Lord Krishna's Cuisine: The Art of Indian Vegetarian Cooking Hardcover – February 5, 2018

A great road map to Indian cooking.

It took me a long time to write this review. I first bought this book back in 2000, as a student new to the United States. While I still relied on a few key regional cookbooks that I bought from India for my everyday cooking , along with some recipes jotted by my mother, I hungered for a book that would take away the guesswork and assumptions and improve my hit rate ( Which was quite dismal when I began). I did not want to waste time and precious $ on flop recipes.Also, I now had to work with a selection of ingredients, esp veggies, that were a little different than what I was used to before. Thus, needed to find a cookbook that was more relevant.After looking through the selection of cookbooks available on amazon, I bought "Lord Krishna's Cuisine".Simply put, it was a revelation. I got an insight into many basic things that the cooks I learnt from, including my mom, never articulated (because its second nature to them).For example, Poori / Puri - The fried bread. You need to roll out the dough into uniform thickness else, you wont get the proper ballooning effect when you fry. Maybe common sense to many - not to me. That explained why parts of my poori puffed up and the other parts remained flat.Or Paneer - its important to maintain the correct ratio of the cutting acid to milk to ensure that you get a sweet tasting paneer. I did not know what the ratio was until I saw the clearly laid out table in this book.Now, that I am experienced cook, I depend on my instinct more than measurements but I still use this book as a solid reference to turn to whenever I need to make a dish that's more complicated.The section on sweets is also very thorough and excellent - However, some Americans may find Indian sweets a little cloying because of the high sugar ratio.To Sum it up:1. This book is a very very worthwhile addition. It focuses a lot on technique which is great for newbies or for people that are trying to perfect their recipes .2. Its mostly focused on North Indian cooking ( A good companion south Indian cookbook, for ex , could be Dakshin).3. The use of ghee in this book is excessive in my opinion. I tend to use ghee as a flavoring agent than a main medium.4. The repeated references to Yamuna devi's Guru & all his culinary demands is a little too much for me , but its a small price to pay for this gem.

I LOVE THIS BOOK!! Without a doubt the most well loved and used cookbook in my kitchen. I received it as a gift over 12 years ago when I was just learning to cook and was exploring the world of vegetarian and Indian cuisine. For a long time I was very intimidated by the long list of spices needed for many of the recipes and so it languished. After a few years I moved across the country and still recognizing its huge potential, brought along the cookbook. I found myself in a new job cooking for a large and varied group of people in a kitchen well stocked with all those spices I never knew where to find before. I threw fear out the window, dove right in, and never looked back. I'm so glad I did! I honestly can't remember a single time when I was let down by a recipe in this book. I love the large selection of griddle baked breads, also chickpeas in a creamy karhi sauce, char-flavored spiced eggplant and potatoes (definitely try making a charchari!), pumpkin pakoras, piquant lemon rice, golden pumpkin toovar dal soup, just to name a few. Devi did a great job writing this book, describing techniques, ingredients, menus, and a sprinkling of culture in detail, without making assumptions and leaving you behind to wonder what exactly she meant. The range of recipes is still astounding to me, yet she includes recipes and thorough instructions for very basic things like ghee and paneer. There is a detailed glossary for ingredients, equipment, and techniques, even a small section of Hindi terms and translations. Be aware that this is a vegetarian AND vedic cookbook, so no meat. Also no onions, no garlic, no mushrooms. However, I have yet to find this to be a detriment in any way. If you are also looking for Indian cookbooks that include meat and onions etc, check out Madhur Jaffrey, her books have also never failed me.

I love this cookbook so much i have it twice. I first bought hard copy -- but i found it difficult to read -- the book was SO large it was heavy to hold -- and the print seemed microscopic! I saw the kindle version on sale and bought it too. What an incredible repertory of Indian vegetarian cooking!! No onion or garlic (ayurvedic or Jain cuisines do not have these -- and for dietary reasons that suits me best). I go back to this cookbook again and again. The kindle version allows me to bookmark and make notes on dozens of recipes. If you are only going to get ONE Indian cookbook, this should be the one. Usually i love glossy pics -- this doesnt have it or need it. I have tried MANY recipes from it and some are so incredible i make again and again -- the moong dal soups (look, just buy it!) and I just tried the creamy potatoes with lemon pepper. (Just get it.) This is an encyclopedia. I HIGHLY recommend. You deserve this book.

Highly recommend this book. Indian and Non-Indian will benefit from this book. Reminds me of the long ago "Joy of cooking" cookbook in some ways that someone gave me as a gift - Lots of very clear instructions. Everything you need to know all in one book, about spices, what are they, etc, about cooking any recipe, etc.. very educational.The recipes for the samosa's are as they are supposed to be and taste. Follow to a "T" any of these recipes and you won't go wrong. I am now buying this for my kindle access (but still keeping my hardcover book!)