Zunka or Korda Pithla

Zunka is dry besan and onions mix cooked in oil. Zunka needs no introduction to most Indians, in the least they know that it is a Maharashtrian staple in the rural areas. Yet many confuse the Zunka with Pithla. The ingredients are the same so many call it Korda Pithala.

Mom and aunts made this Zunka atleast once a week. I remember it used to be made in a super sized kadhai and they used about 0.5 kg of besan, 1kg of onions and 250 ml of oil for a family of 18! It used to be quite dry with different types of bhakaris. But then those were the days of a full thali for lunch and dinner. So a dal and rice following it helped a lot. These days since I cook either only roti/ bhakari with bhaaji or Rice with dal and curry for separate meals. It is only on weekends I make full Thali meals. So when it is Zunka - Bhakari Bait (special planned menu) then I always have Matha/ Spicy butter milk to go with it.

One tradition in our family is we never use water or buttermilk or for that matter any other liquid in our Zunka. That is why we don't call it Korda Pithala. In many homes the leftover liquidy pithala  is dried out on a girdle the next day to get Korda pithala. Ours is not like that, we make it special. I think I have never eaten Zunka the way my family makes it anywhere outside our home. That is why infact my family would hate to eat Zunka outside home and not even at the Marathi specialty restaurants having Zunka on their menu, they were scorned at.

We the Koli family are famed for it. There are other such family specials, like our sheera,  Kanda Bhajji, fried batata pohe etc. Many who ate at our home would demand for these. Oh I forgot the very milky boiled tea. Especially in my village people sweared by the tea from our kitchen. I'm missing my Mum and Devaki Kaki whose cooking I loved, most times. Mothi Aai's Non veg dishes are a far off memory. Aruna Kaki's cooking has changed a lot, its not the same though delicious even now.

I'm missing everyone here Kaka, Kaki, my lil bros, Hrushi, Som, my 4 sisters younger versions ;), Duskya, Kalkay-which means Kalimata in Koli (I still hate her), Paro, Malay (my Mallu, Malmal no more! Now she is Khadbadit). Bhau, Vahini, Surekha Tai, all our maids, dogs, Sultan- Som's pet rooster. Oh and Sushil, can't miss him and his sample family. Eh, Don't ask me what all this means. I love you all :D* If you guys aren't shameless and happen to read this you will come to see me.

Am jogging myself out of this to come back to the Zunka recipe.

Ingredients

4 onions
1/4 cup besan/ chickpea flour
1 teaspoom coriander powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1 green chili
3 tablespoons oil or more
salt to taste
1 cup chopped cilantro

Pour the oil, add the onions. Fry till translucent. Then add the cut green chili and the spices, mix. Then add the besan and mix well. Cover with a lid and cook. Mix intermittently. Leave the cover on till it is cooked completely and the raw taste is no more. The besan will look fluffy once it is cooked properly. Add the salt and mix well.

Finally put off the heat and mix in the chopped cilantro.

Serves best with bhakari but chapati also works.

Eureka Forbes is a Fraud Company

Its been 6 months since the water filter was installed. It is a backup facility I had just incase I don't have CMC supply. 

For a while I have been getting a call for free service. I have told them its a new unit and I don't need it. However this time the service manager informed that they needed to have a look at the unit. So I told him to send a technician on the weekend so I can be at home. 

I was wary of letting this young boy in as he did not have an ID. He suggested I call up the verification service and then let him service the unit. I was in doubt so I did and they confirmed that he was their techinician. 

On opening the filter he was shocked that all the while we have had a filter without the basic filter candle and the carbon filter was of a different model. This installation was done in front of my eyes. He told that this was a case of theft by the person who installed! He then offered to install a filter candle for no cost but asked me to pay him 50Rs. for commuting back to the stores and getting me one. He suggested I continue using the carbon filter though it is of a different model. I asked him what was the cost of the two filters. He said 350 for the carbon filter and 305 for the candle. For a paltry sum of Rs. 655 the installation technician had done this theft! For me the real fraud is Eureka Forbes for not having credible people doing the installation and service. They have good products but bad service I have found out on the internet. The very direct selling which is convenient for customer is becoming a trap to cheat people.

I immediately told him to put back the unit. Took the helpline nos. from him and called them to register a complaint. They gave me a complaint redressal no. where such malpractices are reported. They gave me a Customer ID no. for all future references and a complaint no. 

I had to call again to remind them about sending me the missing components and a technician to fix it. They promised a person will reach me by 4pm. Going to wait and see what they do meanwhile planning what steps I need to take against them.

Some good guidance is available here at Consumer Court.

________________________________________________________________________________

Update: 2/28/10, Mon, 4 pm

I am breathing easy now. After repeated calls on Sat and Sun. Two escalation and a threat to go to Consumer Court. They just fixed it! So now you know what to say when a big corp cheats you.

Instant Ragi Dosa/ NachaNi Dhirda

For The Surprise Visitors

I read this post about the Sthapana of Shree Brahmachaithanya Maharaj's Paduka at the residence on Mr. Arun Gangal and it reminded me of his recent visit to Blr and our home. He sang beautiful bhajans composed by himself and gave us a complimentary copy of his CD which was recently released. It amazes me to see such devotion in people.

He came at lunch time with Mr. Gurunath Kulkarni. I was unsuccessful in coaxing them to wait for lunch due to his plan of returning to Mumbai immediately.

I had a challenge, what do I serve to 3 surprise visitors? I had a Ragi flour packet lying around waiting to be transferred to a jar. That gave me an idea for making Ragi dosa with curd to give the tang.

They turned out darn good and made me happy that they are actually a lovely low-cal option. Yet Mr. Gangal had been fed to the brim by our doting Gurunath uncle and he hardly could oblige us. I served them with Chutney pudi and ghee as the Madras Cucumber Sambhar you see in the picture was not yet ready.

This is a good one and I recommend it.

Ingredients

1 cup Ragi flour
1/2 cup sour curd
1.5 cups water or more
salt to taste

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Make it the consistency of regular dosa batter or pourable, spreadable batter.

Heat a non stick pan. Pour a ladleful on the heated pan and spread into a round. Roast till the sides are crisp and separated from the pan. The underside golden brown. Roast it only on one side to keep it crisp. If you turn over it will become soft. In the picture you see the soft ones but my personal favorite are the crispies.

Serve with a chutney you like. A green chutney would taste and look great. I am getting ideas a Thecha would taste better! What say all ya South Indian influenced Maharashtrians? What you eat reflects what you are :D. To be fair you have the option of calling these crepes Nachani Dhirda. OK.

Dahyatla Sabudana

I know this is late, yet there are so many Upvas that are going to come up. There is a chance for you to make this then. Simple, needs a little resting but results are delicious. When you taste this you will wonder how the curd rice and curd sabudana can taste so different. After all it is curd! you'd say. Now don't jump to conclusions just give it a try. Eh, but this one needs a bit of planning and cannot be had like you have curd rice with generous amount of sugar. There is a procedure you got to follow. Well well get going with the recipe, I tell myself. 

  Ingredients 

 1/2 cup sabudana/ tapioca pearls 

3/4 cup sugar (or to taste) 

3 cups curd 

2-3 cardamom pods 

First in a wok dry roast the tapioca pearls. This should be done on a low flame till they get a tinge of pink. Put off heat and while still warm go to the next step. Then make butter milk with one cup curd enough to cover the roasted tapioca. Let is soak for atleast 4 hrs. Test the tapioca pearls. They should look plum and feel soft and should be mashable between the fingers, only then they are ready to eat. Crush the cardamoms to coarse powder and stir into the creamy curd soaked sabudana. Now if you need a slurpy treat have it immediately after mixing the saved 2 cups of curd. If you need a creamy cake add the remaining 2 cups of curd and let it soak for another couple of hours. I love both consistencies. That is traditional type. If you are the type who likes to add some more glamor to any dish then sprinkle chopped nuts or mix in cubed fruits. The blogging thing makes me add a slice of strawberry in my vaTi of Dahyatla sabudana just for some color, you know how white looks dull in pictures. 

Updated: 8 Sep2020 : I had frozen mango pulp in these flower moulds, I used them to decorate and raise the bar in this simple Dahyatla sabudana,

For a savory version. Skip the sugar and make the seasoning like Curd Rice Bangalore Style Then you will ask with that much fanfare you see here Dahyatla sabudana and round Sabudana Vada too! Did we fast? NO!!!!! We just had it for dinner on Shivaratri :) Fasting for Maharashtrians is all about tasty food, deep fried goodies and satisfying the sweet tooth. Not for nothing we have a saying "Adhi potoba mag Vithoba". It means first worship the Stomach Lord then the God Vithoba residing in Pandharpur!

original pic

My Pao & Bhaaji

Once upon a Sunday, we ate this meal

Yes that is right My Pao Bhaaji because these Paos are homebaked!

These Paos are of half ata half maida, a successful experiment. Follow exactly The Mumbai Special Pao recipe but use 2 cups whole wheat flour and 2 cups All purpose flour. Also when you keep the yeast for frothing make a slurry of atta. This will aerate the dough better.

With Delhi carrots on the stands Gajar halwa was the best way to go. So desert was a creamy Lite Gajar Halwa!

I love these carrots and am making everything possible with them. They are in pulaos, matar gajar sabzi, saar etc.

Have I shared a Gajar Raita here? Not yet. Ok then I will soon. It's my Dad's creation, am thinking he might have eaten it somewhere, my guess is at Sunita Aatya's place. He generally hates acknowledging sources when the idea is too good ;) !

Nazia's Masala Baingan

recreating from memory.

The smiling face with specs, on the right is Nazia.

The Khata Meetha Masala Baigan was much talked about long after the Baby shower. The ladies crowned her the best cook in the team and warned me that I had competition. I agree completely with them She definitely got the ladies licking their fingers and me seeking the recipe. Nazia moved on and I was not able to get the recipe she promised for the blog. So this post is about recreating from memory.

Ingredients

8 to 10 small purple brinjals
4-5 onions sliced
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 green chili
4-5 cloves garlic
1 inch ginger piece
1 teaspoon cumin
1 cup chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons thick tamarind extract
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
salt to taste
1 + 2 tablespoons oil

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a fry pan. Fry the onions till translucent. Chop the ginger roughly and add it. Add the cloves of garlic. Fry a bit. Now add the spices, cumin, coriander powder, chili and turmeric powder and the green chili. Now let the masala cool then remove to a grinder. Make a rough paste with salt added. Now mix in the chopped cilantro, save some for garnish. Keep aside.

Prepare the baby brinjals by washing and cutting crosses deep down the bulbs all the way to 3/4ths. Leave about a 1/4 so they don't fall apart on cooking. Keep the calyx on. It makes it easy for picking up as well as make the brinjals suculent.

Stuff the brinjals/ baingans with the ground paste. and keep lined in a thali.

In the same frying pan in which you fried the onions add 2 tablespoons of oil. Splutter mustard seeds. Now layout the stuffed brinjals neatly in the frying pan, keep on medium flame. Cook covered until one side of the brinjal shows dark spots. Then turn over to the uncooked side. While doing this make sure you are keeping the brinjals and masala intact and not spilling it out. If it does no worries but try to do it with a little care. Cook with cover till done. Now check if the underneath shows browning. Poke a spoon at the stems near the calyx if done well it will cave in. Now at this point when you are sure the brinjals are done sprinkle the tamarind extract over the cooked brinjals. The khata of tamarind is balanced by the meetha of loads of onions in the recipe so no need to add any sweetener to balance the taste. Sprinkle a little water if required and turn up the heat for 5 mins so the tamarind spreads the sourness evenly. Avoid stirring but you can jiggle them around a bit. This is a little tricky though not necessary just helps in mixing the flavors well. Sprinkle some saved cilantro as garnish. I have made this with a lot less oil but most people love these stuffed brinjals swimming in oil like a pickle.

Serve hot with roti or dal and rice as accompaniment. I remember Nazia mentioned that it is traditionally served with Mutton biryani too.

Methi Paneer Boti Pulao

Winter is so synonymous with Methi. We love to try different things with it. This time is was a rice. On weekends atleast once I like to make a flavored rice, it has a certain festiveness to it. Psst...it is quick to make it too when I have lazed around and suddenly realize it is meal time and food has to be put on the table. I love that pressure cooking allows me to fry the papads and put together a raita to go with it.

This Methi Paneer Boti Pulao just happend on one such lazy day.

Ingredients

1 cup Basmati rice
1 cup methi leaves chopped and packed
a handful of cashew nuts
8 long strips of Paneer
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1 green chili
1 big onion sliced
1 tablespoon oil
salt to taste
2 tablespoons Curd

Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Fry the cashew nuts and save.

Fry the Paneer till golden in the remaining oil. These are your Paneer Botis or strips. Keep moving the spoon to avoid sticking of the paneer to the bottom.

Now add the sliced onion and fry till golden. Add the chopped Methi leaves and green chili. Stir once. Add the garam masala and washed rice. Top up with a 1 glass of water. Add salt, close the cooker with the lid. Allow 1 whistle. Put off the heat and allow to cool.

Open the cooker and stir in the 2 tablespoons of curd and the fried cashews. Do it with a light hand to avoid breaking the Paneer botis.

Serve hot with raita and papad.

South Thindies

and a weekend all about Chimi.

Address: South Cross Road, Near Krishna Rao Park, Basavanagudi, Bangalore.

Whenever we took Chimi to the Vet we passed the South Thindies. A very busy place especially we noticed that at 7 am in the morning they had roaring business going. My Dad wondered that it must be really something to go there for breakfast and be in a crowd. I always run away from crowds so breakfast at South Thindies never happened.

Yesterday was different, we were on our way to the Vet again as Chimi had to see Dr. Yatiraj, she is completing 11-12 months. It was time for deworming. My driver came on time and shook me out my weekend siesta so we went without tea. As we drove by the shiny facade of South Thindies looked welcoming in the evening sun. There was a crowd as usual but we decided to check it out anyways. It was good we stopped over. They dispose the customers quickly at the billing counter I noticed.

This is a self service restaurant with high counter tables to rest your plate on. When it is about food I like the restaurants that have service and love the ones with unhurried service. This is because in Bangalore we have the luxury of such restaurants. Having lived in Mumbai most part of the life this is what I hate, having to stand and gulp food and rush out. I noticed they have take aways. Next time it will be that.

As I went to the counter I notice a board with the day's special. We were not in the mood for heavy Thindis (snacks) so turned towards the kitchen, saw masala vade and bondas looking fresh and not so oily. I bought the coupons for Masala vade for me and Kesari bhat for Dad and 2 filter coffees. They serve half glasses here, a trade mark, yet enough for a evening wash down after the snacks. For the driver we bought Mangalore bun.

In a jiffy we picked our plates and the Mangalore bun was promptly warmed and packed with chutney. As they were packing I took permission for taking shots and they happily allowed, they have a spanking clean kitchen, open for all to see.

What I loved about the place is its cleanliness, the bright lights (he he, in such places I like them) and quick disposal of customers.

The Masala vade were crunchy on the outside and crumbly inside and accompanying chutney was good. The Kesari Bhaat oozed ghee but I like the Kesari bhaat I make with milk added so this did not stand up to my taste even though it was good by restaurant standards. My Dad liked it. The driver liked the Mangalore bun with chutney too. The Coffee was frothy and not too bitter, just the right taste for a Non South Indian in Bangalore, Bangaloreans like their filter coffee realy bitter.

So that was Saturday evening for you. Today we, that's me and Chimi spent the day at Sulekha's. It was Chimi's date with the handsome Oscar. Both the Mamas were excited initially but it turned the other way round. We had to keep them in two different rooms to make sure there was peace in the house towards the end of the day! Meanwhile Jayashree called and I was discussing it with her. She assured me that they need to get to know each other more. It did not matter that My Chimi is a Mongrel and Oscar is a Golden Spaniel.

Sharing here the joy of watching them together even though we wanted to see filmy love :) and nothing really happened. May be another date.

Crackling Spinach

Crackling Spinach is a spunky name for a dish I thought the first time I spotted it on the menu of Mainland China. Then when I ordered it I was impressed that the spunk did not end just at the name. It was a spectacular taste for a simple preparation of spinach if you consider deep frying as a simple technique in culinary science and how only a few ingredients can make a recipe so exciting.

When I was narrating to Sulekha about it, she gasped, "Deep fried!" Come on give me a break. We all love deep fried stuff once in a while. Good friend Sulekha will forgive me for making it the second time round however this time for Dad that too within a week!

I know am tempting you too much. So get ready to make it with me.

You will need...

Ingredients

spinach leaves
(1 bowl fried spinach)
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Oil to fry

First wash and drain spinach on a mesh.

Pat dry the leaves. Tear them up into small bits. In a mesh/ strainer fry them in hot oil. It should turn the leaves crisp. Test the degree of crispness by removing some on a paper and try to crumble, if you are able to then that's right, if not they fry a little more. This will save from the trouble of collecting the fried spinach and also will fry it evenly. Drain it on a mesh. Then transfer it onto an absorbent paper or kitchen napkin to remove as much as oil as possible.

Now in a non stick pan toast the sesame seeds till aromatic. Add the fried spinach to it and toss. Now add the sugar and salt and toss again to homogenize the taste.

I would recommend the use of powdered sugar. Next time I will use it. It is easier to sprinkle it and mix it. Also powder sugar will mask the oily spinach.

At Mainland China they serve it in a fried pastry basket but I served it in small Chinese bowls. Also I did not crumble the fried spinach leaves, that's what they do at the restaurant. Yes presentation is key to success but I guess I still need more perfection in draining all the oil first. The tip of using powder sugar is also what will help me in the future. Will update here when I do it but I am not making it so soon.

Give it a try. I think you will adore this one.

It is easy to make and will be definite a hit at any party. This is a one helluva starter.

Mainland China's Awesome Oriental Flavors

And Meeting A Friend After 15yrs.

It was a Thu evening, I got a message from my schoolmate, Shalaka suggesting a dine out. I was thrilled. Memories came back flashing. The last time I met her was on the Kalina Campus, Mumbai University while both of us were doing our post grads way back in the early nineties.

After a long silence that life brings in when we chase other things, we got back in touch through the social media. It is such a phenomena, last year most of my classmates met online and all the time gone by melted away the distance. We were clued in on everyone's life and happenings. Sharing our happiness and sadness. It was now time to meet up in person and they did in Dec. I missed it, got cursed for not attending. So this was my chance to meet up a classmate after ages.

We met at at MG road and decide to go Mainland China which is on Church Street. I always loved Mainland China. The Saki Naka location was a favorite place for lunch with clients in my younger days. We agreed food was only a "Bahana" but it had to be good for the two foodies.

Well once we were in the cozy first floor of the restaurant we settled in a corner. Shalaka filled me in on the Dec lunch out with classmates slowly moving towards family and kids. We exchanged notes, I got a lot of good advice from her.

We instructed the hotel staff to give us time and not to disturb us. So while we munched on the Khimchi and the salads we ordered the soups. Sweetcorn for her and hot and sour for me. I was so excited that it was after a long time food was not the focus for me that evening. I barely had 1/4 of the soup. Shalaka loves Crackling Spinach and so do I. As the plate was brought I loved the little pastry basket filled with the crumbled deep fried spinach speckled with white sesame seeds. It was superlative. You have never tasted spinach tasting so good. The sweet, salty spinach crumbling in the mouth is a must at Mainland China. The main course was American Chopsuey. The balanced flavors sweet, tangy, saucy with fried noodles was enjoyed with loads of veggies in it.

Lastly it was time for dessert, she is not a dessert person I found out. Yet she made sure I had my favorite Fried honey noodles with almond flakes accompanied with vanilla icecream.

As we wiped off our dessert got a call from home. I looked at the watch it was 11 pm. Saw her off at the hotel wished good night and warned her from staying on the net too long. It was late already and returned home at around 12pm. It was a first since I came to Blr.

As always the service was good at the restaurant. The staff is courteous yet non interfering.

The restaurant had low lights and I was not carrying my digicam so avoided taking pictures of the food on the cell. May be another time. Yes but for memories sake we took pictures of both of us under the streetlights to share our excitement with our friends.

Veg Biryani, No Onion No Garlic

Most times people associate Biryani with that flavor called "VashaT" in Marathi. To prove them wrong I made this Veg Biryani. No onion, No garlic!

It is a veg biryani made from pantry staples. It is quite quick to make. Unlike my healthy low oil style of cooking this one is about lot of fried veggies.

Ingredients

1.5 cups Basmati Rice
1/ cup cauliflower
1/2 cup green peas
1/4 cup diced paneer
2 small potatoes
1.5 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1 handful of cashew nuts
1 handful of golden raisins
2 tablespoon oil
1/2 cup curd
salt to taste

Wash Basmati rice and clean. Cook it with 2.5 cups water in a pressure cooker. Allow a single whistle. Put off heat. Once it is cooled open the cooker and remove the cooked rice on a tray. Let is cool further and then fluff it up with a fork. This should be done with a light hand to avoid breaking the long grains of rice.

Then in a wok heat oil. Fry the cauliflower till golden remove in a plate. Then cut the washed potatoes into wedges. Fry them till golden. Keep aside. Now it is the peas, fry till the green color intensifies. Add the cashews and raisins. Mix in the garam masala and the red chili powder. Cook for 5 mins. Now add the diced paneer. Cook another 5 mins till masala coats the paneer. Now mix in the fried potatoes and cauliflower. Lastly add the curd and salt and cook for another 5 mins. You will see the oil separates at this point. Put off the heat.

Finally to plate the Veg Biryani, layer out the cooked Basmati rice on a serving tray. Follow in by a layer of the Curried vegetables. On top another layer of rice and now the fourth one is again a vegetable layer.

This vegetable biryani tastes spicy without even a remote reference to "VashaT". Actually this could be called a Jain style cooking.

Mixing the curried vegetables into the rice delicately the wafts of basmati makes the bowl inviting. The cashews lend the nutty and raisins a sweet note to the rice.

Bal do try it. I have avoided whole spices in this one and used garam masala so cooking is a breeze for you.

Weekend dinner: Veg Biryani with Potato papads and Mango milkshake

Penne In Arrabiata

Penne in Arrabiata and Knorr's Vegetable Hara Bhara soup

We are not a Pasta loving family. Pasta is made on days we want a change without much fanfare. Penne Arrabiata is the most dependable recipe. Nothing goes wrong with this one. Posting it for Hrushi who is caught in the harsh winter in England.

This is simple to make. A fool proof recipe just right for a bachelor.

Ingredients

2 cups uncooked Penne pasta
4 large tomatoes
4 onions
1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
1 teaspoon dried Basil or fresh as much as you like
salt to taste
3 teaspoons Olive oil
and
cheese (I used cheddar)

First cook the Pasta al dente (slightly undercooked) or phaphadit as we say in Marathi. You will need to cook the pasta in about four cups of water. Once the pasta is plump drain the extra water. Add cold water and drain it again. Leave just a little bit of water in it at the bottom so it does not stick to the vessel.

Now get to making the sauce. Start by cutting the onions. Fry them till translucent in the Olive oil. Cut up the tomatoes in chunks. Add them and fry them along with the onions. Cook them down until really mushy soft. Add the salt, basil and give it a stir. Now add the cooked pasta along with the saved liquid. Cook for 5 mins, tossing intermittently. If you find it difficult to toss use a fork to mix gently.

Serve in a deep plate, spoon the sauce over it. Grate the cheese on it in generous amounts. I used cheddar. Use whatever type you have. Even paneer crumbled over it is yummy. Eat it immediately.

Tip:
If you want to freeze pasta. Always and always freeze cooked pasta separately. Make sauce in large amount and store separately. Do this prep on the weekend. When you are back from work tired and hungry remove as much cooked pasta as you need in a sauce pan. Add the sauce and 1/2 cup water to give it more sauciness. Mix and heat. Enjoy it hot while you catch up with the day's news.

Let your Amygdala be hijacked

Hello everyone.

Thank you for all your support through the last 13 days. Last couple of weeks were exactly about what life is, a mixed bag. Loss and gain. Lost my Aaji and another. Met my classmate, Shalaka after 15 years. Got a long distance call from my best friend Ambrish after 6 years. It was wonderful talking to old friends.

So now as I comeback on this blog I owe you a smile. Recipes of the food kind will follow tomorrow but today it is the recipe for a life.

I was bantering over lunch with a colleague. He asked me, "How did that happen? You are such a level headed person! Then?"

I was amused how people considered me to be such a level headed person. Ok, I analyse, reason out and try to get answers but let me share a secret, many times my decisions are influenced by emotions. Now who said emotional decisions are bad. Especially when it comes to relationships and by that I don't just mean love. Plus I am a woman, so what you read is right, I have the birth right to emotional decisions. We play safe, when relationships fail we can always blame on emotions, now is that not intelligent!

Then I sat him down to explain to him the advantages of emotional decisions. I said, "Let the Amygdala be hijacked." He was taken aback and visibly disturbed. Now what was this woman talking about he wondered loudly. He pushed himself back on the straight backed, moulded chair in the cafeteria trying to relax himself as he prepared for some gyan. I could see he was looking for a halo around my head.

I went on to dissipate some, Amygdala are 2 almond shaped glands in the medial temporal lobes of the brain. They store the memories of emotional events, learning is enhanced by accumulation of such information over a period of time. When we face similar situations again our response is based on the processing done by the Amygdala. When you face an intense emotion the blood supply to the Amygdala is cut off. An intelligent response is blocked. This is called Amygdala hijack. Reasoning is blown into the wind. The decisions we take during this hijack are foolish because they lack the input of caution from our brain. You do what you would not have done in a normal situation when you base your decisions on analysis.

In return you are rewarded by a bumper of similar responses from another person who's Amygdala is hijacked and then follows a series of acts that try to cover up for the foolish acts with more foolish ones. One enjoys the ride. So let the Amygdala be hijacked :)!

Then one day you can sit down and laugh about it. Life would be so boring if we did everything after analysis wouldn't it?

People say, to be able to by-pass the Amygdala hijack is sign of a successful leader. But then you don't want to be a leader everywhere. Atleast I don't.

That is EI or Emotional intelligence for the uninitiated.

Disclaimer: This is a piece of art and references to any one are purely a coincidence.

Silence

Never the spirit was born; the spirit shall cease to be never;Never was time it was not; End and Beginning are dreams!Birthless and deathless and changeless remaineth the spirit for ever;Death hath not touched it at all, dead though the house of it seems! Who knoweth it exhaustless, self-sustained,Immortal, indestructible,shall such. Say, I have killed a man, or caused to kill? Nay, but as when one layeth His worn-out robes away, And, taking new ones, sayeth,These will I wear to-day! So putteth by the spirit Lightly its garb of flesh, And passeth to inherit A residence afresh.

-Bhagavad Gita

Aaji passed away today at 10 am at her home in Thal.

I will maintain silence on this blog for 13 days.

This blog owes its popularity entirely to Aaji.

Sankrant Thali From The Neighbors

A Thali brought over by my Neighbor aunty consisted of Ellu Bella, Avarekai Usli, Lemon rice, Sweet Pongal along with sugar cane and bananas. Even this Thali failed to cheer me up. In the afternoon she sent a platter of onions bhajjis too.

My Sankrant was not too good to put it mildly. So you saw no wishes here. I got some bad news. One very personal and the other about my only Aaji alive now. She must be about 80 plus. You all know by her kitchen, got a paralytic stroke. [Koli Kitchen (Thal Part I)] She is under treatment. I am not able to visit her immediately but she is surrounded by all her loved ones. Though she had no kids of her own she has invested enough love in all her nephews and grandchildren enough to take good care of her. Am praying she gains consciousness soon.

I did not make anything for this Sankrant. This thali fed us at 2 meal times. I wanted to just keep to myself but yet just went about attending to visitors with pain in my heart trying not to show it on my face.

Vegetable Sizzler

Sunday Supper: Vegetable Sizzler and Fruits in Custard Sauce

Recently some of my friends who don't live in India now, were discussing about Kobe sizzlers on our virtual adda. It brought back memories of going all the way to Opera House to eat at Kobe. I used to love the Veg Shashlik, found the name very fancy.

Then about couple of years ago we enjoyed a veg sizzler at Total Mall in Blr. This recipe is the recreation at home. I would have loved to own a sizzler plate. Right now I don't have it so served it straight from the frying pan. It did not keep sizzling all through the eat.

The recipe requires elaborate preparations. The steak in the sizzler is a large vegetable cutlet. Once that is ready putting together a sizzler is easy n quick. Sizzlers are actually simple food just roasted and served with a interesting sauce yet they are one of the expensive fast foods. The reason for this is that the cooking creates a lot of smoke and in the cities due to the unavailability of good open spaces for these specialty restaurants they are set up in congested area that require a hitech ventilation system. Besides this since it is trendy food the hype value. At home it cost only a third to prepare a sizzler.

Ingredients

For the vegetable roast
2 carrots
4 small eggplants
2 capsicums
8 button mushrooms

For the fresh Salad
2 large onions
2 large tomatoes
4 leaves of cabbage

For the sauce
1 cups tomato ketchup
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce (optional)

For the vegetable steak
Follow the Suran Cutlets recipe. You can also add potatoes and peas to the cutlet dough. Else if you have your own cutlet recipe follow that.

Once the cutlet dough is ready. Shape the vegetable steak like seen here. Shallow fry in Olive oil.

You can either shred them or slice them on the V-slicer. Roast them on high heat in a frying pan with olive oil till carrot are slightly caramelized and the eggplants are soft.

Now place the Cabbage leaves in the serving plate. On the bed of cabbage leaves place the onion and tomato slices. Put roasted vegetables on it divide them in the two platters. Heat the vegetable steak again and place it on the roasted veggies, one in each plate. Use salt sprinkler to add as much salt as you like.

Meanwhile in a bowl mix together the items in the sauce list and heat. In the microwave you can do it quickly. Pour it over the platters you have made ready.

Enjoy the Sizzlers at home!

I had frozen some fruits (Orange, apple, grapes, chickoo) in custard sauce for dessert. So this meal was definitely a special treat for us.

Fruity Sasam

Lipsmacking! Sweet, Sour, Pungent and Salty. Why should it not taste delicious. The fruity fresh sasam is such a traditional salad in Konkani cuisine.

We enjoyed this with Dalitoy and Steamed rice, plain and simple. Clean fresh flavors.

I had heard a lot about sasam but got the first tasting only in Mridula's Wedding. We Koli's make Kairichi Amti but then the star there is raw mango as the name suggests. Here in the sasam it is ripe mango. I love ripe mango so much that we always have it straight, no fuss. At the most as aamras and BTW just the pulp, no extra sugar, elaichi, tup for me in my aamras. That was unlike a Maharashtrian.

Last week I saw a can of mango pulp. Believe it or not this is the first time I am tasting canned mango pulp. That itself is breaking of the ceiling for me. Once before I had tasted canned pineapple and had resolved to eat fruit only in the freshest form. Cans were out. Then life changes and I eat my words.

Well with a canned mango pulp now in the fridge I had to make something special. The can does not mention Alphonso mango, so I feel guilty of using it for something other than eating it plain but plain canned pulp does not taste the same as fresh.

So I set out to try sasam. I followed the recipe from one of my favorite blog Food for thought. I also want to pull out Ashwini from blog slumber. I loved the recipe. but I did not give it a tempering like she does. Also I noted that the sasam in Mridula's wedding was more pungent with mustard paste. The mustard fights for stardom with the tropical fruits like mango and pineapple. Also since I used pulp this kinda gave it a slightly gooey consistency.

Ingredients

1 cup ripe mango pulp
1 cup pineapple cubes
1/2 cup purple grapes

For the paste

1 green chilli chopped fine
1 teaspoon jaggery
salt to taste
3-4 tbsp coconut, grated
1-2 dry red chillies
1 tsp mustard seeds (I need more so have adjusted this to a point of reference)

The lazy me. I take a short cut. I grind all those ingredients into a coarse paste.

In a big bowl mix all the fruits and mango pulp along with the above ground paste. Adjust the salt. Keep it low on salt to get the jaggery taste to stand out.

Its ready for a slurp. Sunny flavors in the midst of winter months is good for the moods.

Usal Puri

Usal with a squeeze of lemon OR splash of sweet Tamarind Chutney

When we lived in Fort going to Thal meant either taking the ferry to Revas from Bhaucha dhakka or taking the State Transport Bus from Parel ST Depot. Those days it took 4 hrs to reach to Thal. Either ways we had to change mode of transport or vehicle. At such times waiting at the Revas Bus stand or Alibag Bus depot was not the easiest thing to do, it was completely idlylic. The small little eatery at Revas or the Alibag ST canteen made life interesting.

Both the places served tasty Usal Puri or Alibag's Poori Bhaaji. Like in the North India Chole Puri is a rustic breakfast, it takes the avatar of Poori Saagu in the South. In Maharashtra it is the Vatana Usal. Soemtimes served with Poori or Pao. In and around Alibag I have seen it is served as in my platter. The Usal in a bowl with potato bhaji scoop in the middle with a simple salad of onions, cilantro and green chilies and a quarter of a lemon. At my home Dad loves to give this dish his touch with a splash of sweet tamarind chutney, an influence from his Bhaiya (UPites) neighbors in our Colaba home.

For a long time I have been be contemplating about making this Combo meal for breakfast. It is a meal associated with my Dad's childhood and youngster days. It was to them what Pizza and Chinese is to my generation. They rarely had the pocket money to eat at the only eatery in the village. Yet when he started going to junior college in Alibag, he saved money to eat Poori bhaji or Usal Pao. This later was replaced by Rumble Tumble on Toast and Caramel custard at the Irani hotels in Colaba when he started working in Mumbai.

Now making this for breakfast meant full preparation to be made the day before. Potatoes were bolied along with Dal and rice in the pressure cooker and frozen for use the next morning. The dried green peas were soaked in water in the afternoon and over the night to make it easy for cooking and we would require a mushy Usal. Also while making the last nights chapatis made some extra tight dough for the Puris. Even with this kind of preparation I would still need an hour to put together the breakfast at the final stage.

So today the day began with pressure cooking the green vatana, making the yellow potato bhaaji. Then cleaned the home had bath and then went back to cutting the vegetables to give the final touches. While I was gone for bath. Dad got excited with the smells and went to check out in the kitchen what I was making for breakfast. Seeing the preps he did some thing and I did not have a clue.

I came back and got everything ready, took pictures and finally was settling down to eat with Dad. He sprung a surprise! He had made his favorite sweet tamarind chutney. Between mouthfuls he was saying, "You have made this the first time after we came to Bangalore." Gosh yes we were having this breakfast after almost 5 years. I was teasing Dad that he seemed to be excited about breakfast of Usal Puri today, he actually preferred Usal Pao he said, "I love to soak up the Pao in it, every morsel." But Baba you have to have our Mumbai Pao for it not these buns we get in Blr. We both agreed and enjoyed heartily the Usal Puri.

If it interests you try it out, you will not regret the sweating required for it.

Ingredients

For the Vatana usal

1/2 cup dried green peas/ Hirve Vatane

Wash and soak in lot of water. Start in the afternoon of the day before of this breakfast.

Next morning

2 onions chopped fine
1 green chili chopped
2 tomatoes chopped
2 teaspoons sambhar powder/ Goda masala
8- 10 curry leaves
handful chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon oil
salt to taste

Pressure cook the soaked Vatane to mushiness. I covered the Vatane with enough water and allowed 6-8 whistles.

Heat the oil. Fry onions till pink. Add the tomatoes. Add the green chili and sambhar powder. Cook down to a paste. Pour the cooked Vatane into it. The consistency of this curry is pourable to watery depending on how you like it. Today the Usal was planned to be served with Puri so I made it such as to be slurped with the Puri not to watery. However with Pao watery one is prefered. The salt needs to go in to make the effort enjoyable, do it your style. Let it boil.

The Potato Bhaaji is so common that I feel it does not need a recipe but without it this post cannot be complete.

For the Potato Bhaaji

1 tablespoon of oil
4 potatoes diced
1 teaspoon mustard
1/4 teaspoon asafoetida
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
salt to taste

Heat the oil. Splutter the mustard seeds, sprinkle the asafoetida and the turmeric. Mix in the diced potatoes. Cover and cook for 5 mins.

For Sweet Tamarind Chutney

1 lemon sized ball of tamarind
2 lemon sized balls of jaggery
1/4 teaspoon salt

In a bowl heat water. Add to it the tamarind, jaggery and salt and bring to a boil. Put off the heat and after cooling, squeeze out the extract. Strain to remove fibers and shell of tamarind.

Onion cilantro salad

Chop onions fine. Do the same with fresh cilantro. Fine chop a green chili. Mix all this together with a little salt. This has to served on the side.

Serving Directions

In a plate place a shallow bowl ladle out the Usal. Scoop up some potato bhaaji and drop it in the center of the bowl. Now serve on left handside hot ballooned Puris. On the right handside serve the onion salad and a wedge of fresh lemon. Place the tamarind chutney in a bowl on the side. Those who like it might want to splash it on the Usal.

Eating directions

With your fingers top the Usal and Potato bowl with the onion salad. Squeeze the lemon over it. Mix with your fingers mashing the potatoes into the usal. The blending of the sour and starchy goodness makes it so yum and therapeutic, you stop to experience it just for a while. If adding sweet chutney do it after this mixing to enjoy the different taste between morsels. Now tear a small piece of the Puri and scoop up the Usal and put it straight into the salivating mouth. I cannot imagine not using my fingers for this. I might switch to a spoon only after the mixing. Some food are such the tactile indulgence is a must.

A closing note...

When one is happy then one feels like making lengthy meals. Once in a while, we all need assurance that people in our life value us. Communication is so important. It has made me so calm and gives more strength to face life. All of a sudden all the problems seem to have vanished. Those of you who find it difficult to communicate please reassure your feelings to your loved ones. Don't imagine that people understand what's on your mind. Speak it out, that is why we have a language, say it in words.

As for me I am awaiting some special time... "a different platform" ;) !

Tondli Chana Dal Bhaaji

I am an intuitive cook and sometimes a simple bhaji turns out so good that it has to be put on this space.

The chana dal and coconut compliments the tondli really well. This is not a pairing I am used to. Some experimentation makes the everyday food so exciting. Since it is simple and salad like I enjoyed one large helping of the bhaaji in my lunch box with 2 phulkas.

Ingredients

1/4 kg Tondli/ Ivy gourd
1/4 cup chana dal, soaked overnight
1 heaped tablespoon grated fresh coconut
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
2 teaspoons oil
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1 green chili chopped

Clean and cut the tondli into lengthwise slits. Wash the chana dal which was soaked overnight.

Now heat the oil. Make a seasoning with mustard seeds. On crackling, add the ivy gourd and chana dal and give it a stir. Let is cook with lid on for 5 mins. Remove lid, add 1/2 cup water and turmeric powder, red chili powder, chopped green chilies etc. Cook till soft. It took me about 20 mins. Remove the lid. Mix in the grated coconut.

Eat it with any kind of roti or just as a single bowl meal.

VFM Thali At Adiga's

Anticlockwise: Ash gourd sambhar, Rasam, Bhendi stir fry with coconut, Peas n potato kurma, 3 Puris, Curd rice, pickle, coconut chutney, a big bowl of steamed rice and Papad.

Venue: Adiga's at Ground floor, Total Mall, Madivala, Blr.
Price: Rs. 35

I had become picky after the fever and cough n cold. One time I had sugar doughnut and coffee for lunch. On 2 consecutive days I went to the cafeteria saw the display and came back without eating. That's when I enjoyed this meal. Dhano Rani was not around to give me company for the lunches of fruit salad and juice. So went down to Adiga's for a late lunch. Brooded over this VFM thali followed by a dose of filter coffee as I could not afford a siesta on a work day. Got back to my world of a keyboard jockey.

Not much of ambience but can say it is a clean Udipi hotel.

Pithlavun Bhendi

Crispy yummy lady fingers

When you are not in a mood for gravies and dals, this recipe is really good. It is dry and non messy making it good for packed lunches or travel food. We love to make chapati packets with these Bhendi as stuffing.

Pithlavun Bhendi means Bhendi made with coating of flour. The flour here is chickpea flour/ besan. There is also a bit of ground nut powder to add to the nuttiness.

This post has been in the draft for more than a year. Finally seeing the daylight.

Ingredients

1/4 kg Bhendi/ lady's finger
1/4 cup chickpea flour/ besan
1 tablespoon ground nut powder
salt to taste
1/4 teaspoon amchur powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
2 tablespoons oil
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon asafoetida

Prepare the lady's finger. Wash and wipe dry every pod. Cut of the calyx and the tip. Give a slit lengthwise to get a pocket you can stuff. Keep aside.

Now mix together all the spices, peanut powder and besan along with salt. Stuff this into the lady's fingers.

Heat oil, splutter mustard seeds, follow in with asafoetida. Add the stuffed lady's fingers. Keep mixing with spatula to avoid stickiness. After 10 mins of cooking cover with lid. Remove lid after 5 mins. Add more oil if you find it getting dry. I don't mind the drying out. Fry till golden and crisp.

Kamat Lokaruchi, A Karnataka Rural Theme

On Sunday we visited Janapada Loka and the obvious choice for lunch was the Kamat Lokaruchi which is separated only by a wire compound.

After reading Voyager's post it had been in our conversations many times. I was keen on visiting Janapada Loka and enjoying a Sunday meal there. It is about 44 kms from my home so it was ideal for a lazy day, giving us the flexibility to leave home post breakfast and the convenience of enjoying the lunch at the Lokaruchi after a treat of the folk world.

Anyone who does this trip should infact drive straight into Kamat, park the vehicle there and then go next door.

You have read about Kamat's at Bugle Rock is my earlier post. The food is almost the same in both the places. I am talking about the Yelle Oota which we love. So this post will focus on the ambience and service instead.

In keeping with it neighboring Janapada Loka, Lokaruchi has succeeded in blending with the environment. They have taken the Janapada Loka experience to a different level. The stone and brick huts with thatched roofs makes it so authentic. There are many small huts and large dinning halls to choose from. The free roaming geese, quacking by, the monkeys from the woods being fed by the staff from time to time makes it such a wonderful experience. The staff in their Dhoti kurta and Nehru cap all complimented the rural theme.

There is a choice of North Karnataka meal and a Karavali meal. We almost instantly fell for the North Karnataka meal seeing hot Jolad roti/ Jwarichi bhakari being roasted in the centrally located open kitchen. You can watch them pat the roti with deft movements and enjoy the sounds and smells. I bet your hunger pangs grow intense and you rush to occupy the nearest available table.

Jolad roti, Pithla, Chana masala, Soppina Dal and the usual papad, raita and chutneys and the rice with sambhar, rasam and Majjige (buttermilk) downers

The Karavali meal had shevage. You even get to see the shevage made using a mechanical press. They also have other stuff like Akki roti etc. We ordered for Kai holige (Coconut Poli) separately. The food like all the Kamat restaurants was dependable.

Yet if I have to rate the service, I would say it requires improvement. Our experience at Bugle rock has always been good. The waiters are always attentive. Not at Lokaruchi though. There is a lot of rush and that has taken a toll on the service. We had to hail waiters for everything we needed. So we ate less. As usual the meal closed with a banana and a pan tray was kept to help yourself. You see the bunch of bananas hung there, they even let you pluck it for your self.

I love the premade pan at Bugle rock. We obviously went back and forth with the comparisons of the two locations. I did not feel really thrilled about Lokaruchi's service. Hence it misses top scores. Next time if I stop at Lokaruchi I'll try the other stuff other than the tempting Yelle Oota.

There was the sweet shop that caught my attention. It had several north karnataka style snacks but what interested me was the Ragi Nipattu and the Dink ladoo. They were the fastest moving items there. Then enroute we went to Ramohalli to see The Big Banyan Tree and reached home at tea time. We enjoyed the snacks we bought at Kamat's Lokaruchi with steaming hot cups of pepper tea. The Ragi Nipattu were crunchy and the Dink ladoo smelt divine of jaggery and ghee. You could feel the freshness of the rolly pollys.

The entire day right from the folk world at Janapada Loka, the lunch, the drive to the Big Banyan Tree and the evening snacks completed our Rural Karnataka experience. The best part was we loved the proximity of these places to our home. We were cut off from the city life in a little more than an hour, were not tired by the travel and felt fresh and all set for a new work week on return. Bangalore offers so much to see in and around. It has been 4.5 yrs and am still exploring. Food and travel makes me a happy person. I'm loving it!

Valpapdi Ma Dhokli

Written sometime in the last week...

I just had a most satisfying lunch of Valpapdi ma dhokli with Ghadichi PoLi. Those Gujju flavors do something to me. A boring day at work gets spiced up. Everyone is still on Christmas leave and not much to work on. My lunch has been fruit salad and juice for sometime now. This chill weather makes me want something really comforting and the cafeterias on my campus don't have much. One day I gave way to a huge Latte and sugar doughnut for lunch. The next day I knew I should carry food from home.

Dad had kept the Valpapdi cleaned and destringed, ready for use. On previous 2 days potatoes gave company to bhendi and gavar so Valpapdi would not go with them. I recollected Jugalbandits recipe of Fansi Dhokli (French beans with spiced dumplings). Since it was a work day morning and my laptop was packed into my bag. I went ahead and cooked from memory.

This is what I did...

Ingredients

For the Shaak
1/4 kg Valpapdi beans/ field beans
1 onion chopped
2 tomatoes chopped
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon crushed jaggery
salt to taste
2 teaspoons oil

For the Dhokli

A small ball of chapati dough
1 teaspoon ajwain/ caraway seeds

I had made chapati dough ready so took a small ball about one chapati ball. Mixed the ajwain in it. I did not add any other spices or seasonings to it. Rolled it into a rope and diced into bits.

Then went around making my usual Valpapdi with onions and tomatoes. First heated the oil. Fried the onions to translucency. The Valpapdi followed in. The dhoklis went in after a couple of minutes after the Valpapdi. Stirred well let it cook for 5 mins. As the veggies got dryer sprinkled some water about 1/4 cup. The jaggery had to be added in generous amounts about 1 teaspoon for a 1/4 kg Valpapdi. Covered the pan and let it cook till the dhoklis looked glazed and the Valpapdi felt tender. Mixed in the salt, red chili powder, turmeric, coriander powder. Covered and cooked for another 8-10 mins.

Done. Offered to God along with Ghadichi poli. Packed a box for lunch.

Just stopped swooning after lunch. Clearly the ajwain dhokli is the star performer in this Valpapdi.

Mushroom Dhansak On Brown Rice

A Parsi meal: Mushroom Dhansak on Brown rice and Caramel custard

There are many Dhansak recipe out there on the internet but this time I cooked from my most dependable source, "Annapoorna" by Mangala Barve.

The age tells it all, this is the only cook book in my possession and that too was gifted to me on my 14th Birthday.

Today's post is Not a recipe. Just wanted to share pictures of the year end meal of 2009 and my source of inspiration to cook in all these years.

I don't buy cook books. At one time I had a load of Femina issues which I found needed to be disposed for lack of space, their food photos were stylish. There are still a lot of e-cookbook which I don't even look at but keep hoarding. My go to place for recipes almost everyday is the blogs generously shared by ordinary people like me and you. That is the kind of food I like, mostly home-style sometimes flamboyant restaraunt style.

I hope to bring to you some really interesting posts this year about my Koli community. Wish me luck and keep visiting.