Indian Flavor Every Day: Simple Recipes and Smart Techniques to Inspire by Maya Kaimal, Clarkson Potter/Publishers, 239 Pages, $28.00
Author and entrepreneur, Maya Kaimal, the founder of Maya Kaimal Foods, has penned several cookbooks, winning an award in the process. Her company, through the organic products it offers, introduces authentic Indian flavors to people’s homes, while delivering the convenience, much prized by today’s consumers.
Kaimal attributes the inspiration behind her latest book to her dad, who was once a native of South India. The recipes he followed at home would allow his young daughter to taste, learn and make suggestions for improvement. That experience paid off handsomely. In this vividly illustrated cookbook Kaimal has made Indian cooking convenient and approachable. She offers many simple, yet unfussy recipes such as coconut moong dal, comforting chickpeas and potatoes, and minty cucumber raita.
Early in the book, Kaimal demystifies the term masala (“mixture of spices”), one of the basics of Indian cooking. She provides readily available alternatives to commonly favored Indian ingredients, such as substituting black urad dal, with black lentils. She makes many recipes approachable with one or more side tips. Readers, already familiar with Indian cooking might, however, notice the omission of their favorite Indian dishes.
Not all recipes on these pages are Indian, but that should not pose any problem. Indeed, her chocolate tart with cashew crust recipe is bound to draw an enthusiastic response from her readers.
Hidden Japan by Chiara Terzuolo and illustrated by Justine Wong, Smith Street Books, 263 Pages, $27.50
Do you wish to travel differently? Ditch mass tourism and voyage into a lesser-known territory? Embrace the “off-the-beaten-track” approach and see how the locals live? If so, this well illustrated guidebook to Japan, a delight to read, might be for you. It aims to give you an opportunity to veer off to the underrated and explore less-traveled parts of the country or neighborhoods of a metropolis, such as Tokyo, that other travelers miss.
Author Chiara Terzuolo, who has lived in Japan for many years, is able to offer a first-hand experience. Always ready with insider tips and fresh angles, she shortlists Tokyo’s best street food areas and shares tips on how to eat like a local. In the “Drunken Alleyways” section, she suggests a dive into nomiyagi, narrow neighborhood alleyways dotted with small bars and eateries, alerting the visitor that cash is the king there.
In the “Nature Tokyo” section, she explains what forest bathing (or spending quiet time in nature) is and singles out a preserve and several parks as suitable places to practice it. She suggests an arts and crafts walk, which can also give you a feel for old Tokyo. She also offers pointers on how to shop for unique clothes, an example being internationally acclaimed, high-quality, and long-lasting Japanese denim.
Although a fair amount of space has been dedicated to Tokyo, the top attraction of Japan, the book also deals with other worthwhile destinations. Examples are Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara, and not to forget Rebun Island, which is referred to as “Extreme Offbeat Japan.”
Koreawworld: A Cookbook by Deuki Hong and Matt Rodband, Clarkson Potter/Publishers, 303 Pages, $35
This new Korean cookbook offers personal stories, a global outlook, chef interviews, captivating illustrations, and recipes. “Let’s begin with a deep look at the foods of both urban and rural Korea,” so say Hong and Rodband, “with stories and recipes illustrating how the cooking within the country’s borders continues to inspire the world many times over.”
The book is divided into two sections: Modern Korea and The New Koreatown. In the former, our journey begins in Seoul. Here you’ll find recipes such as beefy soybean paste stew and whole onion kimchi. In the latter section, find dishes that highlight newer trends such as Korean chicken teriyaki and crispy curry rice balls.
There is much to read here as well. Essays with intriguingly long titles give a broader view of the extent to which Korean food has inserted itself in the American culinary landscape. Examples are: “A Los Angeles Koren Restaurant Crawl with Eater LA Editor Matthew Kang;” “Rethinking Hot Pot Excellence with Han Oaks Peter Cho;” and “Ted and Yong Kim Have Big Plans for Korean Boxed Lunch.”
A useful chapter titled — “Ingredients and Tools: Stuff to Know, Stuff to Buy” — appears at the end. Here the authors explain the use of Korean “mother sauces” gochujang (fermented pepper paste), doenjang (fermented bean paste), and ganjang (soy sauce). Other ingredients that round out the list are fish sauce, mirin, sesame oil, and more.
If Korean cooking seems daunting to you and you want to ease into it, here are some easy recipes to try: broccoli salad with ssamjang mayo, sweet-and-sour 7Up pickled cucumbers, and spicy soft tofu and eggs.
All in all, this is a most exciting cookbook.
Bharti Kirchner is the author of nine novels and four cookbooks, her latest being ‘Murder at Jaipur: A Maya Mallick Mystery.’
