Suvir Saran

I always wonder what it would take to have TRAVEL become a necessary class for all students. My ex always said that someday, they would have made enough money to have a trust that would send kids from America to travel across the globe and live alongside people of other cultures and beliefs. Travel teaches far more intimately and greatly than books, web sites and familiarization trips to nations. I have enjoyed and been on the receiving end of many a press junket across nations. Whilst I have enjoyed observing the affluence afforded to the press by the tourism ministries and their PR people, I have never really been influenced by the heart of the masses of these nations. The only time I come back with a real feeling of the pulse of a people is after living with the masses at all levels possible. The very rich, the very poor and the lower, upper and the mid-level middle class of a nation, city or community. In doing so, I spend a lot of time chatting and chalking up experiences that not always make for press worthy stories, but do leave me with lasting impressions of how common humanity is even across divides and barriers posed by politics, language, race and religion. Vegetarians across the globe, a very large number, even if we only consider the hundreds of millions that come from the Indian Diaspora, will not eat at a vegetarian restaurant if the same kitchen were cooking meat or fish or poultry. Even the least religious vegetarian amongst them would find it offensive to have to eat in such a restaurant and from such a kitchen. Even I, will eat a meal at such a restaurant, but never enjoy my meal. I have eaten in restaurants of many kinds, I have only enjoyed vegetarian meals in a very few settings in America. I have actually enjoyed a vegetarian meal in a restaurant that served meat, but I knew I had to block off the thoughts about my food being cooked alongside meat and fish and poultry, maybe with stock that is not acceptable to my belief system, and then, for a brief moment, I was able to enjoy that meal for that one moment and then leave it in my memory to reflect on for later times. Would I go there to enjoy a vegetarian meal? NEVER. Would I respect that chef who made me an amazing vegetarian meal within his kitchen? YES. As a vegetarian, I would never eat in a restaurant that serves meat if I could find a decent restaurant that served food I enjoyed which happened to be a vegetarian restaurant as well. But since in my current country of choice, my options are limited, unless I eat Indian or Vegan (which I am not much a fan of), I have accepted this and I eat to give company to friends and family that eat meat, fish or poultry, and I find myself coming home or going to those of others that cook like me and eat like me to give my body sustenance. As a human being who is greatly a social animal, I find myself just perfectly happy to eat a few tablespoons of food, at a very slow pace, tell tales and be happy as I find myself watching my friends and family eat in these restaurants where I find nothing really acceptable for my vegetarian tastes. I have no objection to eating food that has been cooked in a pan which was once used to cook meat, but I know many non-religious vegetarians living across the nations of the world that would NOT entertain that as an acceptable option And why would I take it upon myself to badger another about why they think a certain way? Not my task in life, and not my religion to not let another enjoy what they eat in the way and place and setting they want to eat it in.

I wish I could accept your thanks without giving you and all on eGullet my own. Seriously, we on eGullet, are rich for we bring such diverse thought and background into one site. We are enriched grossly by many of one or two communities or nations or religions, but that is also true for most all things in the world. There are always majorities and minorities, that is the reality of life. Majorities can always reduce minority thought to nothing more than a joke or stupid notion. There is never a reason to argue with the majority, for it is meaningless really, but yet, if a minority does not speak, it is a minority that is not worthy of its own existence. A minority that speaks but is not open to others even more minor then them, is even more repugnant than the majority that bullies it. You get my point I am sure... I was even in India, a minority, even though I really did belong to a majority religion. I am Radha Soami by family association. And even amongst Radha Soamis (our religious sect, community or denomination or whatever you want to call it) we belonged to yet a minor minority, Soami Bagh Radha Soamis. Our texts had the most beautiful offerings from many a religion. Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Islam, and Zoroastrianism at the very least. How could I forget, Judeo-Christian verses made their way into our texts as well. God was something that could not be called by any one name. If a God existed, they were without face and form, only a being that gave us something greater to ponder over. And part of this community was a code that asked its followers to refrain from the dogma that came from following the other organized religions of the world. Radha Soamis took Hinduism back to its secular roots where religion became one with nature and elements. Prayer was not about self-bashing or hatred, but the celebration of the human form as we know it and the opportunity to reach greater levels in ones actions of all sorts. Our vocations, our hobbies and our musings were all treated as opportunities for us to find a perfection even this abstract God people speak of would enjoy. But more importantly, it was our mind and hearts we needed to be in peace with, and to that end, each of our actions was meant to be one we would be in peace with for posterity. Hinduism forbids conversion. It is the greatest of all sins. Even the most fanatic Hindu cannot gain any points with their belief and Gods by proselytizing. It is the greatest of all sins they can commit. Hinduism is only a way of life. It is unique in that and also that it has no one book or two or even three that are biblical in truth. There are no one set of codes that are more prominent and supreme than others. In fact, Hindus pray singing verses of the Bhagvad Gita (a book considered "weightier" than the Bible by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, an Indian who was greatly non-violent, believed to be a rare secular being in a time when hate was easy to accept, and a man killed by people of his own religion for they found his love of people of another race mind boggling, and also a man who studied Judeo-Christian beliefs with sincere curiosity and what many thought was a desire of conversion) which is only a small chapter of an epic most Indians consider an old story tale, that only happens to also be the largest epic ever written anywhere, a book called the Mahabharata. So, you can see, even the book we consider as holy as Christians consider the bible, is only a chapter from a much larger book that we Hindus also really do know as being not much more than a fable. Hindus do have "sam" a collection of texts that one studies if one wants to understand the way of life of older days Hindus. But there is no verse telling Hindus that they can only achieve religious perfection by studying these texts. What these texts (including the Vedas and Puranas that have given the world algebra, Ayurveda, yoga and meditation techniques) do give Hindus is a look back into time, to understand how our forefathers thousands of years ago lived. How they enriched their lives. What their worries were. How they braved calamities. What rocked their peaceful existence. How they medicated their illnesses, what they ate and why and when. How they cooked some of these grains and herbs and spices that they first found and then cultivated and then used in ways more than one. Driving with the son of a 94 year old Yoga teacher who has lived in NYC for the last couple of decades, I was given a brief but very beautiful insight into the world of a Hindu who is at once religious and secular. Religious because they call themselves a proud Hindu, secular because they consider every religion equal and God a universal and all forgiving and omni-present and multi-faceted, and many named entity. Musa, Allah, Isa, Ram, Buddha, Krishna et. al. are just one of this Gods many names. This God needs no one way of prayer from us all that inhabit this globe. This God finds joy in our plurality of looks, customs and thoughts. This God hardly cares if one of us speaks one language, prays differently, in another tradition or manner, eat in ways different from that of another of his subjects in another part of the world,or simply is uniquely different. This God, the 94 year old Yoga teacher from India, who has lived in NYC for the last two decades or more, respects teaches him and all of us that also identify ourselves as secular Hindus to live and let live. Our religion is not found in temples. This old man, like my own grandmothers (both of whom I lost this year) and my grandfather who lives in San Francisco teaches the importance of doing good, sharing all one has, forgiving others and opening ones heart and the misery one inflicts on oneself and ones own with hate, retribution and our silly need to have other conform to our selfishly laid out rules and standards. This old man, like my own elders tells the joke about only crooks finding time to really go to temples. He says exactly what my own grandparents would tell us: "an honest, kind and caring human being, has hardly anytime in the day to take care of all the many chores that will bring their family and friends and themselves happiness, to find time to pray and conform to rules and regulations laid out by other mortals in the name of God". That is the core of our way of life, that some call religion, but our own people understand as a private and individual walk in the path of life with a God that lives in each of us and tries to come out with each word we speak, each word we write and each morsel we cook, share and taste. And so in ending, yes, to me, and a majority of my minority members, religion is just as much a figment of our imaginations as hate and love. Honoring one means honoring the other. If we find honor and respect for religion, we are told to honor and respect the beliefs and faiths of all that we meet no matter how different their ways are from our own. And yes, to the myriad religions and sects and communities of India, respect for diet is very critical. There is a saying in India which makes clear that each of us is nothing more than a loose make up of what we eat and the earth we walk on. Thus what we eat, with what respect and honor we treat our foods, and how we find faith in our foods and our environment and the soil, is a critical aspect in the ultimate good life we want to find and live on this earth.

Thanks Matt in Minnesota for your encouraging words. This forum, is only what each of you members make it. Your posts, your impressions and your words enrich it daily. I should be the one thanking each of you.

Very nicely said.

Minor point here... as I believe FG pointed out earlier, many people believe that their religion, and whatever dietary guidelines may go along with it, are not a matter of choice. Whatever one may think about religion, this makes, say, keeping kosher fundamentally different from being a non-religion-based vegetarian. This little digression has no bearing on your good point about the inherrent rudeness of bringing meat into a vegetarian restaurant (and especially expecting to be able to eat it). Minor point here..... I come from a country where many hundreds of millions are vegetarian for religious reasons. Yet, there are no rules that one needs to worry about in cooking at a vegetarian restaurant. Our religion has been largely a secular one. Also not written for the most part. And yet having some of the riches religious text any culture can call their own. The secular and religious vegetarians of India, teeming millions, can dine together and without fear that either one will be compromised. No labels are necessary at doors to these vegetarian restaurants. They say they are vegetarian, and it is understood that most all vegetarians can eat there. If there is any added baggage to the word vegetarian (example Kosher, Jain, Saraswat, Kashmiri, Bengali, Amrit Chakha etc... They will say so in their name or their written or advertised materials. For the most part, a rather large majority, has no reason to say anything more. Vegetarian means food that is made without any meat, fish or poultry. Dairy is eaten by most all vegetarians in India. Exceptions exist and there are other restaurants catering to those that need them. And the label says that in addition to the word vegetarian) it is made abundantly clear. It is not a guessing game. It luckily has not been made into a war between the religious and non-religious types. Secular vegetarianism in India is treated with the same respect as vegetarianism of any particular religion or sect of India. We have faith in our fellow humans, and that faith makes us feel comfortable knowing that the fellow diner, the chef or the line chefs and all restaurant employees, have done nothing to compromise our meatless meal. But in the same country, there are millions like me that are vegetarian by choice and not by religious reasons. We are afforded the same privileges and same respect by our fellow humans (religious or not) and from the restaurants we go to as Vegetarians. Be they religiously vegetarian or simply vegetarian restaurants. Not one of us has to worry that because we are eating at a secular vegetarian restaurant, we ought to worry that meat would come into our food or restaurant environs. It is safe to assume that a Moslem in India dining in a Indian restaurant that is secular, can dine without fear that Pork is bought into the kitchen, a Hindu can dine there without any fear of beef and a Jew without fear of pork and so on and so forth. Secular restaurants do exist in many cultures and countries and cities. They give the same respect to people choices as those afforded to the religious in their religion bound restaurants. It is one and the same thing...... It is all about tradition, belief and custom. One could be a vegetarian and still not have any choice about not eating meat. I do NOT eat meat in my home. NEVER. Not even when I cook it. I do NOT eat meat when cooking in restaurants. I only taste a small amount of meat when traveling and working on a story. I am deeply secular and deeply cultural and deeply social. And I know more about Hinduism than most anyone my age or decades senior. I grew up with a Brahmin priest and a Moslem Mullah teaching me about Hinduism and Islam. I was raised with traditions of both. My grandma a deeply religious person, was unusually religious and fundamentally Secular. Hence, even as a Hindu, to make us (her grandchildren) truly secular, she requested a Moslem friend of the family to arrange for the local Mullah (priest from the local Mosque) to give us Islamic study lessons. We understood religion and secular living and the traditions of food. We dined around the globe. Never worried to be offended by those we respected and those that like us, were secular and caring of others beyond the limitation of religion, class or creed alone. When I dine in a vegetarian restaurant, I assume for the most part that is really is Meatless. When I dine in an American (new age) or a Japanese vegetarian restaurant, I am trepidatious at best. For I know sea food can often be cooked in these kitchens. I have learned to not let that bother me. But in most all other countries I travel to, when I enter a vegetarian restaurant, run by Thai, Malaysians, Hindus, Indonesians, Singaporeans, Indians, Moroccans, Syrians, Algerians or Lebanese, I am confident that I am entering a meat free space. I have no fear. And I have never been let down. Non religion based vegetarian restaurants are places that give peace of mind to non-religious vegetarians the world over about being in meat free environs. Do they do the same today in the US? Perhaps not as clearly as they do in other parts of the world. And that really could be a tragedy more so than anything else. For in this land today, a wonderful country built upon the ideals of secularism, religion alone is afforded respect and blind faith. Fait in humanity and human respect for each other is at a very low ebb. Not because we do not have it in us to have faith in another without needing the inclusion of religion to have faith, but because religion and politics have been married so drastically that nothing seems to be innocent anymore. Only religion can be called pure here. All else is open to debate. There is reason to debate religion. The oldest of religions have only enriched themselves as they debated and grew from where they first began. Closing doors only to religion is scary. Not respecting that which can be just as pure as religion without having its organization is a folly. Religion and personal beliefs not guided by organized religion are one and the same. To some religion gives the pillar of strength necessary to live and learn and share, to another, a personal journey lived according to ones own thought process is just as precious and pure and honest. They each can live and be given equal respect. So, whilst I do not keep Kosher, neither am I a Jain who cannot eat root vegetables, or a Misra Brahmin that cannot eat any fish, meat or poultry, I still am a human with devout belief that I am a vegetarian. I also have great confidence in my belief of being vegetarian. And I never feel any lesser than an Kosher Observing Jew, Vegetarian Jain or Hindu. In my world, where I live with friends, and in my country, I can still go to restaurants and never feel that because I do not have the label of religion attached to my belief, or because the secular vegetarian restaurants I dine in, my belief is taken any less seriously. Even in restaurants serving vegetarian Indian food in NYC, Jains, Sikhs, Brahmans, Moslems or anyone who lives in NYC and wants vegetarian Indian food, can find a safe place for a meatless dining experience without any religious baggage. It is wonderful when I take friends who are non-Indian to these restaurants and we find vegetarians from around the globe eating in these restaurants.. most are secular folk like many of us.... and some religious of many different orders. In many a part of the world, my secular vegetarian beliefs and needs related to food are just as highly regarded and respected as those of observant religious diners in restaurants that cater to their religious dietary needs.

Excellent post Hest. You have said eloquently all that ought to be said and understood. I agree the minutiae are indeed ours alone and tedious as many such discussions can become. Especially when we rely on words alone. Words can both take us to heights we could never achieve any other way, and words can also be the greatest enemy of things simple and honest. Thanks for a great post. Erudite, precise and very succinct.

Exactly what I take as a given. But some nations (and I am told more than one assumes, exist of this kind) do not give a persons own choice as much respect as that of ones religion. So who knows.... unless one were to eat in a religiously identified restaurant in these nations, one can never assume anything or take anything for granted. In India, and most all Indian restaurants I eat in, I have nothing to worry about... even though they do not say they are Jain, Brahmin, Radha Soami or whatever, it is safe and indeed fool proof to go and eat without fear that you are eating in a place where any meat would be permitted. Whilst I have cooked and worked in restaurants that serve meat, if I have had vegetarian clients who are coming into them for they know me and feel comfortable eating in a meat serving restaurant connected with me, I take it upon myself to ensure I bring my own pots and pans, let no meat touch these peoples foods and I will ask if they want to be served in dishes that are from my home instead of the restaurant. But these people, are knowingly entering a restaurant that serves meat, and have enquired if their dietary needs can be met. if they went into an Indian vegetarian restaurant, or even a non-Indian one in America, they would assume it would be all vegetarian, until in some cases, they will be shocked to find fish on the menu, as I used to be when I first came to the US. Many vegetarians in India also make exceptions and have fish, meat or eggs. But when dining in an Indian vegetarian restaurant, one has to have no fear about having meat or fish being present anywhere. That will never happen. Unless advertised otherwise.

Kim, as usual, I find myself agreeing with most all you say. As for the "I don't think of it as a place where meat is NOT allowed", I disagree. I never go into a vegetarian restaurant thinking meat will be allowed. I always fear that they do have fish or eggs on their menu, but that is the extent to which I worry. I am vegetarian, so have had to live with this all my life. As for your carrot analogy, I have to agree with you once again.

Very well said.

If you are Hindu, from India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Africa, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, US, Singapore, Europe or most any other part of the world, you take it for granted that rules are rules. If I enter a vegetarian Indian restaurant, like a Kosher observer does a Kosher restaurant, I do not need to ask for rules, I need to see no advertisement and I need to have no worries. I know I am walking into comfortable territory, where I need to have no doubts in my mind. I am here to enjoy a meal and the company of family and friends. I forget the desire to enquire or learn, I fall into a comfort zone not afforded me in restaurants that are Mixed (meat and veggies from whatever cuisine they choose), Kosher, Vegan or Vegetarian restaurants owned by people of cultures other than Indian. They are from my culture and I have confidence in knowing that. Since these restaurants are most often managed, owned or both by others like me, I have confidence and comfort in knowing so. For a change, I only eat, and leave fear, questioning and any worries to the side. If I am a Jain, Saraswat Brahman, Radha Soami (as is my family and I), then we would already have inquired before stepping into the Indian vegetarian restaurants that otherwise afford the basic vegetarians of India all promise they need. The promise of these restaurants, even without any "meat free" advertisement, is the same promise as that of a Kosher restaurant. It promises all that come to it, being vegetarian Indians (Hindus for the most part), a meat free environment and meat free food. If you are vegan, and not part of the Hindu vegetarian traditions, you should worry. To vegans, an Indian restaurants "unwritten but promised rules" do not apply. Most Hindus assume, and I know most all Hindu vegetarian restaurant owners I have chatted with have bought cheese without rennet when they have cheese on their menu. I have been looked at funny for even asking such a question. As if I did not trust the restaurant and its staff. They will use gelatin of a certain type. They would never have fish and eggs. To an Indian vegetarian, in an Indian vegetarian restaurant, there is no need to question the promise of a vegetarian experience. It is a given and understood by all. As I travel across countries and cities, I come across a few but enough numbers of these Hindu Vegetarian restaurants that deliver exactly what I feel I have been promised by assuming that a restaurant is Indian and vegetarian. When I travel with friends that are Jain or from a certain part of Western UP where some groups of non-Brahmins also do not eat onions and other ground vegetables, I will make sure that the restaurant can accommodate our unique dietary needs. And I also ensure that my dining companion(s) will be comfortable eating in a restaurant that does cook with some of these items not allowed to them. I have to learn most nothing about vegetarian restaurants of the Indian diaspora before going to them. Nor do those that go into them from our communities. We walk into them full of confidence about an experience that could be a great one (if the food is tasty and the service at least decent and attentive), eat and go our way. We know we have been promised a vegetarian meal, under the codes of the larger vegetarian practice of Hindu India. We take it for granted, like anyone entering a Kosher restaurant, that once inside and dining, we are in safe territory.

What city or state do you live in? Only if you are comfortable sharing this detail. Or else, I am sure the curiosity shall pass. If you can think of names, do share them. It would make for great insight for those of us that can benefit from such research.

Every so often, I find some in the Indian store or even the farmers market. Where do you live? Maybe someone who also lives in your area, can give you a source for them. What else do you use them for?

Where are these beef serving restaurants??? Can you share names and locations? In NYC, the few restaurants that serve beef are kebab houses or restaurants run by Pakistanis. They too are very few. Most of the Pakistani run dhaba style restaurants that are catering to the Sub Continental yellow cab drivers, do not put either pork or beef on their menus. They are showing sympathy towards each others social customs in doing so.

Most restaurants in the US tend to be NON veg with some vegetarian selections. As the restaurants mautured and identified their audiences they balanced their meat and non meat offerings and offering small servings or side dishes of their vegetarian selections. 90% of the vegetarian joints started out as South Indian places as Dosas, vadas, iddlis are very popular with Indians from all over. Most of these places then went the buffet route with north indian selections also thrown in. Now most of the vegetarian indian restaurants in the US( at least where I am ) will offer even a chat bar with make your self pani pooris and chat papri etc so everyone is happy. regarding beef, you rarely see it on menus as operators or the employees sometimes do not want to handle beef or pork. But with the retiring of the stalwarts and a younger, McDonald burger munching, crew comming in you should see more of beef and pork. BBhasin, I have had the same experiences as you note. And yes, I see a new generation of chefs that will break the old custom and will add pork and beef to the menu. I remember when I suggested that Hemant Mathur add Wild Boar Chops to his menu, several employees thought it was too risky. He did it, and many a customer were thrilled. Asked by me if he could add pork or beef, he said NO. The owner would have nothing to do with it. Wild Board fell into some gray zone where no one understood the connection to pork and it was allowed to fall through the cracks. I cannot wait to see how this trend changes in the hands of the "McDonald burger munching, crew". I am actually curious.

And reading your post makes me happy and sad. Now I am hungry. Your mothers dishes sound wonderful.

Thanks Richard!

Photography is finished. It was shot between my own home and the photographers. They are the work of Ben Fink, a very talented and very impressive photographer. As for more information, Episure, you can always email me and I can answer myself or have someone from Clarkson Potter give you the information you need. What info are you looking for?

It is much stronger in taste with the garlic. More Hyderabad style at that point. Without garlic, for some strange reason, it lends itself quite naturally to many a different dish and cuisine. With garlic, its roots get defined as strongly identified with Indian cuisine. I love it both ways. The garlic free is also wonderful with dosas and most anything. It also makes it easy for you to eat the chutney without any fear. It lasts a LONG time, especially if you have cooked it as long as suggested. Welcome to eGullet and its Indian forum.

Look forward to the near future when we get to know more about you and read more posts from you. Again, welcome to this forum and eGullet. You shall quickly learn that it can get very addictive her. Too many wonderful and engrossing discussions of things dear to all our hearts and stomachs.

Yes, I have and I will have a restaurant. The only thing I think more of is timing and ensuring I have planned as much of it seriously as I can. New York gives few chances to people... why rush and take a silly risk?

Thanks Episure!

Rajsuman, welcome to eGullet and its Indian forum. Many, many thanks for your kind wishes. With my book in production, I need all the good wishes I can get. Thanks.

There are NO secrets in my book, since no friends or family members I relied on for recipes, kept any from me. What I learned, I have shared. And to ensure there is nothing held back, each recipe has been cooked by me, I have been watched, studied, measured, weighed and documented by my co-writer, Stephanie Lyness, restaurant critic for NY Times (CT Section) and a food writer and recipe writer with years of experience and many successful works to her credit. It was tough (in a very good way) working with her, for she was exacting, precise and a perfectionist, but we soon became friends and admirers. We each had a lot more in common than we differed on. And her recipe writing skills are far superior than most in the trade. All I can say is that when I was introduced to Stephanie for my cookbook, we each quickly found the other fascinating. Many a friend, including professional cookbook writers, tried to discourage me from having a co-writer, for it diluted my advance, since I would have to share it. And now, since the manuscript has been submitted and the book is in production, I feel I only gained from this partnership. Stephanie has been a consummate writer, steady and trained set of eyes, hawkishly looking for those small steps, pinches of ingredients and little intricacies that would take place at any given moment, and could go unnoticed by all but the person that makes it their mission to look for what a chef does when they are not really being watched. That should give you an idea of how thorough she has been in her documentation of what takes place every time I cook a certain recipe. And for each recipe, we have had many levels of interaction and exchange to ensure a logical series of documentation that educates even as it gives confidence and faith to those even totally new to this cuisine of India. A well respected and well placed cooking magazine publisher who read the manuscript in its most early form, said of our partnership that " .....Stephanie Lyness took scrupulous note of every phase of a dish’s execution, pausing to ask for clarification or amplification along the way in order to transmit any fugitive details or relevant food lore to the recipe’s eventual users, the trusting cookbook public." Our collaboration made it easy for me to cook, unencumbered by the need to document each step myself. And it made it easy for her to sit at the laptop and watch and document at the same time. The margin of error, in which one could forget, change or omit a certain step, was reduced to as low as one could imagine The book is in production now. Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Random House is the publisher. I was indeed lucky and rather fortunate. For years, they had been one of the few houses publishing cookbooks that I really admired and respected. They do a great job in bringing out books that are prized for most all attributes that one looks for in a serious cookbook. Their standards have not been compromised as much as I am told one has seen elsewhere lately. Amazon.com has the book listed already. It is due early fall of 2004. My editor also happens to be a passionate cook and a fan of many cuisines other than her native American fare. That has given me hope and also great encouragement in going the extra yard to do all I can to ensure the sharing of all the tiny stories that I have ever learned about food in the Indian life that I found myself being a part of from my early childhood. The recipes as I share in the book, are translations of how I have adapted the cuisine of my beloved India into the world I inhabit in the city I call home today, New York City. Whilst there is little if at all anything I can change in the book at this point, I must say I have tried to share with the trusted readers of cookbooks all that I know. I am not sure what other countries the book will be sold in just yet. Many thanks for your interest in my book. And thanks for also sharing what you want from a cookbook. Such feedback is very helpful. Your reflections about Yamuna Devis books are very flattering. But also say a lot about her book. I have enjoyed reading it and found it amazingly rich. I have not cooked from it, but am glad to hear you find it like a personal cooking coach. That is a great compliment to Yamuna Devi and her book. All cookbook authors should aspire to leave a similar impression.

Nadru is what Bhain (lotus root) is called in Kashmir.

Bhain sounds wonderful. How do they mince Bhain? I can I guess use a food processor, but does one cook it or process it while still uncooked? I have had Nadru made a few ways in Kashmiri homes, but I guess I was not lucky enough to have tried this variation. Chuk and Yakhni are more common and then the Kachri made with Bhain in UP and even Punjab.