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Here's the link: After Centuries, the Vegetarian Feast of India Finally Arrives

Dr.Katy Dalal has come out with Jamva Chaloji - 2, a sequel to 'Jamva Chaloji' ("Lets Feast") the excellent book of basic Parsi recipes she compiled quite a few years ago. The first book, published by Vakils in Bombay, is in its third printing and along with the Penguin book on Parsi cooking, it could be seen as the standard reference book to Parsi daily cooking. So this book is very welcome and all the more so because in it Dr.Dalal has decided to focus on all the rarer recipes, the ones cooked for obscure festivals or by Parsis in the villages of the Gujarat and Maharashtra coasts they used to live in, but which are now being forgotten as their children move to the cities and have no time for elaborate rituals. Dr.Dalal is an archaeologist by training, before she became known as a cook, so she's by far the best person to do this work. Its a fascinating book to read, and a delightful one too, since she's interwoven the recipes with her own memories of visits to the villages as a young girl, and in particular of her great-grandmother Soonamai whose recipes and cooking practices are evidently still her inspiration. There are all the recipes which coulod probably only be made in the village - like tadi-nu-batervo or mutton cooked in toddy (fermented date palm sap). Toddyn is highly perishable, so you probably won't be able to get it in Bombay. I've certainly never come across it, though you do get neera, the sweet, unfermented version and perhaps the solution would be to buy this and let it ferment. (Episure, do you think this would work? And do you know of any other way to get toddy in Bombay?). The book also benefits from Dr.Dalal's obviously excellent connections in the Parsi community - she can track down the one agiary (fire temple) in Bombay (Mehella Patel Agiary behind Novelty Cinema in Grant Road) whose head priest has a wife who is the last person to make muktad-nu-bhatiyu which, as far as I can make out (Dalal is not always entirely clear and while its not a problem, the book could have done with just a bit more editing, that's the only criticism I could make), is an elaborate package of different dishes including chicken, fish roe, a spicy omelette and other things. Or if you want vasanoo, a heavy Parsi sweet made of some 32 different ingredients that few people have the patience to make these days, she tells you the exact family to go to in Cushrow Bagh, one of the main Parsi colonies, who still make and supply it to others. A lot of these recipes are obviously quite difficult or labour intensive which is why they aren't made these days, and Dalal doesn't hide that. Sometimes one can think of other reasons why they aren't made like her recipe for eeda-pak or egg halwa the ingredient list for which starts with 50 egg yolks, 500 gms almonds bioled and skinned, 150 gms pistachios, boiled and skinned (almonds and pistachios to be fried and ground), 100 gms charoli, 100 gms white pumpkin seeds.... Dalal obviously knows this is going to be a hard sell since she writes "This is one of the most delicious sweets I have ever eaten and I request all my readers to make it at least once in their lifetime..." Yes, well one can see why you're not likely to be able to eat this in more than one lifetime! Still, Dalal's pleading for such recipes is quite persuasive and while I don't think I'll be running out to buy 50 eggs anytime soon, I can certainly see myself making other recipes like Soonamai's special cucumbers stuffed with mince, or bhaji-ma-sookka-dana (dried green peas cooked in spinach) or gamti-amlette (country omelette - a typical spicy, had fried Indian one, but with pieces of green mango added) or papau-ma-gos (mutton in papaya gravy) or maybe even kolmi, sekti-i-sing, ne-kacchi-keri-ne-kohru-nu-dohru (prawn, drumstick, raw mango and pumpkin gravy). And even otherwise, there's still the pleasure of just reading Jamva-Chaloji-2! Vikram

this thread is inspired by a comment vikram made in another thread. to wit: and also follows from my recommendation, in various threads, of the crab butter-pepper-garlic at the restaurant swaagath in new delhi--most recently, talked about here. so, here's my questions: 1. is vikram right? do most indian recipes kill crab? 2. what are the antecedents of the butter-pepper-garlic preparation? i have an answer for question 1, and here it is: i disagree--i don't think most indian recipes kill the taste of crab. i think it is a question of how you come to what the definitive crab taste-experience is supposed to be. as someone all of whose early exposure to crab was through bengali freshwater "kankra" curries i've always been underwhelmed by the (american?) approach to crab of just steaming it and eating it with butter. crab for me is best when a recipe preserves its cool texture and aroma but places it in a seemingly antithetical spicy environment (any minute now i'm going to bust out some hegel). most of the crab i've eaten in india (and also in some korean recipes) follows this principle*. then again maybe my indian crab experience is not representative--i haven't eaten too many south indian takes on it. *i also really enjoy takes on the classic bolognese sauce substituting crab for the ground beef-pork. first saw this on iron chef, tried it at home to good effect.

While the fruity and flowery whites with their sweetness like the Gwerts, reislings, fume blancs, the chennins etc are much touted with spicy cuisine I would be very grateful to all the knowlegeble wine folks out there,who are also familiar with Indian cuisine, to steer me towards some reds that my guests might enjoy. Thank you

Hi I just finished reading Flavours of Delhi. It was an interesting concept, though I found the descriptions too sketchy. Two points of note in the book - 1) Connaught Place persistently spelt as Connuaght Place 2) Description of Kachri as a dried melon, being used as a souring agent. To the best of my knowledge, and I do know about Kachris, they are small fruits (about the size of a large ber) that grow on climbers, in Haryana and Rajasthan. Both the fresh and dried kachri are eaten in different forms. The most delicious cooked chutney is made out of dried kachris and it is very popular in Haryana, though I haven't heard of it being eaten outside of the state. (It is also a bit of an acquired taste). Another thing I've heard described as kachri is by Punjabis. They refer to slices of baingan, dipped in a besan paste and deep fried, as Kachri. My question is, has anyone heard of a wild /dried or any other kind of melon called kachri? Or was it a factual error?

How do you cook foods that are ‘exotic’ (asparagus, leeks, etc) with an Indian flavour?

There's a street snack that's sold in Bombay that's always intruiged me, not that common, but you can find it fairly regularly at Chowpatty or near Fountain and a few other places. What's remarkable about it is the way it looks - a large cylinder of what looks like ivory wood, with a thin reddish tan layer outside. If you want to eat it the guy selling it will carefully slice a thin section from the cylinder, remove the tan park and give it to you. It tastes sweet and crunchy, a bit difficult to swallow since its a bit fibrous, but quite nice. One guy I asked told me its called kandhamul, but does anyone know what its English name is or what plant it comes from? Could this be what's called hearts of palm? Vikram

The questions are triggered by the recent article in Wine Telegraph The spice is right. Couple of quotes: "...Pinky Lilani is a is an adviser to British manufacturers of Indian supermarket meals, but she has published a cookbook, Spice Magic and holds cookery demonstrations in her kitchen.... ...Besides the recipes, Lilani’s book also offers a guide to the four basic techniques of Indian cooking. They are bhunao, whereby you keep spices simmering until they blend perfectly; dhuan, which is the tradition of placing red-hot charcoal in a dish of chicken or smoked salmon and then sealing the lid so that the smoke infuses the food; dum, in which rice is cooked in its own steam; and tarka, in which spices are added to hot oil to release their flavour...." And now couple of questions: Has anybody read her book or attended the class? What do you think? Can somebody describe the dhuan method? Thank you, Helena

Okay, so I realize there must be some cultural or religious significance to this, but I don't understand why a lot of Indian food is heavily pigmented or colored. For example, the bright red Tandoori chicken in Indian buffets that we all know and love -- and carrot puddings with that nuclear waste orange color that only comes from heavy food coloring. What gives? Any other examples?

I was at a meeting recently with a very influential book editor recently. "Indian food is really heating up," I tell her and swear up and down about it. I quoted six trends, seven hot new restaurants, celebrity chefs, emails from The Food Channel Trendwire saying that its here. The editor looked at me and said -- well you may be right but I have heard this same story in 1998. Is it really happening this time So is it??

As the weather gets warmer here I am starting to crave cold drinks. Out with the sodas and in with the divine.. Do you have some favorites that you can share? I love to make a saffron hued lemonade and this afternoon served Indian style cold coffee (I cheated today -- usually I use Nescafe Instant coffee, ice and milk -- today it was Starbucks Coffee icecream with cold milk and crushed ice). Ofcourse one of my favorite Indian restaurants in town serves up the best Tamarind Margaritas... so whats on your drink menu ???

The other day I was hankering for some Langhar food and thought I'd cook some Maa ki dal with 25% Rajma, which I soaked together overnight. The next day I didn't use a pressure cooker, instead cooked them Dum ( Slow) for lunch. They turned out quite nice and if I would have added more Cream and Ghee, Bukhara's chefs would have some sleepless nights. That night I couldnt sleep because I had abdominal distension and severe griping pain. I learnt the hard way, so avoid cooking such WMDs at low temperature because this is probably the cause Ooooh!.

We have a great eGullet forum on India and Indian Cuisine, with an incredible amount of information on cookbooks, favorite dishes, and styles of cooking from various regions, and much more. Suvir Suran did a great job as forum host before opening Amma in Manhattan to great acclaim. Now Monica Behide is the new forum host, and she welcomes all of us from Texas to visit. So it would be helpful to know more about all the Indian markets in Texas, especially DFW-Denton, Houston-Galveston, Austin and San Antonio. What are the favorite Indian markets in your area? Any special products or ingredients they carry that you have had a hard time finding in other places? How's quality, and how's the service?

I'd like to think I know a bit about English, Japanese and Chinese tea varietals, but I really don't know my Assam from my Darjeeling. Can anyone elaborate what all the major Indian tea varietals are, how they are prepared, what teas go best with what kind of Indian food and what are the best times of day (and time of year) to drink them? And besides the classic English way of serving tea, are there any Indian-specific tea customs I should know about? And what goes into a "masala" tea?

The thread on food in Indian movies prompted a comment or two on Indian food in books, so let's do a thread on that, too. Both are of interest to me. Here I am asking for novels, memoirs, travel books and such that depict Indian foodways as an important part of the book, rather than cookbooks as such.

Has got to be one of my favorite dishes. Shrimp is marinated in a ginger garlic paste, a bit of salt, red chili powder, turmeric and a touch of tandoori spice mix. Grilled in the broiler. Easy as can be. I am learning to take pictures so bear with me! We had this a few nights ago for dinner. What you see in the back is a papaya salad I made with cilantro lime dressing and some crushed red pepper What recipes do others use for making a simple grilled shrimp dish??

This thread is inspired by Best Indian food movies I thought it would be fun to cast and direct our own little Indian food movie. I have no idea how this will work.. but Mira Nair move over.. eGers are here.... Someone start a story and we will take it from there.....

Does anyone have any thoughts about what might be the first Indian restaurant in North America? (In the UK, of course, it is Deen Mohammed's Hindustanee Coffee House, which opened in 1809.)

I am interested in a good recipe for carrot halva. I was wondering if any one would share one that they enjoy. Thanks, Cory

(perhaps this belongs in the rare ingredients thread. then again it might not be rare to anyone other than me) tonight i dipped into my penguin "kerala cookbook" for the first time and made a country style fish "curry". it called for cambodge which is not available here. however, the writer indicates that kokum (which he says is related to and often confused with cambodge but is not) is a good substitute and i remembered seeing kokum in the local indian grocery (which as i've said stocks more southie than north-indian stuff). so i hied me to the store only to discover that they have packets of both black and white kokum. i recalled my friendly store-manager's exhortations to "ask if you have questions" and asked her what the difference was. first she hit me with, "this one is black, and this one is white"; seeing the expression on my face she then added, "i think the white one is the dried one and the other one is the wet one". i decided to make a judgement call and bought the "wet" black kokum. the recipe called for soaking the cambodge and so i decided to soak the black kokum too. i don't know if this was the right kokum or whether it needed to be soaked but the resultant dish was excellent. we ended up eating a pan-indian dinner (indian fusion if you will): a fish curry from kerala, punjabi style kali urad dal, and bengali style alu-gobi. it all went together quite well. i'm going to start experimenting with more of the recipes--probably stick mostly to the coconut-free ones (did someone say "elevated cholesterol"?). has anyone else tried anything from this entry from the penguin series?

Dear all, As promised earlier in the "Rare Ingredients" thread, here is the recipe for Masala Bhein along with pictures. Hope you will enjoy this as much as we do. For those who live in the States, you can find these easily in the Korean grocery stores. Here goes: Masala Bhein (Lotus Stems or Kamal Kakdi) Ingedients: Lotus Stems - 4 medium pieces Oil - 5 Tbsp Water - 1 Cup Masala Mix: - Turmeric powder - 1 Tsp - Salt - 1 and 1/2 Tsp - Coriander powder - 5 Tsp - Ginger powder - 1/4 Tsp - Black Pepper - 1Tsp - Garam Masala - 1 Tsp - Amchur (Dry Mango powder) - 1 Tsp Method: 1. Trim both the ends of the stems. 2. Cut into some 1 to 1 and 1/2 inch long pieces and some 1/4 inch pieces. 3. Wash with lukewarm water thoroughly. Make sure all the grooves are clean of any dirt. 4. Mix all the spices in a bowl. 5. Hold the big pieces over the masala bowl and fill the holes with the spice mix. Make sure that the pieces are a little damp so that the spices stick to them. Fill the big pieces from both sides. For smaller pieces put them together in the leftover masala mix and roll gently to cover with the spices. 6. Heat oil in a pressure pan or cooker. 7. Put all the pieces in the oil and saute gently on low heat for 5 minutes. 8. Add one cup of water and stir gently. 9. Cover the pressure cooker and cook on high heat till the first pressure whistle comes. 10. Let it cook on low heat for 15 more minutes. 11. Open the cooker and check to see the tenderness. (Should be similar to a hard boiled potato). If they are still hard, let it pressure cook for a few more minutes. 12. If there is still some water, let it simmer for a few more minutes with the lid open. Serve with freshly made chapati or tandoori roti and Enjoy!!!

I haven't been to Dallas in years. However, my work is taking me there again soon. I remember years ago eating in a fairly good Indian restaurant. I have no clue what part of town I was in. However, I haven't had Indian in a while, so can anyone recommend some good places? Non-Indian as well. I have meetings with some large department stores, so I will be all over the city. And I will have a car rented. -Ophelie

Re: Haldi Does anybody has recipes that use fresh haldi/turmeric?

Soft or slightly chewy? Smooth or granular? Sour or mild?

i've made a couple of batches of cow ghee recently, and in my research i came across the fact that historically ghee was only made from the milk of the water buffalo. (such sweet tempered creatures!) i've learned that buffalo ghee has less of the yellow pigment carotene in it, producing a "whiter" cooking oil and that the cream of the water buffalo has a higher fat content than the cream of a cow. of course, the unheralded success of mozzarella di bufala adds some intrigue to my question: are there differences in flavor and texture? sadly, i don't live in proximity to a water buffalo. and though i've discovered that i might purchase a texan male for $1,000, or a texan lady for $2,000, i'm not ready to commit without your advice.