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Can anyone reccomend a good curry recipe book?

post #1 of 22
2/25/09 at 2:02am
Thread Starter 
Can anyone reccomend a good curry recipe book?
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post #2 of 22
2/25/09 at 6:37am
Please give us more information.

There are many kinds of curries. Curries in Thailand and India are quite different from each other.

And then there is curry powder which is the basis of many good creations in Europe and Jamaica but is not to be seen in Thailand and India. Nor taste much like them either.

Thai curries tend to rely on curry pastes (lemongrass, chiles, garlic, ginger and so on) where India tends to combine, toast and grind whole spices, often then cooking those spices in oil as the start of the dish.
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post #3 of 22
2/25/09 at 6:40am
Thread Starter 
ok well lets start with Indian curries. I would be interested in a dopiaza recipe, biriyani and a tikka masala recipe in particular. I'm trying to find as authentic a recipe as possible! Maybe there's a website which would be easier?
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post #4 of 22
2/25/09 at 7:06am
Authenticity is mostly in the eye of the beholder. Authentic to where and to whom? Who decides?

Further, tikka masala is not authentic to India at all, but was a construct of the Indian restaurant business outside of India. Still good and tasty. There's some links, a shrimp variation and other discussion you may find useful here: http://www.cheftalk.com/forums/recip...mp-masala.html

Books

Julie Sahni's books are well regarded and I like them. I own a few. I prefer Madhur Jaffrey's books over Julie Sahni but Jaffrey adapts more freely to western realities. I also like Jaffreys' use of the pressure cooker which simplifies lots of this type of cooking.
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post #5 of 22
2/25/09 at 12:22pm
"From Curries to Kebabs: Recipes from the Indian Spice Trail" by Madhur Jaffrey
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post #6 of 22
3/4/09 at 12:51pm
julie sanhi has good books.


i have soem others and I will check for you the names and authors
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post #7 of 22
3/4/09 at 11:02pm

Great recipe book for curries....

The best curry cook book I found is

How to Make Good Curries by Helen Lawson. Pub Hamlyn Publishing Group

The copy I have was printed in 1970 and I found it in a 2nd hand book stall. I have seen it on Amazon.com so it is still around. It has measurements in Imperial, Metric and American. :lips:
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post #8 of 22
3/5/09 at 2:25pm
I'm a fan of Madhur Jaffrey's, too.;)
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post #9 of 22
3/16/09 at 9:01am
Jaffrey is pretty good yes. Just heading downstairs to check of the name of the book I use, which is excellent, I really should remember the name!
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post #10 of 22
3/17/09 at 8:14am
Finally dug it out - Meera Taneja's book! Really should have remembered that!

Anyway, it's a great little cookbook and very useful for the non-pro at least. Anybody else recommend any others?
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post #11 of 22
3/17/09 at 12:18pm
Atul Kochhar's books - he's written 3 I think, the latest one being 'Fish: Indian style'; and the others called something like 'Indian Essence' and 'Simple Indian'.

Atul runs a great restaurant in London called Benares, he holds a Michelin star and the food is absolutely amazing. He has lightened a lot of the sauces and the flavour combinations are incredible.
Benares Restaurant and Bar, Mayfair, London

He doesn't 'do' take-away style indian foods, though!:D
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post #12 of 22
3/20/09 at 1:48pm
you can also check out rRaghaven Iyer's books, he has written a few and tried a few recipes and turned out good
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post #13 of 22
4/30/09 at 2:32am
My favourite, by far, is the Cinnamon Club cookbook. Interesting read about the history of it all too. Once again not a Tikka Masala in sight.

Amazon.com: The Cinnamon Club Cookbook: Iqbal Wahhab, Vivek Singh: Books
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post #14 of 22
5/12/09 at 5:53pm
here are the ones i own

this one was given to my mom by some indians when she was living in new york

Maya Kaimal: In 1969 the wife of an American diplomat created a masterly cookbook on a cuisine with a reputation for difficulty and centuries of tradition and technique. Like her contemporary Julia Child, also married to a diplomat, Mary S. Atwood arrived at her foreign posting filled with curiousity, respect and a passion for the delicious. In "A Taste of India: Adventures in Indian Cooking Prepared for the American Kitchen" Atwood displayed an intuitive sense of how to make the intimidating accessible. She stripped recipes down to their essence without sacrificing their integrity. Atwood, like Child, was a culinary translator, building a bridge between cultures.
My American mother loved Atwood's book for its reliability, and my Indian father loved it for its authenticity. I admire the crisp clarity of her recipes. But the highest compliment of all came from an elderly auntie visiting from India, herself an excellent cook. After looking long and carefully at its pages, she declared, "I must get this cookbook."
Maya Kaimal is the author of "Curried Favors" and "Savoring the Spice Coast of India."

Amazon.com: A Taste of India: Mary S Atwood: Books



this next one is great especially because of its wonderful pics, and it has some great recipes. except it doesnt explain the kashmir masala paste.. thats easily fixable by googling though!

Amazon.com: Curry Lover's Cookbook: Mridula Baljekar: Books

I HIGHLY recommend julie sanhi's

classics of indian cooking!!!!

Amazon.com: Classic Indian Cooking: Julie Sahni: Books
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post #15 of 22
6/15/09 at 11:20am
One good homemade curry book is The Curry Secret : Indian Restaurant Cookery at Home by Kris Dhillon.
This book contains many curry recipes which consist of a basic curry sauce and then you can alter the next steps according to the curry you wish to make.

Hope this information is useful.

Thanks
Bakerboy13
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post #16 of 22
1/31/10 at 7:36am
I agree - a good place to start is almost any Madhur Jaffrey book
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post #17 of 22
2/5/10 at 11:40pm
Thanks for the replies. Very helpful for me too. My gf loves curries so I have been looking for some recipies of this nature
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post #18 of 22
2/5/10 at 11:40pm
Thanks for that. Been looking for recipies like this.
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post #19 of 22
3/13/10 at 2:53am

Madhur Jaffrey's Ultimate Curry Bible is a good one, curries from all over the world. Simple to fairly difficult.

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post #20 of 22
3/13/10 at 5:50pm
 I don't have a suggestion for a book but two things that I learned from a friend who's east-indian, is to pay attention to your green spice. Think of it as an east-indian mirepoix (carrot, celery, yellow onion, green onion, garlic, cilantro, and hot peppers to taste and chopped to your desired consistency.)  This was his basic green spice.  You can modify it to your taste or to the dish that your making with other flavours.

Also, let your curry develop.

 Sorry if I'm off base but Those two tips made a huge difference in my curries, regardless of recipe.
Edited by FR33_MASON - 3/14/10 at 9:36am
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post #21 of 22
5/29/10 at 5:34am

I would agree about Madhur Jaffrey although a little dated. Meena Pathaks Complete Indian Cooking is very good and any of Anjum Anand are also very good.

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post #22 of 22
6/3/10 at 11:19pm

"cuisines of india" by Smita Chandra is a very good book.Not only does it have excellent recipes, it also has stories about the history of the food most of which are taken from letters and journals written during the early days of British colonization.

You can't beat good food along with the history behind it.

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