Panfusine

My 7 year old's most favorite food in the world is a simple broth seasoned with cumin, coriander, curry leaves and tomato. I expressly hesitate calling this 'Rasam' as refers to the traditional South Indian dish, since this was a quick hack version I could whip up in the time it takes to boil water. I add ingredients as I go along if they're within reach, slivers of ginger on one day, crushed peppercorns on some days, a couple of cherry tomatoes. but the barebones recipe is always the same: a mix of cumin, coriander, tuvar dal and arbol chiles prepared every week and left in the coffee grinder. just add it to water, a knob of tamarind , tomato paste, salt, turmeric and a pinch of asafetida. I love adding readymade rice noodles to the mix similar to a Pho, My kid prefers rice.

When I signed up to Oxo's   latest blogger opportunity showcasing their new range of small kitchen appliances, , my initial plan was to make something as simple as Lassi. I even had a name for my blog post - 'Lassi Galore' - obviously because liquid probiotic yogurt  isn't exactly in that glamorous category of beverages like say, a boozy cocktail. All that changed last week at the eleventh hour last weekend, when a group of blogger buddies got together at Anu Rao's  (Allergyfoodie.org) . We were treated to the most elegant dinner (with all the bells and whistles, place settings, matching napkins - the works). The menu, in a delightful ironical twist comprised of dishes from Bihar, an Indian state whose cuisine is unheard of for all practical purposes. And Voila, I found the perfect dish to showcase the new immersion blender from OXO. My old immersion blender is a relic from last century - 19 years to be precise, from my graduate school d...

I'm an ignoramus when it comes to the philosophical complexities of mythology, but the fact is that all these parables are completely applicable to social life as well as the laws of nature, provided you have the fortune of having it interpreted from various frames of reference. If not, all they will remain as, are tales to be amused by for an hour or two before dissipating from the cerebral cortex without ever having the fortune of getting registered as a memory. Even worse, if interpreted by someone with their own personal egoistic agenda, you're finished, what could have been a learning experience turns into a roiling puddle of fear that has the potential to turn into a cesspool of ignorance and hate. And so it is with these nine days of 'Navratri'. To me it represents the spirit and valor of the feminine aspect of nature, the same force that drives a girl to defend herself tooth and nail against those who seek to strip her of her dignity, a mother who would go ...

This is something no self respecting host will ever allow near a guest. No siree.. these are reserved for those lazy days, when the mere mention of cooking induces a severe face scrunch. Its usually paired with refrigerated rice thats been quickly reheated in the microwave along with some papads. It takes about 10 minutes from start to finish. You need: 1 cup yogurt 2 cups water 1 tablespoon garbanzo flour 2 tablespoons sesame oil 1 teaspoon mustard 1 teaspoon Cumin 1 Arbol chile broken in two 1 sprig curry leaves, torn sliced serrano peppers (optional) 1 pinch asafetida Salt to taste Whisk together the yogurt, water, salt & the garbanzo flour, so that there are no lumps. Heat the oil in a pan, and once it begins to shimmer add the mustard, cumin, fenugreek & the arbol chile. When the mustard sputters and the fenugreek and the arbol chile turn brown, toss in the curry leaves, serrano and the asafetida  and give the mixture a quick stir. Pour in the yog...

One of the quirkiest statements I've heard my dad make (& he had his fair share of quirky but true observations about life that never failed to elicit a chuckle or two) was that when he was old and had lost his teeth, he hoped that his fondness for murrukku (a crunchy deep fried savory South Indian snack) was satiated enough  that he wouldn't have to ask anyone to grind up the murrukku in a coffee grinder  to feed him. Its odd that my recipe for this week could be interpreted as exactly that by those who are familiar with the dish in its original form and its deconstruction.

(MOGO: Abbr.for 'Make One Get One') I'm not really all that much into making soups, unless its for a relaxed winter afternoon, curled up in front of the idiot box, watching a mindless movie. It just seems too much work for something that gets slurped up with the speed of a cup of coffee. The bonus that many soups offer is that the same set of veggies used can be literally split up into two dishes, and hence zero waste in terms of ingredients & flavors and its quite a bit of fun to play around with seasonings to get two completely unrelated flavor profiles from a single source. I've shied away from carrots as a soup ingredient long enough, and in the process missed out on that earthy incomparable flavor  touched with a dollop of caramelized sweetness, that somehow annoys me unless I completely smother it with spices. The trick is to balance the tastes to get that incomparable sweet & spicy earthiness that  makes this weeks recipe(s) a complete keeper! ...

  Don't you just love the fact that once the calender gets to September/ October, a flurry of festivals begin cropping up all over the world? In India, its Navratri, followed by Diwali, Kartigai, a South Indian festival that makes its appearance anywhere from 15 days to a month & a half after Diwali coinciding with the full moon in the Indian month of Karthik, I guess it commemorates the harvest moon. Others that come to mind, The Moon Festival celebrated in the Far East,  Halloween , Guy Fawkes day, .. Oh boy, the list could potentially go on and on.    I'm not entirely sure, but it may be due to the colder months & shorter days that mankind found ways of socially celebrating events to keep from the depressive nature of this part of the year.     Back to my own little sphere of a comfort zone, the vegetable I've most commonly come to associate with Fall is the big fat Pumpkin. There's a whole Bubba's list of what one coul...

Have you ever been through those moments where all you want to do is put your feet up, with a nice cup of tea, and a chick flick (or if you're Indian, a nice masala Bollywood offering?), & deeep within your brain runs an exquisitely choreographed simulation of everything falling into place, " The refrigerator automatically ridding itself of expired tins of half used refried beans & crushed tomato (the ones that were just waiting to be used up in a rajma the very next day... except that the next day was a fortnight ago), the kids putting away their books and toys, & happily playing within the deck without running off towards the road or screaming " MOMMIEE, Gubbi's eating the dandelions!!.. "   Screech back to reality.. the house is as chaotic as ever, the tea has gone cold, &  yes, I have to risk a limb (or at least a finger) trying to pry the remains of a crushed yellow weed blossom out of the 2 yr old. Its only later that I realise that dand...

Cranberry Rasam:     Quick post.. ( If only I could get motivated so easily all the time). D from the blog Chefinyou had posted a query about what was to be done when you had excessive cranberries stuck in the freezer, Pat came my over enthu response: Cranberry Rasam.. ( I'd just whipped up some 2 days ago & the broth is a favorite of my 20 month old, so its become a staple)...since I had regurgitated the recipe w/o much effort, second thought s crept in & I decided to validate it since I had 1/2 a bag of frozen cranberries sitting in  the freezer: For this you need: 1/3rd cup cranberries, fresh or frozen 1 tbsp grated orange or tangerine rind 2 tsp Rasam powder A pinch each of turmeric & asafetida Salt to taste 3 cups water 4-5 curry leaves torn, 1 green chilli partially slit vertically Cilantro for garnishing Tempering: 1 tsp ghee 1/2 tsp Cumin seeds  In a microwave safe bowl combine cranberries and 1/2 a cup of wa...