The front part of this book has really excellent information on Ayurveda in general. The recipe section, however, has no information or recommendations about which dosa should or should not eat the prepared food. This might be confusing for someone new to Ayurveda and daunting for someone just looking for recipes that are dosa specific. It is, however, a classic and will be a part of my Ayurvedic reference library.

I am a vegetarian for ethical reasons and I enjoy cooking. There are a few cookbooks that I turn to from time to time for concepts and ideas. Recipes are how you learn to cook but as you get cooking, you learn what it is that makes your food taste good or feel good (we have all had meals, hopefully not at home, which left us feeling sick afterwards). I wanted to get some understanding of Ayurvedic principles underlying traditional Indian vegetarian cooking. I am not at all religious and some small parts of the book strike me as a bit unscientific in explaining why something might work or not. However, other parts of Ayurvedic theory of medicine make sense to me. What do I expect this book to do for me? I am already an experienced and good cook so I don't expect to learn new recipes. I bought this book because I wanted to know about Ayurvedic ingredient combinations that are optimal as well as to gain some knowledge of cooking for particular conditions (say stomach problems, chills...) which we are faced with in our daily lives with our families. And this I think is a unique contribution. The fantastic North Indian vegetarian recipes are just icing on the cake. I think any cook (vegetarian or otherwise) and those interested in holistic living should have this book in their collection.

Here are the contents of the book:

Editor's Note
Introduction

Part 1 An Introduction to Ayurveda
Ch 1 Principles of Ayurveda
Ch 2 Balanced Nutrition
Ch 3 Foods and Their Healing Properties
Ch 4 Guidelines for Preparing and Eating Foods
Ch 5 Food and the Cycles of Nature
Ch 6 Food and Consciousness

Part 2 The Recipes
Ch 1 Introduction to the Recipes
Ch 2 Snacks
Ch 3 Dals
Ch 4 Savory Rice Dishes
Ch 5 Vegetable Dishes
Ch 6 Paneer Dishes
Ch 7 Yogurt Dishes
Ch 8 Salads
Ch 9 Condiments
Ch 10 Breads
Ch 11 Desserts and Sweet Fruit Creams
Ch 12 Beverages

Appendices

App A Menu Combinations
App B Recipes for Children and the Elderly
App C About Milk

Glossary
Sources of Supply
Index