Chilis to Chutneys: American Home Cooking with the Flavors of India (Hardcover)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

When Neelam Batra moved to the United States from India in 1973, she hardly knew how to cook a frozen pizza, let alone the many wonderful delicacies her mother had prepared for her back home. But though she didn't know much about preparing great food, she knew what she liked and set about educating herself. Several years and many culinary experiments later, Batra began to teach cooking in Los Angeles and eventually wrote her first cookbook, The Indian Vegetarian. In her second effort, Chilis to Chutneys, Batra brings an Indian sensibility--and palate--to typically American foods. In Batra's kitchen, hamburgers are served with scallions and garam masala; pasta is topped with garden-fresh tomatoes, ginger, and mint; and pizza is topped with green cilantro chutney in place of the usual pepperoni or sausage. But Batra doesn't stop here; having imported Indian spices and seasonings to American dishes, she's equally happy to introduce something new to her own cuisine, thus you'll find such varied ingredients as wonton wrappers, tortillas, and premade pizza crusts figuring prominently in Batra's Indian recipes.

In addition to these innovative, tasty, and--for the most part--low-fat dishes, Neelem Batra offers advice about where to find ingredients, suggestions for preparing all types of foods (from meat to grains), and insight into traditional Indian cooking techniques and procedures. From Basmati Risotto to French Fries with Chaat Masala, these 200 recipes will imbue even everyday cooking with the spice of adventure.

From Booklist

With the exception of the mild curry powder frequently spicing chicken salad, the ingredients of Indian cooking have not crossed over into the realm of "fusion" cuisine the same way that the elements of Chinese and Southeast Asian cuisine have. Batra may single-handedly change that with her unique approach to Indian cooking, which combines American ingredients with the expansive palette of Indian herbs and spices. Her pastry-topped lamb casserole marries shepherd's pie with lamb curry and has the added advantage of quick preparation through use of a pressure cooker to tenderize the lamb stewing meat. Her fast pizza combines turmeric, fenugreek, and ginger, and then adds mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses for an unequivocally cross-cultural experience. If cooks survive the bewilderment occasioned by Batra's pioneering flavor juxtapositions, her extraordinary recipes are bound to set off yet another revolution in taste for America's quickly jaded palate. Mark Knoblauch

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Cookbooks; 1st edition (February 18, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688156908
• ISBN-13: 978-0688156909
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #893,470 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I LOVE the cookbook "Chilis to Chutneys"!, May 16, 2002

By	Belinda (USA) - See all my reviews

So far I have made the Chicken Curry with Biryani Rice -- excellent, and the cardamom biscotti -- out of this world fantastic. Probably the most tasty and exciting biscotti I have ever tasted. It is true that this cookbook likes to mix Indian flavors with other cuisines in some of the recipes, but the results are no accident. I have tried other Indian cookbooks, but only this one seems to turn out first rate results. The Chicken Curry with Biryani Rice seems Indian enough to me. I brought it to work and an Indian co-worker said it seemed authentically Indian to her. So I feel I can vouch that some of the recipes must be true to Indian cooking, while others (biscotti) are creative adventures with Indian flavors!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I LOVE the cookbook "Chilis to Chutneys"!, May 16, 2002

By A Customer

So far I have made the Chicken Curry with Biryani Rice -- excellent, and the cardamom biscotti -- out of this world fantastic. Probably the most tasty and exciting biscotti I have ever tasted. It is true that this cookbook likes to mix Indian flavors with other cuisines in some of the recipes, but the results are no accident. I have tried other Indian cookbooks, but only this one seems to turn out first rate results. The Chicken Curry with Biryani Rice seems Indian enough to me. I brought it to work and an Indian co-worker said it seemed authentically Indian to her. So I feel I can vouch that some of the recipes must be true to Indian cooking, while others (biscotti) are creative adventures with Indian flavors!

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Indian ingredients in american cuisine, February 20, 2002

By A Customer

Neelam Batra has been made an attempt to substitute Indian ingredients in an american cuisine. A good book if you're trying to blend both.Photos would have been nice. But if you're looking for authentic Indian recipes, I suggest you look elsewhere.