Healthy South Indian Cooking [Hardcover]

Alamelu Vairavan (Author), Patricia Marquardt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2007

After numerous cooking demonstrations and TV appearances, along with letters and comments from readers, the authors have put together a brand new collection of healthy recipes. With an emphasis on the famed Chettinad cooking tradition of southern India, these 197 mostly vegetarian recipes will allow home cooks to create fabulous exotic fare like Masala Dosa with Coconut Chutney, Pearl Onion and Tomato Sambhar, Chickpea and Bell Pepper Poriyal, and Eggplant Masala Curry. These easy-to-prepare dishes are exceptionally delicious and nutritious, featuring wholesome vegetables and legumes flavored with delicate spices. Each of these low-fat, low-calorie recipes includes complete nutritional analysis.

Also included are sample menus of complementary dishes and innovative suggestions for integrating South Indian dishes into traditional Western meals. A section on the varieties and methods of preparation for dals (a lentil dish that is a staple of the cuisine), a multilingual glossary of spices and ingredients, and 16 pages of color photographs make this book a clear and concise introduction to the healthy, delicious cooking of South India.

Editorial Reviews

Review

(They) take pride in the fact that most South Indian dishes are not only delicious but remarkably nutritious as well. -- Frontline India (Review of the authorsÂ’ first book, Art of South Indian Cooking)

A fine collection of little known recipes. -- A World of Cookbooks (Review of the authorsÂ’ first book, Art of South Indian Cooking) (Review of the authorsÂ’ first book, Art of South Indian Cooking)

Clear instructions along with an introduction to Indian spices ensure that even novice cooks can produce tasty, authentic meals. -- The International Cookbook Revue (Review of the authorsÂ’ first book, Art of South Indian Cooking)

Most (recipes) use a variety of spices which give the food its unique, aromatic quality . . . a much needed book. -- The Marquette Tribune (Review of the authorsÂ’ first book, Art of South Indian Cooking)

The comprehensive cookbook even has a recipe for Madras coffee! --India Today (Review of the authorsÂ’ first book, Art of South Indian Cooking)

From the Publisher

The authors of the top-selling Art of South Indian Cooking are back with a new book—featuring both new and revised recipes with a healthy approach to traditional Indian cooking!

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 348 pages
• Publisher: Hippocrene Books (March 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0781808677
• ISBN-13: 978-0781808675
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (61 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #781,984 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Alamelu Vairavan resides in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A native of South India, Alamelu has developed a deep interest in promoting healthful cooking to the public using spices, legumes and Indian cooking techniques.

Alamelu has co-authored three cook books with her friend Dr. Patricia Marquardt, including Healthy South Indian Cooking-Expanded Edition 2008. She has also published a book: Chettinad Kitchen- Food and Flavours from South India (Westland Publishers,New Delhi, 2011). A fifth book: Healing Spices by Bharat Aggarwal and Debora Yost (Sterling Pub. 2011) features some of Alameu's recipes.

Alamelu spreads her passion for healthful cooking through classes offered in a number of venues including community outreach programs at hospitals, universities and libraries. She also conducts private group cooking classes and corporate team building events for companies including GE Healthcare, Johnson Controls and Manpower International.

Alamelu has also been hosting a cooking TV series titled, " Healthful Indian Flavors with Alamelu", on Milwaukee Public Television. In this series she demonstrates some of the recipes found in her book: Healthful South Indian Cooking- Expanded Edition. Originally shown in Wisconsinin 2011, the series has been aired in many other parts of the US later. You can watch the videos of some episodes by visiting www.mptv.org. In the summer of 2011, Alamelu has recorded 13 more episodes in the series that are expected to be aired in 2012.

If you think kids have difficulty enjoying vegetables think again! Alamelu offers simple and easy to follow recipes that result in aromatic and flavorful foods. Kids will find the vegetable dishes irresistble. Even vegetable haters will be tranformed to vegetable lovers. In her book, she also presents deliclious non-vegetarian recipes and flavored rice dishes.

Besides her own recent TV series, Alamelu has also been featured on numerous national and regional TV shows, radio programs and print media inclhding PBS, Discovery Channel, CBS, NBC, FOX, The Los Angels Times, USA Today and the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. In 2009, she presented a workshop titled, Enticing Indian Flavors, at The James Beard Foundation in New York. She has also been featured as a celebrity chef in national Food and Wine events.

Additional information about Alamelu and her culinary activities can be found at www.curryonwheels.com . She also maintains a blog (spice of life) at a community web site: www.whitefishbaynow.com .

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful, Fun and Healthy, March 10, 2002

By 

Leslye (Mechanicsburg, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Healthy South Indian Cooking (Hardcover)

I have several East Indian Cook books, but Healthy South Indian Cooking has fast become my favorite. The descriptions of the many spices, oils, herbs, and the multilingual glossary are a great help for this westerner when shopping for ingredients. The recipes are easy to follow and the instructions on when to add each spice ensure success and the utmost flavor. As one who loves to cook and make notes about recipes, it is a pleasure to finally have a book that allows space on the pages for just that without skimping on the type size or readability of the recipes. I took the book with me to my local international food store to show the owner, who was so pleased that she is ordering her own copy. Food should be beautiful to look at, fun to make and exciting and healthful to eat. Healthy South Indian Cooking does it all. Thank you to authors' Vairavan and Marquardt for this delightful addition to our joy of eating.

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vegetable magic!, September 18, 2004

By 

Carol Arnosti (North Carolina) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Healthy South Indian Cooking (Hardcover)

I love to cook and have several shelves full of cookbooks, but this one is something very special: it transforms ordinary vegetables (green beans, spinach, cauliflower, etc.) into addictive, exotic, habit-forming dishes that will amaze you and your guests. One of the great frustrations of some types of `ethnic' cuisines is that it seems impossible to recapture the exotic flavors that can be enjoyed in a good restaurant. I used to think Indian food fit into this category; with Healthy South Indian Cooking, that's no longer the case. In fact, one dinner guest, expressing his surprise that my husband and I actually cooked the food we set before him, commented that we served far better food than any of the Indian restaurants in town! Not only is the food great, the recipes are easy to follow, and are straightforward to prepare. Once you have a few spices on hand, more or less any vegetable (or chicken or other meat) that catches your eye in the grocery store can be turned into something truly memorable with a minimum of fuss, bother, and time.

31 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Delicious food; dubiously healthy, November 14, 2006

By 

Bucky (KCMO, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Healthy South Indian Cooking (Hardcover)

I can't really add much more to the positive reviews here, other than to echo them: The recipes in this book are all really wonderful (at least those I've tried). I find it odd that she doesn't include recipes for her own spice blends, but that's not a huge importance to me. Lots of hurried home Indian cooks use prepared spices, too.

The only real beef I have with the book is the idea that the recipes are in some way healthier than the average southern Indian cookbook's. Indian cooking has more vegetables, legumes and other plant foods than many other cuisines, but even southern cooking has tremendous amounts of fat. This book's recipes are no different.

Unfortunately, authentic Indian cooking is somewhat akin to the traditional recipes of the American south. You CAN make healthier versions of breaded chicken, sweet potato casserole and pork chops ... but they won't be the classics that people grew up with.

I really wish someone would write a good, comprehensive Indian cookbook devoted to decreasing the fat. With all the stews, soups and yogurt-based dishes in the cuisine, there seems ample opportunity for someone to take on the task of adapting some of the classics.