In a warm intimate gathering on a winter evening in Delhi, entrepreneur-food consultant-author Karen Anand launched her new book titled Masala Memsahib: Recipes and Stories from My Culinary Adventures in India (Pan Macmillan India; Rs 1,999). Writing about her experiences across Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Maharashtra, and West Bengal, Anand shares over 100 recipes. Peppered with anecdotes, accompanied by photographs of food styled in a studio, shot at beaches and streets, at roadside food stalls, and homely kitchens, here’s a repertoire that spells local cuisines, diverse eating practices, and fabulous culinary histories. Sunday mid day browses though the pages to bring you a peak.

Gujarat

What defines Gujarati cuisine for me is not only the vast array of dishes but the amazing aesthetics which some families bring to the table and the sheer elegance of simple meals, adding touches like flowers, fragrances and textiles. The merchants of Ahmedabad—the Sarabai, Mangaldas and Hutheesing families—have done much to take Gujarati food to another level. They were all originally Jains from Osian in the Marwar district of Rajasthan. The Hutheesings moved to the port city of Khambat in Gujarat to trade with the British (mainly opium, it is thought) under the Mughal governor.