A Scottish Chef

All in America as far as I know. I'm disadvantaged here as I have little access to American media broadcasting. That's got to be eGullet then. An grand willingness to share and assist in ways that we probably have no right to expect. The level of expertise is pretty stunning, too. All of them that I have tried. Some so good I'm placing them on my menu. Easy: it's got to be Suvir, Monica & IndiaGirl A special big up respect to his Royal Majesty Simon Majumdar even if he is as English as a Morris Dancing fertility ritual

Good question. I can't quite figure this out myself, either. It seems ok to keep salt, pepper, vinegar and oils for months, but add them together and all of a sudden, after one week's combined storage, eating them might lead you to death's door? Despite my puzzlement as to why it may be dangerous, I do find myself being wary of using such dressing if they have been kept for more than a week. It must be the nagging weight of those repeated warnings. Conversely, my fiancee enjoys Feta kept in olive oil with mixed peppercorns and herbs and it lasts an age in the fridge. It makes no sense.

It looks as if it will produce a delicious result IndiaGirl. What I don't get - and presumably others around here - is how someone with your talent, knowledge and passion for cookery manages to avoid working in this industry other than your voluntary work I'll make this dish in my kitchen at work over the weekend so that I can learn it and allow the Chef who works with me a chance to extend his repertoire. I'll let you know how I get on with it as soon as I can. Thank you very much indeed for taking the time to type it out on our behalf

No need for apologies I think it might work as you describe anyway. Here how it would look on the menu layout as we currently have it. Hansi Ki Achari Description (I'm not sure at all how to describe this as I'm thinking that the very word pickle here would put many off in case they assume it would be like chunks of gherkin or onion) Available with Haldi Chicken Chicken Tikka Tandoori Chicken Prawn King Tiger Prawn Mushroom Mixed vegetable Quorn (now asked for too often to be ignored) Also, the grammatical correctness isn't really important to be honest. Our local Asian population is Zero. As in none at all Attractive sounding names are important, however. Given that the name you offered means 'laughing pickle' I'll also enjoy explaining the dish

I'll do that Suvir It'll take me some time to get it typed out, but I'll do it as soon as possible as I'd really appreciate the thoughts and input.

Firstly, I'd love to know how you make the chicken in apricot. It sounds delicious. I'm looking for suggestions, names that I can add and simple variations I can add to the menu I already have. Currently the largest part of my current menu is dedicated to the syle of any particular dish. For example, I have a heading of Do Piaza, a brief description of the dish, and then the ingredients availble for that choice. Like Haldi chicken, Tandoori Chicken, Chicken Tikka, King Tiger Prawns etc. Pretty typical of UK Indian takeaways to be honest. A while ago you gave me the name of "Hansi Ki Achari" as a suggestion and that is going on the menu. It's a spicy curry, made with hot mixed pickle and my tests have shown that it's both easy to implement and tastes good with the choices we offer. Where I am really in need of improvement is in the breads and starters we offer. I think we could do so much better than we currently do. I'm interested in stuffed parathas, some curry dish of chick peas as mentioned earlier. I'll be adding Bhel Puri to the menu and hopefully some dhals at last. I only had these available for a short time before simply because I didn't rate the version that Babu taught me. A popular dish here is Dhansak - curry with dhal as I understand it - and I had to remove it from the menu last time around because I thought it very poor. Of course it could be that I was just not doing it very well. As I said before, any and all suggestions are welcome

Thanks for starting this Monica. I'm desperate to hear about Indian menu planning. I've been watching this Indian forum for a couple of days and I find the qaulity of information and help here quite astonishing. I'm in the middle of finishing my Indian Menu for summer 2003. The tourists start arriving soon and they are more demanding and selective year on year. I need new ideas and they need to be do-able in my kitchen. I'm really looking forward to seeing this thread develop.

I've been to Edinburgh and tried the Rose Street Shuffle. I failed. I have also been to Edinburgh other times. Once I went to see Iggy Pop. I got arrested that time and have never returned to the seat of the £90,000 table. You're welcome to Edinburgh, Adam Incidentally, it appears the famous Arbroath Smokie orginated in Auchmithie near Arbroath and that Finnan Haddies hail from Findon. Nothing fishy about this link

Arbroath - home of the smoked kipper isn't far from Aberdeen. I'd be amazed if Aberdeen didn't have some good places to eat, it's a very successful place economically speaking due to the oil. Where's there money you'll usually find somewhere decent to eat.

Season it! I have talked with Babu again recently and he tells me that seasonings in ghee are also known as Tarka or Tarda? You could gently fry some zeera in the amber ghee then drain and store it for use later. No waste is good. It's also nice to here you make mistakes like the rest of us mere mortals, Suvir

I loved that article. Funny, informative and very engaging to read. Thanks JAZ.

Aye. I should have mentioned that, if you can, do try and make your visit during the summer. Or July as we call it.

The Loch Fyne Oyster bar has a great reputation for it's seafood. Assuming you accept that Inverarnen is a must visit destination, then this restaurant is less than half an hour from the Drovers Inn. You'll also get to drive through the rest and be thankful, yet one more astonishingly beautiful area in the place that I live. Adam was wrong. Thankfully. I'm not quite getting why the west coast seems to do so much better for dining than the east coast, Adam. Any ideas as to why this might be?

Sadly, this observation is all too accurate of many dining establishments on the west coast highlands. I can think of a dozen places set in jaw-dropping natural beauty that make you feel the food cannot fail to please. And then it does. Port Sonachan hotel on Loch Awe (rightfully no hint of modesty in that Loch's name) is one such place. Another glass restaurant overlooking a Loch that just happens to have an ancient castle ruin sited in it's waters. I watched it emerge from mist scattered by the sun over breakfast there one morning. It was humbling to sit in a room of people all whispering in hushed, reverential tones about the wonders unfolding before our eyes. No one seemed to care about the underdone bacon or the dried out black pudding being served. As the mists cleared you can see right across the loch and the mountains reveal themselves to show off the waterfalls and the remnants of winter snow caps. My fiancee and I walked around the head of the Loch and down the other side to have lunch at a hotel looking in the opposite direction onto Port Sonachan. We were offered toasties, baked potatoes or filled baguettes. I couldn't believe the poverty of the food being offered in such surroundings. Whilst commenting to her about this she replied, "I know. No Quorn either...." Maybe the food is much improved since my last visit (I can't believe it's worse) but in any event, this place is only forty minutes from Inverarnan, too, and I'd add it to my list of destinations just to see the Loch Awe in all it's splendour.

I vote for Dumbarton. McDonalds is the highlight of food on offer in this miserable, grey town.

it looks like it! Seems to be found in a few drinks known as Sandal Sherbert. Here Here And Here No forum tries harder than the Indian cuisine one to embrace social inclusion, so it would be remiss to leave the witches and warlock community out of things. No broom required.

The very place, Adam. Speaking of chaps in kilts, one of my favourite memories of the place was when one of the Barmen (all kilt wearers) took more than a passing interest in a friend of mine. He didn't find it as funny as we did. It's only a forty minute drive from the awe of Glencoe itself into the bargain. I think it's high time I went back for a refresher or seven myself

I can't speak about Edinburgh as I rarely go there. Last time I did go I was arrested. The Ubiquitous Chip in Glasgow has been excellent every time I have been. The area around it, Hillhead, is just a wonderful place to be. A beautiful park, botanical gardens and the stunning University are particular highlights. You'll find Hillhead full of little cafe's and bistro's that are great places to sit and waste hours away. The Ubiquitous Chip If you wish to try Britains best Indian restuarants (and it's in Glasgow they are to be found) then you won't go wrong in either the Ashoka, Mr Singh's or the palatial vastness of Cafe India. Creme de la Creme is superb and huge as well. Nick Nairns restaurant and Gordon Ramsay's michelin starred Amaryllis are both in Glasgow and presumably won't be too shabby. I've been to neither, but friends tell me Ramsay's place is particularly worthy of a visit. If you want one recommendation above all, then get in a car and drive north of Glasgow, up beyond Loch Lomond until you come to the The Drovers Inn at Inverarnan. It's a pub that will live in your memory until your dying day. Imagine walking into a pub the looks like it has been untouched for 4 hundred years and you are close to it's almost tangible link to historic life in Scotland. There is a wee restuarant specialising in local produce nearby in an old church hall (I think), but I can't recall it's name. Enjoy your visit.

Of course it should mean both. There's plenty of room in America. Rooms for folks who want to smoke and rooms for those who don't. Hardly rocket science. We have the same sort of hypocritical rulings going on here too. I like to walk but I don't see anyone getting uppity about car drivers killing me with second hand smoke.

NYC can cross me off it's list of potential visitors. Imagine the brass neck driver of a car moralising to anyone about how personal habits impact on those around them. America. It used to be the land of the free. I always wanted to go there as so much.

A ever, perfect sense. Thank you once again, Suvir, for your clarity and willingness to help and inform. You are a gem

Stone, thank you very much for this information. Every time I feel I'm getting somewhere in my quest for food knowledge, eGullet and it's members offer timely, educated reminders of how vast and complex a subject it is we talk of.

It's certainly a factor for me. I'm diabetic and so controlling my fat intake to avoid saturated and hydrogenated fats is very important. I'm a little perplexed now as the labelling on the brand of vegetable ghee I use is clearly marked as cholesterol free, and yet I was confident the oil used in it's creation would have been palm oil. I'm going to call the manufaturer to clarify this point you raised, Stone. Thanks for your question.

Suvir, I'd meant to ask this before - a wee while ago I watched a documentary on a travel programme about regional variations in Inidian cuisine. The programme was fronted by a very beautiful American woman of Indian heritage. In one of the regions (Hyderabad?) she took a look at the hand made popadom industry. There were hundreds of women involved in the creation of popadoms. They would collect the dough daily from the same place they returned the finished items to sell. It was amazing to witness as there were literally thousands upon thousands of the popadoms being made very day by these women. What I wanted to know was this: is the flavour of these hand made, sun dried popadoms so very different from the factory produced ones I would typically buy? Also, I have noticed on the ones I buy that they are made from Urid flour? What is this? Does it have another name I would perhaps know better? Why is this flour used for popadoms in factories, and is it the same material the women would have used?

Suvir, I'd be very interested to know how to make these. Are there recipes on eGullet already or, if not,. would you mind sharing some ideas as to how best to make them? Yours in anticipation