Acclaimed food writer and cookbook author, Khushbu Shah shares her infectious joy about food and creative ways to expose kids to new flavors – this is Order Up! Our One Potato Interview Series, where we interview chefs, founders, food writers, home cooks, and members of our community about cooking and food. We hope these interviews and their accompanying recipes and food inspiration give you an easy way to expose your kids to new foods, flavors, cuisines, and cultures. Paid Subscribers can read the full interview, and have access to the full archive of Recipes and Specials Interviews and Community Voices for $5/month or $45/year, while Free Subscribers receive one full interview and one full recipe / month. 🥔
We’ve been having so many inspiring conversations, and this interview is no different. Today, we’re talking to Khushbu Shah—a trailblazing food writer, journalist, and cookbook author whose work shines a light on culinary traditions and inclusivity. As the youngest and first person of color to serve as the restaurant editor at Food & Wine, Khushbu has paved the way for a richer, more diverse conversation about food.
Khushbu is based in Los Angeles – where devastating wildfires continue to destroy countless homes and businesses, not to mention displacing hundreds of families. Last week, Khusbhu’s own Substack newsletter focused on the LA Wild Fires and the climate crisis, including many links to how to donate to support those in need. We echo Khushbu’s message in, “encouraging those who can afford to, to donate directly to the Go Fund Me Campaigns of people and families who have been displaced by the fires.” You can read and share her post right here:
Back to our regularly scheduled programming! Khushbu’s debut cookbook, AMRIKAN: 125 Recipes From the Indian American Diaspora, is a vibrant homage to the flavors and traditions of Indian American families. Growing up in Michigan, Khushbu learned early on how food can create lasting memories. From her dad’s “perfect” chai to her childhood memories of frying puris with her mom, Khushbu’s recipes are deeply personal, steeped in love, and brimming with joy. Her work not only invites us to try bold new flavors but also shows how food can be a bridge to exploring different cultures.
In this interview, Khushbu shares thoughtful tips for getting families—especially kids—to expand their culinary horizons, including creative ways to introduce unfamiliar ingredients and flavors. Plus, don’t miss her genius saffron hacks (hint: there’s an ice cube involved!) that will take your home cooking to the next level.
You can follow Khushbu’s latest on her Substack Tap is Fine, and her articles in Food & Wine online. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, GQ, Eater, and the Best American Food Writing anthologies, and she’s even shared her insights on TV shows like Ugly Delicious.
When writing Amrikan, Khushbu traveled across the United States to showcase how the Indian diaspora is cooking today – and a whole chapter of her book is dedicated to Indian Pizza. We can’t think of any food more accessible to our kids than pizza! Talk about inspiration for an easy way to get them to try new foods and flavors. She also created a recipe for Paneer Lasagna, combining a family favorite we know and love (lasagna) with paneer cheese (a key ingredient in Indian cooking). Let’s dig in.
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Introduce Yourself: My name is Khushbu Shah and I am a food writer based out of Los Angeles. I don’t believe in food snobbery and I love great fruit.
What was your inspiration for writing Amrikan? For embarking on your Indian American food journey in the first place?
I had yet to see a book that really celebrated the foodways of the Indian American diaspora, that really acknowledged its own unique culture, and so I wanted to create something that did just that. This book is my love letter to this diaspora.
At One Potato, we talk a lot about how food and cooking is a way that traditions are passed down through generations. In Amrikan and on your Instagram, you share a recipe for your dad’s chai. Do you have a favorite memory of cooking with your dad, mom, grandparents, or other family members?
—> Behind the Paywall: The full interview with Khushbu, including her memories of cooking with her mom, her tips for getting kids to try new foods (hint: Indian pizza!), and her super helpful hack for cooking with saffron…
Helpful Links from this Interview:
Buy AMRIKAN Here from Bookshop.org
Khushbu’s recipe for Achari Paneer Pizza
Indian Food in America, Delivered Right to Your Door from Goldbelly
Go Fund Me Campaigns of people and families who have been displaced by the Los Angeles Wild Fires
Note: This newsletter may contain affiliate links from our friends & sponsors.
The funny thing about that is that my dad can’t really cook — the only thing he knows how to make is chai, but his version is truly perfect. I always loved helping my mom out in the kitchen growing up, especially when she would make puris (fried, puffy flatbread) for celebratory meals and large gatherings. We would form a tiny assembly line: she would roll out the dough for each puri and lay them in a circle on a plate to my right. I would grab each circle and let it bathe in the hot bubbling oil, gently tapping on the puri until it magically puffs into a glorious sphere, before draining them and placing the fresh puri in a giant, paper towel-lined stainless steel bowl to my left. And then we’d repeat that about 100 more times.
On the Food & Wine website, your brief bio reads, “Khushbu Shah is a seasoned food writer and journalist who makes a point to celebrate and showcase a wide range of cultures in her work, encouraging inclusivity within the culinary profession and restaurant industry.” Do you have any tips for encouraging families, parents, and kids to expand their culinary palettes and try new cuisines outside of their comfort zones?
I really think showcasing unfamiliar foods and flavors in familiar formats can go a long way. I really encourage anyone who feels intimidated by Indian dishes and flavors to try making something from the Indian Pizza chapter in my book — most people are comfortable with dough, sauce, and mozzarella. Nachos and burritos are also a great way to introduce new flavors to someone. As for kids, I think if you involve them in shopping for/preparing the food, they are naturally more curious about trying them.
Check out Khushbu’s recipe for Indian Pizza featured in the Food & Wine Test Kitchen here: Achari Paneer Pizza.
A favorite question we like to ask: Can you share a favorite cooking hack or skill that you think our home cooks should practice/have under their belt?:
I think knowing how to maximize your saffron is a key hack! Saffron is expensive and a little bit can actually go a long way if you know what you’re doing. There’s two hacks I love: if I am adding saffron to something without dairy I like to grab a tiny pile of strands then place it in a bowl with an ice cube to let it “bloom.” As the ice cube melts, it will become this super gorgeous concentrated saffron water that will add incredible color and flavor to whatever you mix it into. If the recipe does have dairy, I like to microwave a pinch of saffron for 30 seconds to dry out the strands, grind them up between my fingers, and then add in two tablespoons of milk to the bowl. Swirl the milk around and you get another great concentrated saffron liquid to add to a recipe.
