Monica Bhide

Thank you, interesting stuff. Raji's article made me even think about trying it.. but not sure yet.. a bit to exotic even for me Thanks for the informative post

Welcome Prasad.. do share the recipe. I would love to try it out

Sandalwood? I just started a post on that.. I have never heard it being used in food. The crushed ice desserts are a delicious street food favorite of mine. They are very refreshing and the flavors can be as crazy as your imagination will let you go!!

I have to admit, I thought sandalwood was used only for incense and as a face mask.. is it used in cooking -- Suvir, your expertise is needed here. Simon, Anil, India girl.. any ideas? Someone asked me to find out for them

Thanks Simon, I enjoyed reading about your trip to Madrid. Do you use a soft sponge? Also how do you dry it? Air drying leaves spots.. maybe a dry cotton cloth ...

I have tons of Indian stainless steel plates, cups and glasses that I love to use. But i guess I am not taking good care of them -- cleaning is hard and I still have water spots on them when they dry. Also I seem to be scratching them a lot... any ideas how to keep stainless steel looking good? If there is a thread that discusses this let me know, i will go explore.

Sounds yummy!!!! Thanks

Kamal Kakree, perhaps? Kamal is the name for lotus. Kakree is the word for stem. They are cooked like chips. They are most amazing. I used to serve them at Pondicherry in NYC. Always very successful. Arbi (Colocasia) is another of my favroite vegetables. I believe Anil enjoyed these in his trip cooked with potatoes. right you are, it was kamal kakree. Can you share your recipe? This one appeared to have marinated the stem in some cornflour/garlic/ginger mixture and then deep fried

My trip home was amazing as well... got to taste some really unsual and very proper Indian food. Also I saw some amazing Arbi appetizers (lotus stem) -- cooked with cornflour and deep fried... delightful to say the least. Did you get a chance to visit Barista.. move over starbucks!! I am doing a piece on the Barista revolution in India... can PM you a copy if you are interested. While in Delhi, we had some Halwai's from Chandni Chowk come and spend a few days with us.... now I know what heaven feels like. No comments on how much weight I have gained

I shall ask my mom. It was over 20 years ago.. I know they still keep in touch with her family, though she is no more

My parents lived in Jaipur, Rajasthan for a long time. One of the Maharani's of the city was a good friend. She passed this recipe on to my mother. they would actually serve this as a soup.. a bit more thinned out. We use it as a raita. Also she would somtimes, I believe, susbtitute buttermilk for the yogurt.. in that case she recommended chillng the soup overnight -- a very different taste.

Scottish Chef, wonderfully said and I agree totally... my 5 cents worth

Here is my very humble recipe. Thanda Kheere ka Raita (cold cucumber raita) Description This delectable raita up has its origins in the princely Indian State of Rajasthan. Rajasthan is primarily a desert and the summers are quite hot. In sweltering heat of the summer, it has a wonderful cooling effect. Serves 6 Ingredients 1 large cucumber, peeled and grated 1 small garlic clove, crushed 2 cups plain yogurt 2 cups water Salt to taste 1 tablespoon Canola oil ¼ teaspoon mustard seeds Garnish: 1 teaspoon fresh mint leaves , finely chopped Method Place the cucumber in a bowl and chill for about 20 minutes. You will notice the cucumber juice has collected in the bowl. Pour off this juice. Press down on the cucumber to get out as much as possible Add the garlic, and then stir in the yogurt and the water. Combine thoroughly. Add salt to taste Now, heat the oil in a small frying pan over medium heat. Add the mustard seeds and sauté for about 1 minute or until the seeds start to crackle and you can smell the aroma. Remove from the heat and stir into the yogurt soup. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours. When ready to serve, pour into a bowl and garnish with the mint leaves. Cooking time 15 mins prep and about 2 ½ hours to chill.

I think the obvious question (so that I don't have to keep going back and editing my orig post) is how the eff you spell bhaji(a)? To answer the other question posed to me: To get Simon to cook a huge meal for you and 6 of your friends, you need to lure him over with a big slab of bacon and some hot chocolate. Once in your kitchen, if you can endure his berating, abuse and insistence that you call him "Chef," he turns out a fairly good, however meager meal. If I had one criticism of his cooking, it would be that my guests had embarrassingly empty stomachs and had to stop for a slice of pizza after dinner. He seems to think that 3 appetizers and 5 main courses and 3 desserts constitute dinner. Thanks Joy!!! okay Simon, next time you are in town... DC is the place to be.. the meal sounds delightful!! Simon sent me the names of the recipes he made, I got hungry just reading about them!! Joy, you are truly lucky... although apparatenlty still hungry!! Joy, let me know if you try the brocolli recipe. I do not normally eat brocolli, but this really was quite good

1001 things to do with Gram flour -- I will share this with you, if you tell me what i need to do to get Simon to cook for me Besan Ki Laddoos are great -- ifyou have a sweet tooth Try this simple recipe.. delightful -- Marinate some brocolli florets in a ginger garlic paste for about 20 minutes. --- dust with gram flour and deep fry -- Sprinkle with a mix of (amchoor, red chili, coriander powder and salt) and serve as a perfect appetizer with cold beer enjoy!

Welcome back Suvir, hope all is well. Hope its okay for me to respond to this. Bottle Masala: The masala consists of 15 -20 spices (or more!) in varying proportions. The spices have to be dried in the sharp sun, that is why Bottle Masala is made before the monsoon. Each condiment is roasted on a slow fire and pounded. The spices are then packed in airtight dry bottles -- hence the name. I believe the main ingredients are dry red chillies and coriander seeds "Bottle Masala differs in pungency, flavour and even colour depending on the ingredients used. The East Indians use it for everything. They swear that the cuisine does not taste the same without it! The Bottle Masala has travelled far and wide, East Indian emigrants take it with them to Canada and Australia, and there are some restaurants aborad, like Namita Panjabi’s Chutney Mary in London, that use it in their cooking. " -- A friend send me this quote from some paper...

I have used them with great success in some curries and also made a wonderful pickle with them.. never any problems

I have some great variations with mint, eggplant, okra -- let me know and I can PM them to you

Sound right. Here is what I do. Steep as you did. Sautee, then cook the rice with the water, uncovered on high heat, till it comes to a rolling boil. Cover and cook on the lowest possible heat till all the water is absorbed. This should do it, sounds like maybe all the water did not dry up. If you do not wish to sautee, add a few drops of oil to the boiling water, it will ensure that each grain of rice separates when cooking.. a wonderful trick let me know if this works

Lovely read Suvir. Nice

Timo, I can help. PM me and I can send you addresses for local stores, mail order etc. Where are you in VA? I went to school in Lynchburg. I am based here locally, if I can help guide you to a resturant or food store, I would be happy to do so

I use it in my cooking... limited use. I really do enjoy it!

Nice article Suvir. Happy New year!

Simon, I loved your post. What beautiful memories. You know, I was talking to my dear friend a few days ago, about how my "Indian inspiration" approach -- not purist Indian, is sometimes perceived. His words will stay with me forever, he said Indian food for you comes from your heart, it is a reflection of who you are, where you came from. If your Mom made Hummus each day, when you grew up, that to you will be as Indian as it would to someone local True words..... Monica By the way, I am not saying that Hummus is an Indian dish, that would be stupid. I am saying my Mother's version of it, that she prepared for us, felt to me so much a fabric of my childhood, that I identified with it as home made indian food -- just an example

Steve, a few days ago, I was talking to Pascal about you and he was telling me how awesome your food is... any time you are looking for a taster, I am local anytime anytime anytime