Easy Indian Home Cooking
Neena Williams turned the flavors and recipes of her family’s home kitchen into a business. Kitchen Curry Master is a curated spice collection with recipes that make Indian home cooking accessible to home cooks everywhere.
Kara Rota
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Easy Indian Home Cooking
Growing up in London, England, Neena Williams did her homework in the kitchen of her family’s Indian restaurant, well known for its neighborhood feel and flavorful home-style cooking. As she grew older, she worked in the restaurant after school. Later, she would cater events and weddings, often serving hundreds of people at a time.
After moving to California with her husband, Neena found that her friends were intimidated by what they saw as the complexities of Indian home cooking. She set out to solve that problem by creatying Kitchen Curry Master, a curated collection of spices and recipes to transform any amateur cook into a curry master.
Click the arrow in the player above to listen to the whole interview. Or download the episode from iTunes to learn:
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Neena’s background and journey to creating Kitchen Curry Master.
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How to use a spice box in traditional Indian home-cooking.
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What spices and ingredients you in your pantry to cook great Indian food.
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Easy weeknight dinner recipes.
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And much more!
Neena’s background and journey to creating Kitchen Curry Master.
Spicy Rice
Spice up your rice with this quick and easy dish – works great on its own or served with other dishes:
Ingredients
1 tablespoon chopped fresh garlic- ½ tablespoon salt
- 4 cups cooked basmati rice (hot or cold)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion
- ½ cup cashew nuts
- ½ cup raisins
- ½ cup frozen corn
- ¼ cup water
- 1 handful fresh cilantro
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon fenugreek seeds
- 1 tablespoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon chili powder*
1 tablespoon chopped fresh garlic#Note: If you prefer a hotter spice level, increase the amount of chili powder by ¼ teaspoon increments to suit your taste. Be cautious!
How to Make Spicy Rice
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Heat the oil in the pan so it’s hot, then add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, and garlic. Let it sizzle for 30 seconds with the lid on.
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Put the heat on low for 1 minute then carefully take the lid off and add the onions, cashew nuts, corn and raisins, stir and simmer for 5 minutes.
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Now add the cooked rice, chili powder, turmeric powder, water, salt and ¾ handful of cilantro. Stir and let it simmer for 5 minutes with the lid on (careful not to let the rice stick to the pan).
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Serve and garnish with remaining fresh cilantro.
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Suggest serving with plain yogurt.
Grilled Lamb Chops
Ingredients
2 lbs lamb chops- 4 tablespoons plain yogurt
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 handful fresh cilantro
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin & coriander
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon chili powder*
2 lbs lamb chops#Note: if you prefer a hotter spice level increase the amount of chili powder by ¼ teaspoon increments to suit your taste. Be cautious!
How to Make Grilled Lamb Chops
- Peel and chop the garlic as finely as possible.
- Peel and chop the ginger as finely as possible.
- Finely chop the cilantro.
- Thoroughly mix all of the ingredients from together in a bowl and then cover. Let it marinate in the fridge overnight, or for at least 8 hours.
- Get grilling
- Suggested serving accompaniments include Raita and salad.
Images courtesy of Neena Williams.
About the Author
Kara Rota headed children’s programming at Chicago’s Green City Market and studied food politics at Sarah Lawrence College. Kara has been a featured speaker at numerous venues including Food Book Fair, the Roger Smith Food Conference, and the Brooklyn Food Conference. She has written about food for Irish America Magazine, West Side Rag, Recipe Relay, and Food + Tech Connect, and is the former Director of Editorial & Partnerships at Cookstr.com.