indiagirl

lissome i sketched an image for you but can't post it unless it's a url. had not thought that one through. anyway ... perhaps a verbals explanation will suffice. so you cut the ends off. then there are two flat faces you have created - one on the end piece on the main cucmber body. you rub these two faces together and some white goopy stuff comes out by capillary action. i have no idea if this is really the bitter or it's just an old wives tale. i do it out of sheer habit and have never had a bitter cucumber!

lissome - gimme two, i'll illustrate for you ....

simon, it does not necessarily "need" more. it's just a variation i enjoy. i frequently make it with nothing more than yoghurt, cilantro, salt and cucumbers. like pasta sauces. sometimes you want a basic sauce that needs nothing more than five minutes of cooking. and other times you want something a little more complex. if complex is the right word. which i do not think it is. about the seeding - i do not seed them. i do however cut the ends of and rub them aginst the cucumbers (yes, yes, i do realize how that sounds!!) until the white goopy stuff comes off and then i peel them. i think that's an indian thing and it takes the bitter out. suvir, do you do that too?

mamster. me too. i want to play too. is it too late? where is the report out thread?

Pachadis are indeed amazing. And they frequently skip the youghurt. So, heat up the oil with the following ingredients in it: mustard seeds asafoetida a teaspoon of urad (white lentils) e teaspoon of chana dal fresh green chillies a few curry leaves Stir it on medium to high heat until the mustard seeds start popping. A minute or two. Add that to any fresh ingredients of your choice - chopped cucumber, chopped tomato etc. Add salt to taste, cilantro and a bit of lime juice. I love the crunch of the lentils.

rachel, what on earth is a flaming red gully? i googled it and got a bunch of literature references to women with flaming red hair. doesn't the world revolve around food? thanks all, for the education and food suggestions. beet of some kind will definitely be in the menu. the roasted one sounds delicious. i'm thinking a salad with the roasted beets and pomegranate and lemon juice, perhaps? i'll have to actually start cooking to know if that will work. or a pomegranate soup i'm steeping some saffron in milk as we speak so i can add it to the risotto. i'll go shop for lobster tails but am too inexperienced to know for sure that the local fishmonger will have some. perhaps a delicate tomato chutney to go with the risotto. the thread has given me so many options. btw, i think of neither beets nor cranberries as being red but i think they're both in the family.

maggiethecat - the engineer in me wonders - what average dimensions are we using for these cookbook to mile conversions? and are we laying them end to end or stacking them like they would be in a bookshelf. yes, I know, if the engineer in me was also not as lazy i would go figure out through some simple division but lazy i am ..... :P

I have 47. And of those two are more my cooking journals from when I was growing up - recipes in a large childish hand and collages and so on. So maybe 45. Sigh. I feel deprived. That's it - I'm going to the favorite cookbooks thread and ordering 5 more. That's it. Amazon, here I come. Excellent idea, maggiethecat.

a touch of water and milk, is what i add. generous amounts of butter. melted on a pretty high flame. add the eggs and let them sit (with steam escaping) for a few before i gently stir - when i see the curds, i stir a little more. until they look ummm. ....scrambled. grate some sharpish cheese on top. and cilantro. and tons of freshly ground black pepper. it's rare for me, though. i'm an ingredient maven (my greatest failing) and so i invariably add other stuff: onions/scallions etc cilantro cheese, etc - a touch of feta or gorgonzola is excellent poblano green chillies tomatoes (onions, tomatoes and chillies would be egg bhurji, an indian dish)

Wow - very cool. so many options, so little time. many thanks. i need some education : what is lillet? how do you make red wine jelly/jam? jinmyo - my risotto recipe does not discuss anything about a "manchette" or an emulsion. obviously it is lacking. where can i find one that will make me a better person?! also, why only lobster tails? what about the rest of the lobster (i obviously have a lot to learn on the omnivore front) those hot dogs, ouch. they will tint my dreams.

ok, so we've been invited to a dinner this Saturday. the theme is red. so, i've bought some fascinating looking bhutanese red rice from zingerman's (a very bright light in the midwestern culinary scene) and i was contemplating making some risotto like thing we will, of course, take over copious amounts of red wine does any one have better ideas? i've been working on not being vegetarian anymore (which led to a fascniating egullet thread, by the way) and have proudly reached a point where i ate an entire grilled fish (in venice) that came to our table and was still looking at me. i stared right back and filleted it with a skill i did not know i possessed. i've tasted lamb (love it), pork, beef, chicken, shrimp, lobster, chilean sea bass, tillapia, which i have also cooked, and venison. loved them all except the venison and beef. completely loved the chilean sea bass before realizing i should not eat it. damn. the point of that digression - i'm not at a place where i can cook red meat yet. in terms of red recipe suggestions, i mean. also, somebody else is bringing dessert, but i would love to hear ideas anyway.

jinmyo - pray tell. how does one get one's own baker? :)

ScottishChef - that sounds awesome. A million questions pop in my mind - What kind of gems of wisdom does it have? And who is Babu? And where and how did he train you? Of course, don't answer anything you don't feel like.

scottish chef - what's babu's notebook?

My garam masala is adapted from Joyce Westrip's Mughal cook book. Hers, while exquisite, has a little more cardamom than I find optimal. But I will post hers saboot (whole, like cumin seeds) so that you can make your own interpretations. Moghul Garam Masala 1 tbsp light-coloured cumin seeds 2 tsp black cumin seeds 3 tsp cardamom seeds, extracted from pods 1.5 tbsp black peppercorns 20 cloves 1 tsp fennel seeds 3 cinnamon sticks, each about 1" long, broken into tiny bits 1 tsp mace powder Heat a small frying pan and separately dry-roast the light and black cumin seeds, cardamom seeds, pepper corns, cloves and fennel seeds until they begin to change colour and release their aromas. Do not allow them to burn. When cool, add the broken pieces of cinnamon to the roasted spices and grind to a fine powder in a coffee grinder. Finally mix in the mace powder and store in an air tight container. Kashmiri Garam Masala 1 tsp black cumin seeds 2 tsp large brown cardamom seeds, extracted from pods 1 tsp light coloured cardamom seeds, extracted from pods 1 tbsp black peppercorns 10 cloves 3 cinnamon sticks each about 1" long, broken into little pieces 1/2 tsp saffron threads 1/2 tsp mace powder 1 tsp nutmeg powder Same dry roasting routine as before. Add the cinnamon and saffron before grinding and the nutmeg and mace after. What I know about these: The moghul masala is Meg Ryan to the Kashmiri masala's lsabella Rosellini. Mace is awesome. You can cheat and sort of dry roast everything together but be careful Black peppers should be the most precious material on earth The kashmiri masala is exquisite and fragile. I've been thinking of using it in a dessert - icecream of thickened milk, honey and kashmiri garam masala. If you have some that has become stale, dry roasting wakes it right up. Enjoy

Suvir. Boy, Dinshaws. Of course I remember Dinshaws. I just called my Mom and Dad out of a sheer Suvir inspired nostalgia attack. Do not remember too much about restaurants. My parents moved to Bombay soon after I was born but we went back there every summer (all the cousins) and so not much eating out was done. But boy, do I remember the meals, sitting on the floor - a long line of cousins, being served by aunts and uncles and pigging out on mangoes (alphonso, the only kind) and ... playing in the mango tree.... and raiding Dinshaws. My mothers family lived in (and my parents have now retired to) Dharampeth and my fathers in Ramdaspeth. So if you have any specific Nagpur craving, we could always charm my parents into providing them. (Do you ever wonder why you left home? Or whether you knew what it would really, really mean to leave?) So my Mom does not know what Bottle masala is either, but sounds like Monica has a pretty good idea. It sounds fascinating. Thanks. I will have to see if Ruchira has a recipe although the damn thing does not have an index page anymore so ... this may take a while! So here is the Kala Masala, also from the trusty Ruchira: Again 1 katori= about 1/2 cup 4 katoris coriander seeds 1 katori dried coconut 1/2 katori sesame seeds 1/4 katori cumin seeds 3 spoons caraway 2 spoons cloves 4-5 2" long cinnamon sticks 1/2 spoon fenugreek seeds 2 spoons asafoetida 5-6 bay leaves 1 spoon turmeric 1/2 katori chilli powder 1/4 katori oil 1/4 katori salt 1 spoon mustard seeds Dry roast sesame seeds and grind to a powder Shallow fry the following and grind to a powder separately (I must confess to frequently cheating here and doing this in four groups - asafoetida, coconut, cinnamon and then all the seeds, it seems to have done no lasting damage!) asafoetida coconut cumin, caraway, bay leaves, mustard, fenugreek cinnamon Mix all off the above powdered ingredients with the turmeric, chilli powder and salt and voila! And where were you born, Suvir?

Yes. Chick pea flour=besan=gram flour. It's true! Other things you can make - green onion and/or bell pepper curry. You make a tarka (see Stuffed Eggplant thread for details). Add the chopped green onions and/or bell peppers. Mix the flour with some red chilli powder, salt, black pepper and a teaspoon of oil till it has a slightly mealy but still dry texture. (About a cup or less of flour for 3-4 bell peppers or 3-4 bunches of green onions). Add the flour mixture to the cooking vegetables when they are sufficiently tender. Mix well. Cover until the flour is cooked - not raw tasting. Eat with naans/chapatis.

Suvir, Bottle Masala? Oh dear. I must dissapoint you - I have no idea what it is. The essential Maharashtrian masala of course is Kala Masala, also called Goda Masala. I suspect they are they the same thing? Perhaps you can describe your memories of it some more and I could confirm whether they are the same. Kala Masala is the dark oily spice mix that gives Masale Bhat and Bharleli Vangi (Stuffed Brinjals) the very distinct flavor they have. Aaah, I've just guaranteed myself a day of unsatisfactory meals! Also, I will investigate Bottle Masala further - I will consult the trusty, tattered cookbook and call my mom and report back in here in a day or two. I hope that will do. BTW, I was born in Nagpur, as were both my parents! It's a small world. Glad to see you back ....

NeroW: Did you say you live in Michigan? I live in Michigan, too, and know of atleast some decent stores that carry Chiwda .......try this website for some in your area or contact me: http://www.miindia.com/ Why do I like Indian food? Besides the fact that I was born there and it means home? Because it is such a large world, so encompassing. So many worlds within worlds. I grew up in Bombay, a Maharashtrian. That's one kind of cuisine. Sabudana Khichdi - Sago cooked with peanuts, the best breakfast food ever. Kothimbirichya Vadya - Deep fried rolls of cilantro in a chick pea flour batter. When I was 15, I moved to Hyderabad. A unique city. A rare magical blend of nothern and southern cuisine - geographically in the South but was ruled by the Nawabs until very recently. Biryani - rice. lamb and spices, slow cooked in earthenware pots sealed with dough for hours on end (and I'm more or less vegetarian!); Mirchi ka salan - a thin gravy of green chillies and coconut served with biryani; Bagara baingan - little brinjals stuffed with a spicy mixture of peanuts and coconuts and cooked in a gravy .... When I moved here, I met and married a South Indian and that opened up a whole new world of cuisine for me. Yes, I'd eaten in South Indian retaurants before but learning to cook "real" South Indian food from my mother in law has been an amazing experience. (Aside: An amazing South Indian cookbook is Dakshin, by Chandra Padmanabhan. Comes with my mom-in-laws stamp of approval!) And then, at 21, moving here to the US. It opened up a huge door - all these ingredients and cuisines I had only heard of, if that. And yet, as I learn and experiment with them, I can also bring them back to my roots and Indian food just expands and changes and grows to welcome them all. Artichokes, galangal, feta, asparagus, parsley, swiss chard, wasabi .... Phew. Love this thread.

Jason : So after a brief drooly detour to the LeCreuset links (thanks!) and a quick assessment of whether I could buy them in the UK if I visit London in spring as planned and then carry them back (no!) I'm back. Anyway, yes, I've wondered about the Tawa dishes too - and here is what I think it is. I think the dishes are cooked in regular woks and then flash fried in a tawa with butter just before serving. This is something commonly seen in Indian street food vendors (have you heard of pav bhaji? to die for) and something was quite popular in restaurants in India when I was still living there. I do not know if it is a traditional form of Indian cooking or a new one ...... and I'm not an expert by any means... so .......

Dinner: Maccheroni Piazza delle Coppelle Tel.. +39 06 68307895 Coffee: Sant Eustachio Il caffe P.zza Sant'Eustachio n. 82 Tel. (39) 06.68802048 Must have the special Gran Caffe. To die for. Have fun. We were there in December. Sigh. Loved it.

Jason Karahi and Kadai are just alternate English spellings of the same Indian word. And what does Indian word mean anyway? In both Hindi and Marathi (two Indian languages) Kadai/Karahi are used to describe the kitchen utensils in discussion here. Both languages have 3 or 4 letters for varieties on the "d" sound - hence the variation. In any case, one major difference between a kadai and a wok is that kadai's are not designed to deliver the high heat, flash frying, stir frying effect that woks are. The shapes vary but are almost always more or less round bottomed. And tawas are always flat. But the reason I write, where on earth did you find those gorgeous kadais in the photographs in your post. I want one.

So, to add to Suvir's comment, in traditional Indian food, the raita is served with both courses. The first course is typically a vegetable dish, a meat/chicken dish, lentils and raita with some wheat based product like naans etc, and the second is all the same accompaniments with rice - this is only typical for the middle and north of India, the south is totally different. But I digress. Raita ideas - I make raita sometimes with frisee or arugula or even baby spinach. I make a tarka for it (heat up some oil, add mustard seeds until they start popping, then add some chilli powder, finely chopped green chillies and a touch of garlic) and pour it onto the leaves which makes them wilt a little. Then I add the yogurt whipped up with some cumin powder adn freshly ground black pepper. I love the contrast between the bitterness of the leaves and the sourness of the yogurt. I sometimes tie up the yogurt in a cheese cloth and let it drip for a few hours so that it is extra thick and a little more sour than normal. In the south of India, they add lentils (split black lentils like urad or split yellow lentils) to tarkas they make for vegetable curries. I've tried that for regular old cucumber raita and the crunchy fried lentils add an interesting variation. I've also made raita with roasted red and poblano peppers. I blend in a little strong feta cheese with the yogurt before I add it to the peppers and season with coriander and pepper and cilantro. OK. I guess I should stop. I could keep going on.

Paliser Estate is another excellent NZ SB. Recently had it next to Cloudy Bay and it was at least as good. 2002 should be easily available.

I think rstarobi's basmati rice question has been answered multiple times. Just wanted to list the three things that are not variable (I make it at home practically every night) MUSTS - Washing 3/4 times until water is almost clear Double the water Cook on as low as possible with a lid VARIABLES - Steeping Frying with spices (although it tastes great, try it with mace sometime) Also, the quality of the basmati itself makes a difference. Where did you get yours from? -indiagirl