Jenni

^^ Hmm, is it that hard to get hold of? Seems to be a pretty common vegetable oil around here. Incidentally, I am intrigued that you say it is the recommended oil for Thai cooking. I thought peanut oil was more highly touted for that. Well, you learn something new every day.

Turmeric leaves are used for steaming some dishes. They add a certain fragrance. Then there's also jackfruit leaves, which are used to make little cups and idli batter is steamed in it. Beautiful pictures here.

^^ Better believe it! Don't hate me for saying it, but maybe you just haven't been cooking it right?

^ To be fair, I use rock salt. And I'm more than happy to miss out on uncessary additives when I can.

Hmm, I guess I don't see what's so tricky about cooking rice. Wash rice. Put in pan. Add water. Bring to boil. Add lid. Forget it until it's done. Or if you're doing basmati, add a soaking step after washing. Or if you're doing parboiled rice, forget all that and just bung it in a big pan and cook it like pasta. It doesn't bother me to just ignore it whilst I get on with other dishes. I guess I could save myself a burner by having a rice cooker, but we've got a 7 burner cooker and I regularly cook 5 or 6 dishes plus the rice on the cooker all at once with no probs. Btw rice holds it's heat fine if you just leave the lid on it when it's done until you are ready.

Pesarattu (kind of a moong dosa) with carrot chutney. The usual side is ginger chutney, but I like to try and squeeze in veggies where I can. With coriander seeds, sesame, chilli and tamarind in the base and a tadka of mustard and urad, this particular chutney was absolutely delicious! I will be making it again.

Why?

I avoid table salt because it often has anti caking agents in it and stuff like that and I'd rather avoid unecessary additives - it's so easy to grind salt fresh I don't see a problem.

Another person here who doesn't see what's wrong with cooking rice in an ordinary pan. I cook rice at least twice a day and never have any problems.

From left to right: Arachuvitta vengaya sambar (shallot sambar with freshly ground spices) Thakkali paruppu rasam (tomato rasam) Muttakos poriyal (dry cabbage dish with coconut) Urulaikizhangu podimas (mashed potato dry vegetable dish) Plain yogurt Mango pickle And of course, rice

Exactly. And the point I think I was trying unsuccessfully to make is that over time, "new" techniques and ingredients become "traditional" and "authentic." Just like the tomato in Italy -- which has only been in widespread use for a few hundred years. Am I interested in pre-Columbian Italian* cuisine? Sure. But I'm not going to accuse marinara sauce of being ersatz Italian. * Yeah, I know there was no "Italy" in 1491. But it's a lot easier than listing off Puglia, Piedmont, Tuscany, Sicily etc. Hmm...I don't think anyone here's saying that corn starch (or cornflour as we brits call it!) isn't used in modern Chinese cuisine, and I don't think we're arguing about authenticity. It's just a curious and interesting thing to talk about, just as it is interesting to talk about Indian food pre-chillies. No-one's saying that chillies aren't an authentic part of Indian cuisine because they are imported, it's just fascinating to look at the way a cuisine changs as new ingredients and techniques become available.

Personally, for me this is exactly the sort of thing I like to ask. When did a cuisine first get x ingredient? What did they use before? I am fascinated by the history of cuisines. It's not about defining authenticity, it's about exploring the history of country's culture.

Corn starch may well be a common and authentic part of some modern Chinese cooking, but I wonder how long it's usage goes back. Obviously there was a time before corn was introduced to China. Was another starch used before that? Or is the quick thickening of sauces with a starch a "modern" technique that was not used in ancient Chinese cookery?

That's because you said it first! So really, I agreed with you! You said it better though, and more clearly! By the way, it's not just Jains that avoid onion and garlic so do not just assume that if they are not Jain, then you are ok. Certain Hindu sects also do it, and in addition some Buddhists. So best to ask and then you will be completely sure!

Some strict Indian vegetarians do not eat onions and garlic. There are a variety of reasons for this, probably the main ones being: *They are supposed to arouse base passions. This is according to traditional Indian medicine and ways of classifying food items. *They are associated with the preparation of meat dishes. Jains in particular do not eat onions or garlic at all, and some Hindus don't either. There are also some people who will prepare onion and garlic free dishes on certain occasions such as paritcular religious occassions. To be honest, I think it would be a mistake to assume that these particular vegetarians don't eat onion or garlic, as many Indian vegetarains do and I think there are some Middle Eastern dishes which would not be the same without onions and garlic! Just ask and you may save yourself a lot of time and effort. I also just want to say that I agree with prasantrin post above.

^^ I would not worry too much. They informed you that they (or at least some of them - I find it hard to tell simply from what you have posted whether it is all or a few) are vegetarian, yes? If there were other restricitons I would have thought they would have mentioned it. May be worth checking if they eat eggs though, as for many (but not by any means all) in India vegetarian means eats no meat or fish and no eggs, but yes to dairy. Since they are from a mixture of places, I would urge you to wow them with some of your native dishes.

That's good to know. Perhaps I haven't looked carefully enough. It seems I have been spoiled with my butter choices so I am rather dismissive of generic butters such as Kerrygold, Anchor, etc. Of course, if others are enjoying it and find it a good choice for their purposes, then that is valid too!

Apologies if this is wrong, but the rice bran bit rings a bell from an early blog by helenjp. She talks about the pickling process a little here (and the blog may well go on to say more) and also provides a link to a recipe here.

^^^ Where are you based? I'm in the UK and I prefer any number of the local butters I can get, often there's a lot of organic or from speciality cows/sheep/goats. In the supermarket I tend to go for Yeo Valley butter because it's organic and I like the taste. Same for Rachels. Actually I'd go for supermarket own brand organic or "finest" butter over kerrygold too. This is also because I'd prefer unsalted over salted butter when buying. When it comes to actually eating it I do tend to salt it if just having with bread, but I like to try it unsalted to check the flavour. Interestingly enough my Mum looks down most of all on butters such as Lurpak and Anchor, because they're not British. This comes from the fact that she grew up with local butter, milk and cream from the farm that her father and brother worked on, and she doesn't like the idea of not supporting British farmers when it comes to dairy and meat.

Erm, can I ask if people in the UK also consider this a great butter? Because I would consider it to be a pretty average (as in not-so-great) butter. Put it this way - there are definitely other butters I would use if I wanted decent butter!

Um..are you totally sure of this? Because I think you may be incorrect. Potato starch is extracted from potato, at least the stuff I have seen is.

Obviously it does have an effect and is excellent for health, but I don't think it's the exercise that's the key point here (It's much easier to cut calories through diet than through exercise). Do you not think one of the main factors is that people eat at McDonalds and other fast food places (and eat the equiavalent at home) a lot more regularly these days? Whereas in the past it was more of a treat?

^^ Lior, it's just my personal opinion, but you may of course do whatever you like! It is your party and I am sure that the best things for you to make are those that you know you make well, and only you can judge that. I was thinking about this a bit, and I really think that your guests will enjoy some of your local food. I will not pretend to know much about your particular local cuisine, but I have eaten the following in various meals from different middle eastern regions that have parallels with aspects of various Indian dishes: *Yoghurt salads - containing vegetables, herbs, etc. These are similar to raita, pachadi and other Indian yogurt salads. *Vegetable dishes/ salads - different regions of India have different raw veg salads, and of course all regions have cooked vegetable dihes. The use of herbs and some spices in Middle Eastern cuisine will be recognisable whilst providing new tastes. *Different hot and cold lentil and bean dishes - in seasoning they are often different from Indian style bean and dal dishes (although some seem to contain spices such as cumin, coriander and chilli), but still the nutritional parallel is clear. *Various grain dishes, including bulgur and rice - something similar to bulgur called dalia is used in India (I think it's cracked wheat as opposed to bulgur wheat, but very similar really) and this along with rice will be a recognisable grain component. Again, the use of herbs and spices in a Middle Eastern way will be new and familiar at the same time. *Flatbreads - Many of India's flatbreads have a middle eastern connection are so will be quite similar. Others will be new but I am sure they will be well appreciated. *Grilled Meats - Again, due to the Muslim influence on Indian food, some Middle Eastern meat dishes are similar to Indian meat dishes. So if you make your usual fare, your guests may already feel extremely happy and enjoy the food a lot, partly because it will be new and delicious but also because aspects of it are very familiar. It will be a wonderful introduction for them to the local food, and you may make some firm friends amongst those who would like to have a recipe from you!

Personally i would not do naan, but if you want to that is up to you (i believe it is a middle eastern as well as a north indian bread anyway, but I just think you should wow with some of your local breads!). Do you know where they are from in India? I ask because it would be nice to tailor the one or two indian dishes you made to their region.

Personally, I would serve them some interesting middle eastern dishes - they might actually be far more excited to try some authentic food from a different culture, rather than something "Indian" that may or may not be what they would consider Indian. They will also have fun comparing the similarities between Middle Eastern food and Muslim-influenced Indian food. If you are determined to do something Indian, try and find out what part of India they are from. Then you could try making a few dishes from that region. Only one or two mind - I still would not recommend trying to cook them a completely authentic meal, just add a few Indian dishes to an array of dishes that are more in your style.