I've long admired foods from other cultures that I've sampled at the homes of friends from all over the world.
The challenge is how to recreate these dishes at home. Many recipes are passed down from mothers or grandmothers who don't speak English, never use measuring spoons, and often write in a different alphabet.
Meanwhile, cookbook recipes fail to deliver an authentic, home-cooked taste.
What's needed is a coach, which is the role performed by Rinku Bhattacharya, who teaches Indian cooking classes in the basement kitchen of her home in Valhalla. While Bhattacharya has taught at Westchester Community College (and performed Indian cooking demonstrations at Whole Foods Market), she's essentially a home cook — whipping up delicious Indian dishes in an ordinary American kitchen. To see Bhattacharya cook — without a tandoor oven, in everyday pots and pans, with a temperamental blender — is to realize that you can do it, too. (Plus, she gives her students printed recipes with standard American measurements.)
Those expecting a Food Network-style performance will be disappointed. Taking a class with Bhattacharya is to be welcomed into her home and family. She dresses like most American women her age (on the day that I visited, she was barefoot and wearing a T-shirt), and is by day a controller at a nonprofit organization. During the class I attended, her cat Sophie was curled up in the corner, and her toddler daughter, Deeptha, joined the group.
While Bhattacharya gears each class to the interests and cooking proficiency of her students, all classes feature an elementary lesson in Indian spices, a description of common South Asian ingredients, and a demonstration of Indian cooking techniques. Lessons are delivered with humor and patience. Classes are limited to five students, which ensures an intimate, hands-on experience for all. Best of all, the class ends with a great meal, starring Bhattacharya's refreshing, star-anise-scented iced tea and the fruit of your labors.
