I first discovered Priya when I was nine years old, when I told my mom I wanted to learn to cook Indian food. My mom and I scrolled through the plethora of YouTube videos for easy Indian recipes. But as we watched video after video, I slumped down into my chair, confused by the cooking techniques and names of spices I had never heard of.
But, thankfully, we found Priya’s video, where she taught us to make Roasted Aloo Gobi, my favorite Indian sabzi with roasted potatoes and cauliflower. Priya told me about the nuances of being Indian and how it influences her culinary style, noting, “It started with not seeing that many people who looked like me teaching people how to make Indian food, and also seeing Indian food not really getting its due in the cookbook/cooking world. But now I am grateful that I get to write and develop recipes about all kinds of cuisines!”
I immediately connected with Priya—someone who loved Indian food as much as I did, spoke Hindi like I did, and still called her parents to get a ‘shabash.’ She was funny and endearing, quoting lines from Bollywood movies and musicals I loved, and teaching me a lot about Indian cooking along the way—most importantly, of course, that ‘chhonk’ is the “greatest Indian cooking technique ever.”
After mastering Roasted Aloo Gobi, I dove into more of Priya’s recipes, such as Dahi Toast, Shahi Toast, and Indian-ish Baked Potatoes, each becoming a staple in our household. Priya’s fusion of traditional and contemporary flavors is evident in her personal culinary experiences as well. She enthusiastically described her family’s unique Thanksgiving tradition to me, saying, “We have this amazing Indian-ish Thanksgiving spread with chole, matar paneer, wild rice with mushrooms, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, poori, and shrikhand plus pie for dessert,” adding, “[i]t is epic, and I would never want any other spread for the holiday.”
Priya is an icon in culinary innovation, blending her Indian heritage with modern, gastronomic creativity. Through her wide-ranging works—including her acclaimed books like Indian-ish and Ultimate Dining Hall Hacks—her videos, like her On The Job video series—and her numerous essays for publications like The New York Times and The New Yorker—she is an inspiration for those who see Indian cuisine as daunting, as I once did.
