Winner of the 2017 International World Gourmand Cookbook Awards for Asia in Charity and Fundraising
This is the first and only publication about urban India that blends food, art, and labour in Dharavi, itself a microcosm of modern Asia, also known as Asia’s largest informal settlement. Eight homemakers reveal their lives in stories and recipes that resound with the accents of Dharavi’s cultural hotpot. Seared vegetables, slow-cooked meats, moreish gravies, and desserts of subtle sweetness light up a menu of complex culinary traditions. This cookbook presents a colourful parade of unfamiliar Indian recipes, while exploring why and how homemakers cook, and what food means to them beyond its life in a meal.
READ MORE EXCERPTS PRESS PURCHASE CONTACT
“One of the most original and wonderful cookbooks I have read in recent years is The Indecisive Chicken: Stories and Recipes from Eight Dharavi Women by Prajna Desai… These are the sorts of “little inventions”, says Desai, that recipe-cooks such as us may lose the knack of doing…” – The Guardian
“Desai’s new cookbook, The Indecisive Chicken: Stories And Recipes From Eight Dharavi Cooks, draws attention to what India’s working class cooks – and eats – every day.” – NPR (National Public Radio)
“It is a remarkable achievement…The book reminds us of the incredible variety and creativity in Indian food, and how much remains to be recorded — and reproduced too, in both home and restaurant kitchens.” – The Economic Times
“The dishes found in The Indecisive Chicken are testimony to the ethnic and regional diversity of food in India…The lack of money dictates that meals are made from scratch and, here again, there is an interesting contrast to be drawn between the residents of Dharavi and the British working class.” – South China Morning Post
“Ces recettes sont associées à des gestes si spontanés, transmis de mères en filles, qu’il a fallu des mois pour rassembler les savoirs de chacune et établir les recettes. En se penchant sur ces histoires et ces plats, l’ouvrage bat en brèche les clichés associés aux bidonvilles, et célèbre un art jusqu’ici ignoré.” – Le Monde
“This book is a must have – you will fall in love with the women in this book and their recipes as I have. The most important lesson I gleaned is to embrace the world’s differences and to learn as much as we can about each other – and food is the perfect conduit.” – The Cookbook Junkies
the indecisive chicken 