Chaat: Recipes from the Kitchens, Markets, and Railways of India: A Cookbook

by Maneet Chauhan, Jody Eddy

“A sumptuous whistle-stop tour of India’s diverse food ways. Maneet has penned a love letter to the best of Indian food.”—Padma Lakshmi, host and executive producer of Top Chef and Taste the NationIACP AWARD WINNER • LONGLISTED FOR THE ART OF EATING PRIZE • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Food Network • Salon • Epicurious • Garden & Gun • Wired Explore the bold flavors, regional dishes, and stunning scenery of India with over 80 recipes from Chopped judge and James Beard Award-winning chef Maneet Chauhan.In Chaat, Maneet Chauhan explores India’s most iconic, delicious, and fun-to-eat foods coming from and inspired by her discoveries during an epic cross-country railway journey that brought her to local markets, street vendors, and the homes of family and friends.  From simple roasted sweet potatoes with star fruit, lemon, and spices to a fragrant layered chicken biryani rice casserole, and the flakiest onion and egg stuffed flatbreads, these recipes are varied, colorful, and expressive. Maneet weaves in personal stories and remembrances as well as historical and cultural notes as she winds her way from North to South and East to West, sharing recipes like Goan Fried Shrimp Turnovers, Chicken Momo Dumplings from Guwahati in Assam, Hyderabad's Spicy Pineapple Chaat, and Warm-Spiced Carrot and Semolina Pudding from Amritsar.  With breathtaking photography and delectable recipes, Chaat is a celebration of the diversity of India's food and people.

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

255 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 6, 2020

Reviews

[Jeffrey Caston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not your typical Indian cookbook.

I liked this one a lot, even though there were not a ton of recipes I intend to use. It focuses on "Chaat," which I learned essentially boils down to snacks and street food. But some of them are not the average street food and looked like complex little meals. Wowza. And I learned SO MUCH other stuff too that I was very glad about. Stuff about the different regions and states. Stuff I'd never seen depicted anywhere, much less a cook book. So that was pretty cool.

There's a spiced peanut snack I am dying to try. That'll probably be the first thing I try.

[Lata · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. This is a book I’ll have to come back to so I can try out some of the recipes. We enjoyed the very occasional meal from a street vendor when last in India (many years ago. We couldn’t tell my proper grandmother that we’d done so as she would have been offended we hadn’t had lunch with her those few times.)
I liked the mix of memoir and recipe in this book, and looking at the photos made me very hungry!

[Eden · Rating 5 out of 5]

2022 bk 80: Oh, How I wish I had purchased this beautiful book in hardback! Much more than a cookbook, Chahaun shows us her India, the travels, Indian Railway Vendors and glimpses into her childhood. This is a delight to the eyes - and descriptions are so good, I swear, I can almost taste the food described! There are some items that I will be trying out, but I also forsee a trip to Nashville to visit some of the restaurants.

[FashionablyEvil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part travel memoir, part cookbook. And I am now very hungry.

[Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not sure this is a great reason for rating a cookbook 4 stars but I just really liked the stories that went with each recipe and the descriptions of each region. It was a little bit like a travelogue and also the author really loves her country (and the food, that was super obvious), which came across nicely.
I don't really want to cook Indian street food, I fortunately live in an area with an abundance of Indian restaurants (mostly Punjab influenced) and don't need to cook it at home. But it was very interesting to read about the different foods and where they are from and what they are made of, it should hopefully make it easier to order next time I go out for lunch. Because I still have to google half the menu to figure out what I want.

[Stephanie]

Review coming soon

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Chaat are typically snacks or small meals that are tangy and sweet, fiery and crunchy, savory and sour all in one topsy-turvy bite." In this lovely book, CHAAT: RECIPES FROM THE KITCHENS, MARKETS, AND RAILWAYS OF INDIA, Maneet Chauhan explores the many regional chaat recipes she grew up with visiting friends and family along India's vast railway system. It is filled with fantastic photographs of railway stations, chaat vendors, and other scenes in India, and her recipes are accompanied with captivating little stories about her experiences eating and learning about them. It's wonderful.

I used to travel to India (mainly Pune, in Maharashtra) often for work, and I loved talking to my colleagues, many of whom came from other states, about their favorite foods. I tried everything. We planned a weekend drive to Lonavla partly to see the Karla and Bhaja Caves and visit Tiger's Leap and Bhushi Dam, but also because I wanted to buy and eat allll the chikkis. Yum.

Once I talked my driver into taking me to his favorite vada pav vendor in Pune, and if I remember correctly I had him buy me 3 (AMAZING) sandwiches for like 100 rupees (a little more than $1). I still salivate a little when I think about them. This book has a recipe, and I'll try to make it, but it's never the same. I've tried to make chicken biryani (from this book), dal makhni, paneer lababdar, and many of my other favorite Indian recipes at home, and even ordered them from a number of restaurants, but nothing quite catches the magic for me. But that's not to say it isn't worth it to try!

Five stars, a beautiful book. I learned a lot about travel in India and the author's love for her country's food and its people are drawn out on each page. I look forward to trying more of the recipes.

Format: Hardcover cookbook, owned
Read for: 2021 Reading Women Challenge Prompt 4 - Cookbook by a Woman of Color

[Bookworm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saw this at the library and decided to borrow it on a whim. I don't know much about the different foods or regions of India, beyond of what I've eaten here in the US and what my friends have shared with me. So it seemed like a fun read, even if I am too intimidated (and too unskilled, ha!) to really attempt any of these myself.

The cookbook is pretty formulaic: you learn a bit about Indian food and various regions, with recipes of individual foods (plus in what context these foods are consumed and where). The author often shares personal memories surrounding these foods and it makes for a nice mix of both cookbook and memoir.

There's not much more to say about it. I think the author did a pretty good job in breaking down the unfamiliar, explaining what ingredients are, how to get them, etc. I couldn't say as to what level a person would need to be (obviously you should have some experience in the kitchen) but I would imagine this is reasonably accessible for many people.

I suppose if I had any criticism I wish there had been more pictures, because the ones that were shared (just look at that cover!) definitely made me think these were also some genuinely beautiful recipes once they're made (and made by someone who knows what they're doing, haha).

I enjoyed it! Not sure if I'd buy it for myself but for the right person this would make an excellent gift. Borrowed from the library and that was best.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

An impulse purchase because chaat is my favorite part of the menu in any Indian restaurant, reading through this cookbook is making me miss cooking for friends. There are a handful of options here that would reasonably scale down for my current solo cooking but I’ll be planning a dinner party for six months or so from now.

[Upuli Pahalawatta · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is now one of my favourite cookbooks! The writing style is so engaging and the recipes are laid out so neatly that I want to go out and buy a copy for myself and presents.
The authors write about each area of India, explaining their experience with each dishes, transporting you the reader to each locale, eating each delicious dish with them

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cookbook was almost more of a travelogue to India's railway system. Interesting narrative of how the railways work in India being the most popular mode of transportation to traverse that huge country. At every rail station, vendors are selling all kinds of different "Chaat", which is the sweet, salty, spicy, creamy, hot and cold snacks that all sound delicious. They have "milk bars"which are casual walk-up stands to drink flavored milks. All different kinds of Chutneys seem to go along with everything they eat. Much more than just a cookbook with recipes, this book was a real eye-opener into a totally different way of life and cuisine. Nice page about the "dabbawalas". If you think you know something about Indian food...you really don't until you peruse this cookbook.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a delight! I probably won’t ever make any of the recipes in this book, but I loved reading about the different kinds of chaat: appetizer-like treats available at or near the hundreds of train stations in India. Maneet Chauhan tells stories from the train journeys she took as both a child, student and adult and focuses on the unique chaat found in the different regions of the country. The wonderful accompanying photographs made me feel as if I was traveling along with her. Definitely recommended!

[Opal Edgar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved everything about this book. It makes you want to jump onto an Indian train and go through their whole fascinating country. I highly recommend combining the read with a session of watching "Darjeeling Limited" and you've got a real experience on your hand.
The recipes are well explained, but they are not easy and often require hard to find ingredients. Personally, I don't mind, the stories of the author were interesting to read and I feel enriched just knowing about all the foods in the book!

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this cookbook a lot. I loved hearing about the railway system in India, and the different types of chaat you find throughout the country. The stories made me want to travel. The recipes (for me) were a bit intimidating due to unfamiliar ingredients. And I wish there had been pictures of each of the recipes. I had to look things up online to understand what she was talking about sometimes. Overall a fun book to read. I'll probably try a couple of the recipes.

[Katrina Zartman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Colorful photos. Lots of recipes. Inspiring as to make you want to try Indian foods outside of the "normal" American Indian restaurant menu staples. At first, her stories and descriptions of the trains, rides, and stations were interesting. But for an "outsider" they sort of blended together after reading about three of them. I didn't feel compelled to keep reading the story to find out the ending.

[Sara Brockunier · Rating 5 out of 5]

While away I received a free copy from Clarkson Potter in exchange for a free and unbiased review. I have enjoyed reading this book ... especially the recipes ... so many different spices and foods from what I normally eat. The photographs are beautiful. Maneet Chauhan has become a favorite chef since watching her on Food Network.

[Nadia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bold, colorful, and filled with delicious recipes highlighting the diverseness of Indian cuisine. Gorgeous photography and heartwarming stories. Some of the recipes might be a little hard to make as some ingredients could be hard to source if you don't live near an Indian grocery store or an international food shop.

[(a)lyss(a) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a thorough and intensive recipe book!

It's part memoir, part recipe guide. Most of the recipes are intensive and require quite a bit of work. The recipes could be a bit more detailed for those unfamiliar with cooking this way.

The book is broken down by geography and gives some information about the different foods.

Overall an interesting find.

[Jan Canyon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Add a little (or a lot) of spice to your food with this cookbook. From easy to more complex this is a taste of the street food of India. I love Indian food but had not made it at home much. This book changed that! If you love flavorful food, crave something interesting and have basic cooking skills, you will love this book!

[Sireesha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting recipes. Liked the photographs. Tried a few recipes and absolutely loved them.
Didn’t read this cover to cover but browsed through the recipes that caught my fancy.
The Goan Scotch Eggs had been a delight.

[Jane H · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gorgeous cookbook! I especially loved the memoir sections. I'm still a bit hesitant to try a recipe that has so many unfamiliar ingredients. I wondered if I needed more handholding or if I need to just get over it and jump in. It's mouthwatering just to page through!

[Sheela Lal · Rating 3 out of 5]

After listening to a podcast interview, I assumed the book would feature less popular chaat stories and recipes. I was wrong. The recipes were definitely for a Western audience, which surprisingly rubbed me the wrong way.

[Padmaja Patkar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book

Loved the way Majestic describes the simplicity on the train rides & the adventures they bring! Growing bulb in India I do remember the fun. She also talks about each place & it's culinary culture passionately! This is more than just a cookbook!

[R.J. Gilmour · Rating 5 out of 5]

The cookbook is a collection of snack foods found from all over India. Chaat are basically yummy snacks prepared to be eaten on the go, & Chauhan & Eddy present the recipes with pictures & stories about each region from which the recipes come. A great introduction to Indian street food.

[Jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extraordinarily good. Reading through this book evoked the sense that you were standing on the train platform, smelling the food, feeling the heat of the day on your shoulders. The recipes are marvelous. Every one I've made has been great.

[Cynde · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful introduction to street food from India. Beautiful photography and interesting text brings the magic and the flavors to mind. Makes me want to visit her restaurants!!!!

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved reading the stories of Maneet’s childhood and visits to all parts of India!

[Aasinathena · Rating 5 out of 5]

First reads from Maneater. Love and so many recipes to cook from🤩!

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Haven’t made any of the recipes yet, most of them require specialty ingredients which makes sense. It was like a travel diary of the trains of India so I really enjoyed that aspect

[Jane]

These recipes seem so yummy, but too much work for me to prepare for myself.