The Kerala Kitchen: Recipes and Recollections from the Syrian Christians of South India (Hippocrene Cookbook Library) Paperback – 16 April 2015

I bought this book after experiencing Keralan food for the first time in a local restaurant. I have to totally disagree with the other reviewer on this item as I have found this book truly brilliant. The taste of the recipes appears to be truly authentic compared to the restaurant I went to. Also, there are some truly different techniques in this book that have taught me several new ways to do things. Highly recommended !

Overall this is a good book. However, as the author is targeting the Western world, I would suggest her to add more colour pictures of the dishes she has listed. It will be easier for people to visualise the final dish.The book looks good and is easy to understand.All the best for the next book.TR

1 of the best 1 out there.

Useful

Excellent book with authentic tasty recipes.

Having just visited Kerala and loved the local food I thought I would purchase the book in UK expecting either traditional or fusion recipes but 'Keral Kitchen' just didn't spark off any exciting recipes in my opinion.

A good overview of the foods of Kerala. Good design and easy to follow recipes.

No pictures of dishes along with t recipe to give an hint how t dish look like

The Kerala Kitchen: Recipes and Recollections from the Syrian Christians of South India (Hippocrene Cookbook Library)Any self proclaimed Indian cooking expert should and MUST have this cookbook on his/her shelf. Chock full of traditional mouth watering recipes, this slim volume of delectable Kerala SYRIAN CHRISTIAN (and there is a difference!) dishes will leave you salivating and ravenous.As a second generation displaced Keralite growing up in Africa and Europe, I never appreciated such meals as Fish Roasted in Banana Leaves (see page 80) or Toddy Pancakes (see page 43). My siblings and I preferred canned sausages and mashed potatoes over Yesterday's Fish Curry (Page 86) or Fried Bitter Gourd (page 150). Indifferent to our finicky palates, my parents insisted (force fed, I should say!) on a daily diet of rice accompanied by a meat or fish dish and some form of coconut based vegetable. We groaned and moaned, but nevertheless ate what was put in front of us.My mother, known for her superb culinary skills, had tried to impart her knowledge of making a scrumptious Chicken Stew (page 127) or lip smacking Duck Roast (page 135) but I resolutely stuck to my versions of insipid shepherd pies and tomatoey spaghetti bolognaise.It was only after going away to University that I began to develop a liking for our regional food. Baked Beans on Toast was fast losing its bland appeal!Moving to the United States and discovering an incompetent cook in my husband left me longing for my mother's (once deplored!) cooking and a desire to mimic her. I would spend ages on the phone with her, writing down detailed recipes on scraps of paper and attempting to make them later.Lathika George's "The Kerala Kitchen" came as a complete joy to me. I love to read and I love to eat!The cuisine of Kerala (a state located on the Southwestern part of India) is very unique and for Indians from other parts of India, just as unfamiliar as Roast Turkey and Candied Yams! Most dishes are rice and coconut based, seafood is preferred over meat or poultry and sour/spicy wins over sweet/mild.Lathika George has managed to capture all of the popular dishes eaten by a typical Malayalee (native of Kerala) with a big nod to the state's Christian heritage.This cookbook is an absolute delight to read and the recipes are authentic and user friendly. I highly recommend it to anyone wishing to try a different kind of Indian cuisine!Happy Reading and Happy Eating!

simply a book to relive some memorable times through food

Just finished reading the Kindle version of this book, and while the photographs were all (obviously) black-and-white, there is plenty of color in the author's descriptions of Kerala and her childhood in India. Especially helpful are the thorough instructions in her recipes and her suggestions of how each recipe might be varied with other ingredients. I greatly appreciate the glossary of cooking terms and the table of possible substitutions for ingredients that are not so easily found in the US.The foods are a bit different from those in my other Indian cookbooks - more use of coconut (in its many forms) and recipes using beef as well as mutton (goat).Having devoured this "cookbook" last night, I am left with the appetite to do two more things - one, to try out some of her recipes, and two, to write up for my children some of my own memories of foods that make up our own family heritage.Recommended both for cooks and those who want an insight into the family life of the Syrian Christians.