Taste of GUJARAT - A feast of mouth-watering vegetarian recipes

Gujarati cuisine is a vegetarian gourmet's dream come true. It is a true vegetarian wonder with complete nutrition derived from vegetables prepared in innumerable variations and subtly flavoured with spices. The food like the Gujaratis themselves is simple, practical and down to earth. Gujarati cuisine is primarily vegetarian, the main reason being the influence of Jainism. For the taste of traditional Gujarati cuisine, one has to try the typical Gujarati thali that consists of one variety each of dal and kadhi, two to three vegetables and salad, savories, sweets, puris or phulka rotis, rice, chutneys, pickles and papads. Lunch in a Gujarati home is a feast everyday. Food is mildly flavoured and is pepped up with plenty of hot pickles and chutneys. The savouries or snacks like khaman dhokla or khandavi which are served with the thali are called "Farsan". Sweets are an inevitable part of a Gujarati menu. A Gujarati lunch is generally served with a glass of Chhaas (butter milk). The Gujaratis generally prefer a light dinner, which consists of theplas and pickles or kadhi and khichdi or handvo or bhakri and one vegetable with gravy. The cuisine in South Gujarat is spicy where green chillies add life to the food. They use more sugar in their cooking and as a result the cuisine has a sweet tangy flavour. In Gujarat during winter when green vegetables are available in plenty a delicious vegetable medley called 'Undhiya' is made using potatoes, brinjal, green beans and fenugreek leaf dumplings. This book contains favourite Gujarati recipes all of which have been tried and tested to perfection. Enjoy the 'Taste of Gujarat'!