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A friend is having a BBQ on the 13th at a state park near here. I'd like to bring something unique - are there any Indian dishes that would make good BBQ side dishes? Failing that, do you have any other recommendations?

I just got back from Korea where I found an Indian spice store where I bought everything to stock my kitchen in Japan for Indian cooking.(a little bit complicated right?). I love making Indian food at home but most of the time I use a recipe. I would like to learn some base techniques and recipes so I can begin to be more creative with Indian cuisine. I know about adding spices to the oil. And I have made a lot of recipes which start by caramelizing onions. What other bases are there? Good dishes to experiment with?

I went to Metropole for dim sum with my parents on the advice of the Shanghai and Hong Kong thread. It is the largest single floor restaurant I've ever seen. I'm guessing 750-1000 seats. Although it was the Good Friday holiday it didn't seem too busy. Bean curd sheet roll. Fried taro ball. Shrimp har gaw, phoenix claw. Dumpling in broth, ground pork in tofu. Pig ear, jellyfish. The pig ears were pressed together and braised for a long time to soften the cartilage. Difficult to chew cartilage has always been my complaint with pig ear dishes but this was much softer and a pleasure to eat. Youtiao wrapped in rice flour sheets. Unique but strange-tasting. The dessert case. Check out the whipped cream bunnies in the lower right. Rice flour and tapioca dessert. The yellow dot is a single kernel of corn. Unwrapped so you can see the green tapioca pearls. I was rather disappointed with the meal. On the one hand it was definitely the best dim sum I've had in the past year -- each dish was perfected to a degree unparalleled in the U.S. -- but I was really expecting to be blown away with tons of original dishes that I've never seen before, and other than the pig ear all the dishes I saw were just the classics. Maybe I had unrealistic expectations but was I really so wrong to expect a lot from a highly recommended restaurant in Hong Kong, the dim sum capital of the world?

I have a craving for bitter melon curry. If you happen to live in the San Francisco Bay Area and have been to Naan 'N Curry and have tried their bitter melon curry, that is the type of thing I am looking for. I am looking for a good recipe. The only things I know are in the version I have had are bitter melon, curry leaves, black cardamom, cinnamon, tomato, and onion. Any other bitter melon fans?

My first trip to London. I've been invited out to dinner to a vegetarian restaurant called Blah Blah Blah that's near Shepherd's Bush on Saturday, and Friday night I suggested Indian near our hotel in Covent Garden. Any reviews of the former or suggestions for the latter? Any other must-eats?

Howdy! Currently have Julie Sahni's Chickpeas in Ginger Sauce from Classic Indian Cooking on the stove, but I've encountered a problem that seems to be recurring with many of her recipes. After frying some onion, garlic and ginger, adding some spices and some chopped tomato, I'm supposed to add the chickpea juices and some water, reduce the heat to low, simmer for about 10 minutes or until its reduced to a thick pulpy gravy. But isn't reducing when the water cooks off? So how can it reduce if it's covered? Sure isn't thickening while covered. My wife always yells at me to not put any water in at all, but I feel her approach can't be right either.

The Yuva birth announcement (this is what the PR people call the press release about a new restaurant opening) didn't look all that auspicious. Another Indian restaurant on 58th Street between Third and Second Avenues! I might have skipped the press preview altogether, but we had babysitting and it was something to do. I'm still deciding whether the meal I had at Yuva tonight was the best Indian meal I've ever had. The first bite I took was of a crab cake like no other, described on the menu simply as "spiced crab skewered and grilled." The dish arrived looking like an haute cuisine version of two golden corn dogs (yes, on sticks). My first taste totally redefined my expectations of the rest of the evening. It was so . . . light. And when I say that, I mean it. Servers are constantly telling me how light the crabcakes are at their restaurants. They're never light. They're crabcakes. But this thing was like air, if it's possible to imagine air with a lot of crab in it. I had the press release, I mean birth announcement, folded up in my pocket. I confess I hadn't read it or planned to read it -- I had just taken it along so I could remember the address, not that you need a piece of paper to remember that you're going to an Indian restaurant on 58th between Third and Second any more than you need to write down the address of Grand Central Station. The chef, it turns out, is a fellow named Dhandu Ram. He's not just a chef, he's a "Master grill chef," and as ridiculous as it sounds he does indeed cook such good stuff that it's hard not to agree that he's entitled to be referred to as a master grill chef. He's said to have cooked at the original Bukhara Grill in New Delhi. The owners of the restaurant are a very nice seeming guy named Kedar Shah and his wife Hritu Deepak -- yes, Hritu Deepak the Indian soap star and face model. In case you were wondering what had become of her, she moved here to marry Kedar and she's now a restaurateur. They're both in their early 30s and they both look really good. Yuva, they say, means "youth." Every dish we tried -- about ten of them -- was exceptional. Most displayed a level of refinement, lightness (really) and subtlety that has been long overdue at this price point (appetizers under $10, a lot of entrees under $20 though of course rack of lamb, lobster and whole fish are more, breads $3-$5), and I'm not really sure you get it at the Dawat price point anyway. This is not rustic cooking. It's delicate, exquisite, a little restrained but totally flavorful. Chapli kabaabs (their spelling) were similar in weight (or lack thereof) to the crab cakes. You don't expect a dish described as lamb patties with red onions, crushed peppercorns and nutmeg to be anything but rustic and weighty. But these kabaabs were so fragile you could hardly cut them without crushing them. Amazing. "Sea splash" is a tasty cousin of ceviche: steamed shrimp and scallops with tamarind, Thai basil, red onion and an unfortunate (but harmless) splash of truffle oil. The other appetizer we tried was green papaya salad, the strands so long and fine they had to be twirled on the fork like spaghetti, in a chili mango vinaigrette -- excellent mix of crunchy texture, sweetness and spice. The selection of breads is remarkable and includes a few things I'd have ordered if I'd had foreknowledge of how good the restaurant would be. We were smart enough to order the Kabuli naan, layered with a paste of cashew nuts, almonds, pistachios and raisins. Pretty sure there was some unadvertised coconut in there too. Very interesting flavors, maybe a little sweet to eat with the meal but quite delicious. Also excellent was the aloo parantha, stuffed with potatoes and spices. On my list for next time: "Sheermal: pan fried rich flaky saffron flavored sweet bread (a unique delicacy of peshawar)." I'm so there. We had a mixed platter of items from the tandoor, all top notch: tandoori shrimp, hariyali kabab, malai tikka, boti kabab and aatish kabab, served with avocado sauce, red bean sauce and pomegranate sauce. Also a dish called "chicken mushroom," which is chicken in a white wine, almond and mushroom sauce. I'd have liked to try a bunch of the vegetable sides, but only thought to order the Yuva dal, terrific lentils cooked overnight with tomato and butter. The restaurant is contemporary and Western in feel -- there are some Indian touches here and there but you'd be forgiven for thinking you'd walked into a small, classy restaurant operated by a former Jean Georges or Lespinasse sous chef: sixty seats, a glass wall overlooking the kitchen (where the two chefs are working their asses off and throwing a lot of flames), big white plates in square-ish shapes. Most of the dishes are plated to that standard as well -- colorful, appetizing, low-key -- though there's the occasional tacky misstep like a superfluous carved radish that should be retired to the Carnival Cruises midnight buffet. Jehangir Mehta from Aix -- a terrific pastry chef -- is the consulting pastry chef, and the two desserts we tried were good (particularly the rasmalai), but not on par with the savory cuisine. He needs to do some tuning up to get there. Totally usable wine list with choices running from a New Zealand sauvignon blanc for under $30 up to Silver Oak '00 for $126 (also Opus for some ridiculous amount). YUVA FRONTIER INDIAN GRILL 230 East 58th Street (between Chola and Dawat) 1.212.339.0090 (edited to replace raita with rasmalai)

Hi, i was wondering if i could cook fish curry (bengali style) with fishe kinds besides tilapia and catfish ... I live in a city where the local indian grocery store does not sell any fish .. thanks Leena

Just thought I would share a discovery of mine, as I am always on the lookout for good ethnic fare. Bombah Bhel at Yonge and Eglington east of yonge...went there a couple nights ago with the GF...although the server was a tad forgetfull, he was very pleasant, and the food was fantastic. I would highly recommend the eggplant curry, it was out of this world...also had the Vindaloo with lamb which was delicious, and the GF had chicken curry, also very good. The Naan was great (half of the reason i go out for indian) and it was very reasonably priced ($45) with a beer and 3 main courses.

Murgh Kofta: There's an amazing Indian hole-in-the-wall place nearby, with really great food. No decorations, save some airducts running along the ceiling -- I think it's an abandoned auto repair shop or something. For a while, an elderly woman bussed tables with a black garbage bag tied onto her torso as an apron. The menu was really short, but they have lots of other stuff, that they don't put on the menu -- in particular, some really great ocra. My kinda place. Well, last time, I had the chicken kofta, and it was great, so I wanted to try recreate it. The only clues I got from the dish, was the whole black peppercorn and cloves that I found in it. It was sweet, so I thought it used coconut milk, but I later found out that the odd sweetness of the dish actually came from the spices. This was a fairly involved dish to make, but it was fun. The sidedish is just sprouts stir-fried with some curry sauce from a jar, and wasn't particularly noteworthy. I would have used regular plain rice, but I think that gets a little repetitive. This is the recipe I found online. It uses a LOT of spices, and I ended up leaving out the ground cumin for the sauce -- it uses both whole and ground, and I thought that would be too much. I'm not sure if I did the right thing or not. Meatballs: 500 grams of chicken mince 2 teaspoons ginger paste 2 teaspoons garlic paste 2 tablespoons roasted gram flour 1 teaspoon cumin powder 1 black cardamom(s) powdered 1 teaspoon red chilly powder 1 teaspoon fennel (saunf) powder 1 teaspoon curry powder or garam masala (I used both: a sweet, yellow curry powder, and a spicy garam masala) Curry sauce: 3 tablespoon ghee (used peanut oil) 2 bay leaves 2 cloves 4 green cardamoms 1 teaspoon black cumin seeds 1 teaspoon ginger paste 2 teaspoons garlic paste 1 onion grated 1 teaspoon red chilly powder ½ teaspoon turmeric powder ½ teaspoon cinnamon powder 2 teaspoons coriander powder 2 teaspoons cumin powder 4 large tomatoes pureed 4 cups chicken stock salt and sugar to taste 4 tablespoons fresh cream (used half-n-half, but more than 4 tbsp) Finely chopped cilantro for garnishing Making the meatballs is just a matter of mixing and forming them, and then refrigerating them. The sauce is simple, even if there are a lot of ingredients. - Fry the ghee/oil with the first four ingredients to bring their aroma out, 10 seconds. - Add onion, garlic, ginger, release liquid and brown, 10 min. - Add rest of spices, 2 min. - Add tomatoes, simmer for 10-15 minutes (I used chopped, canned tomatoes -- if you used pureed tomatoes it would take less time) -- I also used an electric handblender to smooth it out some. - Add chicken stock, salt, sugar, simmer 5 min or until combined. - Add meatballs, cover and simmer 20 minutes. I removed the cover and let it simmer for 10 min towards the end to reduce the sauce a little. - Add cream/half-n-half/milk - Garnish with chopped cilantro, serve. My thoughts on the dish: It was very good, but there was a sharp, bitter taste that struck me as slightly vinegary. There are so many spices in this dish that it is hard to discern what caused it, but I suspect the green cardamom pods. The seductive sweetness that I initially thought came from coconut milk was from the cloves, cinnamon and sugar. The dish had that really great curry aroma which lingered wonderfully in the kitchen. The leftovers smells fantastic too. The meatballs had a very solid texture. I was considering adding grated/minced (and drained) onions for additional flavor, as well as some finely grated breadcrums, but decided against it for the first try. Next time I'll definitely do that, because these meatballs can easily handle it.

I'm still searching for a favorite restaurant... anyone have one to share?

Hello--- I'm looking for a good source to get some Indian cooking ingredients around Portland. I pulled some names up on a google search but since I'll be driving a ways to Portland to get the items, I won't have the time to check out all the grocers that came up on the search. Does anyone have an Indian Grocer to recommend? I am looking for such items as fresh curry leaves, good quality ghee and some various spices. Thanks for your help!

Ran across this link to what's called Indian Cooking from the 1800's but to my eye looks more like British Indian cooking. To my mind an Indian recipe for Bubble & Squeek is a dead give away. In any case some fascinating material and a reminder of how much work keeping a kitchen was in those halcyon days of yore. Enjoy!

Is there any stores in Buenos Aires where to get those unusual Indian and Central Asian spices? thanks

Lots of my friends swear by the Kitchen Aid stand mixer in order to make chapati,poori dough.I would like to know all of your views/opinion about it.I have been told that one must buy atleast a 300 watt mixer if it is to be mainly used for dough.I did have a food processor which i used for making dough but it gave out pretty soon.It was very convinient though.Do help me here as i am sorely tempted to buy one.How far is it useful in everyday Indian cooking,apart from making dough. Thanks A

I'm reading Panjabi's "The Great Curries of India" now and she talks about daag being a "fried onion, ginger, garlic, tomato and spice masala mixture"(p.20) which can be refrigerated for a couple of weeks. She says it is a shortcut for making curry - "heat a few spoonfuls of it with some oil, add the meat, chicken, fish or vegetables, and saute... I'm curious if this is one of the shortcuts that many restaurants take. Seems like they couldn't possibly make so many different slow-cooked dishes in one day with three different meats.

In our quest to discover a great Indian restaurant in Buenos Aires, after a first not so good experience we finally found a great place… Actually two, though both places are owned by the same family. Mumbai and Katmandu are two great Indian restaurants conceived, organized and run by an Indian family living in Buenos Aires. Mumbai is in the Retiro district, much frequented in weeknights and lunchtime by local businessmen working in the surrounding area of downtown, and several foreign visitors who in search of great Indian food head to were the entire magic takes place… Katmandu, on Cordoba Av, is in the nearby area of Palermo Soho, a bit further towards Palermo Viejo, but very easy to access by any public transport or cab. Both places are beautifully designed and decorated, soft background music creating a peaceful atmosphere in which to delight oneself with greatly done traditional Indian food. While Mumbai opens day and night, Katmandu only opens during the evening, so don’t even bother to go there during the day for lunch or brunch… it’s so closed that it might even seem just out of business, but no… at night it opens, and during weekend evenings it’s sometimes full, so reservations are a good option, if not, they will set you up in a table nonetheless, but it’s a possibility that you’ll have to wait. Unlike other ethnic restaurants in the Palermo area, Katmandu is big and if you show up with no dinner reservation, this is not a huge problem. We visited Mumbai for lunch and Katmandu for dinner; both were great and delighting experiences. Mumbai –which we visited many times since then, for it’s good and at lunch as a pre fixed menu for A$ 22, featuring entrees of pakora and samosa (one of each) and a main course of 10 vegetable curry with homemade cheese, chicken curry and basmati rice (all in one plate) plus a beverage. The menu is brief; there are three/ four options for entrees, main dishes, vegetarian main dishes, basmati rice, and deserts. A complementary dish of chapattis –one per customer- and a set of two dips, one of tomato and mustard seeds, the other of conserved lemons and tomato are offered. The naan is charged on the side. These are made in a traditional tandori oven according to the waitress. In order to compare different restaurants and menus, we once again ordered Rogan Josh, with Patagonia lamb, Mumbai Fish curry. The curry servings were small portions that should be accompanied by rice as the waitress suggested, so we ordered Veg Biryani –excellent rice, well spiced and with fresh vegetables-. We also ordered the pudina nan. We asked what the traditional drink to have with such meal was and she said either Lassi yogurt or water, we ordered one of each. Food was good, the curry mix was not too hot but hot in the after-mouth, and the lamb was tasty though a bit too salty; while the fish was good. It was a good eating experience, the Indian chef from Northern India seems to know what he’s doing, and the dishes show his passion for food and Indian traditions. We visited Katmandu on a Friday evening, one of the hottest days for dinner parties in Buenos Aires specially for working middle class couples, -that use this day as the couple day while kids stay at home-, friends hanging out after work… We arrived there at 9 PM, by car, thought this is a place easy to access in several means of transport, cab, bus, underground. From the main door to the left is the kitchen, featuring a huge window that shows what goes on inside, the kitchen seemed busy; however we peaked inside to check the kitchen material, to see if we found the Tandori oven and may be we got hold of some secret techniques of Indian cuisine. This idea of open kitchen is also a main attraction in a variety of local restaurants such as in Sudestada, and for example, Buenos Aires top notch grill house Cabana Las Lilas, featuring their grill and kitchen at the entrance as a quality sign. The place is well sized, and the tables are big enough to fit all the plates for naan, chapatti, main course and beverages without feeling cluttered. Unfortunately, our waiter, a charming young man, did not provide a professional enough service… I think he was mostly interested in picking up and chatting with the group of young ladies sitting near us. This was a very off point, because it delayed the service and explanations and irrupted our dinning experience… All and all, I think this was mended by the owner –son of the owner of Mumbai- who approached us, and worked out the situation to the better. As in Mumbai, there’s a complementary dish of chapattis and traditional dips as a starter, this was as good as in the downtown restaurant. We then ordered chicken and lamb tandori, vegetarian rice, somosas and pakoras, once again Indian yogurt was our choice for beverage… it tastes fantastically with the spicy food! The whole experience was very interesting and fulfilling. We were very pleased to have found good traditional Indian restaurants in Buenos Aires. These are great proof of the broadening of the gourmandize option range in the city, not only in terms of numbers of options, but more significantly in terms of great quality food, through which to explore the feel and sensitivity of faraway cultures. Before the 2001 breakthrough, most middle class educated Argentines traveled around the world and explored first hand distant and exotic cultures. Nowadays, with a 3 to 1 peso-dollar exchange rate, traveling abroad has become a luxury not everyone can afford. But those who back in those days did discover a whole new world, and those who recently found Buenos Aires to be their new home, had the good eye of translating their experiences, transforming them into windows that open from Buenos Aires into fascinating faraway traditions and flavors, thru means of one of humanity’s first arts: the art of cooking. My passion for Indian Food, Bob Frassinetti

Hi, everyone. I'm meeting a special person for a kosher Indian dinner tonight (Tuesday, January 3). Please recommend Indian kosher restaurants in Curry Hill. Are we stuck with Madras Mahal, or is there somewhere else that has equally good or better food and better service? Also, feel free to mention other reasonably-priced (<$35/person) kosher restaurants you recommend in that general area (20s/30s). Thank you all very much.

Happy New Year, all - any ideas on where I can purchase edible camphor (kacha karpoor) - it is extremely difficult to obtain in the U.S. It is *not* inedible synthetic camphor but an item used in a number of Indian (and Chinese) recipes. Any help would be greatly appreciated. cheers, JH

I'm looking for an indian buffet place near chinatown area. Any suggestions?

The terminology appears to vary from country to country, and region to region, but I'm wondering if anyone knows what the words "SEEK" and "SISH" means, and where they come from -- as well as what they apply to. I was introduced to these kind of kebabs at Abdul's Takeaway in Manchester, England. There, the seek kebab was made of minced lamb -- and it tends to be the same here in the US, except they tend to substitute beef due to local preferences. Their sish kebab was chunks of lamb, marinated. I just heard someone refer to a ground chicken kebab as "Chicken Seek Kebab" and I wondered, does seek mean lamb? Or does it just mean ground? And what does sish mean? Would really appreciate some enlighted comments on this one... Thanks! Edit: Okay, I snooped around a bit, and have found that "Sish" is a generic term for anything that's skewered, possibly of Turkish origin. Wikipedia lists "Seek" as Pakistani in origin, but it doesn't say anything about the word's original meaning. So I guess what I'm asking is, does seek mean minced, or lamb, or something else?

I'm trying to work out what a particular fruit/vegetable that I saw in a local asian (indian/pakistani) grocers is, can anyone help me? It is quite a bright slightly lime-ish green (with yellow tints), about the size of a large kiwi fruit and the skin is spiky & tough looking. It was also floating in a tub of water! It is more spiny than a lychee, but the spikes aren't as long as something like a rambutan. It was near the vegetables rather than the fruit, so I assume its a vegetable, but I can't be sure! I did actually try asking someone who worked there but he couldn't remember, although he was quite young so maybe not the best person to ask! I know that the owner is quite friendly & helpful, but he hasn't been around the shop recently to ask. Anyone have any ideas? And if so, do you have any recommended recipes/serving suggestions? Thanks!

FYI the new Alford/Duguid book on the Subcontinent is out: Mangoes & Curry Leaves: Culinary Travels Through the Great Subcontinent I just ordered my copy after I heard them on the radio (CBC) today. Has anyone picked this up yet? Any thoughts?

We have a some fresh mango pickle that we brought back with us from Chicago. When we were in Chicago we ate it with the rest of the haul from Malabar Catering: avyial, long bean thoran, beef curry, fish in banana leaves, palappam and a besan/yogurt soupy stuff I would love to be reminded what it is called. We had to pass up the kerala style dal and the mutton curry since there were only four of us! Sigh. Oh, for Malayalam food in little old Portland, OR. So now I'm wondering what I should make to eat with the pickle that survived the trek home. I assume I've only got a few more days with it, since it's the fresh crunchy kind. Suggestions? thanks, trillium

Indian fusion Chinese restaurants are quite popular in NYC these days. Dishes like Lollipop chicken: Crispy fried-chicken drumsticks with a tangy sauce. Manchurian: Lightly battered meat or vegetables in a dark, gingery soy sauce, and Hakka noodles: Spicy pan-fried noodles are some of the hottest selling plates. Is this real deal Indian/Chinese like they served it in India? Or this some just some trendy gimmick.