Beyond Curry: Khichdi with Eggplant Fritters

If Indian food is just chicken tikka and biryani to you, then please keep reading. In India, food varies from region to region, home to home, and religion to religion. And it's not all spicy and complicated. Most Indian food is surprisingly simple to make and very, very rewarding to eat. In this new Indian cooking column, I'd like to introduce you to the real food we cook and eat at home. For starters, khichdi, a sort of one-pot comfort meal of rice, lentils and vegetables.

Vada Pav

A delicious Indian street food

Potato Chops (Meat-Stuffed Indian Potato Pancakes)

Crunchy, soft and mellow on the outside. Spicy, tangy and meaty inside, potato chops are the kind of thing you'd want to save for your last bite. So that all their wonderful contrasting textures and flavors stay with you to remind you of a wonderful meal.

Beyond Curry: Dry Masala-Stuffed Eggplants

Each type of eggplant has its own unique character and consequently its own style of preparation. The fuller, dark purple ones are roasted, the longer lavender ones are sliced and fried and the small black ones become tiny morsels bursting with the flavors of stuffed spices.

Pakora (Indian Vegetable Fritters)

Pakoras - spiced Indian vegetable fritters, a popular Indian street food snack or starter for an Indian meal. Or pass around as a canapé!

Aloo Tikki

Salty, spiced potato patties inspired by the iconic Punjabi Deli in the East Village of New York City.

Masala Dosa (Potato-Filled Rice-and-Lentil Crepe)

These crisp lentil-and-rice crepes filled with spiced potatoes are an iconic Indian dish. Ubiquitous throughout southern India, this is the dish that comes to most people's minds when they think of a "dosa." The hearty potato filling is both spicy and sweet, playing up the crepe's sour tang. Roasted chana dal and cashews run throughout the filling for bites of nutty crunch.

Aloo Paratha (Indian Potato Stuffed Flatbread)

Aloo Paratha, Indian Potato Stuffed Flatbread - Crispy of the outside, moist and spicy potato filling on the inside. The simplest dough in the world to make and work with - mess free!

Aloo Paratha With Spiced Potato Filling

These crisp yet tender Indian flatbreads are stuffed with a spiced mixture of mashed potatoes, then griddled until crisp outside and warm within.

Spiced Potato Bhaaji

This simple potato dish uses minimal ingredients and is normally rustled up when there's an unexpected guest for dinner.