foodietraveler

Ammini, I have not eaten at Indian Chinese restaurants recently. BUt when I have, they hever never had rice pudding or any such pudding. Closest was gello puddings and fresh fruit and ice creams... But as you said, things will change. I asked if those living in India can tell us what kind of Indian Chinese restaurants are serving kheer. It is of great interest to me.... because Indian Chinese is very fun and very unique. And that it continues to change is of no surprise to me. And of all rice puddings I have tried, kheer, made Indian style, is my very favorite of all.

I think you are right. But my mom and others I know, elders, call it immigrant. Maybe because they think of them as immigrants in nations they live. But you are right, emigrant would be better choice.

The recipe calls for 4 cups of milk (whole) and says one should bring milk to boil in a heavy bottom pan, stirring constantly. As milk reduces, scrape any dried milk off the sides. Continue to cook until reduced to consistency of mashed potatoes. Remove from heat and cool. Transfer to heat resistant container and store. It says the cooking time is between 30-40 minutes. I cooked over an hour and 30 minutes. No luck reducing it to mashed potato texture. And I did not want it to be like the mashed potatoes which I like, but was willing to have it be somewhat wetter, but still, not close enough. Was there something I should have done differently from the recipe? A step I should know of? A pan I should use instead? I used a very heavy all clad pan. Wide pan, because they reduce liquids faster because of greater surface area. I have set this as Kulfi and I am sure it will be amazing. I had never made Khoya, and never seen it in markets here in US. Maybe dried khoya shall be it for me. But I was excited seeing recpe.

Whole-Milk Fudge Monica, I have been cooking the 4 cups whole milk for over an hour and 15 minuts now. It is still not come to consistency of mashed potatoes. Do you think I have used too much milk? I used the 4 cups you ask to use, but maybe recipe is using too much? Could you please check. I am excited to make it, never made khoya and I am excited to have it to play with. Since you manage this site, I feel you will come to my rescue. Hope you are online commenting now. Need your help!

I love Indian Chinese food... Is there a new trend in Indian Chinese restaurants to serve rice pudding??? In my time they never had Indian style puddings. But things change. Are there members commenting here that live in India? Please tell what kind of kheers are being served at your local Chinese restaurant. Curious here.

Where does one find it?

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detai...=books&n=507846 Click above to buy the book at good price. It is better price then you will find at barnes and noble. Yes, he truly is magician. Unlike any cookbook, this one will change how we think of Indian cooking. BettyK, please share with us what you think. Suvir seems too busy to comment on this site, but I have enjoyed reading his old comments. Seems like this indian page seemed to have been inspired and informed by him. And I feel lukcy that he has given us this place to learn from him and share our own family stuff. When you see the book, you will call him magician with food and photo. Indian food looks world class now and Indians can be so proud. It is lucky he shares with us, through this site and his book.

I miss indian buttermilk. i remember jaipur and all the chaas I had when we visit family there. the buttermilk is very different. so light and so sweet while being sour. I know what you mean. Now I crave it too.

Geetha, I understood that you make idli upma, not the basic upma using buttermilk. And that you use it as chutney. sounds amazing. it is common in our home to make upma with sooji using either buttermilk or khatta yogurt. We add lots of coconut into idli upma, and sometimes even coconut milk, when we have it, but your idea of using buttermilk is very nice. thank you.

Monica, it is from the discussion I give link to. One quote is from Suvir Saran and the other from Simon Majumdar. Suvir, could you please tell us where you give this story from?

Sounds amazing. I often make idli upma with leftover idli. But never used buttermilk. Thanks for sharing idea. I shall bless you as I use it this weekend. Have many Southern Indian recipes we will make from Suvir Sarans book Indian Home Cooking. GF wants to prepare a few rasam soups and wants to invite friends over. I am afraid rasam is too foreign for many people, indian as well, but she is in love with how they sound. I only make sambhar with dosa and idli but now we will try these recipe. Your upma will be made this weekend. thank you.

From same discussion: I once made a 24hr journey from Bombay to Calcutta on the Gitanjili Express ( named for the sublime poem of Tagore ) I, in a moment of madness, thought that it might be a "romantic" way to see Mother India to travel in class 3. I booked three months in advance only to find that when I went to collect my ticket, that my booking was to be on the waiting list!! The first class cabin was however almost empty and was only £50. So, I soon ditched the idea of romance and went for what comfort was on offer. Not much by those of us softened by getting on a plane and turning right, but by the standards of other classes, absolutely luxurious. During the journey I befriended a young couple from Bombay who were going to live in Calcutta and they were kind enough to feed me the whole way there. The food was of a bewildering variety and had been made for them by various sisters, aunts, mothers and grandmothers all of whom had come to the station to wave off their children with much wailing and tears and invocations to Ganesh. Everythime I thought that they had run out, the young woman would produce some incredible new dish for me to try and by the end of the journey, I must have sampled about 30 dishes. I recall most of the dishes vividly Cauliflower Pakora Samosa Fish tandoori Rolls Pickled Carrots Turmeric rice balls Home made paneer Lime Pickles Hot and sour sweet Pea Aubergine and Sweets, including Gulab Jamun, dhoi, Shrikand ( which the well prepared couple kept between ice packs in a freezer bag ) The one dish that really lives with though is one I have never been able to get close to recreating. It was a dish of chickpeas in a rich and fiery gravy which had fenugreek and chilli and a number of other things. it was topped with a yoghurt and sprinkled with Chaat mix. It was indescribably good and I would love any ideas for somehting similar

“I found myself remembering, with the love of a real patriot, a journey that I had made across India. My first American sweetheart, Will, and I were traveling by train; this must be ten or eleven years ago now. What an incredibly diverse landscape India has. We had given up our First Class Air Conditioned seats to go Second Class Unreserved. Will, as aristocratic as an American can be, wanted to experience the "real India", like Gandhi. So, there we were, two well dressed men of obvious wealth, sitting on a train so crowded with poor farmers that it was practically bursting at the seams. We were both a little scared of being attacked or ostracized in some way for our wealth and difference but, in truth, we found ourselves to be the center of this incredible love and attention!” “We had our own individual berths but we gave up one because there were so many people who had no place to sit. The chaat vendors were moving in and out of the train at every station, selling to the passengers. Normally I would have bought something but all of these horrendously poor families in our car were offering us food. After a lot of complaining (I had never done this kind of thing before) I finally agreed to taste my first bite of food given by a stranger. Will was far more adventurous: perhaps that’s part of the freedom of being an American. But once I had rid myself of my initial fear, I couldn’t get enough of those delicious bites. They didn’t taste like anything I’d ever eaten before. In any event, we couldn’t say no: it would have been taken as snobbery. In the end, we were bursting with food that we had been given by every family sitting with us in that section of the car. I didn’t want the trip to end. I wanted to savor every dish – to understand deeply what made such humble, simple food so tasty and rich. These were dishes made by families with very few resources. Their foods weren’t laced in fat; they’re not garnished to the n'th degree. With few ingredients and even fewer spices, these people had made every dish a celebration. So in some ways, I find this fourth of July to be my own day of peace with the India I never love when I’m living in its lap.” Above is from http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=9302&hl= and it has some other great stuff. Will cut and paste. I did search for trains and India. Some good stuff came up. also recipes.

now I am hungry.. yes chana dal would certainly get tarka. sometimes when I have seen it made with laukee, I have seen tarka omited since they do more stuff in the begining. But otherwise, daal and tarka are very delicious. Lucky you!

mom makes buttermilk lassi with vaghaar when she comes visits. curry leafs, hing, mustard seeds, green chili and salt. Delicious and sometimes we eat this with steamed rice and pickle.

bhaturas are deep fried, not baked. But they taste amazing made with buttermilk. The few times I have made naan i have used buttermilk, when recipe wants yogurt. I like more sour. Naan is baked. But cannot think of much else baked indian stuff... do you bake a lot of Indian stuff Monica? And yes I make indian style cheesecake, hybrid, light in texture, and I add buttermilk or yogurt into creem cheese. And if you can call this Indian, that too is baked.

Just did a search for trains and Indian food...Here is what came up. http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?act=Se...=train%2C+india Going to go check out threads.

mom makes mor koidhamba, spelling could be wrong. Like sambhar with buttermilk. Nice and tasty. She learned from neighbor from Karntka. I bake a lot with buttermilk and use it for cakes too. Sometimes litte tang is nice.

nessa, are you making chana (chickpeas) or chana dal? Not often that Indian people, especially northern Indian spice chickpeas with tarka. But live and learn. Chana dal would certainly get spiced if it were made as dal. yes, like you, i was doing tarka all the time, not knowing I was doing them, till I was explained by mom and now Suvir and Monica that it can be done both times.

dave the cook the picture you choose for your name, is perfect for janamashtmi because Krishna loved cows. He loved milk and cream.

Kulfi made by people who left India and missed good kulfi made with richer cream milk back home. Also, in India, kulfi was eaten outside in meethai shops, where someone had spent hours reducing milk, or made at home by maharaj's who did the same.... or yes, some grandmas made it to with great efforts. But living outside of INdia, with no help, if you were not too affluent, you came up with clever short cuts, a compromise, but one that did not seem too terrible. Many of these tricks that Suvir and Monica put to place were discovered by their parents and mine, as they first traveled overseas and lived in cities not very friendly to immigrants or without many exotic ingredients. Do I make sense?

Monica, Any suggestions on how I should work with your book? What do you think is best way of reading it, cooking with it? Do you have favorite recipes?

charnamrita/panchanamrita are a staple. no prayer do krishanji would be complete without this. lots of safed makkhan around the house. makhane ke sheer gulgulas rabri malpuas atte ka halwa and many savory dishes

my niece, 18 month old, eats everything my brother and sister in law eat. Kitchdi is her favorite it seems. She loves dhosa and paratha. She loves beans and carrots. Kheer and gulaab jaamun are her favorite sweets. my sister in law adds lots of hing in food, help with gas.

We add tarka at different times for different dish in our family. SOme dish even get tarka twice. And mom always adds tarka to one day old dal, it makes dal seem more flavorful. Different region have different tarka.