Flavorful Shortcuts to Indian / (Pakistani) Cooking: Simplified Tandoori Cooking Curried Dishes Vegetable Dishes Desserts and more...

About this BookLet’s blow the whistle on the secrets of Indian/Pakistani cookingMy pure motive in writing this book is to present a straightforward, uncomplicated, quick and as simple a way to cook Indian/Pakistani food as possible. And at the same time I wanted to retain all the authentic flavors, taste and aroma, which is the hallmark of this amazing cuisine.In all through my years as a cooking teacher teaching primarily Indian cuisine I saw too many people, (including my children when they had first moved out of the house) caught up in the frustrations of certain Indian/Pakistani recipes. Although were eager to try cooking, they found themselves apprehensive and intimidated to proceed with it after seeing a long list of a host of unfamiliar ingredients or tedious steps involved.I have had students, at times; walk into one of my cooking classes with a certain recipe they found in their hand asking for clarity on a variety of steps or ingredients mentioned in the recipe. I would look at the page long list of a pinch of almost everything under the sun and think to myself, I know this can be simplified. This was the foundation for the approach for my cooking classes from very early on.I could relate to their frustration, as I had felt it on occasions myself when I had newly moved to the U.S. with my husband and was myself new to cooking. Cooking mainly Indian/Pakistani food at home, the cuisine my husband and I grew up on and relying in those days on a rare Indian cookbook I could lay my hands on to try a recipe that was outside of my collection of family recipes. My goal was to add variation to our family dinners. I remember being overwhelmed just like them by the tiresome list of ingredients. Until one day, I could take no more, and decided to rebel BIG time.We are at a different time now, where technology rules and offers solutions and smoothness to our daily activities everywhere, including the kitchen; and this is America and for the most part our kitchens are well equipped, Halleluiah!So people, let’s take advantage of the tools at our disposal. There is no need to seal the pot cover with a layer of dough when steaming ‘biryanni’, like an American student of mine declared having done employing the authentic ‘dampukht’ style of steaming biryanni (whatever that is). She had gotten the recipe from an Indian or Pakistani neighbor of hers, who put her to the task. My dear let’s step back a bit, let’s slow down and make it easy on ourselves, just put the lid on the pot and stick it in a 225º oven for a few minutes and you are done. That is my simplified version of the ‘biryanni’ recipe and included in this book. So, please now, let’s not get carried away. I did not have the courage to ask her how long it took her to clean the pot. And by the way, the biryanni recipe I’m talking about, gets raving reviews every time I fix it for friends and family.My learning in simplifying the art of Indian/Pakistani cooking, which continues to be work in progress, came first as a home cook, then as a chef and owner of my café and catering business, and finally as a cooking instructor for Indian/Pakistani food. Teaching of course pushed me into increasing my own understanding of this cuisine and to look into ways of simplifying it for personal and business use. And in addition to my personal experience, I gathered tips and tricks from other chefs and owners of Indian cafes around L.A. who were willing to educate me and share their learning. I also obtained great ideas from the restaurant chefs in Punjab, during my visits to Lahore.Some Recipes the book covers:BiryanniChicken QormaShammi KabobsAloo GhobiSamosaGulaab JamunGajjar ka HalwaSeekh Kabobs and much moreEach recipe developed with years of testing, research and conducting cooking classesRecipe versions created working with restaurant and specialty shop Chefs from India and Pakistan, and learning their secrets.