simple

Straightforward recipes with minimum preparation time and that do not require unusual ingredients.

mushroom dopiaza

This dish, khumb dopiaza, features mushrooms, quickly cooked in a masala with tomatoes and a lot of onion. It's simplicity belies its Mughal heritage.

mushroom pepper varuval

Kalan milagu varuval is a dry stir-fry of mushrooms, strongly spiced with black pepper. This simple dish highlights the mushrooms perfectly.

naan

Leavened bread, cooked on a griddle, in a tandoor or even a barbecue. Naan is one of India's favourite breads.

onion bhaji

Vengaya bhaji are one of the great starters or snacks. Make sure there is more onion than batter, or they will just be doughy fritters.

palak paneer

This palak paneer is the classic Punjabi dish of spinach studded with cubes of fried paneer cheese. It is hotter than the usually bland restaurant versions.

Crispy outer leaves, and softer, but still crunchy centres, spiced with turmeric, cumin and mustard seeds, this is a great way to prepare Brussel sprouts. Known as choti bund gobhi sabzi, these are not sprouts as you know them.

paneer jalfrezi

Kadai paneer is a combination of paneer, capsicum, tomato, onion and spices cooked in ghee.

paneer with peas

Matar paneer is a popular Punjabi dish. It highlights the paneer, with a spicy tomato sauce and bursts of flavour from the just-cooked peas.

Parsi scrambled eggs

Scrambled eggs the Parsi way. Akoori can be served at breakfast, as a snack, for lunch, or for a light evening meal. It is mildly spiced, yet with a kick from the green chillies.

pepper chicken

Chettinad pepper chicken, or milagu kozhi varuval, gets its heat from black pepper and has a quite different flavour to dishes that use chilli for heat. A simple south Indian chicken dish.

pink gin

Pink gin is sharp and heavy, with its alluring colour hinting at its rich, dry taste. The traditional pre-dinner drink for the Raj.

potato and cauliflower

This recipe for aloo gobi is typically Bengali. It is a dry and delicate vegan dish, it features slightly crisp potatoes and just-cooked caulioflower.