Monica Bhide

I am penning a few words and recipes for a friend for an Jewish Indian cookbook. I am still in the middle of doing a lot of research, I will post more information as time passes As always the discussions here provide great food for thought. A request, if any one reading this can provide me with recipes, I am sure the author would be happy to use them in the book and provide you credit. Please PM me anything you have particularily around Indian Jewish dishes prepared on traditional Jewish Holidays.

What a great list!! I should make it a checklist and keep it with me when I shop! I had done a very very basic list for Real Simple Magazine a while ago, http://www.realsimple.com/realsimple/solut...y_5_032002.html Of course, I would add a lot more things, they just wanted a bare minimum list Happy Holidays!

You're breaking my heart.... comeone there has to be one good place?

I have the same opinion!!

I grew up in the Middle east and that is the same tip passed on to me by my neighbour :-)

I hereby swear that I monica bhide will continue to participate and learn something new each day at Egullet. LOL I thank you and yes I will continue. Due to my mothers illness, I will be headed overseas for a few weeks, I promise to stay in touch when I get back. I hope to bring back better news about my mom and some fun eating adventures from overseas.

I wanted to take a moment to thank the Egullet Team and all egulleters for all the wonderful discussions these past two weeks and for giving me the honor of being a special contributor One story, I do want to tell. When Suvir and I first talked about this opportunity, I was really quite nervous. I am not a professional chef by any stretch of the imagination and the "foodies" on egullet are really a very knowledgeable lot. So I said to Suvir, "I will do this and then perhaps you can help me become the next Suvir" and his response, " Or I can stand by you, be a friend and help you as you become you". Touche So to Suvir Saran, a class act all the way, thank you for this honor and privilege. I have learnt a lot from you the past few weeks and I hope that this will continue. I also wanted to take this opportunity to announce the winners of the book. If you would like to PM me your address, I will send the book to you ASAP -- Foodman -- Dstone001 -- Nolongerlurking thankyou all. I will be around on egullet, I hope for a long time to come. If I can ever answer any questions or provide any assistance in the wonderful world of Indian cooking, please do not hesitate to ask.

Having grown up in so many different continents, countries, cities, I guess I am anything but a traditionalist and the book reflects the same. This was one of the most popular appetizers when I used to cater.. in college and here in DC when I did my masters. thanks for trying out the recipe

Bangalore Chaat Masala .... is my humble addition. That is what happens when a North Indian cooks a south Indian dish

Good questions Suvir, when I was going to engineering school in Bangalore, my favorite hang out served this all the time. I had asked the chef how the dish got its name and he told me that there are many stories around it but he thought that the dish originated in Kerala and that is where it was given this unusual name. Its origins are thought to be south indian due to the ingredients used... mustard seeds and curry leaves are traditionally used more in the South.. of course things are changing, "A friend of mine sent me this story on how Chicken 65 got its name... the book had already gone into publication so we could not use this story. I believe that this was publsihed in some leading indian newspaper... so with due credit to them (dont remeber which one.. ).. here is part of the story "ONCE A friend told me that enterprise and instinct was all one needed to make money. This holds good for the story of chicken 65. As is well known, in all the kallu (country liquor) bars "the favourite `food fight' is who eats the maximum chillies". If you have witnessed an evening in one of these places you will realise that it is a symbol of machoism to be able to eat more chillies then the next man. Capitalising on this, an enterprising hotelier started the chicken 65 denoting that for every kilo of chicken - 65 chillies were used. It caught on and is today one of the mainstay of Hyderabadi snacks. Of course, others have told me different stories for the creation of chicken 65 but all of them remain shrouded in mystery but the dish itself looms as large as life. " -- Major indian paper.. I think it was either Hindustan TImes or the HIndu Perhaps other egulleters have more insight into this.....

My personal favorite from the book is the following recipe. Originally a deep fried dish served in South India, I have modified it to be lower in fat. The taste is still wonderful and very flavorful Chicken 65*** 1 cup / 250 mL fat-free plain yogurt 1 cup / 250 mL water 1 pound / 500 g skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cubed ¼ teaspoon / 1 mL turmeric 2 drops red food coloring 2 tablespoons / 25 mL ginger garlic paste 1 teaspoon / 5 mL red chile powder Salt to taste 2 tablespoons / 25 mL finely chopped fresh coriander 1 teaspoon / 5 mL chaat masala 1 teaspoon / 5 mL garam masala ½ teaspoon / 2 mL carom seeds (ajwain) FOR THE TADKA: 1 tablespoon / 15 mL vegetable oil 1 tablespoon / 15 mL finely chopped fresh mint ¼ teaspoon / 1 mL mustard seeds 3 to 4 green chiles, slit lengthwise Leaves from 2 sprigs curry IN a large saucepan, whisk together the yogurt and water. Stir in the chicken. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Lower the heat. Stir in the turmeric, red food coloring, and ginger garlic paste; cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in the chile powder and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid starts to dry out. Add the coriander, chaat masala, garam masala, and carom seeds; mix well. Sauté until the liquid completely dries out. Remove from the heat. In a small nonstick skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the mint, mustard seeds, green chiles, and curry leaves. As soon as the mustard seeds start to crackle, add to the chicken. Mix well. Serve hot.

Thank you for your kind words

Thanks SteveKLC, I will try to make something simple -- arborio in coconut milk sounds divine. Will surely keep allof you posted on what happens. I had a wonderful experience this weekend. i was invited to the Washington Post Xmas party and the wine's were all handpicked by the wine critics. They personally labeled each wine as to why they liked it, what it went with and what the taste was all about. It was truly an eye opening experience. I realy enjoyed myself. Understanding wines is a fine art, I must say and I was privileged to spend time with folks who really knew their trade

I love butter chicken, too, and it didn't occur to me until you mentioned it that if not too spicy hot, this would be a warm and soothing dish for a kid. Now I want to make some and invite some kids over. I have to say this is one dish that has been a hit with all the kids that come over when we have dinner parties. The creamy sauce with steamed rice and a nice salad.. I am happy to report the kids dont complain. The best part of all this is when my son asks me to make something.. makes me feel special.. kind of silly I guess. I also different types of Raita's or Yogurt based sides for him and he really seems to be open to try different things.. yogurt is familiar and it makes it okay I guess.... Since I work full time as a E Learning consultant and food writing is a (passionate) hobby, I have to admit that I run short on time on many days. In the kitchen I like to make things that are not too time consuming. My little one loves Tandoori chicken (I make it in the oven) ... so I marinate chicken on Sunday, do grilled chicken on Monday (lots of it), on Tuesday I make butter chicken with the leftover tandoori chicken and serve it with rice.. One marinade two dinners....

any particular desserts that you would recommend. I just want to make sure I serve it appropriately, appears to be an expensive wine

Thank you and thanks for not laughing me off the board. So does it affect the taste? We have not opened the bottle yet. What should I serve with it?

I am a TOTAL novice in this area. Someone presented us with " Durkheimer Hochbenn Muskatellar Eiswein ", he mentioned that it is a ICE WINE... i pretended i knew what it was.. can I ask you for some help... so the next time, i will know what I am talking about

Mouthwatering pictures.. beautiful!

Simon, thank you for your kind words and encouragement. I have always enjoyed and learned from your posts and I am truly honored by this post.

You said you make it.. And now you are saying you Can make it.... You are such a tease. Send me a jar of yours.. and I shall send you a jar of mine. We will do a taste test of that grandmas hand myth. There is actually a lot of truth to that old saying. And I want to ear YOUR chutney. Why would I want you to make it like mine... It is special as yours .... and that is what will be enjoyed by me and others.... We would all get bored rather quickly if all we wanted were clones of one another.. and the same things... I make it and love it. I will surely send you mine and look forward to yours!!

BOWL METHOD.. invented by Monica Bhide out of sheer desparation!! I loved your tips on the making of chappatis. I agree with your comments, I need to get over my obsession with the roundness of things.. Just kidding

I can make it, but the question is can I make it like Suvir.. ! I would love to taste your chutney. My grandmother says, each hand has its own magic.. and yours is different from mine.. so come one be generous.. one little jar! I was thrilled to see Simon's post. I have a lot of respect for him and his words mean a great deal to me. Thank you as well for your kind words and encouragement

10 minutes of patience and practice. Maybe 20 at the most. But so many people, give up after the first 3 that do not come out round. It is actually very easy to roll them out perfectly each time. Maybe someday, when Steve Klc does his pastry video, I will do a video on chapati making. I was 6 when I made my first round chapati. I use the BOWL METHOD. Have you ever heard of it/ Roll out your chappati, and if you do not get it round, place a round bowl onit upside down, remove the edges and VOILA.. it is as round as you need it to be!! I am getting better at it though

I do the same. One way I reheat chappatis (once cooked) is to wrap them in a paper napkin, spirnkle some water on them and then heat in the microwave. They stay pretty soft. It is hard to keep them fresh for a long time though. I am so impressed that your chappatis worked out, my husbad swears that I stillcannot roll a round chappati.. they look like maps of the world!!

I enjoy your chutney a great deal, perhaps someday I will get lucky and get some of those jars that you are so generous with Suvir.