Suvir Saran

At the Johari Bazaar (Jewelers Bazaar, that has many Diamond and Gem traders from the Diamond district in NYC always there in abundance) and also at the Hawa Mahal (Wind Palace) in Jaipur, you can find on the street corners some of the best Gulaab Kaa Thanda. Gulaab Kaa Thanda is the nicest Rose Milk Shake I have ever drunk or will in my lifetime, I am afraid. Maybe the family making them is from the Chefette and Steve Klc school of subtlety and finesse. The milk is whole milk that has only been enriched with very little heavy cream. It is flavored with home made- PURE rose water, crushed rose petals and just a very very almost insignificant amount of sugar. The mix if churned and frothed and then served in very Tall glasses called Ek Ser Ke Gilass (Glasses that measure One Ser, I think one Ser equals a litre of milk, not sure. I will have to check on that.) and the mix is chilled when you drink it. It is long after you have left the Johari bazaar that your mouth begins to experience the sensations left by the essence of the rose. It is too late to go back for another glass of heaven. So all you can do is wait for the next time you will be near that busy and bustling market. And if you are like me, it will be later that same day. Funniest was that recently I was introduced to a financial analyst whose job was to court the royal family of Jaipur to invest their money in his NYC Private Bank. He missed this milk the most from his visits to Jaipur. He said he wakes up often at night, for he is lost dreaming about food even as he is happily sharing his space with his beloved wife. But those dreams make him smile and want to share with her what he is able to experience while working in foreign lands.

Yes... They have some of the nicest packaged Pita I have ever found.

Thanks also for the restaurant names. When in DC next I will make a point of visiting them.

The crispy Pita laced in the lemon and olive oil mix is amazing. There was a restaurant called Fettoush in Brooklyn Heights in NYC that also made a great Fettoush. They are now closed. I do make it at home. I love this salad.

We did go off the topic there. It was in answer to Tommys question about if Indian food employs wet pastes. That was all. Now back to Curry Powder.

Tommy maybe you can do to an Indian store and buy Maggi Hot and Sour or maybe it is called Spicy Ketchup. You may love it if you like what you have concocted. It is savored by hundreds of million Indians. I prefer Heinz for some reason.

My mother made home made Ketchup. I grew up with it and make my own when I find extra time and great tomatoes. At my restaurant Jacks Fifth, we were known for our Burgers at lunch served with some of the best French Fries in town when we were open served with home made kethcup. With some of the spices that come from my native land. But the recipe came from the chef, Herb Wilson. Herbs ketchup made me bless spices daily. For fries and kethcup were my lunch everyday.

These were meant to be my words! I LOVE KETCHUP! My cookbook will have at least two recipes, all Indian, and authentic that call for Ketchup.

(reprinted with permission)Thanks Suzanne!

What's a loomi? I am working on a PC and am unable to figure out how to paste the URL in the url link. Sorry. You can find the Loomi piece in the Middle East and Africa Forum. Perhaps someone will be kind enough to even add a link to it from here.

What brand of curry powder do you use Sandra? I enjoyed the chicken salad thread greatly.

I would never call Curry Powder, Garam Masala. Sorry Sandra and Anil. It just does not fit in my senses as being even remotely close. Certainly I can see some people getting confused between curry powder, rassam powder and sambhaar powder, but there is a HUGE difference between any variation of Garam Masala and Curry Powder. They are two very different animals. Even in the South, from where the rassam and sambhaar powders come, Garam Masala when made, rarely though, is very different.

What's a loomi? You do not know Loomi? Nevermind! Just kidding.. Let me look.. I will find you a link where you can learn more about it. In the summer months, this is a drink often enjoyed by Iraqis mostly and many of the Middle Eastern diaspora. It is made with dried "Kandahari Limes" for the most part, or at least in the days of the past. They get black after drying. These limes are soaked overnight or in boiling water. Sugar or honey or a little of both are then added to the water for taste. The drink is chilled and had to cool one from the heat of the dessert. It is amazing.

Thanks Steven. What makes garlic powder better for rubs for meat? Would a classically trained French Chef have Garlic Powder in their kitchen? I am curious.

Another question for the professionals who have made this thread the most amazing learning experience... What is Celery Salt? That is another thing I find in these kitchens I mention. I have never used it. I find the smell somewhat bad.

Jokes aside.... Am I alone in finding the taste of Garlic powder terrible? I have seen it used by people I otherwise am in awe of. But when I taste it in food, I can detect it and it ruins a meal for me. Am I being silly in this regards? SHould it not matter? I have always been capable of detecting its usage. I have been shocked always to see in what kitchens I have seen it used. People who dine in the fanciest of restaurants and have amazing vintage cellars in their basements, but on their spice rack, Garlic Powder is the biggest bottle. And of course black pepper powder. Which again is dead in powder form for all I care. How do professional chefs think about Garlic Powder?

Thanks for teaching me this amazing tidbit of information. For years I have made my own Almond flour. ALways complained that perhaps the equipment I have at home is not what a professional chef would be using. Since the flour is certainly coarser than other flours. I had no clue for the reasons why it is coarse. (Thanks Steven) Is the same true for Hazelnut flour? Since I use that a lot as well? Are these flours available for home chefs to use? Where does one get them? I guess I can do a google search... But where would you suggest a home chef get these flours?

Millions! The same Millions that use "Garlic Powder" for a subtitute for real garlic.

Yes thanks for opening the door! I have learned so much from the posts on this thread.

What a great example. Chefette, I am saddened that there are those that even after tasting Valhrona or Cluizel, never understand why those that have experienced their taste and been hooked by its natural and great flavor, have such respect for these products. They are so happy using Hersheys that they believe that is "REAL" chocolate. It is sad. But there are certainly those that taste the difference and are changed for life. Chocolate more than anything is a great test in my book to see how clearly someone can understand the subtle but distinct difference between real taste and junk. A childhood friend of mine keeps nagging me that I do not eat enough chocolate desserts anymore. SHe keeps reminding me that I loved chocolate as a child. I have tried telling her that now, I am appalled at the taste of most chocolate based items for I find them "horrible". I have been spoiled by the amazing taste of real chocolate that sugar and dairy alone cannot charm me in that brown form many attribute to chocolate. I need the flavor and other aspects of chocolate to come out. If I were only needing a sugar and or dairy fix, there are those amazing other desserts that I would rather eat. She still does not understand why I have changed. She attributes it to my having become "American" and "Fussy" and a "Manhattanite", always edgy and wanting to be different. I have tried sharing with her all the many preparations with chocolate that changed my own feelings towards it. I have bought her slabs of Valhrona and done a t aste test.. Nothing works.

And many call me West Indian for now I live in the west, even though I was originally an Indian from the eastern part of the world! Poor Joke! But seriously, even though I do not have the kids, I find myself mostly cooking like that.. and I always change and alter and come up with new recipes as I move along.... I think across cultures, home chefs must be doing that. AT least I have many friends from different cultures and this is one thing we do have in common.

But I cook a lot like that. And most of the time I use multiple pots for that cooking I do in that style.

Fenugreek is added in great amount in curry powder. But even as fenugreek would be detected more profoundly in taste, cumin could smell much stronger even in smaller amounts. And yes our noses and palates certainly are different from each other. Cumin is a very strong spice when powdered. Even stronger when toasted. And good curry powders do have toasted spice powders.

I was told it is called Indian Cooking 101

Suvir, This is basically it to make fettoosh. Oliva, what part of the country do you live in? Is that a fair question to ask? Where do you find good fettoush? When I worked at the Met, my assistant was Lebanese and she would bring it for lunch. In fact, she would toss it at work. Simple and amazing. I asked only for I was not sure if you had a more complex version too. I love this salad. Where do you find your favorite restaurant version of it?