In a small bowl, mix 12g of garlic paste (roughly 4 cloves), 10g of ginger paste (roughly 1 heaped tablespoon), 70g of tomato purée, 8g of fine sea salt, ⅔ teaspoon of chilli powder and ⅓ teaspoon of garam masala into a paste. If you only have salted butter then reduce the amount of fine sea salt to 4g and taste before adding more. Heat the oil in a large heavy bottomed pan – you really do need a wide pan for this for adding the chicken in and coating properly later – fry the garlic gently until golden brown then remove and set aside.

Chicken marinade For the marinade, blitz 10g of ginger, 20g of garlic, 5g of fine sea salt, 1 teaspoon of deggi mirch chilli powder, 1½ teaspoons of ground cumin, ½ teaspoon of garam masala, 2 teaspoons of lime juice, 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil and 75g of full-fat Greek yoghurt in a blender or small food processor. I don’t have a horse in this race; I’m just using a mantra that’s often repeated by people (including other Indians) to lead into my point that Dishoom isn’t very authentic Indian food.Dishoom’s marvelous book pays homage to the city’s own cuisine by not just focusing on the recipes but also the entire culture of eating in Bombay – from the roadside stalls, to the grungy but evocative Irani restaurants that look the same as when they were set up almost a century ago, and the clubs, that seem to be stuck in a bygone era. Pi Day with this Vietnamese take on Aussie-style pies: buttery pie crust stuffed with pork, shallots, and wood ear mushrooms seasoned with fish sauce. Mid-Morning snacks at 10:00 hrs more narrative for 11 pages, followed by 7 recipes for buns, puffs (pastry parcels), cheese sticks, biscuits and Masala Chai. Normally with a review I reproduce a couple of recipes I really like in a book with a hope you will invest and purchase it also (if it’s good!

For some it heralds the hopeful turning over of new leaves; for others it is a month to trudge begrudgingly through towards the promise of spring. So, this is a recipe not in the book but one that was “tweeted” in May 2020 by Dishoom themselves with the tag “We’re simply thrilled to share the (extra-special, not-even-in the-book) recipe for Chef Naved’s Chilli Chicken, inspired by an Indo-Chinese favourite of Bombay’s Leopold Café” . The first Dishoom opened in Covent Garden in 2010, and there are now five restaurants in London, one in Edinburgh, and one in Manchester. Charred chicken thighs (my favourite cut of chicken) surrounded by a rich, thick, heavenly sauce make you feel like you’ve achieved some kind of culinary miracle: an Indian restaurant quality dish in your own kitchen.

Bright with crimson fruits and sweet tannins and rendered more palatable with flavours of grilled plums, stewed strawberries and rich blood orange. Photograph: Alecsandra Raluca Drăgoi/The Guardian View image in fullscreen ‘We do genuinely hope they’ll enjoy it’ … the kitchen at the King’s Cross branch of Dishoom.