Instead of trying to buy pre-mixed versions of spices such as Tandoori or Garam Masala, why not make your own? Multiple spice mixes are laid out here before moving on to Chutneys and more. I love that you won't find a store-bought curry powder in any of these recipes. Instead, you have a delightful, mix of authentic Indian spices.
The author leans vegan, so there is tofu recipes scattered throughout, but meat dishes are included as well. On the other side, if you're vegetarian or vegan, there are often substitutes listed to make the dish available to you as well. My daughters love Naan (bread), so they were delighted to see the recipe included here. I forsee a baking day with all of us in the kitchen trying our hand at this luscious Indian bread.
This is a lovely, high-quality book that is wonderful to cook from, but is equally at home on the coffee table available for browsing at any time. A delight to cook from, I highly recommend this cookbook!
I received a copy of this book from Agate Publishing for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This beautiful book is well laid out in a very thoughtful manner. You start with 'Tools of the Trade', letting you know what tools are necessary for recipes in this book. From there you move to 'Indian Spices and Herbs', a sort of glossary of the different spices used. 'The Fridge and Pantry' come next, and then you move right into the recipes. Instead of trying to buy pre-mixed versions of spices such as Tandoori or Garam Masala, why not make your own? Multiple spice mixes are laid out here before moving on to Chutneys and more. I love that you won't find a store-bought curry powder in any of these recipes. Instead, you have a delightful, mix of authentic Indian spices.
The author leans vegan, so there is tofu recipes scattered throughout, but meat dishes are included as well. On the other side, if you're vegetarian or vegan, there are often substitutes listed to make the dish available to you as well. My daughters love Naan (bread), so they were delighted to see the recipe included here. I forsee a baking day with all of us in the kitchen trying our hand at this luscious Indian bread.
This is a lovely, high-quality book that is wonderful to cook from, but is equally at home on the coffee table available for browsing at any time. A delight to cook from, I highly recommend this cookbook!
I received a copy of this book from Agate Publishing for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
November 10, 2015
Got this book last spring and just made my 4th recipe from it. The photos are beautiful. The "Getting Started" section educates you on the basics and then each recipe is written so anyone can follow it. The key was going to an Indian grocery story and buying all the necessary spices and ingredients. I have not tried any of the meat recipes yet, because my husband is a vegetarian. So far, I have made Navratan Korma, Palak Paneer, Dal Makhani and North Indian Tempeh Curry. The only one that wasn't a huge hit was the Tempeh Curry and that is because I found that I hate tempeh!!! I will stick with paneer in the future. Also, learned that I don't need to add any Thai chiles - chili powder is plenty hot :-) Mostly, I am amazed that I am making dishes that taste just as authentic as anything I've ever had at a restaurant. Indian food is our family's very favorite and every special occasion is celebrated at an Indian restaurant - now we can have these treats at home and they are not from a jar of curry sauce from Trader Joe's or Kroger!
August 3, 2016
This is a great manual for cooking Indian cuisine at home! The methods are clearly explained, ingredients are labeled by the various names by which they are known (besam/gram/chickpea flour for example), and the dishes look delicious.
The serving sizes appear to be for large families, or perhaps big eaters, because I had to halve or divide every recipe by two/thirds to accommodate the three people who I cook for. The recipes have introductions, explaining what they mean to the author emotionally. While there are a lot of vegetarian dishes, meaty dishes are also included. Also, ingredients are explained in depth, with tips on how to prep and store them. Overall, very instructional, and easy to follow. This would be good for home cooks who want to make Indian cuisine at home, without minimal fuss.
The serving sizes appear to be for large families, or perhaps big eaters, because I had to halve or divide every recipe by two/thirds to accommodate the three people who I cook for. The recipes have introductions, explaining what they mean to the author emotionally. While there are a lot of vegetarian dishes, meaty dishes are also included. Also, ingredients are explained in depth, with tips on how to prep and store them. Overall, very instructional, and easy to follow. This would be good for home cooks who want to make Indian cuisine at home, without minimal fuss.
March 10, 2015
If you are new to Indian cuisine, this is the book for you! The author takes the time to break down everything you need to know about the seasoning and spices and vocabulary. Then she launches into fabulous recipes with wonderful photos.
Note: It is mentioned in the beginning of the book, but I'll say it here too. These recipes are guides to making delicious foods, but they are not set in stone. If you prefer mild seasonings, lessen the amounts listed. Taste as you go - like they do on the cooking shows.
Note: It is mentioned in the beginning of the book, but I'll say it here too. These recipes are guides to making delicious foods, but they are not set in stone. If you prefer mild seasonings, lessen the amounts listed. Taste as you go - like they do on the cooking shows.
December 8, 2014
I love Indian food. We didn't have access to good Indian food in the state where we used to live. I'm so happy we have a great Indian food place just down the street.
I enjoyed reading this cookbook, but I probably won't cook any of the recipes. It did help me know what I might want to order next time. Since the boys don't really enjoy spicy food, we'll probably stick to Indian food as our date night treat.
I enjoyed reading this cookbook, but I probably won't cook any of the recipes. It did help me know what I might want to order next time. Since the boys don't really enjoy spicy food, we'll probably stick to Indian food as our date night treat.
December 30, 2015
Very clear directions for wonderfully flavorful Indian dishes. I had been intimidated in the past, but after visiting an Indian grocery store for all the right spices, I am finding the recipes to be very straightforward. Yum, yum!
October 21, 2014
Fabulous introduction to the spices and ingredients of Indian food. Delish!
January 19, 2015
Lots of vegetable and vegetarian recipes. Some recipes have long ingredient lists, but are mostly spices. The photos and descriptions of ingredients, especially all the dals, will be very helpful.
April 5, 2015
Time to try only one recipe for dahl and it was excellent.
May 7, 2015
Lots of good recipes to try. But had so many & most without pictures. I think it could have been edited down
December 30, 2015
Recipes and concepts include beginner and expert cooking techniques. I learned so much about the 'why' of Indian cuisine. A must-read for serious ethnic cooks. All thumbs up.
June 8, 2016
Great variety of recipes and very accessible ingredients and techniques for the beginner, home Indian cook.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews