The biggest limitation of the past two years was not being able to travel to the countries whose food I wanted to explore, as I had for my Indian cookbooks. Meera explains in the introduction that this recipe persuaded her to finally fall in love with kale – and persuasive it is. Her first book, Made In India, was named a book of the year by the Times and the Financial Times and was the runner up in Food52's The Piglet cookbook competition. I would genuinely hate to be without this in my cookbook collection, and strongly recommend it to everyone. And because of the wide variety of recipes represented in this book, I have ventured into cuisines that I had previously thought to be too complex for me to cook – the Sichuan recipes are an example of that, with Meera’s Mushroom Mapo Tofu and Kung Pao Cauliflower now regulars in our house.

Whether vegan, veggie or simply an avid home cook, this exquisitely designed cookbook is full of simple recipes that will have every recipient swooning. Add the coconut milk and 175ml of water, whisk until you have a smooth batter, then leave to one side.

In Thailand, I had memorised every twist in the creation of som tam salad and counted down the minutes until my next pad thai. I sailed across the Palk Strait to Sri Lanka, where lunch means a selection of curries each made from one main ingredient – beetroot, aubergine, pumpkin, cashew – served alongside a coconut dal (parippu).

One minor downside for me was the ingredients are only listed with grams and not ounces but luckily I also got some electric scales for Christmas so I was saved the pain of having to convert the measurements to use my scales with weights.Using a large spatula, fold the egg whites into the yolks, being careful not to knock out too much air. There are sweet potato momos for snacks and unexpected desserts like stem ginger chocolate truffles and matcha roll cake. Next, place the cabbage, carrots, spring onions and herbs into another bowl and mix with your hands. Readers advisory note: this is probably a really good cookbook for someone who is looking for vegetarian recipes with limited access to ingredients. Or maybe her ‘New Vegan’ column in the Guardian has had you thinking ‘Hey, this is plant-based food I can get on board with’.

The dish itself is easy to make – it’s a one-pot recipe that predominantly requires stirring and simmering – and the ingredients are ones you’re likely to already have at home.This means that even the most inexperienced cooks can follow the recipes and produce a tasty and delicious meal. Meera Sodha gives such precise and accurate instructions, which is very reassuring to less experienced cooks. I had also spent two years writing a vegetarian Indian cookery book; I knew how to make bitter cavolo nero leaves sing and how to tempt a beetroot-hater into eating a plateful. East and south Asian cuisine has always readily lent itself to a plant-based diet and books like these are great examples that moving away from meat isn't necessarily a loss, but an opportunity to diversify your range of cooking.

Bring to the boil – but watch it doesn’t boil over – then turn the heat down to a whisper and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring fairly frequently to make sure the rice doesn’t stick and burn. Perfect for: Anyone who is a fan of Meera's two other books, Made in India and Fresh India, or who loves the variety of cuisines from across Asia. There's an alternative contents table which makes suggestions under categories such as breakfast, quick lunch, picnics and seasonal food.Recipes like the chilli tofu are fiery and lovely, whilst meals like the pho are fragrant and satisfying. In this collection, Meera serves up a feast of over 130 delicious recipes collected from three generations of her family: there’s everything from hot chappatis to street food, fragrant curries, to colourful side dishes and mouth-watering puddings. I haven't been able to put it down and have tried recipes from it everyday since and they have all worked well and been absolutely delicious and like nothing I have tasted before!