Here is a combination of two old and beloved legumes—whole mung beans, which originated in India, and whole red lentils, which came to India from the Arab world in ancient times—cooked together with seasonings used in North India today for meat dishes. Strangely...
Muslims in India rarely use asafetida in their cooking. They use garlic instead. Here is a simple, everyday dal that I cook frequently. All that is needed with it is rice or a flatbread, some yogurt raita, and a vegetable dish made with okra, cauliflower, or eggplant....
Full of nutrients and flavor, this dish can be served with any type of Indian bread and a yogurt relish. For a more Western-style meal, serve it with a simple green salad. SERVES 4–5 • 3 tablespoons olive or peanut oil • ½ teaspoon whole cumin seeds • 1 medium onion,...
We do not really have Swiss chard in India, but this recipe serves to illustrate that Indian sprouts can be combined with most vegetables. Serve with a yogurt relish and a flatbread. SERVES 4 • 2 large stalks of Swiss chard (about 6 oz in all) • 1 tablespoon olive or...
This is almost a meal in itself, nutritionally complete if you add some whole-grain pita bread (or rice) and yogurt on the side. You could also convert it into a soup by adding a mugful of water or stock toward the end of the cooking time. SERVES 4–6 • 1⅓ cups green...
You will find this Andhra dish only in South Indian homes and local restaurants. I have yet to come across it in any Indian eatery in the West. It is a simple dish, very much like the karhis of northern India. It is soupy; the yogurt in it is held together with a...
In India, rice is always served with something wet and flowing because it is considered too dry on its own. The exception is a rich biryani, but even that is offered with a raita and salads. The wetness deemed necessary could come from a curry with a sauce, a dal, or...
A “karhi” is just heated and flavored yogurt. Since yogurt curdles when it is boiled, it has to be stabilized with starch. That starch in India is usually chickpea flour (though it could be rice flour), which adds its own nutrients to the dish. All Indians eat karhis,...
Everything said in the introduction to the preceding recipe applies here as well, so please read that before you begin. If you want this dish to be hot and pungent, sprinkle the chaat masala over the top just before serving and stir it in. SERVES 4–6 • 1 tablespoon...
For this recipe, I used only two cans of organic low-salt chickpeas because that is what I was able to find. I prefer to use organic chickpeas because I can use all the liquid in the can. If your chickpeas are not organic, throw away the liquid in the can and use...
