Book excerpt: Mouth-watering Indo–East African dishes that will become instant classics for home cooks. A Spicy Touch is Noorbanu Nimji’s celebration of her North Indian Ismaili Muslim ancestry and the East African cuisine from her homeland in Kenya. Noorbanu collaborates with food writer and tour operator Karen Anderson to present more than 200 time-tested family favourites and new recipes. With beautiful photographs, the book takes the home cook step by step through soups and snacks, samosa-wrapping, three chapters of main dishes (including Noorbanu’s famous Butter Chicken and Beef Nihari), a dedicated chapter on Indian tandoori grilling, vegetables, daal, Indian breads and rice dishes, chutneys and specialty Indian sweets. Learn how to make: Bhajias – chickpea flour vegetable pakoras Kuka Paka – chicken, eggs and potatoes in a subtly spiced coconut cream Chana wagharia – chickpeas and eggplant in a spicy tamarind sauce Bharazi and mandazi – pigeon pea curry with East African coconut donuts Badam Pak – a creamy cardamom and almond fudge And many more Many recipes are vegetarian and/or gluten-free and all original recipes have been re-tested and rewritten to reflect the increased availability of ingredients today. With an extended section on pantry items, and tips and techniques that can only come from a master, readers will feel the authors at their side while they prepare the 200+ recipes. Welcome Noorbanu into your kitchen and find out for yourself why she’s considered the expert in her field by people all over the world.