Follow these 7 Indian food bloggers to channel your inner Julia Child

The lockdown has encouraged a lot of us to go back to our kitchens and rekindle the joys of home cooking. For some, it’s been a breeze and for others, the eternal question of what can I cook and how fast seems to be a constant. Take a look at the feeds of some of these fabulous food bloggers who give you that answer.

Richa Gupta of My Food Story

“Once the lockdown was announced, we called up a couple of friends and cousins who were mostly living alone to see how they were doing. And we heard the same thing from all of them – ‘I don’t know how to cook. What do I buy etc.’. So we started a series called ‘MFS Back to Basics’ where we are tackling some really simple, easy recipes mainly for people who are probably cooking their first meal ever. We are talking about rice, dal, roti, sabzi, and some fun recipes like mac and cheese and cake in a mug. We figured this is one way we can help,” explains Richa.

Hina Gujral of FunFoodFrolic

Gujral is posting content that could be useful in the current situation, like her collection of immunity-boosting recipe videos, or fresh supply storage hacks or pantry-friendly recipe ideas. She feels it not the time to bake elaborate cakes but to eat a wholesome, nourishing, comforting home-cooked meal for a healthy mind and body. “Through this approach, I am trying to send a message that you don’t need a plethora of ingredients to make a delicious meal at home. On Instagram Stories, I host a Q&A session where people share one ingredient available in the fridge and in return, I suggest a recipe from my blog using that ingredient” adds Gujral.

Rajeswari Vijayanand (Raks) 

“I share simple photos of the dishes I make every day and share recipes on my Instagram handle. This handle helps to reach more people and supports my website Rakskitchen. The recipes are simple, healthy, easy and quick. The pictures of lunch menus or breakfast/dinner menus help people to decide on their menus too, just by following hashtags that I have created for those uniquely. I feel this is the best way to connect to my audience because people spend more time now browsing social media and simple, everyday cell phone photographs are relatable”, says Vijayanand.

Roxanne Bamboat of The Tiny Taster

“I’m currently spending my time cooking for my family and while it’s quite therapeutic for me, I realised that sharing my recipes on my Instagram stories have proved helpful for many people who might already know how to cook but want inspiration. I’m trying to be more mindful at this time because I know how difficult it is for a lot of people, including myself to get their hands on simple ingredients. For example, I don’t have access to mushroom or pasta or broccoli even spring onions. So my recipes are not about chocolate cakes, pesto pastas or trendy dalgona coffees but about basics like palak dal, masoor dal, a rustic home-style pav bhaji (minus any masala mix ), homemade Chinese fried rice with leftovers and things like that”, says Bamboat.

Monika Manchanda of Sinamon Tales

Manchanda is posting a recipe a day of easy-to-make dishes. These are dishes one can whip up with ingredients in your pantry or with those that easily available at grocery stores. “I had so many friends confused about what to cook. The lockdown came suddenly and people didn’t really have time to shop well. Also, a lot of folks don’t have experience in cooking and live on take-outs. It’s hard for them to suddenly turn pro. So this was my way of helping a bit”.

“I am trying to cover basics like Whole wheat bread, how to make granola, Roti 101. Besides this, I also have a thread running on Instagram and Twitter where I ask people to share what they have in their pantry and I give them ideas and recipes based on these”, she says.

Nandita Iyer of Saffron Trail

People with cooks now have to manage cooking on their own. A lot of people are also relying on home cooking because food delivery is also seen as a risk. “My audience is looking for easy to make dishes, one-pot, or those requiring minimal clean-up, using basic ingredients which are either in the pantry or easily available at nearby grocery stores. Some treats such as bakes and snacks are also appreciated as the entire family is home all day and invariably kids are always hungry” adds Iyer. She has been posting her daily cooking menu on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook as she believes it helps inspire people to cook at homes.

Ritcha Verma of RitchStyles

Though primarily a lifestyle and a mommy blogger, Ritcha has found herself enjoying cooking all meals for her family these days and has even got her young daughter Aryaa to join in. “I try easy-to-make recipes where she can help me with mixing, cutting, and putting things together. With so many new age desserts, we seem to have forgotten the pleasure of the simple desserts like jelly and custard and chocolate mousse. We also make fruit smoothies together. She helps shape cutlets, mixes dals, and does other small tasks that don’t involve fire”. These are ideas that help keep little ones busy and contribute to something delicious on the table as well.