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Indian-inspired Lentil Soup Serves 20 as Soup. I readily admit to fiscal irresponsibility. Inasmuch, I often find myself having to create something that will feed Shawn and I for a week at a time without costing a lot of money. We both like lentil soup and the following offering was a complete experiment that I am very thrilled with. 1/4 c olive oil 1 lb diced carrot 1 lb diced celery 2 lb diced onion 1 can (28 oz.) diced, peeled tomatoes 1 qt chicken broth (can substitute vegetable) 1 qt beef broth (can substitute vegetable) 4 c dried lentils 2 T Panch Phoron 2 Bayleaves Salt and Pepper as needed Fresh baby spinach leaves, to taste Heat olive oil in large, heavy-bottomed stock pot. Over medium heat, saute onions until translucent (about five minutes). Add carrots and celery and continue cooking another five minutes. Add Panch Phoron and continue sauteing to release the spice scent (a minute or two). The tomatoes, broth, lentils, and bayleaves are added. Bring to a boil and then reduce, simmering for a half-hour or until very reduced and thick. Add another quart or two of water back into the soup to desired brothiness. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve garnished with a handful of fresh baby spinach leaves. Keywords: Vegetarian, Vegan, Easy, Beans, Indian, Soup ( RG866 )

Indian-inspired Lentil Soup Serves 20 as Soup. I readily admit to fiscal irresponsibility. Inasmuch, I often find myself having to create something that will feed Shawn and I for a week at a time without costing a lot of money. We both like lentil soup and the following offering was a complete experiment that I am very thrilled with. 1/4 c olive oil 1 lb diced carrot 1 lb diced celery 2 lb diced onion 1 can (28 oz.) diced, peeled tomatoes 1 qt chicken broth (can substitute vegetable) 1 qt beef broth (can substitute vegetable) 4 c dried lentils 2 T Panch Phoron 2 Bayleaves Salt and Pepper as needed Fresh baby spinach leaves, to taste Heat olive oil in large, heavy-bottomed stock pot. Over medium heat, saute onions until translucent (about five minutes). Add carrots and celery and continue cooking another five minutes. Add Panch Phoron and continue sauteing to release the spice scent (a minute or two). The tomatoes, broth, lentils, and bayleaves are added. Bring to a boil and then reduce, simmering for a half-hour or until very reduced and thick. Add another quart or two of water back into the soup to desired brothiness. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve garnished with a handful of fresh baby spinach leaves. Keywords: Vegetarian, Vegan, Easy, Beans, Indian, Soup ( RG866 )

All this crockpot talking on the cooking board had me thinking. Anyone tried making kheer in a crockpot? How did it go?

Having had a root canal I have been on a diet of soft and 'milder' stuff. A steady diet of kichdree ( a rice n lentil gruel, for those who don't know) and thin sooji halwa. Which got me thinking that there must be so many regional variations for people convalancing that could make recovery a tad more enjoyable. I have a couple of days to go so lets have your favorite ' recovery foods'.

Forgive me if this question has been asked before...I'm a newbie here, and between work and school haven't had time to slog through the archives yet. I've recently added fenugreek seeds to my pantry, as they were called for in a few savoury dishes I wanted to try. Having used them for a few months, now, I've become quite enamored of their flavour and aroma when toasted...but I'm thinking they'd be great in pastries, too. I'm going to be playing around with this for a while, but I was curious whether fenugreek seeds are used for sweets or pastries in India? If so, are they generally combined with one or more other spices?

suvir, i'm very intrigued by the jackfruit biryani on the menu at amma (which has received positive reviews from people on the new york forum). does the fact that you refer to the fruit by the bengali name (kathal) mean that this is your take on a traditional bengali preparation? (or is kathal not just the bengali name for jackfruit?); in any event, can you tell us a little more about the origins of the dish? bengalis, of course, cook a lot with kathal (both the raw and ripe versions) but i am not familiar with this particular preparation. regards, mongo

okay, so when i say quick and easy i should also mention the words "pressure" and "cooker". this is my mother's recipe for cholar dal (what the rest of india calls channa dal). i've tinkered with it for years but never surpassed the original. after eating my mother's version in delhi this past december my wife has undiplomatically requested that i no longer attempt to be original. the base recipe first, followed by some suggested variations: ingredients: 2 cups channa dal 1/2 cup moong dal 2 medium vine-ripened tomatoes chopped finely 2 tablespoons onion-ginger-garlic paste (i make a whole lot with 1 medium onion, 8 garlic cloves and a 2 inch piece of ginger and then use it in a whole lot of things) salt sugar garam masala turmeric- 2 tspns red chilli powder 1/2 tspn 2 tablespoons torn coriander leaves for garnish prep: wash the dals together and pressure cook with 6 cups of water, salt and 1 tspn turmeric till just soft. (in my stone-age prestige pressure-cooker this translates into 4 whistles over medium heat and then letting it cool down on its own while i prep and make the tarka.) in a karhai, heat oil and add everything except the garam masala and the coriander. reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until tomatoes completely decompose, everything cooks down and there is no water left. add the dal, bring to a boil and simmer over medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes. check the consistency--if too liquidy increase the heat and boil it down. the final consistency should be thick but pourable. taste for salt, add the garam masala, boil for another minute and then garnish with the coriander (cilantro) leaves. eat with steamed rice or chapatis. --- variations: 1. add vinegar to the tarka along with everything else for a sweet and sour flavor 2. fry some cumin seeds before adding the rest of the tarka ingredients 3. replace the tarka above entirely with a very spicy concentrated keema curry

Being of Gujerati - Kutchi extraction, having grown up in Bombay which is in Maharashtra and Married to a Pahari of Uttaanchal, I have found a common dish in all three. The basic method and presentation is the same though the ingrediants may very. 1. Arbi leaves slathered with a lentil paste and rolled up. These are then steamed before they are deep fried or stir fried. The Gujeratis call this dish Patra, the Maharashtrans call it Aduvadi and the Paharis call it Patyud. ANyone else find it familiar??? I think the bengalis make a version of it too. 2. Similarly the Kadhi a yoghurt curry made by cooking a mixture of besan (chickpea flour) youghurt and tempered is made by the Punjabi, Gujerati, Kutchi, and Pahari (called Jholi) communities though the versions vary. Any other dishes anyone know of??? Rushina

I am in a mood today. I was talking to a dear friend whose mom in law chided her for the ultimate sin -- tomatoes left floating in her chiken curry Is this a cardinal sin.. are there worse ones do share

During my recent trip to Kolkata, I picked up two Cookbooks specializing in Bengali cooking: "Bangla Ranna: The Bengal Cookbook" - by Minakshie Dasgupta ISBN 81-7476-205-1 and "The Calcutta Cookbook" - by Jaya Chaliha, Minakshie Dasgupta et al. ISBN 01-4046-972-9 Unfortunately, both the books are currently out of stock at amazon.com I found both the books to be fairly good, but then again, I haven't read that many Bengali cookbooks before. The "Calcutta Cookbook" has lots more than recipes -- it has some stories about culture etc. which some people may or may not like. The Bengal Cookbook is more like a cookbook, and it concentrates on recipes alone. The recipes are very well written and would be useful for people who do not have an intuitive feel for Bengali cuisine. This book also has some great pictures. If you want to get introduced to Bengali cooking, the Bengal Cookbook may work for you. PS: Minakshie Dasgupta is the mother of the owners of Kewpie's Restaurant that I mentioned In this thread about Kolkata restaurants.

Anyone read the book The Indian Pantry or its latest reprint the Indian Kitchen - it contains information on almost everything in the Indian Kitchen. Okie I have obviously clicked wrong, this was meant to be in the Indian Pantry thread. I was working on a post on Pahari Food and wanted that to be my first but since This is Que sera sera.... Id like to say here am very happy to have found egullet - have been unable to stay away but that will sort itself out in a few days once the initial enthusiasm has run its course. Apologies for bringing up old topics and causing general mayhem, I noticed a couple of days ago that about 10 topics one after the other had my name on them! Here are some topics I am planning on adding in the coming weeks, I would like it if you could let me know if something has been done... Uttaranchal food the cuisine and my experiances with it Some good Indian restaurants in India and dishes i reccomend Hot and SOur Soup - I love it and the places I like it best at Trade - to trade books and all stuff food related- (I say this cos I read in someones post a while back they had spare copies of timelife history of world food. I am looking for those and maybe a trade could be worked out...) Favourite ingrediant - the one thing you are inspired to cook by favourite kitchen gadget the most exotic ingredient on your shelf - good stuff / bad stuff and disastrous stuff The best (fill at will) ever and where it was that u found it Memories with food Rushina Rushina

I have tried atleast 1000 versions of this south indian soup. I do like the westernized 'Mullaghatawny Soup' as well. The best cure for common cold. :) Atleast that's what the southies claim. Here is how I make it. If you have a different version, please post. Boil a third of a cup of Thoor Dhall (yellow gram?) until smooth. In a wok, add 2 tbs oil under medium heat. Add 1/2 tsp mustard seeds wait till they all pop.. Add 1 tsp cumin seeds, 5 pods of crushed garlic, 3 dried red chillies 1/4 tsp crushed coriander seeds. Let it all roast for 30 seconds. Add 3 large diced tomatoes and a pinch of asafoetida and pinch of turmeric. Wait till the tomatoes are soft and well integrated with the rest of the spices (5 min). Add 1 tsp tamarind paste or juice of one lime. Add 2 cups of water. Increase the heat to high. When it starts boiling, add the cooked dhall. Add salt to taste. (1.5 tsp?) Before it start boiling again, remove it from heat. Add 1 tsp crushed black pepper. Garnish with coriander and curry leaves.

Mark had done a sweet piece on Biryani today for the NYTIMES Here is the link Under the lid, New Delhi

I found the following in 2-years old UK Wine Telegraph article: "Even Indian chefs are introducing chorizo. During his 'Salaam Bombay' festival, Mehernosh Mody of La Portes Des Indes served a Goan sausage masala, which featured chorizo, slow-cooked for three hours until meltingly soft with a rich spiced tomato and onion sauce." How would you approach cooking this dish? Thank you.

Lifting this into a separate thread since jaggery deserves one of its own. I love jaggery, its like the much more interesting, bad-boy cousin of sugar. Even with the ordinary stuff and not the spiced version I described, you still get that raw, slightly wild minerally tang that contrasts with the basic sweetness. Unfortunately, jaggery seems to be little talked about or known outside India (are their equivelents in other sugar producing countries?). One of the disappointments of Sidney Mintz' otherwise classic book Sweetness & Power, is that he's so focussed on the role that sugar has played in the West and the Americas in particular that he leaves out much of its history and usage in Asia and I think makes next to mention of jaggery. Tim Richardson's book Sweets was very welcome for not disdaining Indian sweets the way other food writers do, but he was mainly talking of milk sweets. Anil Kishore Sinha's Anthropology of Sweetmeats doesn't talk about it much (and is generally quite a disappointing book). Achaya covers it, of course, though its not something he devotes much attention to. What are the different types that people are aware of? There are the standard yellowish brown blocks sold in kirana shops. There are more refined versions being sold by sugar companies like Dhampur, nicely packed and purified to the extent that its soft and fudgelike. And there's palm jaggery which I'm only just discovering and its fantastic! I've had very hard hemispherical (set in coconut shells) palm jaggery from Sri Lanka ages back. A health food shop in Bombay sells chocolates made from palm jaggery cores dipped in good quality chocolate. I thought it sounded weird, but when I tried it, it was great - the jaggery gave it an almost alcoholic taste. I'm currently drinking coffee in the mornings made by boiling up the powder Turkish style with cardamoms and palm jaggery and its pretty good. I get the impression though that the use of jaggery is declining in Indian cooking as people move over to tamer, less unpredictable sugar. Perhaps its because of children who are used to the sugar taste from sweets and chocolates who can't handle the different taste of jaggery. And adults are told not to eat sweets, so they just don't experience the flavour again. Its certainly rarer to find Indian sweets made with jaggery. I was eating at Sindhudurg in Dadar recently and saw they had a shelf where they sold Malvani products including these sweets, I forget what they're called, they look like twigs and they're dipped in syrup that dries hard. These were made with a jaggery syrup and they tasted so surprising I realised I'd just forgotten what sweets made with jaggery and not sugar were like. In recipes too, I increasingly find instructions to use sugar where a generation or two back it would have been jaggery, and I wonder what loss in taste has taken place? Which are the recipes where you'd say that jaggery, not sugar, is essential? How do people abroad handle, especially in restaurants? Is it easy to get? What's the quality like? Do you just find it more convenient to use sugar? Vikram

It's pretty much decided... after moving to London last year and beginning to dabble in the richness of Indian restaurants here and beginning to be interested in the culture (I can't believe I've previously missed out on this) my husband and I are probably going for a short trip to Delhi this April. I'm a little intimidated, I know very very little about Delhi, the food, the people... i'd love any information you can send my way: websites, food recommendations, can I eat at stalls? how do I avoid food poisoning, shopping, sites... places for excellent chai, samosas, delicacies particular to delhi.... Thankyou!

Hello I'm Indian living in France. Since it's the season now, have you had experience in cooking game Indian style. Back in India, in the north of Bombay where my parents have a farmhouse, the Warli tribals used to cook game. Thanks

I've had a tandoor at my home for two years now. If anyone would like to discuss their successes or failures I would be glad to help. Ive had my share of disasters but very happy with the incredible results! biggame Las Vegas

the india trip is over--the orgy of eating has come to an end. i didn't just eat on this trip though; i also bought some cookbooks. among them are two from penguin's regional cookbook series: "the essential kerala cookbook" and "the essential north-east cookbook". i obviously haven't tried anything from them yet but i have browsed them and they look pretty good. both have nice introductions which provide both a sociological context for the food, detailed ingredient, tools and methods breakdowns, and, of course, recipes themselves. what they don't have is pictures--which is not a problem for me with the kerala book since i know what most of those dishes look like, but may be with the north-eastern book. the recipes seem clear, consistent and well-organized. we've had some discussion on this forum of food from kerala, and a brief mention of everyone's lack of knowledge of north-eastern cuisines. the latter cookbook should go a long way to dispelling at least my ignorance--i've already learned a lot by just skimming the intro. as for the kerala book, i think it may start me on finally cooking some of my favorite malyali dishes at home, instead of pining for years between trips to india. anyway: has anyone else come across these books or others in this series? have you cooked from them? if so, and if not, what do you think of them? others: they're all available on indiaclub. i'd wanted to get the "recipes of the spice coast" book as well when in delhi but it wasn't available. i hesitate to buy it online now because of the hideous mark-up. ah well.

A good friend of mine recently returned from India with a ziploc baggie full of green cardamom and a package of saffron for me. (I think the saffron might not be the authentic article--maybe I could try to post a picture and let the experts here tell me?) When I first saw the cardamom, my gut reaction was to use it in a chai spice mix, because chai is one of my favorite beverages. However, I weighed the bag and discovered I have 170g to work with. That would be a LOT of chai, even for me! I searched this forum for "green cardamom" but the recipes I found only call for, say, 8 pods each. From the Indian recipes I've seen, my impression is that individual spices are not "stars" of a dish like they are in other cuisines, but always used in combination. If there are any dishes that particularly showcase cardamom, though, I'd love to hear about them (recipes much appreciated). I would like to use or preserve all of the pods before they go stale, if possible... any ideas on how best to do this? Is it OK to substitute green for the other types of cardamom, or are there exceptions? Thanks so much in advance.

Hello and Happy New Year to all, I have been a type 2 diabetic for the last 5 years or so. My blood sugars have always been on the higher side even with the medication and portion control. Came acress Dr. Bernstein's book on the web a couple months ago and learned that carbs were the main culprit. For about a month now, I have been experimenting with low carb meals. By the good grace of God and knowledge from Dr. Bernstein's book, I have been able to bring down my blood sugar levels to a respectable range and have been able to come off the medication with a go ahead from my physician. Now the big question is how to sustain this... I have been primarily a roti/chapati/parontha eater for carbs and with this diet, no more breads now. I dont miss rice that much since I was eating rice only once a week or so. There is no restrictions on veggies (at least most of the ones that I like) and meats. More opportunity for me to have chicken and mutton. The main problem is breads. In the last 4 weeks, I have experimented with the following as a substitute for regular Atta: - Besan (chick pea flour) - Makki ka atta (Yellow Corn flour) - Kotu ka atta (Buckwheat flour) - Low carb readymade breads (many are available in US grocery stores now) I am going to try soyabean flour and a few others (like gluten free flour) in the next few days. I have also tried mixed besan & buckwheat. Came out very good as missi rotis. Most of results so far have been acceptable. I would appreciate any knowledge / experience on meal planning or menus from other eGulleteers focussed of primarily low carb Indian dishes. I remember Monica had started a thread a few weeks ago on some Atkins diet plans but could not find anything further when I searched for it. Thanks in advance, Cheers,

Can anything beat the biryani and raita from Khajuraho, in Haverford? Or the pan-chan and great, and inexpensive, Korean BBQ at Kim's Restaurant, 5955 N. 5th St., Philly? (There are some interesting-looking ethnic spots in this area, has anyone been?

I received a bookstore gift card and decided to buy an Indian cookbook (to fill in a noticeable gap in my cookbook collection). If you could own only one Indian cookbook, what would it be?

Hallelujah! I loved your two books, read them lingeringly, limiting myself to as essay a day like really good pieces of chocolate (OK, so occasionally I binged and read five at a time), and I even conducted a long drawn out campaign to get my office - I write for a financial newspaper - to subscribe to Vogue, arguing that it was next to impossible to report accurately on international business trends without regular reference to Vogue. I got unexpected support from an editor who, I think, was more interested in the lingerie models, but I wasn't complaining. And the magazines arrived and it turned out they'd got us British Vogue.... But yes, sitting here in Bombay, it hurt bitterly to read your comments on Indian desserts, and I cried silently into my kulfi, wondering if there were Mexican fans somwhere choking down sobs along with their fried grasshoppers. I can't entirely blame you though. The very few times I've eaten in Indian restaurants out of India the desserts have been generally unspeakable - stale sugary barfis, kulfis that were more crystals that creamy, greasy halwas, and above all, really leaden heavy gulab jamuns, a dessert that is served everywhere, but VERY difficult to get right, even here in India. Added to that, there's the problem of the extra-sweetness and intense milk flavours, and here there's nothing much that can be done - either you're one of those people who go for it, and such people tend to really trip on Indian desserts, or just hope you get used to it. I note that when people do take to Indian desserts they tend to be things like phirni (rice pudding) or, as you mention, ras malai, which are somewhat less sweet & milky than the average. The biggest problem though is that food writers, particularly in the US, very rarely seem to try Indian at all, so the chances of them eating good Indian are pretty low (of course, with eGullet's own Suvir in action at Amma the odds for should be rising rapidly). Has Alan Richman ever eaten an Indian meal? After years of reading his stuff in GQ, I've never read of the merest morsel of tandoori chicken passing his lips. So too with many other food writers, which is why it was great to read you've done a trip here and April is too long to wait to read about it. I only hope for two things. One, you didn't just go to that awful city up north called Delhi and eat north Indian Punjabi-Mughlai food in the course of the Delhi-Agra-Jaipur quickie which is what too many Americans mean by visiting India. That food can be good enough - though not the debased form of it that's the staple of most Indian restaurants abroad - but there's lots more interesting stuff in the regions, so please tell me you went to the south, or came here to Bombay (even Indians don't go to the east, which is a pity, since Bengali food can be fabulous). And second, if you did get out to the regions, I hope you got out of your hotel room and ate around a bit. It amazes me how many food writers finally come all the way to India and then don't seem to have the guts to get out of their hotel room. A.A.Gill comes and nominates Kandahar at the Oberoi Hotel as the best Indian restaurant ever. R.W.Apple says the best Malayali (not Keralan, you can read my rant on this in the Indian room on this site) food is in the restaurant at, surprise surprise Brunton's Boatyard the hotel he just happens to be staying in. These aren't bad places, but honestly doesn't it seem to suggest a certain lack of motivation somewhere? I certainly wouldn't expect it of you.... remember, we have ways of reaching your rasmalai... Vikram

Recently I have been playing allot with food influences from the subcontinent of India. There are of course a wide array of spices, and fruit that are used there (all which are very interesting). I have had some success with infusing chocolate with whole toasted spice, by letting the chocolate sit in the same airtight container as the spices. I have also experimented quite a bit with adding yogurt to ganaches (on a 1 to 1 ratio) and have had some excellent results. Just was wondering if any one had some creative ideas in the way of flavor combinations?