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I hosted a large dinner last weekend. One of the items of the menu seemed to be a favorite with the guests.... the cold soups The first is an adaptation of a traditional Indian curry - I served it as a soup. Kokum fruit (related to mangosteen tree (editorial note-- correction made here) ) is seeped in warm water. The fruit self is then discarded. The water is mixed with coconut milk, crushed garlic, green chiles and a bit of toasted cumin seeds. I think the traditional preparation calls for cooking it.. I prepare it without. So this is my version of the dish. The final soup is a perfect pink -- guests can add more minced green chiles for garnish if they wish 2 Is a Mango papaya soup spiked with fresh lime juice, a bit of brown sugar, fresh orange juice and some black salt... a touch. Its garnished with mint leaves. I have adapted this from a recipe in Cooking Light a few moons ago The second soup also makes a great base for serving icecream - as the kids at the party attested to! So tell me what cold soups, with an Indian touch, do you make??

In my most favorite city and eating my most favorite fruit... sigh.. life is so sad sometimes Bring me back some nilgiri chocolate covered biscuits and my college years.. please

Five years ago, Floyd Cardoz and Danny Meyer quietly unleashed Tabla on the New York restaurant scene. I don't think anybody – even those who, like me, loved the place from the start – predicted that it would become one of the world's most important restaurants. I'm not sure, even today, that Tabla's significance is widely appreciated. To be sure, it was always a good restaurant. And, in the stubborn manner of all Danny Meyer restaurants, it underwent consistent improvement – steady but, sometimes, frustratingly slow. But it always felt like a whimsical, almost accidental place, especially to those familiar with the backstory: Tabla was something of an unintended consequence of historic preservation. The wall dividing the ground-floor space in the landmark Art Deco Metropolitan Life building on Madison Park left a niche just large enough, after the mega-project of Eleven Madison Park (which was supposed to be the splashier of the two restaurants) was conceived, for a boutique restaurant sporting a seemingly whimsical concept: Indian fusion. Today what was once called Indian fusion has acquired what I think is a more appropriate moniker: New Indian cooking. What was once iconoclastic is now one of the most significant movements in modern cuisine. And Tabla is at its nexus. Asian fusion reached its apex in the 1990s, but India has long held the pole position when it comes to mastery of spices – even the Southeast Asian cuisines such as Thai, Malaysian, and Vietnamese, which utilize spices to such great effect, ultimately look to India as the progenitor of curries and other complex spice blends. And spices represent, to me, the most neglected frontier of Western cuisine. New Indian cooking, though not as sizeable a movement as Asian fusion, is not only about Indian cuisine, and not only about the effect of Western technique and ingredients on that cuisine, but also about what India has to teach Western chefs about an entire category of flavors. Although he was the student and Gray Kunz was the mentor, back in the days when Floyd Cardoz was at Lespinasse he taught Kunz a thing or two about spices. And if you have something to teach Gray Kunz about spices, you have something to teach everyone. I think in the final analysis, the West will learn as much or more from India as from Asia. As Tabla was making its presence felt and slowly working through its early dysfunction over its self-perception (are we an Indian restaurant or what?), its perception in the Indian community (it's not Indian enough), and its perception in the Western culinary community (it's too Indian), there were other restaurants throughout North America working independently towards common evangelical goals. In Vancouver, Vikram Vij was operating the renowned Vij's, which I've been calling the best Indian restaurant in North America since my August 2001 “Vancouver dining comes of age” feature in the National Post. Although, it was my wife Ellen who had alerted me to its existence and insisted on its excellence after a trip she had taken to Vancouver without me for a piece she was doing for Arthur Frommer. In Boston, Thomas John was developing the message at Mantra. More recently, in New York, the team of Suvir Saran and Hemant Mathur have been introducing a new level of rigor to Indian cuisine here, first at Diwan, then at Amma, and soon at Devi. And of course Madhur Jaffrey, the polymath actress, chef, and super-genius, has been laying the foundations of New Indian cooking since the rest of these guys were in diapers. Which brings us to a special dinner last night commemorating Tabla's fifth birthday, when all the aforementioned chefs came together to demonstrate where New Indian cooking is today. Such events need to be viewed on multiple levels. There are the dishes themselves, which are rarely as precise and well executed as they would be on a chef's home turf: the banquet production requirements, the unfamiliar kitchens, and a host of other factors are always limiting. There is the overall meal, which in the best instances is far more than the sum of its parts. And then there is what the event means in a larger context, which can range from nothing to quite a lot. There were some delicious dishes served last night. Suvir Saran and Hemant Mathur were given the task of awakening guests' palates with a series of hors d'oeuvres that included a bracing shrimp rasam with buttermilk and little florets of Mancurian cauliflower (we all need this recipe). They were also responsible for continuing the momentum through the first course: “sprouted beans chat, crispy spinach millefeuille.” It was a remarkable dish, the crisped leaves of spinach serving as the layers in a savory postmodern Indian take on the traditional French pastry. This gave way to Madhur Jaffrey's jumbo shrimp in a sauce featuring fennel seeds, mustard seeds, and curry leaves. I don't think there's a word for the color of this sauce, which fell somewhere between peach melba and coral, but in honor of it I'd like to paint my whole house, my car, and my dog. I asked her if I could have a gallon and she laughed, thinking I wasn't serious. Thomas John, for his part, offered caramelized red snapper with spiced yucca, accompanied by the most vibrant salad of fava beans and watermelon. Jaffrey is a tough act to follow, but John's little bits of watermelon managed to penetrate the fog that her haunting sauce had left over the audience. Floyd Cardoz countered with crispy spice-crusted soft shell crabs over a medley of pickled ramps, long squash, bacon, and crab curry. Luckily I was seated next to a non-soft-shell eater so I got to eat two portions. Finally, like an invading army, Vikram Vij's ghee-braised short ribs (pause to consider that: short ribs braised in clarified butter!) with cinnamon and red wine curry flattened the terrain, and then Helen Turley's 2002 Zinfandel “Duarte” came along to beat the crap out of anybody left standing. I felt violated. And happy. I can't imagine being a pastry chef in this situation, playing to an exhausted house that has had its palates collectively pounded on by the entire flavor range of the Penzey's spice catalog, but Jehangir Mehta, the pastry chef at Aix, served up one of the best desserts I've had in ages: a salty caramel tapioca tart with pomegranate paan reduction, marinated mango, and citrus ice cream. The saltiness of this dessert was a stroke of genius, activating resources of flavor perception I thought I'd lost hours before. Sitting with my back to Tabla's central architectural feature, the oculus, I felt upon my first bite as though I might suddenly tumble backwards through the hole and onto the stone floor below. There were certainly flaws in most of the dishes, along the lines of what I mentioned above – I'd love to try each of them with the home team cooking. But I feel it is necessary to allow some latitude in order to perceive the overall meal experience, which was terrifically enjoyable and wildly synergistic. But what was far more significant, to me, than the meal itself was what it represented. Being at Tabla last night felt like being in a moment, one of those moments you know you'll return to time and again as history unfolds and gives us more perspective. There was a sense of being there, while something important was happening. It could be seen on the chef's faces: what had been a fragmented community of kindred spirits, and had slowly developed into a movement, last night gelled into something more along the lines of a school of thought. And it was inspiring to see the audience, almost evenly divided between Indians and non-Indians, breaking bread together as a new gourmet community. It was quite a night, one I'll never forget.

Several months ago I was in the little Punjabi store near my sister-in-law's house. In their shopping cart of clearance items I found several bags of pebbly-looking things covered in sesame seeds. Unfortunately for me the grandmother was working the counter that day, and all she could convey to me was that they were a sweet. They are about the size of a hazelnut; they are covered on the outside with sesame seeds; they have a firm but not hard consistency; they taste of cardamom. What are they? I'm sure I'll want to buy some more some day, and I'd like to know what to ask for.

I'm looking for cookbooks containing Punjabi recipes, by Punjabi authors, preferably good ones :)

What goes into those neat little paan packages and makes them so coveted by some and despised by others? -GrapeShape PS-- And can one find paan in the US?

I just made something tonight with ground lemons (flesh and zest), chopped mango, ginger, and chilis, dried methi, sugar, and vinegar. Cooked it down to jam consistency (still a bit of chunky mango). It is more tart/bitter than sweet. Does this qualify as a chutney?

1. I like paneer but find it a bit bland. I know that's the way it's supposed to be, but what happens if you add salt and, say, minced herbs at the curds stage? There must be a name for that. Ever try it? 2. Also, I note that some recipes call for paneer to be rolled in flour before browning. What difference does that make? 3. Also, I'm trying to re-create a paneer dish I had in a resto a few years ago. Wish I was paying more attention, but I'm sure people here can help. It was paneer cubes sauteed in spices, nothing more. No tomatoes, no spinach, no peas, etc. It was almost like a snacky thing you might have with a beer. I've tried a few iterations and have had some tasty results, but I think I'd do better to start with the classics and work from there. So: What are some of the classic seared paneer dishes? Thanks for all your help, in advance. This paneer thingy is pretty cool. Edited for typo.

Ok, so I've got the powdered asafoetida, in a canister thing. I put it in a plastic baggie when I started noticing the odor. It came back, so I put it in a double plastic baggie. Its back. What gives? How do you store asafoetida so that it's..... fragrance..... is contained?

Heated debate at lunch. At my dad's birthday, a discussion on tandoori developed. My sister said that he saw Juan Mari Arzak, father of the spanish new wave of cooking, respected by everyone in the profession and three starred chef, describing tandoori as mixture of spices. I stated that I've always heard the term tandoor referring to the oven itself where the food is cooked, not to the spices used. I don't exactly know why, but she preferred to believe the most respected person in the culinary scene of the country rather than me . Could someone bring some light to the issue, please?

Eight cups whole milk to a boil, stir in 1/4 c fresh lemon juice ... got the curd, stirred gently ... drained through a cloth, washed the curds a bit, squeezed out the whey. Put it under a weighted pan. Got a disk that's an inch thick and four inches wide. Tasty stuff. But is that the yield? If not, any ideas on where I might have gone wrong?

I had dinner with some friends last night and the conversation turned to Pad Thai.. a favorite with the group. So someone turns to me and says -- do you make it at home. I do in the traditional Thai way with a recipe I picked up from a chicago newspaper a long time ago. What would an indianized version of Pad Thai be was the next question-- so tell me what do you think it would be?

Hi Does anyone have any tried and tested recipes? Mine always turn out to be totally flat unless I make them from Gits.

Tell us how you use peanuts in your Indian kitchen.. chutneys? crushed on salads? In rice? where else do you use them? how do you store them? do you ever boil them? Inquiring minds want to know

Such an integral part of Indian cooking.. and such a delight... many are familiar with the use of ginger in curries, marinades and ofcourse in tea.. what special dishes do you make with it? desserts??

Could someone please explain the difference (if there is one) between a biriyani dish and a pulao dish? One Bengali friend of mine said they are defintely different but he's not sure how. Another friend told me he had always thought the two were interchangeable terms but he's not sure. I spent some time looking for the answer but no luck. Thanks, Richie

I remember Mongo mention in an earlier thread that Khim chi paired very well witrh Indian food. I meant to ask him to elaborat then, but did not get around to it. THe question came to mind again recently when I at at "All Stir Fry" recently. IMO the Khim Chi there was very good. There were two types bothe with large pieces of cabbage and a subtle sweetness. One was SPICY (red chilli flakes and chilli powder were in it I think) and the other was sweet sour and worked to soothe the flames of the first. It had little bits of carrot in it and corriander as well but besides that it also had an underlying flavour which I think was imparted by lemongrass since thought I saw bits of it in there. I am not sure however. What I am sure of is that I am hooked! I have been trying to duplicate the flavour since then using white and red cabbage but I want to know more. What is the authentic version, is there only one or does it vary? Is ther food lore attached to it? Basically if Mongo or anybody else is so inclined a detailed post on the subject of Khimchi and recipes (please) are more than welcome.... Rushina

Indian Chinese I mentioned in an earlier thread somewhere that I love hot and sour soup. I am an addict and I could write poetry on a good version. I actually judge a chinese (indian) restaurant by the Hot and sour soup. Anybody have a recipe. (Episure??? ) IMO for those who are curious, the hot and sour soup is at the Cricket Club of India, the Chinese room and Something Fishy at the Tunga Intl hotel are worth going back for again and again. I also love a few other chinese dishes that I would like recipes for with the objective of trying them out at home. Manchurian (chicken and veg). I really like the flavour of this one but the recipe proves elusive. There is a delicious starter served at the Chinese Room and a few other restaurants in bombay, It goes under the name Corn curd / Cream. I have some Idea of how it is made but need a proper recipe. Could anyone help? Thanks Rushina

I've been wanting to experiment with a mango curry dish for a while, and tonight I did. I'm not sure how it turned out. Out of all my cookbooks, the only recipe I found was supposed to be a Sri Lankan sour curry. The basic ingredients were green mangoes, onions, coconut milk (I made it fresh), and Sri Lankan roasted curry powder (I made it myself). I thought I had picked up some green mangoes at the grocer but they were actually Haitian mangoes which were ripe and sweet. To compensate for this I soaked the mangoes in some water with amchoor and lemon juice hoping it would kill the sweetness. I also added a little amchoor while I was cooking. The end result was interesting, and I'm not sure if I liked it. Although the onions weren't overpowering I could definitely taste them a little in there and I don't know if it's an acquired taste or I just screwed up the dish. Any thoughts? I'm sure there are a zillion ways to use mangos, but what is a good mango curry supposed to taste like? I found one of Madhur Jaffrey's on a website that used ripe mangoes and jaggery with no onions...That sounds a little too fruity for a main dish for my taste. How are mango curries typically eaten? With what accompaniments/rice/breads? -Richie

Alright you Atkins fans.. move aside for this discussion please. I use bread in many different ways -- bread fritters, as a binder for potato croquettes, in a salad (I learnt from my mother in law) called sanja... and much more do you use white bread in your Indian kitchen?

We are planning to be in HNL in the 2nd half of Aug. Need some recommendations for Indian food near Hilton village resort in Waikiki. The reason for asking nearby restaurant is that I am not planning to rent a car for the entire week but will do that for a couple of days. Would also appreciate your suggestions for 1 or 2 sight-seeing trips within the island for the days when I do rent the car. We have 2 kids 11 and 13. For the rest of time, we are simply planning to enjoy whatever activities Hilton and Waikiki have to offer. Thanks.

On one of these threads I recently described how raw jackfruit is cooked by some Muslim communities as a sort of mock meat dish and is called Tree Goat. I've been reading an interesting book, "Indian Mansions: A Social History of the Haveli" by Sarah Tillotson, where I came across this wonderful bit of information. She's talking about how cooking was done in the havelis, and how the vegatarian - non-vegetarian differences were maintained, usually with separate cooking areas: I love the idea of moving vegetables! And it occurs to me that this sort of deception is probably more common than the other one, of pretending vegetables were meat. Didn't Bengali Brahmins have a phrase for fish that translated as 'fruit of the sea'? Doesn't anyone know others? An example of this being done, though without a special name was in a restaurant in Gujarat where the (ostensibly) strict Jain guy I was eating with, asked the waiter to make sure the bill said vegetable curry rather than the chicken curry he'd just eaten. The waiter seemed quite used to requests like this. Another old example from Madras, with alcohol not meat, is an 'Iyengar soda'. Which was simply a whisky and soda served in a silver tumbler so that the Iyengar (very strict Brahmin) men could pretend they weren't drinking alcohol. Vikram

Jigg Karla's Daawat has a recipe for Mustard chutney marinated grilled bataer (quail). One of the ingredients is Kashundi (bengali bottle mustard). Can one our Bengali or otherwise knowledgable friends elaborate?? Thanks

We have a new Indian restaurant here in Baltimore, called Yeti (the owners are from Nepal). They added momo to the menu of dishes typically found in Indian restaurants in America (chicken tikka masala, lamb saag, et. al.). We tried the lamb momo, and found them to be rather like Chinese pot stickers in appearance, but the filling was spiced with coriander and cilantro. The dipping sauce was most intriguing. It was the color of dijon mustard but had a texture like ground sesame seeds. It had a sesame flavor as well, plus a tingle of chile. Anyone know what this might have been? Is it a typical Nepalese sauce? thanks :)

I noticed in Rushina's eggplant recipe that she specified Kitchen King Masala. A web search threw up several brands available. Are they all equally good? Also, is this masala based on something? I'm just wondering about its origins, as well as the possibility of making it from scratch, or is it a ubiquitous product like oyster sauce or nam pla? Pat