Curry is Salmon with Garlic and Turmeric. Curry is Grilled Chicken with Cashew-Tomato Sauce. Curry is Asparagus with Tomato and Crumbled Paneer. Cu...
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reviews
Nov 06, 2008
Matthew
rated it: 
They don't stock curry leaves at Safeway. In fact, I couldn't even get green beans today. So, until I make a trip to Seattle's International District for some of the many exotic ingredients required for these recipes, my review is only of the book, not how well any dishes turned out.
I think it is the "660" that bothers me. I belong to the Fanny Farmer, Delia, and America's Test Kitchen side of home cooking. I like the idea that a recipe has been thoroughly vetted. Short of More...
I think it is the "660" that bothers me. I belong to the Fanny Farmer, Delia, and America's Test Kitchen side of home cooking. I like the idea that a recipe has been thoroughly vetted. Short of More...
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Sep 07, 2009
Deodand
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I've been cooking the same few Indian dishes for years and I wanted to expand my repertoire. I looked at several worthy books, but after thinking about it a while, I decided on this one because the focus is on entrees. What I wanted after all was a good curry!
Iyer does a fantastic job of explaining the layering of flavour necessary to a great curry. There is quite a bit of prep work necessary to start with these recipes but he explains how to do a lot of work in advance, such as p More...
Iyer does a fantastic job of explaining the layering of flavour necessary to a great curry. There is quite a bit of prep work necessary to start with these recipes but he explains how to do a lot of work in advance, such as p More...
Jul 28, 2008
Jennifer
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I've read through this book and tried quite a few of the recipes contained within. I LOVE the book. It doesn't dumb-down the flavor for anyone with a wimpy palette and dishes span the spectrum of regional Indian cookery. What sold me where the number of legume recipes. I'm a HUGE fan of lentils and legumes and this book is no slouch.
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Sep 24, 2008
Jen
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This could be a very extended "currently reading" with 660 recipes to choose from. Got it from the library, good breakdowns to make some recipes that might have a daunting number of ingredients very simple by making some spice blends/pastes in advance to use in multiple recipes. Just starting to dig in.
Jul 29, 2011
Catherine
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I have been searching for THE Indian cookbook for a very long time, and have returned each and every time to the first Madhur Jaffrey cookbook that I got 2 decades ago, which is very good but very limited, and nothing of hers that I have cooked from since, or any other cookbook has had the kind of overall appeal that I am looking for. This cookbook might be the end of my search--it is lushly written, with a paragraph or two for each of the 660 recipes, so that you can have a sense of what you a
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Mar 29, 2010
Sarah
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I picked up this book to satisfy a New Year's resolution that I make authentic, restaurant-quality Indian food at home. I've only made about a half-dozen of the recipies from this book, but all of them have been delicious. The recipes do require some prep work with the spices and you absolutely need a local Indian or Asian grocer to find ingredients. However, the extra effort is absolutely worth it, and once you have all of the ingredients prepared, Iyer's directions are clear and uncomplicat
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Aug 25, 2010
Bernadette
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660 Curries, by Raghavan Iyer, is not merely a cookbook. For such a large compendium, one hesitates to use the term "cookbook," as it inadequately covers the wealth of information provided.
Iyer discusses the “building blocks of Indian flavor: bitter, sour, salty, sweet, pungent, umami, astringent, and aromatic.” He also provides a thorough look at the wide variety of spice blends and pastes, providing guidance to the reader on the differences between “warming” and “cooling” More...
Iyer discusses the “building blocks of Indian flavor: bitter, sour, salty, sweet, pungent, umami, astringent, and aromatic.” He also provides a thorough look at the wide variety of spice blends and pastes, providing guidance to the reader on the differences between “warming” and “cooling” More...
Feb 28, 2009
Katie
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This book is fantastic. Everything I've made out of it has been delicious and really not intimidating if you're someone who cooks on a regular basis. But you have to invest some time into seeking out unusual ingredients the first time you try a new recipe. As another reviewer noted, they're not at Safeway, so you have to go to an indian store to stock up on curry leaves, asafetida, and various kinds of lentils. However as far as the veggies and other more conventional ingredients, I'm finding th
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Jul 29, 2011
I cooked a Purim meal out of this last night and it was spectacular. Each time I use this book I am amazed by the wonderful, flavorful, complex taste the food I produce has. One thing we do alot of is using leftover meat and making it into a curry to get a second use out of it, and this book can be equally good "out of the gate" or "around the second bend". Tari Waali Murghi, or Vibrant Chicken was on the menu last night, and it was delicious, warm without being overpower
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Aug 31, 2008
Rosa
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There are more dal recipes in this book than in any other Indian cookbook I've ever seen, so if you're a legume fan, definitely check this out. While I think it's possible to make a fair number of these recipes without seeking out an Indian grocery store, all the really interesting ones probably necessitate a visit. I already had some core items in my pantry from past forays into South Asian cooking, but still had to stock up on curry leaves and jaggery (and still lack dried pomegranate seeds, k
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Feb 16, 2009
Brady
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660 Curries is the first Indian cookbook that I've found to be truly accessible. Iyer writes for the American home cook, but does not hold back on ingredients that might be unfamiliar to many Americans (that's half the fun of learning a new cuisine, right?). I love Indian food and this book gets me excited every time I open it. So far I've only made one of the recipes, but it was great. I'm excited to try the other 659. Highly recommended if you like good Indian food.
Feb 08, 2010
Emily
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2/2/10: After several months' hiatus, I've just returned to this book, and I've been won over anew by the incredible variety of flavors, techniques, and styles included in it. After making a dozen or so of the recipes, I felt confident enough to throw together a curry without instruction. The garam masalas are amazing (though there are still ingredients like white poppy seeds I've yet to encounter).
9/08: I've tried about 10 recipes so far and they've all been mighty tasty. Each re More...
9/08: I've tried about 10 recipes so far and they've all been mighty tasty. Each re More...
Apr 05, 2011
Kokeshi
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This is the most incredible Indian cookbook my family and I have come across. There is a huge variety of curries included and they all (so far) are full of superb flavour. Some of the ingredients will require a trip to an Indian grocery store, but even our tiny store here had the spices required (curry leaves mostly).
If you enjoy curries then this is the book for you!
If you enjoy curries then this is the book for you!
Nov 12, 2010
Jenifer
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This is an amazing Indian cookbook. You need a good pantry of spices and a good source of Indian ingredients (tamarind, curry leaves, etc). Although it has all kinds of meat, vegetable and legume dishes, it is an excellent source even if you are vegetarian. I have only cooked the vegetable and legume dishes and I think it was worth every penny.
Feb 15, 2011
Deb
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The essential guide for any curry fan--full of recipes for any main ingredients, spice level, mood, etc. I have cooked the Cashew Lamb in Coconut Milk so far and it was delicious. (Blog post here: http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.com/2011/...)I have many more recipes tagged to make.
Apr 28, 2010
Jenny
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My husband got me this book as a birthday present, with the understanding that he would cook lovely meals from it. Buy this if you enjoy Indian food. We haven't had a bad meal from it and most recipes are fairly easy, vegetarian and delicious!
Nov 23, 2008
Victoria
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If you like Indian food, this is the book for you. We prepare two or three of these recipes every week and they are wonderful! Have a question about an ingredient? Shoot Raghavan and e-mail and he will get back to you.
Jan 11, 2009
Savitha
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I got this for Christmas...and it looks great! There is an overwhelming variety of curries plus a lot of helpful hints, like how to make your own spices mixes, and so on. Good vegetarian selection.
Jul 20, 2008
Marian
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This book is good, but you better be ready to seek out lots of authentic and not readily available ingredients(like curry leaves) to truly follow the recipes . That being said, the two recipes I have made so far have been simple, good, and easy to modify if you don't have a particular spice (just leave it out). My aloo gobi restaurant style did not taste like restaurant aloo gobi, but was still pretty good. I like the way he writes -- very enthusiastically -- and it definitely makes you want to
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Dec 11, 2009
Andrew
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This is easily the most accessible Indian cookbook I've come across. The directions are very clear and simple, and it manages to present a stunning variety of dishes while at the same time giving the reader/cook the feeling that he or she can make any one of them with ease. I've made maybe 10 dishes from this book so far and they've all turned out well. Well, except the paneer. That didn't work. But you can just buy it in the store anyway. Overall a fine book.
Aug 10, 2008
qurat
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This recipie book had some great ideas- but there were so many times when my mom knew so much more than Iyer about how to make a dish right, that i felt defeated- if a man with 660 curry recipies could not be as good as my mom, what hope have I?
I did make a salmon curry, and it turned out well, but all the other dishes I tried paled in comparison to the skills of Naseema :)
I did make a salmon curry, and it turned out well, but all the other dishes I tried paled in comparison to the skills of Naseema :)
Aug 07, 2008
Kristina
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I haven't tried many from this book yet, but the bhindi masala came out very nicely. No curry powder short cuts here, but the results are home style Indian food without the copious quantities of oil that you sometimes get in restaurant style food. I look forward to trying out many other recipes!
Jan 12, 2012
Valerie
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I enjoy that attention is paid to the influence of region on specific spices or dishes. I've only made 2 recipes so far, but they were both fantastic.
Aug 01, 2009
Carol Lynne
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I've been having a great time browsing this book. The recipe descriptions are very straight forward. I wish there were pictures of the recipes--not that I really need them, but they'd be great to drool over:) The recipes look delicious and I now want to own this book.
Mar 17, 2010
Lisa
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I only ended up making two things from this. There just isn't a good source of the ingredients locally and I can't be bothered to buy a bunch of stuff online that I may only use a tiny bit of.
Oct 07, 2011
Megan
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I'm exploring curry cuisine. Yum! This book will probably have all the info I need to get started!
I'll give it more stars after I cook something.
I'll give it more stars after I cook something.
Feb 24, 2009
Interesting read. I haven't given it any stars because I haven't made anything from it yet. I will though! I know others who love the book.
Apr 04, 2009
Lola
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It is amazing how many curries and garam masalas exist. I loved this book but it was overwhelming.
