It's All the Raj

[an error occurred while processing this directive] There's been only one story in the realm of Indian cuisine of late, and that's contemporization. Across the world, Indian restaurants are being revamped, with interiors that look like they've been inspired by a fashionable, Ayurvedic resort. Food-wise, heavy curries are being replaced with more subtly flavored dishes. As a result, interest in the cuisine has been revived and a rush of cookbooks has come on the market to cater for it. Modern Indian Cooking, by Annabel Jackson and Deepak Chauhan, takes one of the more original approaches.

Many of the recipes were influenced by Kenya's Indian community. It's a wealthy society, Jackson explains, where "many women don't work, and have servants and fantastic local produce — so what develops is a luxury cuisine based on time and money." Co-author Chauhan, himself a Kenyan-born Indian, has substituted olive oil for ghee, reflecting modern health concerns. The result is a compendium of dishes that will have the home chef salivating. Prawns are slow-cooked with fenugreek, Mombasa-style; there's a decadent (but narcotic-free) dish called Opium Eggs; and pork is prepared with tamarind, chili and red wine. Conservative use of spices is another feature of the book.

"We think of Indian cuisine as very hot," says Jackson, "but in fact it can be completely without 'heat' or chili." Not a book, in other words, for vindaloo fans — but an engaging read for anyone who wants to savor the new wave in Indian cuisine. Available from amazon.com for about $19.