Achari Aloo

Cook in haste and repent, err, eat, at leisure.

Almost all my meals are express meals. I mean, when you travel 75 minutes or more one way, work for at least 9 hours and then trudge back, and you like to have decent meals on the table, you enjoy cooking, and you have a food blog over and above all that. How can any meal be leisurely (in terms of preparation)? And no, you don't have a cook.

To top it all, when I'd spent a lazy Saturday doing almost nothing, except for attempting some masala buns, S and I decided to invite our good friends over for dinner. So, there I was. With almost no vegetables in the fridge, definitely no time on hand and friends visiting. I made something simple for dinner. Really simple. And as I figured, I was able to whip up an entire meal in just about 30 minutes. So, this goes to Mallugirl’s Express Cooking challenge.

I have the luxury of owning a double storey 4 burner stove and 5 pressure cookers and pans. But please remember that we don't as yet own a dining table and our apartment has a really really small kitchen. So, while I do the make the most of what I have, managing in the little hole is a tad tough.

My meal for the evening comprised rice, Payatham Paruppu Kuzhambu, a variation of Katrikkai Karumadhu, and this potato experiment. Why did I experiment? Because many people, read that as MANY people, are averse to this lovely versatile vegetable called brinjal/aubergine/eggplant. S and I love it and we have it at least once a week in some form. Fortunately for me, our friends T & B enjoyed the brinjal.

Amchi cuisine has a mixed vegetable side dish called chow chow. Left over pickle gravy, called humman, goes into the gravy making the dish a really spicy one. S and I had the same caterer at our offices when I was working in Gurgaon and she supplied us with achari aloo once in a while. Her dish used the fennel flavoured mango pickle in mustard oil. So, using up old pickles seems to be common. I will try that as well some other time as I do have mango pickle from 2 years ago. Thanks to my friend's mom in Ludhiana.

Last winter, the same friend's mother sent a winter pickle for us. It had carrots, turnips, and cauliflower. It is supposed to be consumed within a short span and does not keep for long. But then, we keep everything for as long as it can be used. And so although we did enjoy the fresh pickle in winter, we continue to have it in the fridge.

I decided to pair this pickle with potatoes and the resultant dish was finger licking good.

Ingredients:

4 Potatoes, peeled or scrubbed well

1 tbsp Oil

1 tsp Cumin Seeds

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder

1/2 tsp Chilli Powder

3 tbsp Dry Pickle

Salt to taste

Chop the potatoes into small cubes.

Heat the oil in a kadhai and add the cumin seeds and asafoetida. When the cumin crackles, add the potato cubes, chilli and turmeric powders. Fry for a few minutes. Add the pickle and salt and cover and cook for 15 minutes.

Enjoy this with rotis or rice and dal.

While the potatoes were shedding their firmness, I set the rice in a cooker. That taken care of, I chopped some long purple brinjals and made a simple brinjal curry. Instead of the elaborate Katrikkai Karumadhu, I made the curry with just chilli and turmeric powders instead of the masala. I threw in some yennai katrikkai podi, that Amma had made for me years ago, towards the end. These brinjals seem to cook very fast and the curry was ready in less than 10 minutes.

When the brinjals were simmering, and, in a pressure pan, proceeded to make the Payatham Paruppu Kuzhambu.Instead of cooking the dal separately and then adding the seasoning, I prepared the seasoning in the pan and added the dal and water to it. This, I pressure cooked in about 5-7 minutes.

My entire meal was ready in just about 30 minutes with no prior preparation. With curd and pickles always available at home, it was a complete meal.

Happy Birthday and a Cake

Well, just as I completed 100 posts and 3 months in the blogging world, it was time to celebrate another 3 event. S completed 3 decades of fun on this planet and we celebrated the day in style. No lavish party or anything, but a little party for two.

I made S's favourite breakfast: an amchi rava dosa called Rulaama Doddak. For lunch, we polished off some reincarnated leftovers. I had the day off (yes, where I work you get paid days off for your spouse's birthday!!) and S left work early. So after a little late lunch, we cut this cake.

I'd been asking around for cake recipes but what I really needed was a frosting recipe. I found a recipe on the Hershey's site and modified it. But although I've been baking for 20 years now, I've hardly frosted any cakes. I made one black forest cake for my brother's 21st birthday and I made a teddy bear cake for my neighbour's grandson when I was in Class 12 I think. I have a long way to go before I master this frosting business. And definitely prefer my cakes to be non frosted. But hey, the husband doesn't turn 30 everyday.

I went back to my tried and tested Ann Pillsbury's Baking Book. And pulled out a tried and tested recipe. And then modified it some.

For the cake:

2 cups Flour

4 tsp Baking Powder

1 1/4 cups Sugar

1 tsp Salt

1/2 cup Oil

2 eggs

1 cup Milk

1 tsp Vanilla

1/4 cup Chocolate chips

Butter and flour for dusting

For the icing:

6 tablespoons butter, softened

1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup Brown Sugar

1/2 cup Cocoa

1/3 cup Milk

1 teaspoon Vanilla

Sift all the dry ingredients for the cake together into a food processor jar with the dough blade. Pour in all the liquid ingredients and run the processor for 2 minutes. Blend in the chocolate chips.

Prepare two 8 inch round cake tins by first smearing a little butter all over the tin and then dust it with flour.

Divide the batter equally between the pans and bake for 30 minutes at 350 F. The cakes are done when a knife or skewer inserted into them comes out clean. Remove the cakes to a cake rack and cool completely.

Cut the tops of the cakes to make them even.

For the icing:

Beat butter in a mixer jar. Add powdered sugar and cocoa alternately with milk; beat to spreading consistency (additional milk may be needed). Stir in vanilla.

Place one cake and pour the icing over it. Place the second cake over this and cover with icing. You may refrigerate the cake to help the icing set.

I found the icing a little too sweet even though I cut down the sugar content from the original recipe. That could be reason why my icing was a little runny. I made some lovely strawberry trifle with the cake leftovers.

All in all, it was a great day. It was the very first time that someone had actually baked S a cake for his birthday and I am so glad that the first time was mine. It made it that much more special. We ended the day at our favourite restaurant: Earth, enjoying some lovely wine, our favourite mushroom starters, an out of this world thin crust pizza and some delicious spinach and corn canneloni.

Happy Birthday Sachin. I love you.

Cheesy Bread Spread

When Jai and Bee made their post for Earth Food with What's wrong with this picture? this is what I wrote in their comments section:

I was taught from my childhood that I must never waste. It’s a lesson that has been valuable. I cook what I need to, use up the leftovers or give them to someone who can utilize them before they go bad. When I made my paneer in white gravy, I took it over to the neighbours for lunch. There was one serving left in my bowl and the lady of the house was about to throw it when I stopped her. I promptly took it back home and Sachin polished it off that evening. There are enough and more hungry people in the world and I can’t believe that in this day and age people waste food. Is it their way of telling the world that they’ve arrived?


I totally believe that that must be the driver. I meet so many people who say, "Oh my husband won't eat leftovers." Or "I never eat the morning's food in the evening." My heart breaks when I see people throw good food away. I've always cleaned up my plate during a meal. I serve myself exactly what I need. Appa always used to say, "You have no idea how fortunate you are. There are so many people out there who don't know if and where their next meal is coming from.

If each of us was to say that "Save the World" is a campaign that is meant for the big people and not us, our Earth is going to suffer. It is up to us to do the little things that add up to become the big thing. How do I try? By consuming only what I need, trying not to waste, taking the bus instead of driving, giving to charity not what I don't need or can't use, but what the recipient can actually use, buying fresh produce from the local markets, and so on and so forth. It is whatever I can do to make this place a better place to live in. Be it by helping the earth itself, or the people who live in it.

• I cook rice in a pressure cooker so I don't waste excessive water.


• If I've cooked dal or a vegetable with more water than I should have, I use the water in my cooking.


• I try and consume whole fruits and don't discard the peel as far as possible.


• I use milk cream (even the little bits sticking to the sides of the vessel) either in my cooking or I make butter and buttermilk out of it.

And having grown up in Madras with acute water shortage:

• I continue to take a bath with half a bucket of water.


• I don't leave the tap running while I am brushing my teeth.

I keep all windows at home open and try not to use the AC too much.

Eating out is something we take for granted these days. While growing up, we had very few restaurants and having lived inside the IIT campus meant that you had to go outside the campus if you wanted to eat out. And that WAS a big deal.

While I do cook at home most of the time, I must admit that eating out is one of my weaknesses. Be it chat on the roadside, finger food at a lounge or a proper meal at an Italian restaurant, I simply love it.

In the last ten years, ever since I left home, I have been careful with my money to the extent possible. (Even then India Today interviewed us about money issues and told the world that we have only Rs. 189 in our joint account. News that shocked my family more than anyone else.) Eating out, though often, meant that I'd bring any leftovers back with me. I'd either consume the stuff, or give it away. But I can't remember having wasted food.

This is my entry to Meeta's Monthly Mingle.

After an entire week of Eating out while eating in, we were probably tired of it. We wanted to also celebrate ten months of being married. So we ordered some food. The lady who took our order sensed excitement in our voices and told us she'd throw in a little extra subji as a compliment because if we ordered an entire serving, it would be too much for the two of us.

When the delivery boy came, we had a huge packet. We enjoyed the meal of lacchha paratha, naan, achari aloo, paneer tikka and dal makhni. The leftovers were finished over the next day. But she also sent us pickled onions and some green chutney. S's foot was really bad at the time and while I was clearing up, his foot topped the green chutney container. We managed to put away everything else. I didn't know what to do with pickled onions though. I was worried that they'd pass on their fragrance to the other stuff sitting in the fridge.

A couple of days later, I had a very good idea when I was beginning to clear the fridge in preparation of our trip to Manali. It was time for breakfast and I was browsing through the contents of my dearest companion. This is what we had for breakfast that morning.

Ingredients:

1 Tomato, chopped

2-3 pickled Onions, chopped

2 pods Garlic

1 cube Cheese

1 tsp Olive Oil

1 tsp Chilli Flakes

Salt to taste

Combine all the ingredients in a mixer jar and grind to a semi-smooth paste. Spread this over toast for a quick breakfast.

I think I could also add a little milk or water to this and make it a cheesy dip. The flavours blend in really well and the breakfast was neither too sour, nor sweet. It wasn't bland nor spicy. As they say, it was just right!

Paruppu Urundai (Dal Dumplings) - And a milestone

This is a very special post. Special because it is the third part of the trilogy featuring Milagu Kuzhambu and Milagu Rasam.


Why is the number 3 special? Why a trilogy? Why, why, you ask?

Because today, my food blog turns three. No, not three years, but three months.

So, it had to be a special post. And quite like I'd predicted in Asha's blog, this is my 100th post. This wasn't planned, but boy am I glad it worked out this way.

So, to celebrate my 100th post on the day my blog turns three months, I present to you THE dish that is simple, exotic, comforting and special, all at once.

Ingredients:

1 cup Toor Dal, soaked for 4 hours

1 tsp Chilli Powder

1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder

1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds

1/2 tsp Urad Dal

7-8 Curry Leaves

1/4 tsp Asafoetida

A little rice flour

You will also need 1 recipe of Milagu Rasam to proceed.

Grind the toor dal to a fine paste. Add salt, chilli powder and turmeric powder and blend well into the dal paste.

Heat oil in a kadhai and add the urad dal. When the dal turns brown, add the mustard seeds. When they splutter, add the curry leaves and asafoetida. Add the dal paste and fry until the colour changes. (It will be sticky, but won't look raw anymore. The mixture should not be as dry as the one made for paruppu usli.) Cool this mixture.

Make small balls of this mixture using a little rice flour to bind the mixture. (As demonstrated by Amma in the picture below.)

Drop these dumplings in boiling Milagu Rasam and cook for 5-7 minutes. Remove carefully.

To proceed, take a little rice on a plate. Place a dumpling on the rice and break it. Mix these two items thoroughly. Pour a little Milagu Kuzhambu on the side. Take a little bit of the rice and paruppu urundai mixture, dip it in the Milagu Kuzhambu and eat.

Some things in life have to be super special. A third "monthiversary" of your blog doesn't come everyday. And a 100th post comes but once. I didn't know when I set out on this journey that it would be so eventful. That S would show my food blog off with pride. That I would learn so much, that I'd even cook so much with vegetables and ingredients that intimidated me. But most of all, little did I know that I'd come across the most wonderful bunch of fellow food bloggers. People who are strangers one minute and friends the very next. People who have no idea who I am or where I come from, but have stood by me through these three months that would have otherwise been my worst. People who have given me confidence and encouragement to move ahead, tips to ensure my blogging efforts don't go waste, and above all else, the love and support to come back to this page every single day. You all know who you are and I thank all of you for being you.

Hugs!

Milagu Rasam (Pepper Rasam)

The second post in the "special" trilogy that began with Milagu Kuzhambu. A special rasam for special times. To me, along with the other two, this trio is something I relish and during the most disturbing of times, I can sense that "all is truly well with the world".

But there's something floating in the rasam. What is that? That is my favourite Iyengar dish and you'll come to know what it is and why this trilogy is so special real soon.

Ingredients:

400 ml Dal Water (Use plain water if need be)
2 tbsp Cooked Dal
2-3 large Tomatoes, chopped (even halved)
1 tbsp Rasam Powder
1/4 tsp Asafoetida
1 tbsp Tamarind Paste
1 tsp Pepper, freshly ground
2 tsp Jaggery
Coriander Leaves for garnish
Salt to Taste

For the tempering:

1 tsp Oil or Ghee
1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds
7-8 Curry Leaves

In a vessel, take the dal water and dal and add the asafoetida, salt, pepper, jaggery and rasam powder. Add the tomatoes and tamarind paste of and bring to a boil. Simmer it for 4-5 minutes.

In a small kadhai, heat the oil or ghee, add the mustard seeds, and when they splutter, add the curry leaves.
Add this to the rasam. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Relish this with rice. Or boil some cute little dumplings in this rasam that you can break over the rice and eat with Milagu Kuzhambu. You take your pick and decide!

Milagu Kuzhambu (Pepper Sambar)

Special occasions call for special things. Some exotic, some comforting, but all special. This is one dish that is part of a trio that is very special to me. When I was in Madras, living at home, paneer was a special thing. And then I moved up north and worked at GE. I got lunch everyday and dinner as well depending on my work schedule. And I got paneer almost everyday. After 6 months, I was so sick of it that when I rang home to tell my folks I was going to visit home, I remembered to tell Amma, "No paneer Ma, please."

So, what should she make to make it special? I told her to make one of my all time favourite Iyengar dish and this is something that forms a classic combination with that.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp Urad Dal

1 tsp Pepper Corns

A Handful of Curry Leaves

2-3 Red Chillies

1 tsp Oil

2 tbsp Tamarind Paste (more or less according to taste)

Salt to taste

For the tempering:

1/2 tsp Urad Dal

7-8 Curry Leaves

1 tsp Oil

Heat the oil and fry the urad dal. When it begins to turn brown, add the pepper, curry leaves, red chillies and take it off the stove.

Grind this to a paste in a mixer.

Add water to this paste and bring it to a boil after adding the tamarind paste and salt.

Heat the teaspoon of oil in a small kadhai and add the urad dal. When it turns brown, add the curry leaves and add to the kuzhambu.

I love this preparation with rice and paruppu usli or the other dish which I am about to post. The combination of these three things and rice is like taking a Thalys to heaven.

Tomato Pulao

Rice! I doubt anyone could have been happier with the selection of this ingredient for the Jihva for ingredients started by Indira of Mahanandi and hosted by Sharmi of Neivedyam.


I've not been much of a rice fan. I like variety and love rice only when it takes turns with noodles, pasta, soup, rotis etc arriving on my plate. Give me loads of any one thing only if you want to see/hear me crib for a long time to come.

But then, you can crib and cry all you want when someone else is cooking for you. I'd much rather eat rice than slave over the stove making rotis when I'm the one that has to do the cooking. At times like those, which has been everyday since I left home ten years ago, I can't agree more with Anita of A Mad Tea Party when she says, "Roti is such a job, I tell you. Eat rice instead and you have 12-15 minutes to watch TV, enjoy a drink. Or that cup of tea that you forgot all about!"

So, rice is my saviour. Saves me from toiling over the stove. Saves me the trouble of making 3 dishes. And it is so truly versatile. Whether you're eating it with sambar, rasam, curds, dal or egg curry, as biryani, risotto, paella, puliyodarai... or whether you're just mixing it with paruppu podi or any of the numerous podis your mom packed for you, or if you're enjoying it in its various forms such as idli, dosa, rice upma there is no escaping the impact that rice has on our lives. Anna, though is meant to mean food and hence the phrase "Annadata sukhi bhava", has come to mean rice.

This is something I made last week to clear my fridge of vegetables before we left for Manali. My cousin, Neelu, taught me this recipe when I was still in school and this comes in handy all the time.

Ingredients:

1 cup Basmati Rice
1 cup Mixed vegetables (I used cauliflower, beans, carrots, broccoli)
2 Onions, sliced
2 Tomatoes, chopped
1 tbsp Tomato Puree
1 Cardamom
2 Cloves
2" stick Cinnamon
1 tsp Ginger-Garlic paste
1 tsp Green chilli paste
1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
1/2 tsp Chilli Powder
1 tbsp Oil
Salt to taste


Heat the oil in a pressure pan and fry the onions. When they turn translucent, add the cloves, cardamom and cinnamon stick. Fry for a minute before adding the ginger-garlic and chilli pastes. Fry this for about half a minute and add the chopped tomato, turmeric and chilli powder. Fry for 3-4 minutes. Add the tomato puree, rice, vegetables and saute for a minute and then add salt. Add 1 3/4 cups of hot water and cook for 1-2 whistles.


Enjoy this with some curd or raita. The nicest part about this pulao is that the tomato base ensures you don't need a side dish to go with it. And it tastes good even when cold.

This is my first official entry to the JFI: Rice hosted by Sharmi. My other celebrations of rice have been:

Rice Dishes:

Peas Pulao

Tayir Saadam (Curd Rice)

Tomato Rice

Jeera Rice

Spinach and Corn Rice

Coriander Rice

Coriander Rice Version 2

Mammidikaaya Pulihaara

Vangi Bhat

Items using rice in some form:

Dosa

Batat Phow

Sevai

Egg Dosa

Akki Roti

Tandlya Roti

I look forward to posting many more recipes in the coming weeks.