Indian-Ish: Recipes and Antics From a Modern American Family by Priya Krishna

Hi, readers! I have a new cookbook for you to get excited about! If you’re a foodie, then you should know that Priya Krishna is not a new face in the food world. She’s a food writer whose writing has been featured in Bon Appetit and The New York Times. She was also part of Lucky Peach. And now she’s released a cookbook featuring a bevy of Indian/American blended recipes that perfectly illustrate how easy cooking Indian food in your own home kitchen can be!

I got my hands on an early copy of this one and have been happily testing out recipes since February, and I have honestly loved every dish that I’ve made so far!

First thing to mention is that yes, you do have to buy some specialty ingredients. But, and this is a big bonus, one trip for the essentials is plenty to make a ton of dishes right off the bat! I know because that’s exactly what I did. I hit up our Indian market to buy a few specialty spices like fenugreek, asafetida, and chat masala as well as some fresh curry leaves (this is one of my favorite ingredients - they smell amazing!). I also bought some already made roti (and she does note where you can sub out some of the harder to find things including using tortillas in place of roti). Then I hit up the regular grocery store for a boat load of veggies (tomatoes, cauliflower, chiles, limes, and a ton of spinach) and I was set! 

That weekend I started with the Malaysian Ramen for supper. Oh, man. Some sautéed veggies and a little bit of sauce turned out to be a super tasty and easy way to amp up a packet of ramen. Almost as easy as just eating regular ramen, folks!

We started off the next morning with the Indian-Ish English Breakfast Baked Beans and served them, per her suggestion, with eggs on toast. Holy cow, if you’ve ever turned your nose up at beans on toast, you need to try this dish! But you have to use the Heinz baked beans - they’re tomato based and awesome, especially with Krishna’s twist on them. 

Of course I’m back on caffeine now so I had to try her chai varieties: Cardamom Chai and Ginger-Pepper Chai. These milky tea concoctions are comforting to the max. A perfect way to warm up a cold and nasty day. I also made a batch of the Sun-Dried Tomato, Chile and Garlic Dip, which pairs great with a funky cheese and crackers. And we continued the comfort food trend that evening with Spinach and Feta Cooked Like Saag Paneer (hence the ton of spinach!). I’m actually surprised that I’ve never heard anyone else suggest using feta in place of paneer for this recipe. It works beyond perfectly!

The only unfortunate thing about this cookbook is that there are really only so many dishes you can make in one day! My regular MO when I get a new cookbook is to flag recipes that I want to try and I had a hard time prioritizing which recipes to make - they all look so good and they’re all fairly easy. 

Garlic-Ginger Chicken with Cilantro and Mint with Tomato Rice with Crispy Cheddar are in my plans for this weekend. We’ll also be snacking on the Spicy Chickpea Dip and another batch of the Sun Dried tomato dip too. 

I’m still dying to try the Dosa Potatoes with Lime and Ketchup, which I can then use leftovers of to make the Bombay Toast. Caramelized Onion Dal and Rice Noodle Poha are high on my list to make asap as are the Achari Fish and the Pav Bhaji on Potato Rolls. And that’s just a few! My copy is a flag heaven just waiting for time in the kitchen to play.

So yeah, in reality I have zero complaints about this book!

Krishna says her goal with this book is to prove that Indian food is everyday food and I think she certainly accomplishes this goal. The use of Indian flavors in twists on traditional dishes or as twists on dishes from other traditions, is a great way to introduce people to flavors and ingredients they may not be familiar with!