Milagai
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Posts posted by Milagai
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Peppertrail could you please share your recipe for Aviyal wih me? By private message or publicly if you think others might like it.
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hola monica!
i'm just a little south of you and thus get your used weather.
we're just starting to snow, but been having a cold
snap last 2 days.
i made some KICK A** bisi-bele-bhaath
(no MTR mix, mom's recipe)
and EVERYONE loved it:
husband fell off his diet wagon with a thud,
and 7 yo dd and 3 yo ds kept saying
"yummy in my tummy" while devouring multiple servings.
served with yogurt and papads.
really sticks to your ribs
(and alas, likely to yr hips)
milagai
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in general i have too many to list,
but:
chai (whether masala or regular) + samosas
it's a MAJOR peeve with me that
so many coffee shops will serve (masala) chai
to jump onto a trend bandwagon,
and refuse to consider samosas.
would they dream of serving bagels w/o cream cheese?
milagai
( tried persuading my local joe's and they just laughed
in my face)
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what a great idea!
does achaya or other historians have any ancient indian
discussions or dish-cussions on foods considered aphrodisiac?
or vatsyanana?
or some insights from ayurveda?
here's some links i found via google:
http://www.shaadi.com/wedding/kitchen/chef...-spice-up-2.php
http://www.tastingplaces.com/html/HandsOn.asp
(about halfway down this page there is a description of
a class by UK chef monisha bhardwaj, of a valentine's day
menu.
do tell us what you come up with, and whether the shiv sena
has anything to say about it
sudha
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I use it in idli batter, or in any recipe when I want a shorter
grain stickier rice (I wouldn't waste Baasmati on pongal e.g.)
milagai
milagai,
what ratio do you use for idlis? 2 sona masoori rice : 1 urad dal?
shanta
Shanta: that sounds about right.
I'll have to check my cheat sheet however,
as somehow this is not stored in my permanent memory :)
Do you add a handful of "aval" (flattened rice) and
some methi seeds to promote various good results?
or is that voodoo?
Milagai
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Sona Masoori is not aromatic long grain like Basmati.
When baasmati is too expensive, people use sona masoori.
I use it in idli batter, or in any recipe when I want a shorter
grain stickier rice (I wouldn't waste Baasmati on pongal e.g.)
milagai
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haai! tauba!
monica what a lovely set of pictures...
i really feel sad to think what my kids are missing
out living in the us....
but am thrilled to hear about the hygienic ganne-ka-ras,
as when we drank sugarcane juice as kids it was
definitely from the "ugly" version of the machine.
we all escaped without any ill effects, but used to
get scolded by our parents for taking these risks.
now i'm glad my kids can taste this ambrosia without
me worrying about various diseases.
does the cleaned up version taste as good as the
one with flies, street dust, and operator sweat in the formula?
milagai
ps: its perfectly easy to travel with kids in india if you
take a few elementary precautions re immunizations,
bottled water, mosquito repellant, etc.
nothing more complicated than camping in yosemite.....
no lack of good pediatricians either.
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add my voice on the fantasticness of hampi.
this misal sounds terrific! any recipes?
milagai
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my kids love:
asparagus, beets, broccoli, bok choy, carrots, cabbage and cauliflower, most fruit,
green beans and green peas, okra, tofu (which my 3 YO calls sofa),
spinach, and most kinds of dal.
also felafel, most chinese food,
i don't get why kids "aren't supposed" to like these foods:
someone please explain?
maybe parents are bad cooks?
when i was a kid i didn't like eggplant (the appearance)
but its now one of my favorites...
milagai
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maybe south indian food looks best
on the traditional banana leaf plates?
easy to dispose of too.
no washing or storage needed...
compost or feed to cow in backyard
here is a picture randomly taken off the internet:
http://homepage.mac.com/cintos/Lori/PhotoAlbum23.html
milagai
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For some weird reason, my aunt has decided to make only cold salads as side dishes for Christmas Eve dinner. I suspect it's because she doesn't have any space on her stove - this is otherwise a traditional Italian meal of fish. Spaghetti w/ clams, spaghetti with calamari, all sorts of fried, grilled, etc fish. So anyway, when asked what I should bring, I was told a "cold green bean salad". The catch, of course, is that I don't know how to cook.
I can follow any recipe, but I can't develop them. Even simple things, I tend to go overboard with spicing. Add to this the fact that I don't particularly care for salads myself, and that makes it harder. Could anyone give me ideas, particularly ones that include measurements? Thanks!
does it have to be homemade?
can you purchase ?
e.g. if you are in the US, local whole foods or other higher-end grocery
store should have some.
if not in the US, your local equivalent?
milagai
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mostly in india,
gravy is what y'awl call "sauce" in western countries.
i.e. dum aloo = potatoes steamed in tomato cream gravy,
what you call "ketchup" we call "sauce
right now i have a bottle of my favorite maggi chili garlic
tomato sauce (chili garlic ketchup to you) on my table
and am dunking my samosas in it....
milagai
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yeh sab chhodo yaar;
i want a nice in-residence bawarchi or maharaj
to do all my cooking while i loaf around.
i'd even settle for a once-a-week blitz visit
from a friendly gujju lady or madisaaru maami.....
sigh
milagai
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what about the fixed blade knife?
the kind you sit on the wooden part and
move the veggies back and forth to slice?
called bonthi in bangla and aruvaamanai in tamil?
also various coconut graters, though that may not
fit yr definition of cutlery?
milagai
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how about a kulfi style ice cream
with pistachio & cardamom?
milagai
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another use for cardamom:
great kheer (indian rice pudding)
or gajar halwa (carrot halwa).
lots of indian sweets use cardamom
milagai
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>I think we kids lived on rice with yogurt for a long time (I grew up in the middle >east.) I have no idea what american babies eat.
heh heh! being indian: our babies had a similar diet.
still do, for that. and so do the adults:
dal and rice, yogurt and rice, etc.
we were raised the same way,
and my generation only bought baby food
for travel or emergencies etc.
>In the meantime I think I will just invite the adults over for dinner, to take a little >of the work off their hands.
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i've been reading the "best food" and "worst food"
threads on the main part of eg, and wondered
how experiences in this group were?
i've honestly can't recall a single uneatably bad meal
in india or elsewhere...
either i have a cast iron stomach or i'm very lucky :)
but one of the memorable standouts
(neither best nor worst, just way outside my experience
at that time) was:
breakfast in ajmer, early 1980's.
our host family, very much locals,
friends with my father's family from
around the independence era:
mirchi pakoras, and jalebis
"pehle jeebh jale bhi; phir jalebi".
both items excellent, and one can't
really decide which taste to end with
washed down with great chaai.
really threw one into high gear for the day :)
until that time i had been brought up on
meek and mild upma, idlis, toast, etc.
my mind blew along with my mouth.
any stories to share?
milagai
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My next door neighbor & friend is due in the next couple of weeks. I was thinking it might be nice to make organic apple juice for the baby at some point. I remember odwalla getting into trouble for selling unpasturized juices a few years back, is this something I would need to worry about? Also, I have a food mill which could be used for similar purposes once she starts weaning him. I'd love to hear if anyone has made their own baby food or juices at home, and what one would need to watch out for.
hmmm. usually babies stay on breastmilk or formula
for at least 3 months or thereabouts, more like ~ 6 months
(in general). so are you planning way in advance?
i always made all baby food and juices at home for my 2,
because i just took whatever the family was eating (at a suitable
pre-spicing stage) and pureed it for baby.
same with juice.
we had no problem with pasteurizing / purification issues,
but these were my babies, and the food was freshly made and
served. and i introduced the appropriate foods at
appropriate ages (i.e. cereals first, in very small quantities
to watch for possible allergic reactions etc.)
maybe you can ask mom-to-be what her thoughts are on the
subject? usually parents develop very strong preferences
re kids' food?
milagai
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I love simple, steamed artichokes. But I grew up dipping the leaves in oh-so-unhealthy hollandaise sauce.
I'm looking for something lighter, but not too sharp (I've tried an oil/balsamic vinegar combo but it tasted too much like salad dressing). In my mind artichokes should be dipped in something tangy and creamy. Any suggestions?
What do you use?
My family's favorite dip for artichokes is
actually something that's a cross between
cucumber raita and mint chutney:
1. make a simple cucumber raita (1 grated cuke,
1 cup yogurt or buttermilk, salt, black pepper, toasted cumin seed, powdered).
2. blend: 1/2 cup cilantro, 1/8 cup mint leaves (optional),
1/2 green chili, splash lemon juice, pinch sugar, salt to taste.
mix #2 with #1.
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yes, chammandi podi aka chutney podi is the
brown powder. many yummy recipes.
pachadi is raita? yogurt + veg of some kind or another + spices?
thoren: veg sauteed in simple spices; can be cabbage, green beans, etc.
milagai
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methi sprout / tamarind chutney
(this was originally printed in the Hindu supplement
mag few years ago)
300g - fenugreek sprouts (obtained from 100g seeds)
1 tsp - mustard seeds: for seasoning
150g - cleaned tamarind (size of a medium orange), obtain thick extract using water
3 tsp - jaggery, grated
5 tbsp - chilli powder
1/4 tsp - asafoetida, roast in oil and powder
7 tbsp - salt
150ml - oil (1 cup approx.) gingelly or sunflower.
To sprout fenugreek:
Soak the fenugreek seeds in sufficient water overnight. Drain away the water the next day and tie the soaked seeds in a clean cloth. Hang the bundle in a warm place for a day or two, keeping it moist. Ensure that the sprouts are medium in size. Longer sprouting tends to make the pickle bitter. Stir-fry the fenugreek sprouts over low heat for exactly two minutes and set it aside. Longer frying makes the sprouts bitter.
In the same pan heat some more oil, add the mustard seeds and allow them to crackle. Stir in the tamarind extract, jaggery, salt and bring it to a boil. Allow it to thicken over a high flame. Lower the heat, stir in the chilli, turmeric, asafoetida powders, the remaining oil and continue cooking for about 45 minutes or until the mixture thickens. Add the fried sprouts and cook for 15 more minutes or until the mixture becomes jam-like and the oil separates.
The chutney is ready for use. It lasts about six months, refrigerated.
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all of the above!
now i'm hungry and going off to sprout something.
i use:
moong sprout
moth sprout
methi sprout
any others you recommend?
milagai
plantain emergency
in Cooking
Posted
you can adapt the green plantain recipes for the riper ones;
they will just be a little squishier and taste a little sweeter.
they're great when spiced up, as the tastes complement each
other very well.
milagai