Indian Light Cooking: Delicious and Healthy Foods from One of the World's Great Cuisines [Hardcover]

Ruth Law (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 15, 1994

For more than a decade, the author of The Southeast Asia Cookbook has traveled throughout Asia, learning about the people, their culture and cuisine. This comprehensive book takes readers step-by-step through more than 200 recipes for delicacies taken from all of India. Illustrations.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Illinois-based cooking teacher Law set herself a Herculean task: to visit all the states of India and obtain recipes, then refine the favorites to suit the low-fat diets now in vogue in the U.S. She made contact with the executive chef of the Taj Mahal Hotel in Bombay, and with housewives in Madras who cook "only" for families and friends. And so, the recipes here represent myriad styles and sources, from elaborate lamb biryani to a rustic salad of diced onion, tomato and coriander. To accomplished Indian cooks, they may seem too simple or repetitive. But to American cooks unfamiliar with the genre, the book gives quite detailed information about basic Indian ingredients, culinary techniques, useful gadgets and practical substitutions. Law recommends time-savers, such as prepared mixes, ready-made spice blends such as tandoori paste and other conveniences, though she also includes full recipes for popular spice blends, chutneys and other condiments. Reductions in fat and caloric content are due to the elimination of fresh coconut milk and clarified butter (ghee), the use of nonfat dairy products, replacing deep-fat frying with grilling or broiling, and other common-sense adaptations such as choosing only lean cuts of meat and removing skin from chicken. Many of the recipes are inspired by traditional southern Indian vegetarian cuisine, lacking only the final "tempering," or glaze of spices roasted in scads of ghee. They're usually clear and easy to follow, though introductory chapters and prefaces are gushy. "The marvelous intermingling of ginger and red pepper powder combined with the vivid colors . . . is scrumptious." But consider this book a welcome ethnic variation among the innumerable "cooking light" books--just not as the reference to all cuisines Indian. Illustrations not seen by PW.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Adult (May 15, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1556113897
• ISBN-13: 978-1556113895
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,233,682 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful cookbook, March 6, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Indian Light Cooking: Delicious and Healthy Foods from One of the World's Great Cuisines (Hardcover)

Ruth Law's "Indian Light Cooking" is my favorite cookbook. Ease of preparation, healthy recipe design, and a sincere respect for the cuisine are combined to produce a remarkable (and usable) resource. Highly recommended.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great resource, February 21, 2004

By 

Tracie "tracieknits" (Saratoga Springs, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Indian Light Cooking: Delicious and Healthy Foods from One of the World's Great Cuisines (Hardcover)

The recipes I've tried so far have been easy to follow and fantastic. For example, her Baingan Bharta was the best I have ever had. Madhur Jaffrey's book used to be my bible, but so far this is every bit as tasty but nowhere near as fatty.

She lists a lot of nutritional information for each dish too - including calories, fat, carbs (but not fiber -- you WW people will have to make an educated guess).

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Indian South Beach, May 15, 2009

By 

Net Admin / Home Chef (Sterling, VA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Indian Light Cooking: Delicious and Healthy Foods from One of the World's Great Cuisines (Hardcover)

I have been really pleased which the recipes I have tried from Indian Light Cooking and I don't find the reductions in oil and fat excessive. The recipes do use a little oil, for example to cook spices for some dishes. However in the same recipe she may suggest blanching green peppers in boiling water instead of sauteed with oil in a skillet. I am a loose follower of the South Beach Diet and these recipes are often close to the approach recommended there. Perhaps they don't taste exactly as remembered to someone who is used to them the higher fat way, but I find them very tasty and in most cases fairly easy to make.