Imagine braving traffic, delayed trains and humid weather to reach home at 8 pm after a long day at work—making dinner is the last thing on your mind. Even if you are extremely hungry, the thought of kneading the dough to make rotis or to cut, peel, chop and cook veggies can leave you overwhelmed. Ordering food comes with its own share of guilt. That’s why nutritionist and author Kavita Devgan came up with 500 Easy, Delicious, Healthy Recipes: Simple Tricks for Stress-Free Cooking (Rupa Publications; Rs 319). It is packed with recipes and simple tricks for stress-free cooking. An atypical cookbook, it reflects Devgan’s belief in prepping rather than slaving away over the stove for hours. 

“Most of us in India believe that good cooking is about the time we spend making a dish, that’s not necessarily true,” she says over a call from Noida. “Ordering or eating out may seem like the easiest way out but it has serious health repercussions. The quality of ingredients and therefore the nutrition is sub-par to say the least, and as a result, we see so many health issues crop up.”