If you are like so many food enthusiasts who remain utterly baffled with Indian food, help is at hand.

 

When writing my first book, ‘A Dozen Ways to Celebrate’, I began to understand why people were afraid to cook Indian food. Although the Indian cuisine uses a careful balance of spices to develop the unique and complex flavors, yet

most cookbooks do not show you how to use the spices!

 

Many people are overwhelmed with the number of ingredients; find the methods confusing or the recipes complex. Some would much rather eat at their local Indian take-out place, often making unhealthy choices versus trying to make it healthy alternatives themselves!

 

I wondered: what if my readers of ‘A Dozen Ways’ were to appear on ‘Chopped’ and were given a set of Indian spices and ingredients – would they be able to do it? Would they be able to harness the flavors of raw spices and transform their creations into spectacular dishes?

 

I am here to tell you, there are only a few simple secrets to the exciting world of Indian flavors, AND all these secrets are packed in my book:

 

Crack the Code: Cook Any Indian Meal With Confidence

 

With Crack the Code in your back pocket, I assure you ~ you will confidently conquer all the fears and begin your path to a healthier more flavor-filled lifestyle! Crack The Code is a globetrotting cookbook, headed out to more than 28 countries, with more than 1500 copies pre-ordered within the two months!

 

About

‘Crack the Code: Cook Any Indian Meal with Confidence’ is my second cookbook and I am excited to share it with my current and future readers. It is gleaned from my grandfathers’ lessons in simple cooking techniques, lessons from mom, and about 30 years of my own experiences in the kitchen, both cooking and teaching. This pioneering workbook-styled cookbook demystifies the seemingly complex Indian cuisine. My book explains the fundamental building blocks of the Indian cuisine – showing you how to navigate spices and ingredients to make flavorful, healthy dishes every time!

 

The main body of the eBook is divided into two parts - first, 'The Code', and second, 'Recipes'.

 

The Code

My experience with Indian cooking has taught me that nearly all spices & ingredients used in an Indian dish fall into one of SIX Tiers or steps. I call these Tiers - The Curry Cravings Code. As you practice through the recipes in the second half of the book, you will see the patterns.

 

Based in these cooking patterns, I have grouped nearly 90 commonly used Indian ingredients, spices and their varied forms to fall into one of SIX Tiers. They are easy to remember groups. Each ingredient is placed in a specific tier or group, based on its flavor profile, personality and how it will cook, to determine where it is most potent and at its flavorful best!

Following these steps or tiers will help you achieve the best possible dish every time. Once you understand how the Tiers work, you will never find yourself confused over a recipe again and most importantly, you never ever need to touch curry powder again (my secret mission).

I have also included a section about lesser known but important spices that are often the 'secret ingredient' in regional Indian dishes. A small section in this half of the book includes notes about how to store spices and make your own spice blends.

 

Recipes

 

The second part of the book includes 24 practice recipes. Each recipe methodically showcases the different roles of spices and ingredients, highlights the importance of layering and balancing flavors, and most notably, shows you how to build essential taste profiles for that Indian dish. The sample recipes follow 'The Code' and include visual guides to tell you what part of the code is used in the recipe - all so that cooking the dish is easy! In the recipes section you will find quick ways to make side dishes and appetizers, entrees, one pot meals and desserts all accompanied by mouth-watering photography! These twenty four practice recipes come with suggested variations which will help readers modify and create their own dishes with their favorite produce or meats.

 

Another important piece is tucked away towards the end of the book - the spice charts. These charts are alphabetically organized and will tell you what each spice does: from its Ayurvedic qualities, its flavor profile, its role in a dish according to which tiers it belongs in and possible applications in recipes. As you become more familiar with spices and the methods, you will begin to see how you can work your spices to your advantage. These charts will also be useful if you begin to fine-tune your everyday diet based on holistic eating.

 

 Crack The Code: Cook Any Indian Meal With Confidence is filled with more than 200 pages of essential content and absolutely simple, straight-forward solutions to the 'how to cook Indian food'. This book will become your go-to, must-have resource before you decide to make any Indian-inspired dish in the future. 

 

Psst: dont forget to check out 'Global' to see where my readers are!