Used Patek’s Tikka Masala paste to make chicken masala for the first time. I followed the recipe on the back of the jar and it came out decent. A bit “tangy” for my taste. Not sure if that was the canned tomatoes, the yogurt or if that’s the paste.
I marinated the chicken in yogurt and masala paste for 3 hours, next time I’m going to do it overnight to see if that mellows out the flavor. I’m also going to cook the onions in butter instead of vegatable oil.

I used the spice mix below to make prawn shrimp masala.

It came out good but since this packet is for prawns which i believe are bigger i need to change the instructions for shrimp.  15-18 min is way to long to cook shrimp.  Next time cut the water to two cups and double the coconut cream to 1/2 cup.  Cook the mix/water for 8 min, add coconut cream and put in the shrimp at the same time.  A sweet vegetable such as carrot or bamboo shoots would work well in this dish.

The spice mixture was good enough that I need to try others that the company sells

Today I love…

1. Browsing books at Crossword

2. Kaali dal + rotis

3. The bright and shiny feeling you get after a good workout

4. Jetlag that translates into me falling asleep at 8pm for 2 nights in a row.

5. Skyping with EC

Paneer Masala

I like looking at cook books, but the Indian cooking ones usually scare me.  The list of ingredients will be long and complicated and some recipes will say something to the effect of “two medium tomatoes” and “one large onion” and “a generous pinch of cumin.” I am unsure of what that means, having had a bad experience or two with such directions in the past.   Invariably my proportion of tomatoes to onions will be completely off, and the overly generous pinch of cumin will have made my food too bitter.  “Spices are supposed to be the seasoning not the main ingredient,” my husband will tactfully remark when he comes home to a rather heavily spiced poorly cooked aloo dum, that tastes even stranger because I’ve tried to add, what I believe to be offsets to the extra cumin and tomatoes, including lots of extra butter and yogurt.   At the other extreme are recipes that spell out 350 grams of potatoes and 200 grams of green beans, and I find these impossible too.  It’s far easier to visualize things in cups and tablespoons than upon a weighing scale.

So when I come across a Paneer Masala recipe that provides directions such as “two cups of tomato puree, one cup of chopped onions and two cups of chopped paneer pieces” in the process of casually flipping through a cookbook, I get very excited because I know that one cup means one beautiful measurable cup.  About 200ml or 237 ml to be more precise.  Clearly the ratio of tomatoes to onions is two to one.   I try out the recipe, it comes out fairly well, and then it gets added to my limited cooking repertoire.  Each time I have to produce a “party dish” or when my paneer-loving younger brother comes to visit, this recipe makes an appearance.  I never have to think.  The key ingredients are easily measurable and the prep and cooking time is under an hour.  I know the taste of the dish will vary based upon the quality of the tomatoes in season or the pungency of the onions.  But by and large, my paneer is always successful, and over time I start changing an ingredient or two here and there, and soon have my own favorite version of Paneer Masala.

Paneer, a pressed Indian home-made cheese, is sold packaged in the refrigerator section of most Indian grocery stores.  What makes this paneer dish really flavorful is the use of a little chopped onions and dried fenugreek leaves, fried separately and added to the dish at the end, along with a tablespoonful of honey (ideas borrowed from the queen bee of Indian vegetarian cooking, Tarla Dalal).   Red chilli powder is optional as I find that my toddler son is far more likely to enjoy the paneer without the chilli.  I also like to finish the gravy and then add the chopped paneer pieces at the end after turning off the flame.  I let the paneer marinate in the gravy, and then reheat thoroughly just before serving.  You can reheat whenever the dish needs to be served, up until the next day.   The paneer will absorb all the flavors of the sauce, and become juicy and succulent.

Paneer Masala

Serves 4

Initial tarka:
2 tbsps clarified butter called ghee
Pieces of whole garam masala: a 1” piece of cinnamon stick, 2 cloves, 2 green cardamom pods, 4-5 black peppercorns, 2 large bayleaves

Wet masala, to be ground to a paste together:
1 ½ cup of onions, 1 cup cut into large chunks and the rest finely diced.  Keep the diced portion aside.
2 tbsps of broken cashew nuts, or 7-8 whole pieces
2-3 cloves of garlic, peeled
1” piece of ginger, peeled

To be added later:
2 cups of tomato puree made from freshly chopped or canned tomatoes

Dry masalas:
½ tsp of garam masala powder
1 tsp of turmeric
½ tsp of cumin powder
1 tbsp of dried fenugreek leaves called kasuri methi
1 tsp of red chilli powder, optional

For the end:
1 tbsp of honey
1 cup of milk
2 cups or 400g/14 oz of paneer, chopped into small pieces
salt to taste

1.  Heat the ghee in a pan on medium heat and when hot, add the pieces of whole garam masala.  After a few seconds of sizzling, add the ground wet masala paste comprised of onions, garlic, ginger and cashew nuts.  Fry until the paste turns medium brown.

2. Add the tomato puree, along with a ½ cup of water.  Add the turmeric and chilli powder (if using) and cook until the oil floats to the surface of the masala.  This will take a while, about 30 minutes.  Stir occasionally to ensure that the paste is cooking evenly.

3. Meanwhile, fry the ½ cup of chopped onions and kasuri methi in a separate pan with a bit of ghee.   Add this to the cooked paste, along with milk, a ½ cup of water, cumin powder, garam masala powder, honey and salt to taste.  If the sauce seems too thick, add some more milk.  Cook until the mixture comes to a boil.  Add the paneer and continue cooking for a few minutes if serving immediately.  Otherwise, turn off the flame and reheat when ready to serve.

A long, long time ago, in what seems like another lifetime, I went on a 10-day trip to India, and had an absolute blast. We went from Madras to Kerala, then to Goa and Bangalore, and back to Madras.

At that time, there was no digital camera yet (yup, that long ago)… and so I have no pixs to post here because I don’t have a scanner.

The temples are a haze now; even in India I had lost track of which temple is which. The shopping was good, although I remember feeling guilty of my packages as we walked past entire families living on the sidewalks.

And even with all the stories about upset tummies and food poisoning, I went to India expecting to eat well. And we did, and our stomachs were just fine.

In Madras, restaurants serve vegetarian food, unless there is a sign outside that says “non-vegetarian restaurant”. We started each morning with breakfast – thosai, puri, idli – with potatoes and chutneys, and dhal. The food was not fiery hot like the Indian food we have in Malaysia, and that was my first surprising discovery.

My friend’s family friend in Madras Uncle Tom and Aunty Thangam have a shop that sells handicraft from all over India, Cane and Bamboo, and I bought the nicest things there. They also treated us to two good meals – we had mutton briyani in their home which was delicious, and yummy kulfi at a restaurant.

Aunty Thangam also introduced us to dried mangoes; similar to the Filipino ones but much sweeter and more intense.

At the Madras museum compound, I had coffee with fresh milk – it was steaming hot and rich and creamy; the best Indian latte ever.

The food is different from state to state. On the road, we ate well – at resthouse, restaurants and hotels – they must have been mid-range outlets, although I can’t remember now. Strangely, I recall small stuff like a tomato salad during a lunch stop in a small town, eating the sweetest grapes and apples from a roadside stall and the sand between my toes during dinner in Goa.

The bookshops in India were also another experience. Giggles in Madras is a small narrow bookshop in a hotel crammed with books from floor to ceiling. And the books were literally stacked one atop another. But the proprietor knew exactly where each book was; you just had to mention the title you were looking for.

In Cochin’s Jew Town, we found a small book shop in the midst of the antique shops, just outside the synagogue. I bought a thin cookbook there; at that time I haven’t started started collecting cookbooks yet, and it was a random pick. It was a plain book on South Indian cooking, with no glossy pages or pictures - A Cook’s Tour of South India by Vimla Patil, editor of Femina magazine.

The recipes in the book were unfamiliar to me – they were different from what I was used to in Malaysian shops – dishes such as curd rice, green gram curry, vegatables in buttermilk, lentil balls in curd.

I have only tried a few recipes from this book, but one has become a firm favourite – Masala Tomato Pachadi – essentially tomatoes, with coriander and yoghurt. I have since substituted the coriander with mint, which I more. I have also made this without the mustard seeds and cumin seeds, and curry leaves, and they were fine – just less aromatic.

This pachadi is good with rice, and capati.

I cooked chicken briyani just so I can make this… yeah, that’s the other way round – I’m supposed to plan my side dishes around the main course, I know.

RECIPE

MASALA TOMATO PACHADI

Ingredients

5 tomatoes
2 onions, chopped
1 cup coriander leaves (I substitute with mint leaves)
6 curry leaves
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
3 cups fresh yoghurt
oil, as needed
salt and sugar, to taste

Boil the tomatoes in water. Cool and remove skins. Mash and reserve
Heat 4 tbsp oil, add cumin seeds, mustard seeds, curry leaves and onions. Fry till brown.
Add turmeric and chilli powders, garam masala and mashed tomatoes.
Add salt, sugar and half the coriander leaves and blend well.
Cool completely and mix with beaten curd. Decorate with the remaining coriander leaves.

Eating East is my recently published iPhone Application that serves as an addition (and hopefully one day, a replacement) to frantic Internet research and disorganized travel guides we all put together prior to and during our vacations, or even our lunch plans. The application, available for $1.99 on your iPhone or online, provides contact information, an interactive map, pricing guidelines and reveiws for over 100 eateries on the greater East Side of Los Angeles. 

Read more about it or purchase it for your iPhone here.

Bangala Dumpa Ulli Karam

My husband introduced me to the food from his native state of Andhra Pradesh when we were dating.  The cuisine and its cooking style was a revelation for me.  For instance, a simple sookha aloo-pyaaz or dry potato-onion dish tasted completely different because of the cooking process, the treatment of ingredients and a slightly different spice mix.  In my North Indian home, we would have sputtered whole cumin in hot oil, added the onions, then the boiled potatoes along with some turmeric, a pinch of cumin-coriander powder and some dried mango powder called amchur.  All of this happened in one pan and in sequential steps.  My husband on the other hand cooked his aloo-pyaaz in three almost-parallel parts: onions fried first and made into a wet paste, whole spices roasted separately and ground into a dry spice mix, boiled potatoes stir-fried on their own until golden.  The spices he roasted also included lentils like chana dal and urad dal, that were a completely new and surprise addition to my spice palate.  Finally all three parts were combined into the dish called Bangala Dumpa Ulli Karam or Potatoes in Onion Masala.  The resulting dish, earthy and hearty, had a strong taste of onion paste and freshly ground spices, and could be very spicy from ground dried red chillies.  We now make it without any chillies so that two year-old Agastya, who loves onions and aloo, can eat it too.

Bangala Dumpa Ulli Karam or Potatoes in Onion Masala

Serves 4

2-3 medium-sized potatoes, boiled and cubed into 1/2” chunks.
A little oil

For the wet masala:
2 medium sized onions, diced
1 tbsp of oil

For the dry masala:
1 tbsp chana dal
1 tbsp urad dal
1 tsp whole cumin seeds
1 tsp whole mustard seeds
3-4 dried red chillies (optional)
A spot of ghee

1. Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onions until light brown. Grind to a paste with a little salt.

2. In a little bit of ghee, dry roast the chana dal, urad dal, cumin seeds, mustard seeds and red chillies (in this order) until a fragrant smell is released, taking care to not over-darken or burn the lentils and spices.  In a dry grinder or coffee grinder, coarsely grind the spices.  Add this dry spice mixture to the ground onion paste and mix well.

3. Heat a little oil in a pan.  Add the cubed potatoes and fry for a few minutes until golden.  Stir in the onion masala and salt to taste.  Cook on the flame for a couple of minutes.  Serve hot with basmati rice or rotis.

I love to cook.  The one difficulty with the chefs that I like to follow is their love of cooking with wine.  It limits the recipes that I can follow, even though you can sometimes substitute the wine with broth I am sure there is something lost in the substitution.  So, my new idea is to try my hand at Indian cuisine.  What I need is a good starter cookbook for Indian food.  I have heard that Thai food is good too but it tends to be spicy and I’m not sure my husband would be up for that.  If there are any suggestions on a good Indian cuisine cookbook leave a comment.  I’d love some first hand suggestions, something you’ve had success with.

Umm Ebraheem

Update as of 18 December 2009 (and 17 Dec 09)

Given my liking to Indian food, I try, to the extent possible, to sample cuisine from different states and parts of the country. I must admit that I prefer the traditional foods more than the modern day avatar of fusion cuisine. I like the savoury rice crepes stuffed with a yellow potato and onion curry, masala dosai, but don’t particularly favour the crepe stuffed with faux Schezuan vegetables, or even spinach cottage cheese; eeks!! I don’t mind my lentil soup, daal, sweetened with a hint of jaggery, if served in a Gujarati meal, but I love the gingery version that many Western Indians prepare with the split green gram. But one thing that I don’t relish is the red chilli powder or its equally pungent relative, the green chilli. But the red chilli powder is a real scare – because once dunked into the gravy or curry, nothing can get it out; while a green chilli can be picked out or left on the plate. Fortunately, the red colour is a give-away, but if masked with a tomato concasse or puree, it becomes a ticking time-bomb, waiting to blow up once in my mouth. And it has an amazing way of going off – first, it singes my tongue and then sends me into a fit of cough which if left uncontrolled irritates my diaphragm to send me into a series of hiccups. At that moment, all I want is to be left alone to restore balance – and some acidic foods can help – my most preferred is plain curd – the easiest item available on a South Indian dinner table. If that does not work, then the glasses of water drunk without taking in a breath often help. And if that fails too, I must have chewed more than I could bite of the spiciest red chilli; and the only remedy left is to sip water from the opposite side of the glass – it is more like lapping it up than sipping it, but this has been my fool proof solution to those hiccough bouts!

Red Chilli has been the flavour of the week on D Street. The spiciness and heat singed quite a few D Boyz, who either pressed the wrong buttons or scurried around for some remedies to cool themselves off. So if yesterday was spent trying to keep the spice level down with short bouts of cool water drinks or other sootheners, it seemed to have helped them as the SENSEX lost only 18 points to end at 16894. But today was different – it had all the red chilli powder that the chefs could add without converting the dish into a pickle. And the Boyz tried to keep themselves in control all day with sips of water, curd spooned in, but at around 2:45 pm, they could not control it and got into their version of the hiccup bouts. First they lost balance, and thereafter could not regain it till the markets closed. Poor Boyz; what would they have done had the markets opened earlier today – they would need medical attention. They are secretly thanking the Regulators for deferring the time extension decisions to the next year. By then, the Boyz will devise something to help them with their eating! So today, the SENSEX slipped 174 points down to 16719. This was a 1% drop today, and an overall 2.3% drop this week. Perhaps the Santa dressed in Red will bring cheer to the Boyz next week!

Unfortunately for a vegetarian like me, I don’t get cues or clues on the spiciness of the dish that I am about to devour like perhaps someone who is served Laal Maas (red meat – a Rajput mutton curry); or Rogan Josh (the most famous Kashmiri Waazwan cuisine – mutton again). So I will have to stick to gingerly tasting the food before going the whole hog!

Have a nice weekend – Cheers….

Crispy stir-fried okra

Sometimes when I am in the kitchen, the strongest association that I have with the food, in this case okra, is the memory of a two-and-half year old Agastya hovering around, helping in some way or just getting involved in the vegetable that I am making.  My mother has always claimed that all little children love okra, called bhindi in Hindi, and Agastya has been no exception.  He loves eating stir-fried okra on his own, fingers eagerly cramming the crispy green circles into his mouth.  I do not ever need to follow him around with a plate of food that holds okra to bribe or tempt him to eat a morsel.  This means that when I tell him that I am about to make okra, his little body comes expectantly into the kitchen to inspect what I am doing.  He demands to be placed on the counter while I chop.  Agastya excitedly fingers the okra, examines its shape and texture, and counts the chopped pieces that emerge from my board.  He finds it fascinating that I cut off the “heads” and “tails” of the okra, and that the okra has several names such as bhindi and lady’s finger.  His excitement reminds me of how I always imagine chopped bhindi tails to be the fallen tails of house lizards that reside in practically every home in India.  I make a quick mental note that I must point out house lizards to Agastya when we next visit India.

It is very hard to find good bhindi here in the greater New York metropolitan area.  The Indian stores in Jersey City always carry okra, but they are frequently old, fibrous, hard, and nearly impossible to cook.  Another source is an organic store called Sobsey’s here in Hoboken that occasionally carries very fresh okra imported from Mexico.  And for a short while during the summer, local Jersey-grown okra makes an appearance in the farmers’ markets, and these are just the opposite of the ones in the Indian stores: they are a bright emerald green, glistening, thin, fresh, small and very tender.  While holding a basket of these delectable treasures, I will often have a quick daydream that someone has handed me a paper cone with crisply fried whole tiny green okra, tossed with a generous sprinkling of salt and red chilli powder.   Sometimes I am transported to a sleepy afternoon on the Greek island of Hydra where my husband and I stumbled upon a restaurant that brought us small whole okra cooked in a tomato and onion sauce.  Agastya had proceeded to eat the entire plate, savoring each bite.  We had watched on, relieved that our son had found something to satisfy his tummy.

The best way to enjoy okra’s natural rich earthy flavor is to simply cut fresh okra (washed and thoroughly dried) into 1/4″ inch rounds.  Heat a generous quantity of oil in a non-stick pan on medium heat, say about 3-4 tablespoons of oil for 2 pounds of okra, and throw in the chopped vegetable when the oil becomes hot.  There will be a sizzling sound as the okra hits the hot oil.  Cook uncovered, stirring every few minutes, until the okra browns, becomes soft and starts looking crisp at the edges.  This takes a little while, and it is important to not add any salt until the okra is done.  Covering the okra while cooking and adding salt both cause water to be released from the vegetable.  This hampers the cooking process, leaving the okra raw.  After the okra is cooked, add salt and a generous sprinkling of turmeric.  Cook for just a minute or two and the dish is ready to eat.  Note that okra shrinks down to an alarmingly small quantity after cooking.  For instance, 2 pounds of fresh uncooked okra will only serve 2 adults and one or two small children.

Mutter Paneer

One of my favorite Indian foods is paneer (go figure, I’m from Wisconsin). 

It’s an Indian cheese. For some reason, it’s often translated as “cottage cheese,” on English menus, which, at least for Americans, brings up the mental picture of a curry with a bunch of lumpy cottage cheese curds floating around. Ick. 

However, paneer is not at all “American-style” cottage cheese, but rather a plain white solid cheese that could be mistaken for tofu when seen in a dish.  Here in France, it’s very hard to find good paneer dishes at Indian restaurants. For some reason, several Indian places I’ve gone to recently have put some horrid lump of cream cheese or goat cheese in their mutter paneer - ick. I don’t understand why, because paneer is so easy to make from scratch! Simply bring a pan of milk just to a boil, squeeze in juice of one lemon – or however much it takes to start curdling – and turn down the heat a bit. Let all the curds float up to the top, remove from the heat, and strain it all through a sieve lined with cheesecloth. Let the water drip out, bundle the cheesecloth into a flat square, place between two cutting boards, and put something heavy on top (I use two encyclopedias) for about 2 hours. Voila. 

Now you can make mutter paneer! Of course, you can also buy paneer from an Indian grocery store. In that case, this is really one of the easiest, quickest Indian dishes to prepare. 

Mutter Paneer

Simmering on the stove...

Ingredients

 * 1 cup paneer cubes 

* 2 cups frozen peas 

*1 can pureed tomato or crushed tomato 

* 1 small onion, finely chopped 

* 1 tsp. cumin seeds 

* 5 garlic cloves, pressed 

* 1 bay leaf 

* 2 tsp. ginger paste  

* 1 tsp. cumin 

* 1 tsp. coriander 

* 1/4 tsp. clove 

* 1 tsp. chili powder 

* 1/2 tsp. cinnamon 

* oil or ghee 

* Several tablespoons cream 

Directions 

1. Heat ghee or butter in a pan and lightly sautee the paneer cubes until they start to brown. Take out of the pan and place them on a paper towel. 

2. Add more oil if necessary, then add onion and cook until it is soft. Then add, cumin seeds and cook for a minute. Add ginger, garlic and bay leaf and fry for a few minutes. 

3. Add tomato and the remaining spices. Stir well, then add peas. Cook for about 5 -8 minutes, adding salt to taste. If the mixture is getting too dry, add a bit of water. 

4. Add paneer. Stir carefully because it could start to crumble on you if you are rough. Cook for a few minutes. Now, turn heat low and add as much cream as you want – I generally use about 3 tablespoons, I think, though it depends on how many peas and how much liquid are in the dish. 

5. Serve. Tip: This dish, like many Indian dishes, tastes better the second day!

December not only brought us a lot snow here in the North East Kingdom, but it also brought us two fabulous events that we were fortunate to attend. Our great new friend Chris (Yogi Mukti) invited us to his annual Sagittarius party in Montpelier, and we were happy to accept because “we like to party” and, hey, I (Jon) am part Sag myself! The email invite stated that it would be a tropical themed party and to dress for warm temps which sounded entertainingly ironic for this time of year in VT. So, after picking up Brooke from work, we ventured to the outskirts of Montpelier. When we arrived, as promised, there were subtropical temperatures in Mukti’s home along with people decked out in bathing suits and tropical wears. It turns out that being Sagittarius at this party came with some perks, I was able to have access to a “Sag only” massage lounge, not to bad huh? Luckily, all of us were able to enjoy many other great party perks such as yummy food, tropical drinks, Mula Bandha (infamous reggae band) providing an authentic soundtrack to the evening, and of course the “Rasta Lounge.” We cannot forget to mention an important highlight of the night… Appropriate for the theme and atmosphere, Amy participated in the party’s notorious limbo contest and took the title from the previous 2-year champ! Her trophy was a massage from all the Sagittarians and some Coconut Bliss! We left without redeeming the massage, but not without the Coconut Bliss… Yumm. Legendary party to say the least.

Amy has had many shining moments, but this week was her week. The following evening, the current limbo champ took some time to prepare for and appear in a Sari fashion show in Hardwick. The fashion show was part of a spectacular event being held in our nearby town of Hardwick, VT. Robin, who organizes and runs the weekly community supper in Hardwick, had put together a benefit dinner to support Child Haven International, an organization started by his father and mother that assists children and women in India and 3 other countries, who are in need of food, education, health care, shelter and clothing, emotional and moral support.

The dinner was Indian themed, which is a great deal for us being that we love to eat Indian food. I (Jon) was happy to volunteer to help out in the kitchen under former Hazen High School (event location) teacher, Sikander who prepared a delicious menu for the evening. There was Pea Piallo, Potato Raita, Curry Tofu, and other yummy Indian fare. Meanwhile, Amy assisted with draping tables and walls with beautiful saris and photos of children from Child Haven.

The evening went great. Along with the meal, there was a silent auction along with a speech from Fred Cappuccino (founder of Child Haven) and a presentation of two short films about the organization.

As for the Sari fashion show, it was a hit. The ladies walked the runway accompanied by live tabla, and they looked beautiful in the saris. A photo of Amy even made it into the Hardwick Gazette later that week!

And after everyone left and things were getting cleared up, we headed to the gym to play a couple games of cricket with Mr. Sikander himself and some of his old students. We had seen cricket played a lot when we were India, and we finally were able to learn and have fun playing the sport. Fun times!

For some more pics, look HERE ….. and our flickr page.

More Information about Child Haven can be found at: www.childhaven.ca

I think I may have a crush on a restaurant and it’s name is Samosa Factory.  I have been there 4 times now and every time I’ve been I’ve felt as satisfied, giggly, and glowing as the day Keith Lambert (or was it Steve Watson?) tapped me on the head with  his notebook when he was a senior and I was in 7th grade.  OMG! So awesome!  Sigh.

Anyway, when I originally arrived in Las Vegas I thought I would never find a suitable Indian Food restaurant since the number of offerings and reviews of those in existence were dismal at best.  Luckily my husband and I stumbled upon Samosa Factory last December while we were trying to find a Thai restaurant that was no longer in existence.  As with anything in Vegas the store front is part of a bland strip mall and additionally is right next to a Roberto’s Taco Shop.  However, we were pleasantly surprised to find ourselves greeted by a warmly colored, cozy dining room with a small number of tables.  It had that “mom and pop” kind of feel as in we were about to get some fresh home cooked Indian food and man were we excited!

We were also impressed at the variety of selection for such a small place  – carnivorous, omnivorous, vegetarian, and vegan appetites alike could be easily satisfied.  I mean, check out that Vegetarian Matter Paneer!  And at a moderate price as well, which, as I have written before, is the norm in off-strip Vegas.  However, as is the case with many Indian restaurants, they have a lunch special – at Samosa Factory for a mere $6.95!  Holy budget conscious noms!  I’ve actually experienced this lunch first hand – it’s cooked to order (aka not a buffet) and the restaurant (already mentioned as “cozy”) is very busy.

I only have two criticisms.  1)  For the average American diner, the portions might be considered “small”.  Whatever.  America – we are obese!  2) It’s way the heck up on W. Sahara and I’m way down here on Pebble.  I mean it’s really hard being so far from something that tastes soooo good and makes me as “happy as a little guuuurrrrl”.

Although it still feels like a secret find, Samosa Factory is on the radar of the area critics and foodies as it was 2008 BEST IN LAS VEGAS: Indian Food -Las Vegas Review Journal and BEST IN THE VALLEY 2009- Las Vegas City Life.  So don’t just take my word for it, or that of area newspapers – go taste for yourself!

Survived Day One and Zero on to Day 3.

Breakfast at Mamak stalls

Start your day with some light breakfast either in the hotel or by the streets, if you opt for the later keep an open eye for roadside stalls or mamak stalls. If you fail to locate any, then head on to Lorong Perak. This is not the greatest of mamak stalls, but I usually frequent these stalls prior to getting to work every morning back in Malaysia. Word of caution, mamak stalls can lack a little by hygene standards. Read all about it here. So approach with caution.

Batu Caves

After your breakfast. Hob onto a taxi and make your way to Batu Caves. It is rather unfortunate that you’ll be in KL in December and not 30 Jan as 30th Jan is Thaipusam. Nonetheless, it should not deter one from visiting the Batu Caves.

Spend some time exploring the area. By all means make your way up the stairs.

Lunch at Foong Foong Restaurant
613, Jalan 21. Off Jalan Merdeka in Ampang
One of my personal favourite Malaysian Chinese food is “Yong Tau Fu“. The best place to go for “Yong Tau Fu” has got to be the Foong Foong Restaurant. My understanding is that Yong Tau Fu are always stuffed with fish paste. However wikipedia suggests that it may also contain pork. So approach with caution with what you order.

Mid Valley Mega Mall

From Foong Foong restaurant, grab a taxi to the nearest Putra LRT station called Damai. You’ll be taking a pretty long LRT ride, so sit back relax and rest your legs. You want to get off at University Station. From University station, hob onto a taxi and head to Mid Valley Mega Mall. You’ll probably want to spend some time at the Mall. Catch a movie, shop around or eat more food.
Sri Paandi Banana Leaf rice
Section 11, Petaling Jaya, just off the road from Jalan Universiti.

Sri Paandi Restaurant is another of my favourites. Its and Indian restaurant that serves a variety of food. Their business acquisition skills are pretty agressive something that we could all learn i suppose.

If I were to go to Sri Paandi in the evenings, I would definitely go for the Banana Leaf rice. Alternatively, if you wish to have something light, try the Thosai. There are many variations of the Thosai. But my favourite by far is the “Ghee Thosai” as the name describes, Thosai with “lots” of Ghee. Works for me everytime. If you’re feeling a little health cautious, then go for the “Thosai Garing” which means extra crunchy Thosai. Or if you feel like having something sweet ask for the “Paper Thosai” you’ll be in for a pleasant surprise

Petaling Street

When you’re done with dinner, it’s time to head back. But before that make your way to “Petaling Street” otherwise known as “Chinatown”. You hop on a taxi or if you’re feeling adventurous, try the LRT again from Universiti station to Medan Tuanku Monorail (that’s the closest station to Petaling Street).

This is an excellent opportunity to get ripped-off. But heck that’s why we’re called tourist isn’t it? Anyway, but on your bargaining hat on and start negotiating.

Watch out for the roasted chestnuts stall dead at the center of Petaling Street. None of my trips to Petaling Street will be complete without the roasted chestnuts.

nan bread

It looked like a pot of white soup bubbling gently on top ofa stove, but the label says it’s hot tea. Curious, I stirred the pot and laddled  a small portion into a cup before bringing it to my lips to take a sip. And another sip. And yet another sip until my cup was empty.

mazala hot tea

It was good, kind of sweet with a blend of ginger and tea and other flavors I could not identify.
But Indian Mazala Tea is just one of the features being offered at the Palms Resort’s Pau Pau Bar & Terrace every Thursday night.
Start off from the salad bar or appetizers and dig into Indian potato salad, baked mussel or smoked salmon. Bite a piece of crunchy samosa and savor the delightful mix of ground beef, spices and herbs rolled into a wrapper.
Wander into the BBQ station and fill your plate with refried beans, fish, chicken tandori, Pilaf rice, grilled spicy beef and chicken, and more.
The highlight of Indian Night is the Nan bread and curry dishes, items that sum up the essence of Indian cuisine. Choose from lamb curry, beef curry or lentils as filling for the crispy, freshly-baked Nan bread.

smoked salmon

Try the rice pudding from the dessert station. It looks like any regular rice porridge but with a dash of cinnamon flavor which you will surely enjoy.
The banana bread and the and rice pudding they serve are Indian cuisine-inspired desserts, according to executive sous chef Habib Akbar. You just can’t shake your head and say no when you wander along the dessert station.  Everything is irresistible.
Cap your dinner with Mazala Tea, yogurt juice with strawberry, ice tea, sodas and other beverages.
Linger over your meal or get seconds if you can’t help it as local dancers and singers offer non-stop entertainment.
The Indian Night every Thursday is the latest addition to the theme nights at the Palms Resort, Akbar said.
Introduced to the public just this month, Palms Resort Saipan said the Indian Nights theme is one way of capturing not only the tourists but the local market as well.
“We want to offer diversified cuisines to satisfy our diners,” Akbar said.

He said that they may

Indian potato salad

vary some of the menu every week, except for the main dishes that characterize Indian dining.

“We would like to invite everybody to try Indian cuisine and be acquianted with its unique flavors which rely heavily on the use of vegetables, spices and herbs,” Akbar said.
Indian Night is open from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursdays and costs $25 for adult and $12.50 for children.
Food and Beverage manager Cristina Lustre said that every night is theme night at the Palms Resort Saipan.

seafood salad

Be at the Paupau Bar & Terrace for Shabu-Shabu Night on Mondays and Tuesdays, Mexican Night on Wednesdays, Seafood Night on Fri

days, and Chinese Night on  Saturdays.
Smell something like herbs and spice that makes your mouth water? It’s Thursday! Make your way to the Palms Resort and get your fill of Indian cuisine.
For reservations, call (670) 322-3311.

This article was first published HERE

Butter chicken is one of the best known Indian dishes, its simplicity and freezability makes it a perfect lazy Sunday dish.  We like to make butter chicken and freeze the left overs for later enjoyment.  Most recipes call for regular yoghurt and heavy whipping cream, we decided to keep it light and somewhat healthier by substituting non-fat yoghurt and 2% milk.

Prep/Cooking Time: 45 minutes

Serving Size: 4

Ingredients:

2 Chicken breasts (about 8 oz)
1/2 yellow onion – chopped
2 green onions – sliced
1 can tomatoes -  drained and blended
1/2 T garlic paste
1/2 T ginger paste
3 T unsalted butter

Marinade:

1/4 cup non-fat yoghurt
1/4 2% milk
1/2 tsp kosher  salt
1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper

Spice Blend:

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp cardamom – ground
1/8 tsp cloves – ground

Directions:

Cube chicken breasts into 1/2″ x 1/2″ bite size pieces and marinate for at least 1 hour in the refrigerator.

Melt butter over medium heat in a non-stick pan until frothy.

Add onions and green onions and cook until onions turn brown at the edges.  Add spice blend along with ginger and garlic and stir until spices are fragrant (approximately 2 minutes).  Stir in tomato puree and heat until the mixture simmers.  Stir frequently.  Add chicken along with marinade and stir to combine, lower heat to medium low and cook until chicken is tender and sauce has thickened, about 15 minutes.

Serve with fresh, steaming, basmati rice.

It’s been grossly overdue, this blog about Marseille!  Before I get started with that, however, please note that I’m going to have a new place to post my pictures.  I don’t have the address yet, but it’s coming soon.  Flickr is ok for hosting photos, but you can only add up to 200 before they start storing the older photos to the ‘archives.’  (Sounds rather dungeon-esque.)  In any case, when I have the address, I will share it. 

So, I’ve decided that Marseille is not bad…  Just the most fabulous city I’ve yet seen!  I know that I had a fantastic time, and Taylor seemed to enjoy himself, as well.  He’d already been there once before, so he knew a little of what to expect.  We arrived rather late in the day on Thursday (11:30ish), thanks to a super-discounted flight.   We found our hotel and called it a night soon after.  On Friday, we arose fairly early, enjoyed a calm breakfast (and stole a couple of croissants for the road) and walked about the city.  We passed by some of the bigger streets, headed toward the Vieux Port.  French for “The Old Port,” the Vieux Port was the port used by the Greeks–Marseille is the oldest city in France. 

It was much colder than we both expected, due to the wind.  Perhaps against better judgment, we decided that it would be a fine idea to climb the hill (no:  small mountain) to get to the Basilica of Notre Dame de la Garde.  It got windier and windier as we went along.  After a very long traverse upward, we eventually made it to the Basilica, which was absolutely breathtaking!  I sometimes don’t like to take pictures, as they really can’t do justice to the subjects seen in person, and this was one of those instances.  The Basilica isn’t so large, but it’s situated right at the top of the highest point in Marseille.  You can see it from literally anywhere in the city.  Both the interior and the exterior are lively, colorful, and amazing.  (I wouldn’t mind having gilt walls and peppermint molding in my house!)   I’m also really impressed by the craftsmanship of the Basilica.  When I saw it was windy, that’s really an understatement.  It was tempestuous.  It ripped my sunglasses from my face, down a set of stairs, and around a corner; and knocked over a six or seven year old girl.   I’m thankful that the basilica had a sound construction.  If not, we would have certainly been buried in a mound of stone that day! 

After our descent, we headed to a little restaurant, where I ate the best salad I’ve ever tasted: Regional olives and artichokes and cheese.  SWOON and DIE, it was great.  Taylor ordered a pasta dish that also looked wonderful (minus the raw egg bit on top.  I’m sorry to report that that tradition seems to persist throughout most of France.)   Soon after, we explored more of the city.  We trotted through the antiques district, and pondered how horrible life would be if we were able to afford any of those items.  It was decided that another meal was in order, so we found a rather large restaurant on the Vieux Port.  It was a bit spooky because not only did I hear our pal Bruce with “Born in the U.S.A.” on the speakers, but no one else entered the restaurant for the entire length of our meal.  No one.  By this time,  we fancied a drink, and found a small and fantastically tacky bar for a couple of hours of goofing off.

The next morning, we found a little patisserie for a croissant (We decided that it would be better not to run with the hotel’s croissants again) and left on a little boat for the Ile de Chateau D’If.   This was originally built as a fortress to defend the city, but later turned into a prison, of sorts.  This explains it much better than I can: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chateau_d%27if

After a short repose, we walked to the Cathedrale Sainte-Marie-Majeure.   It is enormous, and very visually impressive.  Seeing such a building situated right on the water is quite beautiful.  We took some photos, and then had another couple of hours to kill, so we found a little Indian restaurant not far from there.  I ordered my plate ”very spicy” (a must when in France) and it was probably the most delicious Indian food I’ve ever eaten, and Indian food is definitely on my list of obsessions.  Indian food in France!  Ah!  I can’t believe the awesomeness of that combination.

Trying to do everything possible before we had to leave, we quickly visited the Vieille Charite.  (Once again, the obligatory redirect: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Vieille_Charit%C3%A9 )  We saw the museum of Egyptian archeology before a random employee lovingly barked,  “You need to buy tickets” in French.  This was fairly amusing, as neither of us had seen signs stating that one has to pay, nor the ticket office.  We walked toward the direction to which the employee pointed, and decided it best to call it a day and head back toward the train station.

It was a really magical trip–I can’t find anything remotely, even slightly negative to say about Marseille, except that I had to leave it.  Damnit.  Just on a whim, I think that I might try to apply for graduate school there.  Wouldn’t that be something?

I love to cook as much as the next foodie, but sometimes I get bored. You know the drill – you’ve planned meals, gone food shopping with a list and as you get to the end of your perishables, you find you’ve lost the love for the lonely broccoli in your fridge or frozen sausage you bought on sale.

I like to have some backup food in my pantry for those less-inspired, less hungry, too-busy nights. A can of beets can become a quick salad with oil, vinegar and sliced onions. Pasta with some marinara in a jar can be a filling meal, especially if you mix in some defrosted chop meat.

Prepared food in a box is usually so filled with preservatives, corn syrup and unrecognizable words that I try to avoid them. I will admit, though, that Trader Joe’s has some good prepared options with a limited list of ingredients. If I can pronounce them all, I’ll try it out. Their canned chicken noodle soup is good to have on hand when you get the sniffles and don’t have the energy to make yourself Mom’s recipe. Their microwaveable Indian specialties are really flavorful, quick and tasty with whatever rice you have in the pantry or backup frozen Trader Joe’s naan.

The key to this is having back-up food in the freezer or pantry. I love shopping and stocking up when there’s a good sale or coupon.

We have some frozen (Michigan made!) pirogues that will probably find their way out of the freezer tonight. Boiled and then quickly fried in olive oil with some sliced onions, we’ll be filled up and quickly cleaned up, too.

What are your favorite quick meals?

Summer before last I lucked into the trip of a lifetime.  My friend Rubai was going back to India to see her family, and I jokingly invited myself along, then the joke tumbled into reality (this seems to happen a lot, and I love it).   We ended up staying with various family  members or friends and visited Delhi, Mumbai, Amritsar, Khandala (by accident), Rishikesh, and other cities.  I met a ton of great people, learned a few words of Hindi, saw a million beautiful (and some scary) temples, got my picture taken by strangers, almost fell out of an auto rickshaw in a monsoon, sweated buckets, and generally had an unreal time. And of course, I ate lots, and lots, and lots of good food.

India Gate, in New Delhi.

I could easily write a book on the things I loved eating, and post pictures of some of them.  Unfortunately my vanity is going to prevent most of that, because it was summer in India and I was a beautiful, sticky shade of red for most of it.  I ate chicken tikka wrapped in the most tender flatbread I have ever witnessed; I would go back to India just to eat it once more.  They are called roomali roti, which captures some of the poetry that I love about Hindi.  Roomali is a handkerchief (a lady’s handkerchief) and this roti was like the embodiment of a fine square of silk that tears gently open at the touch of your teeth, except tastier.  Or the cold coffee in recycled glass bottles for fifty cents that chases the sweat from your brow for just a moment and allows you to breathe deep and plunge back into the market, amidst the samosa sellers and bunnies for sale.  Oh, and Indian goat.  You can’t find it here, so I won’t go into it, for fear of sending myself back into a funk.

We ate ear upon ear of corn, roasted. Then you rub it with a half lemon dipped in spicy salt. Oh man, so good.

But the best food in India came from no stall, no restaurant..  It came from the little, busy kitchen of Leela aunty, Rubai’s aunt we stayed with in Noida, a suburb of Delhi.  I could write three books about the wonder of her cooking.  She thought it was no big deal, but her cast off leftovers put to shame anything I spend a week planning and executing.  I could gain a hundred pounds if I were to live with her for a few months, but I would be an ecstatic blob.  Everything she touches has such savor…now I’m her-homesick.  Anyways.  Back to the point.

I got a few recipes off of Leela aunty, which was difficult, as she has cooked so well for so long that her recipes are all internalized.  So she handed over the cookbook that came with her pressure cooker – where she started many years ago.  Following please find the recipe for rajma, or kidney beans.  It’s a basic staple that I like to eat like I did so often: with chaval (rice) and Coke in a steel glass.  Unfortunately I have no steel glasses, so I often beg Meenakshi’s mother to make it for me at their house and then we watch a Bollywood and I pretend that I’m not a white girl from Washington, and that John Abraham will come save me from an arranged marriage.   Again, back to the point.

Rajma chaval!

Leela aunty’s rajma chaval

Again, these measurements are in metric.  Handy calculator here.

250 grams of red kidney beans (a little over half a standard bag)

100 grams onion (about half of a large onion)

100 grams tomato (1 rather large tomato or 2 small)

2 large Kashmiri red chillies (I used crushed red pepper flakes because I had them on hand)

1 teaspoon of garam masala powder (scroll to bottom)

1 inch piece of ginger (or a good pinch of ginger powder)

4 flakes of garlic (I no longer remember what that meant, but I do know that you can use 1 hearty teaspoon of garlic paste)

100 grams of oil (this may be a little much…Just use enough to get the onions good and golden)

Salt to taste (lots)

4 1/3 c water

After about an hour of soaking, the beans got all wrinkly and awesome. After 12 hours they threatened to swell on up and over the edge of the bowl. Leave room and add lots of water.

Soak beans overnight.  Then, grate the onions – I chopped them finely after I started bawling like my man had left me for my sister… and I had only grated about 1/6 of my onion – cut the tomatoes, and make the ginger and garlic into a paste.

All ready to begin the marathon!

Heat oil in a pressure cooker and brown the grated onion.  Add tomatoes, ginger, garlic paste, and keep frying till tomatoes are mashed.

Mashed, check.

Add soaked beans, whole chillies, salt, and water.  Bring to full cooking pressure.  Reduce to medium heat and cook for 20 minutes.  Allow cooker to cool gradually and open.

Garnish with garam masala powder and serve.

All ready to boil for a loooooong time

What I actually did:

I don’t have my pressure cooker with me at my apartment, so I was relegated to boiling the the life out of the beans with a big ole pot. Also, I left my garam masala mix with  my pressure cooker, so I faked it up by adding some ground nutmeg, ground allspice, ground cardamom to the mix when I added the beans, along with a half cinnamon stick and three big black cardamoms I bought at the Indian store on the cheap for just this dish a while ago.  Again, I also didn’t have the chillies, so I just used crushed red pepper, which worked well for me.  Finally, I brought the whole mess to a roiling boil then boiled it on medium for about an hour and a half until the beans finally started getting tender.  Meenakshi’s mom puts her in the slow cooker all day and they get delicious and tender that way. So there.

All thick and tasty and perfect to chase away the icy chill of our unheated living room.

Serve with rice.  The Indian way to do it is the same way we measured water for daal, and I find it easier than measuring with a cup and having to remember the ratio.

Garam Masala

There are as many recipes for garam masala as there are cooks and cookbooks.  Here’s the one I happen to have at hand.  Don’t worry about what you do or don’t have – it won’t be the end of the world.  Up the flavors you like, toss out the ones you don’t.  I find the most important flavor to me is cinnamon, because I’m an addict, and because it brings a nice round heat to the dishes.  That and the coriander I think are absolutely necessary.  But I’m no expert, and my tongue and yours are most likely very different.  Experiment.  Have fun.

2 tablespoons cumin seeds
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
2 tablespoons cardamom seeds
2 tablespoons black peppercorns
1 (3-inch) stick cinnamon, broken up
1 teaspoon whole cloves
1 teaspoon grated nutmeg

Toast the spices for about 10 minutes in a dry skillet or in a warm but not hot oven.  Grind them in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle.

Or just go to the store.  That too.

four [Wed, 9-Dec]

My first task of the day was to do my last London laundry load and begin the packing process.  I made a lot of progress and by afternoon it was time to get out on the Londontown.  Avey and I set out for a day full of assorted errands and final “must-dos.”  A major highlight: we climbed the 311 steps of Monument just in time for sunset and got to take in a breathtaking scape of London from above–definitely a great way to gaze at the city for the last time!  When we were over in the shopping district on New Bond Street I realized we were right near Postcard Teas, a specialty tea shoppe featured in the Savoir Fare: London book Allison Tomasino gave me.  Good thing we did!  We each savored the greatest cup of tea of our lives (Big Smoke black tea for Avey, Nokcha green for me), and posted some to ourselves to our Vassar mailboxes to be waiting for our arrival in January.  For dinner, we headed back across town to Brick Lane for Indian food, a classic London culinary experience that I never actually did but Avey relishes in.  We settled on City Spice after being offered a free bottle of wine AND 25% off our meal.  Cha-ching!  After sweating from the inside out, we met up with Lauren, Sarah, and John at Jerusalem Tavern located in Farringdon and awarded the title of “best pub in town” (or something).  It was a great place and I loved putting out my Indian fire with their delicious Winter Ale.

I’ve been trying to figure out how this whole cooking business works.  Most of my attempts are failures, this one wasn’t too bad. It looks good, and it tastes pretty good too. Just a bit of cumin, turmeric, paprika, salt and pepper, with a whole bunch of veggies, chicken and potatoes, thrown together in a frying pan with some ee-vee-oh-oh.

Chicken and veggies, à l’Inde, Paris Ve.

8 Trotters ( mutton or pork) preferably the front ones each chopped into 3 pieces
2 large tomatoes pureed or chopped
1 teaspoon garlic paste
1 teaspoon ginger paste
3 teaspoons chillie powder
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon spice powder
2 large onions chopped
1 teaspoon coriander powder
3 tablespoons oil
Salt to taste
A small bunch of coriander leaves chopped.

Wash the trotters well and keep aside.
Heat oil in a pressure cooker and lightly sauté the onions. Add the ginger and garlic paste and sauté for a few more minutes. Now add the trotters, spice powder, chillie powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, tomatoes and salt and mix well. Cook first on high heat then on low heat for half an hour till the trotters are well cooked. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot with rice or bread or even dosas or hoppers.