American Masala Classics Home Kitchen
In Indian Home Cooking, Suvir Saran introduced our taste buds, and our kitchens, to the wonders of cumin, coriander, cardamom, and curry leaves. American Masala takes the next step, marrying Indian flavors with American favorites to formulate dishes that are exotic, yet familiar; full of complex tastes, yet easy sufficient for weeknight suppers. Masala—the Hindi word for a blend of spices—is at the heart of Indian cooking. Whether toasted, ground, fried, infused in oil, or fresh, spices are employed to layer flavors in simple but unfathomed ways. Bring the same proficiencies to American classics such as meatloaf, macaroni and cheese, or roasted turkey, and the result is something veritably special. Masala likewise refers to the excitement and vibrancy that come from a house full of friends and family. Simple recipes prepared with staples found in each supermarket mean less time laboring in the kitchen and more time expended enjoying the spice of life.
From snacks and starters and on to the evening meal, the Indian influence brightens the flavors in dishes like:
- Goat Cheese Pesto–Stuffed Chicken Breasts
- Tamarind-Glazed Turkey with Corn Bread–Jalapeño Stuffing
- Crab-and-Salmon Cakes with Spicy Cilantro Aïoli
- Crispy Okra Salad
- Bombay-Style Whole Snapper
- Honey-Glazed Double-Thick Pork Chops
- Pistachio-and-Cardamom Pound Cake with Lemon Icing
- Fried Eggs with Asparagus and Prosciutto
American Masala isn’t regarding established Indian food—it’s regarding adding new flavors to the great American melting pot, using spices to liven up the old standbys, and enjoying dishes that are as stimulating and diverse as life in the huge city, and yet as intimate and comforting as your mother’s cooking.
ReviewSuvir Saran’s basi book, Indian Home Cooking, offered a you-can-make-it take on one of the world’s outstanding cuisines, whose some spice blends, or masalas, may daunt Western cooks. In American Masala, Suvir offers 125 likewise approachable recipes that fetch the many-layered flavors of Indian cooking to more intimate dishes, yielding, for example, Crab and Salmon Cakes with Spicy Cilantro Aïoli, Indian-Spiced Meatballs with Tomato-Chile Sauce, and Tamarind Roost Turkey with Corn Bread-Jalapeño Stuffing. More traditionalisti Indian dishes, like Sweet Potato Chaat and Lamb Seekh Kebabs, are likewise included, as are sweets, such as Pistachio-and-Cardamom Pound Cake with Lemon Icing and Pavlova with Spiced Berries and Cointreau Cream.
Saran, a warm, food-loving presence, also offers autobiographical notes that further domesticate his recipes. With color photos and good selective information on ingredients and techniques, American Masala may help cooks add excitement to each and everyday and party-giving menus alike. –Arthur Boehm
From Publishers WeeklyAlthough the recipes in Saran’s aptly titled second cookbook portion no unifying principle isolated from their deliciousness—whoever heard of Macaroni and Cheese keeping company with Mushroom and Rice Biryani Casserole?—they supplement one another in a mysterious way. Such eclecticism reflects how Saran, chef and co-owner of Dévi in New York City, cooks for his family and enormous circle of Tupperware-toting friends. Unlike a heap of other chefs’ signature dishes, which originate in a restaurant kitchen, Saran’s most inspired creations start out at home. When this cooking-without-borders approach succeeds, as it for the most part does, the results taste like wild siblings of the original: bolder, stronger, deeper. Seasonings for a delicious variation on harira, a conventional Moroccan soup, include Aleppo pepper and garam masala; a buttermilk brine for fried chicken is flavored with ginger, coriander and cayenne. Indian dishes like Mashed Potatoes with Mustard Oil, Cilantro and Onions and Bombay-Style Whole Snapper, in which the fish is rubbed with a spice paste before roasting, exceptionally stand out for their elegance and ease of preparation. 60 color photos not seen by PW. (Oct.)
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Review”This book is a warm, personal invitation to make extremely pleasing feed at home, all inspired by American and Indian favorites. How could any individual say no to vegetables so finelooking and so easy to make. Nothing could be healthier. These dishes promise no fuss or drama and I love the descriptions that come with them. I’m convinced.
I can’t wait to try them all.”
- Marion Nestle, NYU Professor and author of Food Politics and What to Eat
“I actually listen the voice of Suvir Saran on each page, specially in the intimate recipe footnotes as he reimagines each and everyday bestloved dishes of the American melting pot in his own kitchen, intensifying flavors with the fragrant spices of India. Buy this book for the mystery of his rich-as Croesus macaroni and cheese, the crispy okra salad and, yes, the irresistible skillet cornbread borrowed from an America grandma. “
- Gael Greene , New York Magazine Critic and author of Insatiable: Tales from a Life of Delicious Excess
“Suvir Saran’s American Masala is an stimulating addition to American cooking. These recipes are simple without being simplistic and fetch the vibrant traditions of Indian seasoning and spice to the progressively diverse American repertoire. Perhaps most important, this book is filled with Saran’s big and generous spirit.”
- Michael Ruhlman, Author, The Soul of a Chef
“I have cooked Suvir’s recipes probably fifty times, never without delightful, fresh, inspiring results. When it comes to contemporary and traditionalisti food, I trust him implicitly. American Masala is a gem.”
- Mark Bittman, Author, How to Cook Everything and The Best Recipes in the World
“Suvir Saran’s American Masala is an exhilarating culinary journey. From Cardamom Roasted Cauliflower to sumptuous Crab and Salmon Cakes with a Spicy Cilantro Aioli, Suvir’s love affair with amazing flavors is apparent in each recipe. My own personal favorites will always be his Spiced Pear and Better-than-Ketchup Tomato Chutneys, but I adore his pickles, too!”
- Sheila Lukins, Co-author, the Silver Palate Cookbook
American Masala Classics Home Kitchen Pic
American Masala Classics Home Kitchen Image
American Masala Classics Home Kitchen Picture
American Masala Classics Home Kitchen Image
Most helpful client reviews
24 of 25 humans found the following review helpful.
 Another Winning Book from Suvir Saran
By Matthew Christensen
I picked up my copy of “American Masala” last night so this review is a basi impressions sort of look at chef Suvir Saran’s latest cookbook. First of all, the photography and the graphic parts that make up this book are vividly colorful. As you may see from the cover, the colors are rich and intense – almost a visual foretaste of the evenly bright flavors and distinguishable layering of spices you will experience when you undertake these recipes. Building on “Indian Home Cooking,” this second book provides even more background to the recipes – the stories of people and experiences that have inspired Saran’s collection of “125 new classics” are a pure pleasure to read. In fact, when I got home last night, I sat in bed reading Saran’s book as I would a novel, getting lost in the textures and rhythms of anecdotes from Delhi, New York and other places around the world.
20 of 22 humans found the following review helpful.
It Just Keeps Getting BETTER & BETTER
By Jon Templeton
Having delved into Suvir Saran’s earlier book Indian Home Cooking, I’ve been waiting for months with giddy anticipation to get my hands on his most recent work, American Masala – 125 New Classics from My Home Kitchen (Clarkson Potter, $35).
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