Can anybody really cook Indian?
Yes they can. There is this myth that making Indian food is difficult. My approach is that if you have five basic spices to cook with – cumin, coriander, garam masala, turmeric and chilli powder, you can prepare most Indian dishes. Many of the recipes are one pot wonders which do not need any fiddly techniques to create them. Less is more in Indian cooking so I advise to start off with adding only small quantities of spices when cooking and then increasing the amounts according to your taste. This also applies to broadening your repertoire of spices. Stick with the five basic spices initially and then experiment with the others such as mustard seeds, cassia bark and cardamoms.

There’s a music CD that accompanies the book. What’s the aim of the CD?
The CD contains traditional classical Indian music. It’s music for the love of food. I love to cook with the radio on or listen to some chillin’ music. The CD hopes to encourage people to get back in the kitchen and make cooking a much more stress free event.

What are your favourite recipes from the book?
My personal favourites are the Cumin and Coriander Potato Patties, Chicken Jalfrezi, Tarka Dal and the coconut treats or laddoos. I like these recipes because they are quick and fun to make.