Monica Bhide
-
Posts
2,775 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Store
Help Articles
Posts posted by Monica Bhide
-
-
Kew -- Thanks for that lovely explanation. i am glad I called it Monica's curry
Your list is huge -- I can try to do some.. so little time. Perhaps I will blog again sometime.
This blog I just wanted people to see how we ate as a regular family... it was not meant to be an Indian cooking class of sorts
:laugh:I do use coconut milk a lot, probably more than I should. In India it a very popular ingredient.
My son wants egg curry.. so get ready.. that will be sunday's dinner for sure.
-
Nope no potatoes. We ate ours with pita.
-
I should be too shouldnt I... I did not know you had a piece in there. .. sorry!
-
Before you left your tech job, how did you juggle family, work and pitching articles? (I struggle with this!)
Thanks in advance!
Danielle
It is a struggle.. I know many writers who struggle with the same thing. it is also off topic here and I am sure the moderators will send me a note if I blabber on about this.. email me and we can talk offline.
-
I was wondering if you'd have some time to chat a bit about how you made the transition to full time writing. I think I remember reading that you attended Toni's Greenbrier Symposium. Was that a turning point for you?
It just happened... and then it took forever to happen.. I guess the answer changes depending on the day you ask me. My story "The Color of your dreams" on how I became a food writer and what it has taken over the year was on the cover of the IACP magazine this quarter. I am attaching the file here for you to see.
-
Monica
I'm loving your blog. I always wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed your writings. I can almost taste the dishes you write about and I could never read about it on an empty stomach because it would drive me crazy!
I'm wondering if you can recommend some titles on Indian food essays. I remember reading some posts on the India board about these writings but I'm not really too sure if they've been translated into English or even sold in the US. Thanks in advance.
Amy
Thank you very much.. so very kind of you.
Pengiun India came out with food essays that are good. If I were you, I would order Mistress of Spices.. I love her style of writing..
-
-
Is it Bombay Bistro ?
-
Tomorrow -- Hmmm.. Lunch will be leftovers. I have so much food left!
Dinner will be Salad ala Monica -- Fruits, Walnuts and imagination
Entree -- A grilled chicken with orange juice, peanut butter and curry powder... a treat I learnt here on eG.
Dont knock it til you try it
-
Have you tried the indian restaurant just outside of Fairfax, VA? I think it is called the Bombay Cafe. I told me its very spicy, I said, unknowinglike, yeah I like it spicy make it the way you like it, they blew my head off!
One of the best meals I ever had.
I have not tried it. What did you order?
-
now i have specific things to ask you to cook for me when i'll be in d.c in december...
It would be my pleasure to host you. Thanks for stopping in to say hello
-
That's it I'll never eat again! I can't bear the dissapointment of eating anything after looking at these pictures. If its possible you can actually taste the dishes in the pictures. Why try anything else.
Thanks -- if you are ever in DC look me up 
-
Does anyone want pictures of the Smirnoff --
-
Here we are back after dinner.
WIth due respect this is Monica's version of a Malay curry -- I hope people from Malaysia dont laugh at this. I cant remember where I learnt this but I have been making this for years.
Here we go, Monica's Malay Curry
1. Heat oil in a pan and add finely ground shallots and ginger
Fry them till they change color to a light brown. Add a cinnamon stick and 2 star anise.. and smell paradise.
2. Now comes the AWESOME part -- add as much of this sambhal as you can take
3. Now add the your spice paste (Monica's spice paste -- in a bowl add turmeric, red chili, coriander powder, cumin powder, salt, a touch of dried mango powder -- if you dont want to do this add a spoonful or two of any commericial hot curry like Shan)
4. Cook for a few minutes. If the spice paste starts to stick add some water.
5. Add the chicken and continue to cook for 10 -12 minutes or until the chicken is 3/4 cooked.
6. Add a can of lite coconut milk and bring to a slow boil. Cover and lower the heat. Cook for about ten minutes or until the chicken is done.
7.
Serve with a Smirnoff Ice .. ice cold
Dessert
We had rice pudding. Most Indians make rice pudding a lot thinner than I do. When I lived in Cleveland many years ago, my dearest friend and I used to eat at this Greek joint run by Indians and this is how they made their rice pudding.. and I have adored it since.
1. Add a handful of washed rice to a deep pan. Add milk (2 cups) , cream (1/2 cup) and sweetened condensed milk (to taste). Simmer uncovered for about 45- minutes.
Serve cold garnished with thinly sliced almonds and crushed green cardamoms
Monica's Devilish rice pudding --
-
I am enjoying hearing what you make for dinner. I have loved Indian food for years (eating and cooking it), but it has been self-taught. I always wished/wondered what it would be like to be a dinner guest in an Indian home (here in the States), so now I am finally getting an idea! thank you
My love for Indian food began as a child, when my mother made curries she learned from other military wives (my parents never had the chance to travel to India). My first cookbook, believe it or not, as a teenager (college) was Madhur Jaffrey's. That copy is now so stained and dog-eared these many years later.
I loved Julie Sahni's Mogul Microwave, when it came out, because i had babies and toddlers at the time, so it really seemed to cut back on some steps, making life easier, without sacrificing taste. Several of her recipes are now part of my usual day-to-day repetoire, when I want Indian food, but need shortcuts. I still love cooking from Madhur's book though. Do you use the microwave much in your Indian cooking?
Julie Sahni is quite amazing as is Madhur. I think they have really set high quality standards for cookbooks in general.
I dont microwave a lot unfortunately. Just use it to defrost and reheat my coffee (which I have to do at least ten times a day)
-
Monica
I am enjoying your Blog tremendously. It’s a bit of slow read for me being as unfamiliar with the cuisine as I am. I often have to stop to do a search to familiarize myself with what you are discussing.
Could you point me to a resource or provide me with a list of what to stock in the pantry to be able to try some of the delicious dishes you are discussing?
Thanks
Elie
Thanks
There are a few threads on the basic Indian pantry in the Indian forum.
Real Simple magazine had interviewed me on this topic as well -- Monica's Basic Indian pantry
-
Off to eat. Dinner will be here in a few. See you all then
-
Monica, my dried methi has little stems, should I just crush them along with the leaves or clean them out? The first time I crushed them but the stems were a little "distracting" in the mouth.
bbq4meanytime, you and I must be using the same brand of dried methi then! My brand has these little sticks that won't crush at all, so I either remove them or rub the mixture through a sieve (provided I don't mind powdered methi for the dish).
Try MDH -- really good stuff, no stems
-
Aloo Tikki sound perfect! Will you be making them this week, or can you provide us with a recipe? No deep frying AND has vegetables- WOW! Don't know what I'd do without egullet- first I learned about roasted cauliflower (my favorite thread) and now aloo tikki- without you my kids would eat no vegetables. Thanks Monica!!!
I will try to make them -- if time permits. If not here is a link in the India forum to these Aloo Tikki -- I am also happy to PM you a recipe.
But first let me see if I can make some time to do this.
-
My only advice, if I may - use fresh okra. the frozen one gets all slimy
-
Monica, my dried methi has little stems, should I just crush them along with the leaves or clean them out? The first time I crushed them but the stems were a little "distracting" in the mouth.
I just crush handfuls and then add them in. Hope that helps
-
Yes - in Hindi it is called tarka or tadka
-
fenugreek seeds are used in many south indian dishes, the leaves
are less widely used, but they are used.
typically you temper with them, or grind them with other things
When you both say temper, are you talking about seasoning a new cooking pan?
Sorry - let me clarify. In Indian cooking tempering refers to heating oil and then adding selec spices to it. This tempered oil is then poured on a dish as the final seasoning.
-
Yes - Milagai is right -- they are bitter (the seeds that is)
eG Foodblog: Monica Bhide - Thoughts without a thinker
in Food Traditions & Culture
Posted
It was in downtown in the old Post office building on Euclid Avenue.. let me see if my friend remembers the name.. i am sure she does, she still lives there. I will aks her tomorrow.