Cover Image: Indian for Everyone

Indian for Everyone

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Some recipes are authentic, others are not. I'm not crazy about it, and don't plan to recommend it to others. There are so many better books out there.

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Anyone familiar with good Indian food will welcome Hari Ghotra’s excellent cookbook, Indian for Everyone: 100 Easy, Healthy Dishes the Whole Family Will Love. The cookbook contains many exotic Indian dishes that are very appealing and will be mouthwatering dishes to make at home.

This cookbook has recipes for well-known Indian foods such as tikka masala and Naan. There are also several curries that are popular in Indian restaurants. However, there are dozens of unique Indian recipes that are well-worth trying. The recipes are written in the traditional manner with the ingredients listed first, followed by step-by-step instructions that are easy to follow.

While some of the recipes are fairly easy to prepare, there are others with fairly long lists of ingredients which is typical of traditional Indian recipes. The spices are what make the dishes authentic. Most cooks will need to visit an Indian grocery store to pick up the proper ingredients to spice up the dishes.

The book also includes beautiful, professional photographs of almost every dish. That is what makes it a 5-star cookbook. Not only are the recipes pleasing, the photos make it difficult to decide which yummy dish to make. Every time readers look through this cookbook, their queue of “must try soon” will grow.
All told, Indian food aficionados as well as those new to Indian food will want to pick up this excellent book.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

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I love this cookbook so far, especially the mix of traditional and updated recipes. It's clear this was written with love and joy.

Can't wait to work my way through this cookbook!

Thanks so much for the review copy!

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This is an excellent cookbook, applicable to new and experienced cooks alike. The recipes felt authentic, yet not overly complicated, which is a balance quite hard to find in Indian cooking. There are a wide variety of recipes, ranging from snacks, curries, desserts and more. I didn't find the ingredient listings overly long or complicated. Of course, there are some specialty items, but nothing too hard to find. Pictures were appealing and there were plenty of them. Overall, this is the best Indian cookbook I have come across to date. Highly recommend!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed are entirely my own.

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Indian for Everyone has around 90 recipes for you to make at home.

This cookery book has 8 chapters plus an introduction
- Drinks & Snacks (9)
- Finger Foods (10)
- Sharing Platters (11)
- For the Family (17)
- Curries (20)
- Sides (8)
- Condiments (10)
- Desserts (11)

Each recipe includes an introduction, metric and imperial measurements, how many it serves, the steps and a top tip. Not every recipe has a colour photograph to accompany the dish and it would be nice if it indicated how long it takes to prepare and cook each dish.

Some recipes from the book I'd like to try are the Tamarind ribs, Twisted Buffalo Wings and the Balti Chicken Pie - I'm english I love a pie!

I like that it includes alternatives when you have intolerances to Allium (onions) and Nightshade (tomatoes/potatoes). There was one recipe that included vinegar, soya and sugar but does say which sort, so I don't know if I'd be spoiling it by using the wrong sort.

Overall this is a nice cookery book for you to make curried dishes at home.

I received this book from Netgalley in return for an honest review.

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Okay, this is seriously good. There are lots of cookbooks that'll offer recipes with lovingly sensuous descriptions and fairly clear directions. There are plenty that will combine that with a mix of innovative and traditional recipes, and appetite provoking pictures. A few, the precious few, will combine those necessary things with clear descriptions of why the methods being used are being used and what difference they make. Ghotra has provided that. The opening chapter on curry techniques and spices is immensely helpful even to someone whose parents have been cooking curry since he can remember. The recipes themselves have a siren-esque quality. I've seen a lot of Indian cookbooks and this is well up there. I look forwards to using it a lot.

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Hari Ghotra’s Indian for Everyone is a delicious and approachable collection of both classic and updated Indian dishes. I like the wide range of recipes as well as the focus on fresh ingredients. I enjoyed the full-colour pictures but I do wish there were more.

This brief and easy-to-read book opens with a concise but helpful introduction which gives readers great insight into Indian culture and cuisine. Ghotra also includes brief but interesting information on important Indian spices like turmeric and cassia bark as well as traditional Indian cooking techniques. There are also tips to make the recipes accessible to many groups including vegans and children.

The rest of the book is divided into chapters on Welcome Drinks and Snacks; Feisty Finger Foods; Sharing Platters; For the Family; Cheeky Curries; Simple Sides; Clever Condiments; and Decadent Desserts and Nighttime Treats. There are traditional drinks like Salted Lassi, Nimbu Pani (Indian lemonade), and the trendy and pretty Blue Moon Milk which should help put you straight to sleep. We also learn to make the classic Vegetable Samosa, Butter Chicken, and Rajma (an Indian vegetarian chili). Ghotra also includes essential staples like Naan (with fun twists like Blue Cheese and Truffle!), Mint Chutney, Aloo Gobi, and Coconut Ladoo. However, there are also several innovative and fun takes blending Indian cuisine with inspiration from other cultures like Curried Jackfruit Tacos, Spiced Sausage Rolls (livened up with loads of fresh seasonings), and Pepperoni Naanza (a spicy take on a classic Italian pizza).

The recipes are clearly-detailed and easy-to-follow. Each recipe begins with a brief and informative write-up about the background of the dish, notes on Indian culture and cuisine, as well as tasting notes and tips. Although this book has many approachable recipes, several of the dishes are time and labour intensive with numerous steps and also require lots of ingredients. However, I believe that the recipes in this book are manageable for amateur cooks.

Most of the ingredients are fairly accessible and moderately inexpensive although some difficulty will be encountered in obtaining specialty ingredients like the jackfruit as well as the fresh versions of the many spices. I like that Ghotra often offers accessible swaps for making many of the recipes vegetarian or less spicy. I also appreciate the focus on cooking with fresh ingredients and producing homemade food from scratch. Ghotra even includes recipes for creating your own taco shells and samosa pastry!

I like the book’s clean and simple design with lovely Indian cultural touches across the pages. But, I would have liked to see a bit more colour and fun in the overall page layout. Several recipes are accompanied by simply staged but still effective and nicely done full-colour photos. I do wish there were a few more photos because I like to see what the finished dish should look like.



🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ out of 5 peppers!

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This was a joy to read, the recipes are different for example curried taco and not the traditional Indian dishes. There’s a few I can’t wait to try. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a copy.

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This is a really interesting and well laid-out cookbook. The front matter was interesting and helpful - I found the explanations for the basics of Indian cooking as well as the personal stories from the author to be really fascinating. The recipes are overall very achievable for anyone with minimal exposure to Indian cooking, and the ingredient lists are occasionally full of wild things that must be sourced at specialty groceries- but the main recipes are simple and pared down to basics that can more easily be found at any basic grocery store. There were far more meat recipes than I was anticipating, but some suggestions for how to easily make almost anything vegetarian or vegan.

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A really excellent cookbook that combined sone classic dishes that I always want to improve (the aloo gobi was especially delicious), with some ones that were new to me but went down very well (especial shout out to bunny chow, and the chai financiers are a new favourite here).

I also really appreciated having some vegan options at the end, and all the recipes were excellent at providing ingredients that were easy for me to source, without losing flavour.

This will be one of my go-tos for sure, and I'll be giving it to family too!

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free ARC*

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Very rarely will a cookbook make my stomach growl just by looking at the pictures. This cookbook did. I love Indian food but have always been too intimidated to try and make it myself. I’m not after this book. I can’t wait to work my way through it all.

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Indian for Everyone: 100 Easy, Healthy Dishes the Whole Family Will Love by Hari Ghotra was released for sale on October 4 2022. Fresh, flavorful, and full of spices, veggies, and healthy proteins, Indian for Everyone presents over 100 curries, daals, and other classic Indian dishes to make and enjoy with your kids (or without). A former chef at the Michelin-starred restaurant Tamarind, as well as a creator of a popular line of curry kits and sauces, Hari Ghotra’s mission is to demystify Indian cooking so everyone can enjoy its benefits. She explores the many perks of traditional Indian spices—including reducing inflammation, lowering blood pressure, and easing pain—and shows how to stock your pantry with the most versatile ingredients. She covers basics like biryani and rogan josh, as well as street food, snacks, drinks, and holiday specialties. Many of the recipes are naturally vegan or vegetarian, but can easily be made with meat as well, as detailed in the substitutions section. And she even includes some flavorful Indian twists on beloved American foods like mac and cheese and chicken wings.

Indian for Everyone: 100 Easy, Healthy Dishes the Whole Family Will Love is a very well written cook book, with instructions and encouragement for readers. I have always enjoyed Indian food and the flavor profile, but I have been so unsure as to how to get started, especially with my less than adventurous and fairly picky household. I will admit to being a little worried when the importance of onions was discussed in the introduction- since I am not necessarily a fan- but Ghotra offered solutions, ideas, and substitutions for a variety of dietary restrictions and preferences- including onions. I liked that each recipe included imperial and metric measurements, making them easily accessible to readers, and offers suggestions and tip on how to personalize the recipe and how to make aspects of cooking easier (like prepping and freezing masala in advance). I thought it was well organized and the recipes were easy to understand and follow. While I might not have all of the ingredients for all of the recipes in my house already, most of the items I was missing are easily obtained in large grocery stores, although some require a little extra leg work. I am looking forward to trying my hand at some of these recipes (starting with the naan, turmeric and honey bread, and a few desserts). More importantly, I have a better understanding of spices I love and how I can use them to better effect and with different combinations than I have tried before. I think this is the perfect cookbook for those looking to learn more about Indian Cuisine and how they might better understand and incorporate the spices and intent of it more effectively.

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I enjoyed reading this! I really love Indian food, but I didn't really know how to get into cooking it, and this cookbook was a huge asset in helping me understand how spices are prepared and combined, the process for looking dishes, the types of supplies and cooking tools needed, and what flavors balance with which. It gave excellent background on Indian cooking, and made the creation of spice mixes - which I've always been a little intimidating to try myself - simple to begin!

Something I always appreciate in a cookbook is concessions to the fact that sometimes substitutions are needed, and this book offers plenty of suggestions for meat substitutions. As a vegetarian, I'm very grateful to see that - I never know what the best option is! I'm really looking forward to giving these recipes a spin, and especially putting together all the condiments.

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I love Indian food but often, I eat it as a takeaway meal. Cooking Indian always seemed complicated and full of ingredients that I don't normally have to hand, Enter Hari Ghotra's "Indian for Everyone." Ghotra's style of Indian cooking seems accessible and achievable. She gives great ideas for both traditional Indian cooking, side dishes and sauces and she includes recipes with a modern twist. I am very exited to explore this cookbook in more depth and delve into Indian cooking at home.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Fair Winds Press for this advanced copy of this wonderful book I exchange for my honest review.

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Such a wonderful book for any level of cooks recipe book collection! There is a great intro to the basics of Indian cooking techniques, meanings, spices and also how to adapt recipes for allergies and dietary requirements which is great. I love the chapters of the book that features small snacks through to sharing boards and full feasts, so there is definitely a recipe in here for all occasions and home cook confidence levels! Don't be scared of some of the long lists of spices, once you own the main ones so many dishes would be possible. There are some great alternatives to classics with an Indian twist that I can't wait to try!!

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I very much enjoyed 'Indian for Everyone' by Hari Ghotra! I've always found Indian cuisine to be the most intimidating one, mainly because I've had some absolutely excellent Indian food during my time in the UK. I'll attempt curries myself, but always with the knowledge that it's not the real deal. Ghotra really managed to take some of the edge of that fear and introduce me to some recipes I can actually see myself making!

The book is split into different sections, one of which is of course dedicated to curries, while others look at condiments, starters, deserts and more. I also loved Ghotra's little asides at the start of each section! Some of the recipes were unexpected, like Indian tacos, for example. But the breadth of it also really expanded what I had in mind whenever I thought of Indian food and for that I very much appreciated it. As a Western reader, 'Indian for Everyone' is immensely accessible with its easy to follow recipes and Ghotra's emphasis on adjusting the food to your own taste!

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I think this is a really exciting Indian cookbook. It has traditional favorites but a lot of updated and modern twists, too. The Indian slaw riff on coleslaw is pretty brilliant, It has gorgeous pictures,and appetizing recipes that are different than your standard book of Indian cuisine.

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Indian is one of my favorite cuisines to eat, but one of the hardest for me to actually prepare. I found the introduction to this cookbook, as well as the "Using Spices" section, to be very helpful in understanding what each element adds to a dish. The recipes themselves look fantastic and are written simply but thoroughly. I am most excited to indulge in the curries, and thought the addition of some condiment recipes were a great touch.

Thank you to NetGalley and Fair Winds Press for the eARC of this cookbook in exchange for my honest review.

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Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to review Indian for Everyone. I was not sure whether the titled implied simpler recipes or Indian inspired food., it turned out it is the latter. Unfortunately as a person who know authentic Indian food, this is a concept that I really don't like. There are some interesting twists on Indian food, not really something I would want to cook since I can make the real thing. There are a lot of different American recipes with and Indian twist, like tacos, ribs, burgers, and wings. The only chapter I found recipes to make was the curry chapter. This would be good cookbook for your friend or relative that has an enthusiasm for Indian, but probably not a person who knows authentic Indian food. I was hoping for a basics in Indian cooking type book.

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I love this cookbook! My husband used to live in India before we started dating and I’ve always wanted to learn to make authentic Indian food for him. For his birthday, I surprised him with Tandoori chicken and rice using the recipes from the book and he loved it! I’ve read multiple Indian cookbooks and this one was easier to follow and gather ingredients for.

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