Maunika Gowardhan
Mumbai-born, UK-based chef, food writer and cookbook author sharing regional Indian recipes, family favourites and the stories behind them as @cookinacurry.
At 100 nudges, fangea sends Maunika’s team an official invite.
🔒 Star boosts open once Maunika claims this page.
Latest
Maunika’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus their backstory and Starbook, where fans write.
Known for
Quadrille
Hardie Grant
Hardie Grant
Hodder & StoughtonOverview
- From
- Born and raised in Mumbai, India
- Based in
- United Kingdom
- Work
- Chef, food writer and cookbook author
- Online
- @cookinacurry
- First cookbook
- Indian Kitchen, 2015
Mini bio
How it started.
Maunika grew up in Mumbai eating Maharashtrian food at home, alongside dishes shared by Sindhi and Bohri neighbours and Gujarati and Parsi family friends. She began working as a private chef, finding clients through word of mouth.
Finding an audience.
She launched her Indian cooking website in 2010. The New York Times picked up her keema pav recipe, and her work reached more home cooks through Jamie Oliver’s Food Tube. In April 2016, she celebrated one million views for their butter chicken video.
From family kitchens to cookbooks.
Her debut Indian Kitchen appeared in 2015, followed by Thali in 2021, Tandoori Home Cooking in 2023 and Curry in 2025. Her recipes draw on family cooking and travels through India, bringing regional dishes into home kitchens.
Sharing the craft.
Alongside books and online recipes, Maunika writes about food and teaches. In 2013 she helped launch Indian street food classes at Jamie Oliver’s Recipease, devising menus, planning classes and teaching dishes including dosas and papri chaat.
Creditschronological, newest first
Cookbooks
- 2025CurryAuthor
- 2023Tandoori Home CookingAuthor
- 2021ThaliAuthor
- 2015Indian KitchenAuthor
Food education
- 2013Recipease Indian street food classesMenu development, class planning and teaching
Awards
Quotes
I started out as a private chef and through word of mouth.Maunika Gowardhan, The Mayfair Foodie
On how her cooking career began, in the interview published 24 February 2025.
Trivia
- As a child, she loved eating Frankie rolls while travelling across Mumbai on the bus with her mother.
- Her pantry staples include tinned chickpeas, kidney beans and frozen vegetables alongside spices.
- Her grandmother hosted dinners in Bombay in the 1960s, with menus reflecting the city’s mix of communities.
Find Maunika
Find recipes, cookbook news and a little kitchen inspiration.
Are you Maunika Gowardhan?
Fans built this page. Claim it to connect with them and unlock Star boosts, or request a takedown if you’d rather it not exist.