16 Best Indian Cooking Books

Julie Sahni introduces Indian cooking through explanations of essential spices, ingredients, and preparation techniques. Recipes and explanatory drawings form a course in the cuisine, helping readers understand the methods and equipment behind its varied traditions.

Pushpesh Pant gathers recipes from across India in a large regional cooking reference. The collection covers varied communities, ingredients, and meal types, giving home cooks a way to explore the country’s culinary diversity beyond a small group of familiar dishes.

Priya Krishna celebrates her mother Ritu’s inventive Indian-American cooking through recipes and family stories. Dishes combine childhood Indian flavors with American favorites and influences from travel, offering practical home cooking that reflects the family’s life between culinary traditions.

Meera Sodha presents 130 vegetarian recipes that bring Indian flavors to everyday cooking. The collection emphasizes fresh ingredients and practical preparation, offering a varied approach to home meals through dishes intended to be quick, approachable, and satisfying.

Meera Sodha shares recipes rooted in three generations of her family’s Indian cooking. Everyday dishes, curries, breads, street food, and desserts introduce a home kitchen tradition, combining personal heritage with approachable guidance for preparing flavorful meals.

Madhur Jaffrey introduces home cooks to Indian food through recipes and explanations of culinary traditions. Dishes including biryani, samosas, vegetables, and spiced eggs show varied techniques and flavors, with guidance designed to help readers prepare them in their own kitchens.

Asma Khan shares family recipes and memories connecting her cooking with Bengal, Calcutta, Hyderabad, and Mughlai heritage. Organized around meals for two, family gatherings, friends, and celebrations, the book combines everyday dishes with food intended for communal feasts.

Madhur Jaffrey offers Indian recipes adapted for straightforward home preparation. The collection covers meat, fish, vegetables, pulses, and accompaniments, combining practical methods with guidance intended to make varied Indian meals easier to cook regularly.

Maunika Gowardhan shares Indian home cooking through recipes and personal stories. The collection moves between quick meals, more leisurely cooking, and dishes for sharing, introducing regional flavors and the ingredients and methods used to prepare them.

Kaushy Patel presents vegetarian Indian recipes intended for everyday cooking at home. The book draws on family traditions and the Prashad kitchen, with dishes built around vegetables, pulses, spices, and accompaniments for varied meals.

This cookbook brings recipes from the Rasika restaurants into the home kitchen. Traditional Indian flavors meet contemporary restaurant techniques and presentation, with dishes spanning vegetables, seafood, meat, breads, and accompaniments alongside explanations of ingredients and methods.

Nik Sharma combines Indian spices and flavors with influences from California and the American South. Recipes for everyday dishes, baking, and drinks accompany guidance on ingredients and seasoning, illustrated with his own food photography.

Monisha Bharadwaj surveys India's regional cooking through recipes, ingredient explanations, and illustrated technique lessons. The course covers rice, breads, curries, lentils, vegetables, and desserts while explaining foundational methods for preparing Indian meals at home.

Urvashi Pitre adapts Indian dishes for the Instant Pot, offering recipes such as butter chicken, rice dishes, and spiced tea. Ingredient and equipment guidance accompanies instructions for using the electric pressure cooker, helping home cooks prepare familiar and lesser-known dishes.

Krishna Dutta explores the variety of dal across India through recipes using lentils and other pulses. Regional seasonings and cooking methods appear alongside dishes such as khichari, dosas, vadas, and fritters.

Richa Hingle presents vegan Indian recipes spanning dals, curries, flatbreads, breakfasts, snacks, and desserts. Regional traditions sit alongside creative adaptations, with advice on spices, substitutions, and techniques for cooking with legumes, grains, and vegetables.