When I first read an excerpt from Modern Spice, I was quite intrigued and couldn’t wait to get my hands on the book. The good people at Random House Publications sent me a copy a short while ago; I was thrilled and thought the book to be quite nice at first look.
Modern Spice is well laid out, has very appealing design and colours, is printed on high quality paper, has a large number of recipes within and the entire book almost reads like a conversation. Quite nice, especially the conversational tone throughout, though I do wish Ms Bhide wouldn’t talk down to the reader like that, sort of like she’s conducting a cooking class. There’s one place in the beginning where she says, ‘I have always said that…’, which gives me an impression of pre-empted fame, almost as if the author expects parts of the book to be quoted for years to come. Having said that, the personal anecdotes embedded within definitely add value.
I loved the colours and the efficient layout of Modern Spice and thank Anjora Noronha for a brilliant job! I also sorely missed pictures. Ms Bhide attempts to present Indian cooking in a new light and her efforts would have paid off doubly had pictures been included. Most recipes within aren’t terribly innovative in terms of flavours or textures. While some recipes are quite original, most presented flavours are ones that home cooks have been experimenting with for a while. The key therefore becomes presentation… which is missing.
In the introduction, Ms Bhide refers to ‘an artificial standard of authenticity that no longer exists’, to embellish her point of view, a statement I find quite silly though it must have been fun writing it. A food culture isn’t only about the spices used. It’s also about the way the meal is eaten and the way it is presented among other aspects. Simply using flavours from a particular culture does not entitle the end result to attach itself to that culture. Modern Spice uses Indian spices, but really isn’t about Indian food where it’s original… and repackages Indian staples where it isn’t.
I find Modern Spice targeted towards offshore audiences – perhaps Americans and Indians who live in the US. Modern Spice provides the former an easy way to experiment with different flavours, and the latter, an easy way to present different flavours to the former. Baby Besan Crepes (pg 78) with Garlic Smashed Potatoes (pg 107), for example. Similarly, most recipes labour hard to seem original and innovative but don’t quite make it there.
The copyrighted 8 sentence foreword adds a nice touch of humour.
To conclude, I wholeheartedly recommend purchasing Modern Spice if you live abroad and/or regularly entertain foreign visitors with liberated palates, else this book is not for you.
- Sid
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