Episure

Funny, that you all should mention it, if my bong friends like it, why arent they going ga-ga over wasabi? I, for one dope on wasabi as if it was going to be extinct tomorrow. If it is the nasal high that turns one on, give me wasabi anyday! Much better than Elmac's Kasondi. And I know several better versions made in houses. And yes Rajsuman, spread it on sandwiches!or even dosas!

Specify, how many ml.? Doc, stop drinking beer, come up to the real stuff.

NOYTA CCCP is what I was looking for! but pre-made crumbled crispily sauteed onions would be what the doctor ordered! We are on a Roll here Doc!

He would. But that will work out quite expensive as he would miss out on his regular assignments. It will be viable only if you came here. Nope, three elements have to come together-Author, Stylist and the Photographer.

I was wondering and then I thought you might be busy with your cookbooks..... This is the way I make Duck: Wait for the dec\jan\feb winter. There are migratory Ducks (without valid visas)that land at Nasik/Igatpuri area's waterbodies(4 hour's drive from Bombay) . Wait a month for them to feed and fatten up a bit. Wear leggies and dark clothes, carry hipflask filled with single malt and wade out at around 5 pm. Patience, patience and more patience. Try and discern between coot and duck. Bang, miss, bang, miss, bang, dinner! Marinate in garam masala, milk and garlic. (pre-made) Pot roast whole duck. Serve with bajra roti. (pre-made) I could improve on this but there is the limitation of cooking alfresco. On second thought I dont think I could improve on this even in a fully equipped kitchen.

You want it done in US or in India. If it's in India, I can get it done for you at a very reasonable price.

I agree with you, frankly I'd take any photographer who can use lighting to a great advantage and take a fine exposure. The food stylist is another matter.

and Well, well, what do you all know, the honorable sounding upright Tamil Brahmin Mr. P. Rajagopal, owner of Saravana Bhavan has been up to no good. This restaurant has been visited by our egulleteers recently and was discussed on this forum as quoted above. According to news on Television and Print media yesterday, he has been jailed for 10 years for kidnapping the husband of a woman he was in love with but has been acquitted of the charge of murdering him. Rajagopal owns the Saravana Bhavan chain of south Indian restaurants in India as well as abroad, including in the USA and the Middle East. He was said to be in love with Jeevajothi, whose father was employed at one of the restaurants. Rajagopal and his men began threatening the couple and Jeevajothi lodged a complaint with police in 2001. On October 18 that year, according to the prosecution, Rajagopal and his goons kidnapped Shanthakumar and Jeevajothi and took them to Tirunelveli, where they were kept captive for weeks. Shanthakumar then went missing. Jeevajothi, who managed to escape, complained to the police that her husband was missing. Weeks later, Shanthakumar's decomposed body was found near the hill resort of Kodaikanal.

I wanted to buy a Vietnamese cookbook but was unable to find one written by a native author so I returned empty handed. I'm sure there are exceptions to this but I dont think I would buy an Indian Cook book written by say Mary Smith or even Episure unless it had rave reviews.

Thanks SKBhai, I'm nowhere near matching your skills, you are the kahuna of Hawai`i and India, I've still a lot to learn from you. I'm trying to shun links that require registration or have pop up ads but that seems to be unavoidable. I will also depend on your kokua to keep this section running in case I'm travelling( to Hawai`i, I hope!) or unable to maintain it.

Tom Sietsema of the Washington Post takes a trip to Nirvana There is a curry museum in ......................Japan! History of Japanese curry Padma Lakshmi cooks Salman Rushdie's goose Chicken Tikka Masala recipe from '5 Star Indian Cuisine' at Long Island city Indian food makes it to the 14th annual Epicurean event at Caesar's Palace

Check out Ochi Pasari near Khar station, one of the only two old world Sindhi Grocers in Bombay. He sells Vadis, Dhingri, Gucchi, Lotus stems, Lotus Buds( look like Shower heads), dehydrated young drumsticks, drumstick flowers......

That's the one I was referring to as the Gujarati version. The reason why it's called amba haldi or as the gujaratis would call it- haldar, is because it tastes like a cross between fresh turmeric and raw mango. Thanks whippy!

Okay I just tasted my Mishti Dhoi which I put to set last night using palm jaggery and it's turned out fine. This palm jaggery is rock hard stuff and it took me 20 minutes of boiling in little water to liquefy it, after that I added it into the milk with the starter. Next time I will use full fat milk in a clay pot and I think it will taste the same as K.C. Das's.

Thanks Rajsuman, Muddo sounds very interesting! The Gujaratis also make a pickle with julienned fresh turmeric and mango ginger( Amba Haldi) which is yummy, perhaps Rushina or someone else can post the recipe here. I use it to make Thai yellow curry paste. In Bombay one can buy it at Bhuleshwar market when it is in season.

Re: Haldi Does anybody has recipes that use fresh haldi/turmeric?

INDIAN FOOD NEWS: Check here frequently for hot links to food articles, essays, columns and reviews published in food media across the world. Content may cover non-indian food too but related to India or Indians. Some of these links may require free registration to log in. Virendra Sehwag's wedding menu plans £8m settlement ends row that divided curry dynasty Scotland's curry king Charan Gill named Asian entrepreneur of the year Kolkata restaurant happenings See what Chef Praveen Anand is up to at the Dakshin There is not much difference between Pakistani and Indian cooking, explains chef Qureshi Masala Bistro showcases rich, elegant Indian and Bengali food in Detroit Opening shortly, on April 29, in London's Curry Street is Michael Caine's light 'n' tangy Indian restaurant 'Deya', glorified by The Guardian for serving gravy delights without ghee and hot masalas . Cyrus Todiwala gets a new spelling and the UK's Guardian answers Jason's post on freaky pigments Haldi study is another step in determining if curry can protect against Alzheimer's Curcumin, which provides the yellow color in curry, may activate a key enzyme Washington, DC -- A new study has found that curry, a common and popular cooking additive, could be an effective enhancer of an enzyme that protects the brain against oxidative conditions. This research is an important first step in determining whether curry could be preventive agent against acute neurodegenerative conditions, or reducing the progression of chronic and age associated neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease. Free Radicals and Neurodegenerative Disease One of the most prominent current theories of aging is the "free radical theory." According to this theory, free radical molecules generated through mitochondrial metabolism can act as causative factor of abnormal function and cell death. Various toxins in the environment can injure mitochondrial enzymes, leading to increased generation of free radicals and oxidative stress, that over the life-span would eventually play a major role in aging. Free radical's oxidative damage to key intracellular targets such as DNA or proteins has been shown to be a major cause of the degenerative diseases related to aging such as cancer and Alzheimer's disease. At the same time, a number of studies have supported the beneficial effects of some commonly used natural products in preventing various pathologic conditions. Spices and herbs often contain phenolic substances with potent antioxidative and chemopreventive properties. Among them is curcumin, a natural phenolic agent, extracted from the rhizome of Curcuma Longa, and the yellow pigment in curry, strongly induced HO-1 expression and activity in rat astrocytes. Conclusions This study identifies a novel compound that could be used for therapeutic purposes as potent inducers of HO-1 for protecting brain cells against oxidative conditions. The researchers believe that additional in vitro and in vivo studies are necessary to determine whether curcumin can be used as preventive agent against acute neurodegenerative conditions that affect an increasingly aged population. The American Physiological Society (APS) is America's oldest biomedical sciences research society. The not-for-profit society, with some 11,000 members, is the publisher of 14 scientific journals, including the American Journal of Physiology, which has been published since 1898.

Sniff....if I didn't have a dozen mangos waiting in my fridge, I'd be weeping with you.

Rushina, there is no fixed shop, you have to do weekly chukkers. Most of this rare stuff comes from ships that are docked in the port and the enterprising Kutchis have some barter system with the quartermasters. Go to Rustom's at Colaba, decide what you want and then go to Crawford market with the formers benchmark prices. At one time I was the only buyer for such exotic ingredients, today there are many. I had once cornered some 400 cans of Schweppes tonic at Rs 5 each, cant see that happening now. In Bangalore I am 'exploiting' the local markets for Fresh Reef Cod and Red snapper at only Rs. 50 a kilo, while the rest of the populace is stuck on Pomfrets, Seer and Surmai at 3 times the price.

I for one am happy to have a doctor in our midst albeit not a medical one. Come to think of it there has always been a doc in my close circle of friends, so addressing you that way comes with ease and a sense of familiarity. If you really dont like it, let me know and deny me that bonhomie. PS. you know anything about cauliflowers?

Probably. And as Doc said use a thick bottom shallower pan. The idea is to have a fairly even temperature throughout the height of the pan. By the time heat from the tawa has travelled upward it has dissipated it's energy on a 'first come first served basis.' Ergo the rice on top will be less cooked than the bottom layer. This works well with biryani as the bottom layer is the meat.

There are black peppered, chat masalafied, red chillied and chocolate coated too. Ahh... Crawford market.. I miss it and I am sure they miss me too. Many of the shop owners would phone me up for explanations and valuations for any new stuff they would come across. Some rare gems that I have bought from there at a steal over the last two decades simply because I knew what it was: Truffle oils Wasabi Nori sheets Norwegian smoked salmon Godiva chocolates Aero chocolates Serrano Ham They dont sell these cheaply any more, I have taught them too well.

If you all are referring to Toshe/Tosha, it is made from wheat kneaded with ghee, sugar and cardamom. This is fried to form small cylinders say thumb size.Sometimes this is crumbled fine and is called 'kootti'. The same is also made in round form and called by different names all over the country. Another version is without sugar and instead they are dipped into sugar syrup to form a sweet opaque coating.

One man's smell is another man's aroma.

Milagai, Congratulations and to think that you have been lurking here all this while. Hope to see more of your participation.