Priya joined her, hesitant at first, then digging in with joyful abandon. Mrs. Sharma came down again, this time with her grandson, a teenager glued to a tablet. He looked up, smelled the food, and asked, “Is this Indian, like, traditional?”

“ Deedi (sister), you forgot the payasam (sweet pudding)?” her mother asked, peering at the mess of bowls on Meera’s counter.

Today was special. It was Onam, the harvest festival of Kerala, and Meera was about to attempt the impossible: a 26-dish Onam Sadhya on her two-burner stove in a 200-square-foot apartment.

Meera sighed, smiled, and poured herself another cup of kadak chai .

Meera smiled. “It’s more than traditional. It’s a conversation between my ancestors and my microwave.”