The Steaming Pot - Easy vegetarian recipes from India

We are truly blessed in India to have access to a wide variety of mangoes* – from the tangy Totapuri to the syrupy-sweet Chausa, from the small Sindhura to the massive Banganapalli – each abundant in our neighborhood stores.

Regional variations exist of course: try as we might, we cannot get Bihar’s Malda mangoes in Bangalore (no, please don’t tell me they are on Blinkit; you need to eat the real deal) – but these variations only add to the richness of India’s mangoscape.

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Assorted food photographs from a summer 2026 trip to warm and cheerful London. Strawberries and olives, shapely tomatoes and flat peaches, tea and a vegetarian Sunday roast!

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Wondering what gift to pick for a food lover or home cook, without burning a hole in your pocket? Here are nine unique, great-looking, budget-friendly kitchen gift ideas under $50 for you to choose from.

From handcrafted kitchen tools to quirky tea accessories, beautiful serving pieces and illustrated cookbooks, there’s something here for every kind of food enthusiast.

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Once upon a time, when I couldn’t tell the most basic cooking ingredients apart, I decided to cook myself some khichdi. The end result was a slimy mess. It dawned on me after downing a few spoonfuls that I had cooked the khichdi with dhuli urad dal instead of yellow moong dal. The two looked so alike to my untrained eye that, unless I was squinting to detect the right shade of pale yellow, I could swear they are one and the same.

My early struggles in the kitchen were peppered with many such quandaries. Is this coriander powder or garam masala? Is that besan or sattu? Nigella seed or mustard, cumin seed or saunf?

If only I had thought of labeling my storage jars then…

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Ingredients with a long shelf life.

Recipes that skip a key item or two.

Ghee and rice.

Dishes that are quick to put together on busy days.

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The world of technology looks firmly foodward when it wants to add color and flavor to its vocabulary.

Presenting for you a sampling of food words that describe products or concepts in fields ranging from programming style to automated testing.

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