Suni's Corner

Morkhali

2010-07-24T02:55:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had the experience of hating something as a kid and growing to love it as an adult?? This is one of them. As a kid I would skip this tiffen - used to hate the texture and the peculiar flavor & smell. And now I love it enough to make amma teach me!!

* 1 Cup Rice Powder
* 2 Cups sour yoghurt
* hing
* salt
* 1 coconut grated
* 2 slit green chilly
* Mor malazhai (dry chilly's)
* 2 ladle ginglee oil (preferably Idhayam)
* 1 tsp mustard seeds
* 4 dry red chilly
* 1 tbsp channa dal
* 1 tsp urad dal
* clutch curry leaves
* Boiling water

1. Soak rice powder in sour curd together with hing and salt for an hour
2. Grind coconut and green chilly and set aside
3. Dilute rice powder with water so its runny
4. Fry mor molazhai and set aside
5. In the same oil roast mustard, channa dal, urad dal, dry red chilly & curry leaves
6.Add the soaked rice a little at a time. Add the coconut & green chilly mix . 7. Add boiling water a little at a time if necessary and keep stirring till it becomes glossy & glass like.
8. Consistency can be semi-solid as it will solidify on cooling. Season with crumbled dry fried chilly

Enjoy!

Lettuce, Feta and Garlic Salad

2010-07-24T02:25:00.000-07:00

I grew up in a house were garlic was sacrilegious! O.K. I exaggerate....I was well into adulthood (or at least my late teens) when I first tasted garlic. Imagine that??? And I fell in love with it. My father detested garlic on the grounds it smelt...on his last visit late one evening we were sitting on the stone steps outside the monument in beautiful Lodhi Gardens...and he suddenly turned around & asked me if I had garlic for lunch?? Funnily enough he used to rave about a garlic bread in this restaurant in California which I hope to discover some day...here's a recipe that Suja taught me which is finger licking yummy but wouldn't advise you to make/have it on a first date or before a business meeting!!

* 3-4 cloves garlic (more if you are feeling daring)
* 1/3 cup Feta
* 1 tsp olive oil or a generous splash
* 1-2 tbsp water
* Lettuce leaves washed and dried
* 1 pear in thin slivers

1. In a pestle and mortar pound the garlic cloves till they are a fine paste.
2. Add the feta & oil and mix. Works best if you are not queasy about using your hands instead of a spoon.
3. Add water to make it smooth and mushy (not runny).
4. Smear the dressing on the lettuce leaves and arrange on the salad plate
5. Smear pear with the dressing and pile on the lettuce

Pumpkin Soup

2010-06-30T13:33:00.001-07:00

I have friends who simply detest pumpkin but will happily slurp this soup an ask for more!! I suspect the first time around they are not quite sure what it is and after they feel far too sheepish to protest:) The red lentils and ginger gives it a special flavor and body. Its very filling and can be had either hot or chilled with a dollop of yogurt Turkish style!

* 1 tbsp olive oil
* 1 dry red chilly or small piece ginger chopped fine (use one or the other)
* 1/2 kg red pumpkin peeled and chopped into chunks
* 2 tbls red lentils (masoor dal)
* 1 tsp Marigold bouillon or 1/2 Maggi veg soup cube
* 1 cup water
* salt and pepper as per taste
* 1 tbsp yogurt for each serving if you are serving chilled
* fresh chopped dill to garnish if available

1. In a heavy pan saute the onion and red chilly or ginger for about 5mins in the olive oil till onion is transparent
2. Add pumpkin, bouillon, pink lentil & water. Cover and let it simmer on medium heat for 15mins till the pumpkin is softened
3. Remove red chilly, cool and puree in mixie
4. Add salt and pepper as per taste and garnish with fresh dill.

Can be served chilled with dollops of yogurt or if hot substitute cream if you wish instead of yogurt.

Pea Soup

2010-06-29T10:26:00.000-07:00

Its sweltering out here...broiling more like it. So all I can think of is chilled soups and cold salads. And of course pints of beer to chase it along:) My soups are pretty simple - sans butter or cream. I much prefer chunky and creamy soups. Suja and I once had this delicious tomato & bread soup in a small taverna in Florence...years later the very thought of it makes my mouth salivate!! So if any of you have a good recipe for this send it along...
meantime here's the pea soup I made couple of weeks ago and Archana loved it....so this one is for her

* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 1 small onion sliced
* 1 dry red chilly
* 1/2 kg shelled fresh peas
* 1/4 tsp thyme
* 1 tsp marigold bouillon or 1/2 cube Maggi veg cube
* 1 cup water
* 1/2 glass milk (or if you prefer substitute with cream)

1. In a heavy pan saute the onion and red chilly in olive oil till the onion is transparent not brown
2. Add the remaining ingredients all except milk, cover and let it simmer for 15mins till the peas are cooked
3. Remove the red chilly, cool the soup and puree in a mixie with milk or cream if you are using
4. If you are finicky and prefer a creamy texture you could strain it through a sieve. I prefer it as is with the rough texture of the skin on.

Can be had hot or chilled!

Summer Salads

2010-06-06T00:28:00.000-07:00

Watermelon, feta & mint Salad
Its hot out here and all I can think of is something chilled and snappy! Less time in the kitchen the better, even for a foodie like me. My cousin Jai made this yummy watermelon, feta and mint salad for my birthday aeon's ago which I am addicted to this summer. If you are creative and have the patience you could do what she did - basically carve out the watermelon and serve the salad in it!!
* 1 small sized watermelon deseeded & cut into bite sized chunks
* 1 small pack feta cut into cubes
* 1 bunch mint chopped fine
* ground fresh pepper
* one clove garlic (optional)
* 1/8 tsp maldon salt or rock salt (go easy on the salt as the feta is salty)
* 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
* splash of balsamic vinegar (more or less depending on your taste buds)

1. Mix the watermelon, feta and mint in serving bowl & a twist of fresh ground pepper
2. In a pestle and mortar pound garlic & salt to a paste. Add olive oil and balsamic vinegar & mix
3. Add dressing to salad, mix well, cling wrap and chill for a couple of hours in the fridge before serving

Carrot, orange, mustard and honey salad:
* 1/2kg carrots peeled and grated
* 2-3 oranges peeled, remove seeds and pith, cut into quarters
* 1 tsp mustard seeds
* 2 tablespoon olive oil
* 1-2 fresh lemons
* 1/2 tsp honey
1. Mix the carrots and orange
2. In a mortar & pestle grind the mustard seeds till they become yellow and powdery.
3. Add olive oil, vinegar and honey and mix well.
4. Mix dressing in salad, cling film and chill for a couple of hours for the flavors to assimilate

Variation: you can grate a radish in if you don't mind the raw taste of radish!

Tagine Rangaswami Style....

2010-06-05T23:23:00.000-07:00

The first time I had tagine was at Momo's in London. Knowing Suchi's love for anything Morrocan made reservations at this once hip and happening place for a pre-birthday celebration. The highpoint of the evening was the tagine and watching a very tipsy Suchi after one too many glasses of champagne and wine!!

Whatever you do please don't serve this tagine to a Middle-Easterner or at least call it by some other name. Whoever heard of a tagine sans lamb!!! I can't claim for it being authentic - loved the flavors so much have experimented and tinkered with it over the years and its taken a life of its own. Anit loves it so much he could eat bowls of it all by itself...so I made it for his farewell in Sanaa. I can't wait to pick up my tagine dish next week, who knows it may actually taste even better!!

There's two versions here - Suja's which is probably nearer to the original and mine.

Suja's Vegetable Tagine with Red Pepper Base:

vegetable tagine roast 6 red bell peppers ...skin them...and puree them set aside slice one to two red onions thinly saute in olive oil with sugar and salt over low heat for 15 minutes or till melty add large cubed yellow pumpkin + 1" pieces of skinned sweet potato + turnip same size to the pan stir for a few minutes - add salt then pour in the pepper puree and add two cups of water + stock cube or powder stir and cover and cook till the veggies are nearly cooked in a mortar or mixie grind a cupful of parsley + coriander leaves (1cup roughly when u add BOTH )garlic cloves generous but not overwhelming a tablespoonful of roasted fresh cumin powder olive oil - 2 to three tbs and a lot of lemon or lime juice and red chili flakes to taste grind the whole and add to the tagine let it boil for 5 to 10 minutes till it all comes together taste and adjust seasoning u can make it the day before and reheat before serving serve with bread or couscous when u make cous cous add some stock powder and cumin or coriander to water so it smells yum

My version:
* 4 generous tablespoons olive oil (half if you are cooking the aubergine separately - see note at bottom!)
* 1/4 tsp cumin seeds
* 2 medium sized onions sliced fine
* 150gms small aubergine cut into half-moons
* 150gms courgette cut into half-moons
* 100 gms carrots peeled and cut into half-moons
* 1/2 tsp dry oregano (Suja swears by the Tesco's oregano!)
* 2 red pepper cut any which way
* 1 yellow pepper cut any which way
* 4 cloves
* 1 small stick cinnamon
* pinch saffron
* 1 tsp fresh dry roasted and ground cumin powder
* 1 can peeled tomatoes chopped roughly or if you are using fresh tomatoes 1/2 kg tomatoes peeled and chopped roughly, you might want to dunk them in hot water for a couple of mins to loosen skin before peeling
* 150 gms dry apricots (the juicy orange kind) chopped
* 1 cup cooked garbanzo (kabuli channa) beans or if using canned half a can drained and washed
* salt
1. In a heavy deep pan (I use the pressure cooker) saute the cumin and onions till they are transparent
2. Add the eggplant and salt, cover and cook till eggplant softened. Takes about 10-12mins
3. Add courgette, carrots and oregano, remove lid & cook till they are softened. About 5mins
4. Toss in the peppers and the other dry spices (cloves, cinnamon, saffron and cumin powder) cook for a couple of mins
5. Add the tomatoes with the juice, garbanzo beans and apricots. Let it simmer on low heat for the next 15-20mins till tagine comes together. Adjust salt as per taste

If you have time on your hands you could substitute the small aubergine for one large one, slice into thin rounds, put it in a colander with a bit of salt for 15 mins. Gently squeeze the water out, brush olive oil on both sides and cook on a grill or roast in an oven till golden. The remaining steps is the same!

Variations: depending on my mood I sometimes add chopped ginger and coriander/parsley but not essential.

Arisi Kozhaikotai

2010-05-27T14:30:00.000-07:00

I know you could probably get it from a Meenakshi ammal type of cookbook, but this one is my amma's version and saving it for posterity! Had her make it and give me the recipe when my parents came to visit me August last year for my birthday. At the time I didn't quite realise this would be the last time appa would be coming to my home....my appa used to love food....perhaps that's my legacy from him....the highest compliment one could get from him was if he said a dish was nearly as good as if amma had made it herself!!

* 2 and a half cups idli rice
* pinch hing/asefoetida
* 1 cup grated coconut or half a grated coconut
* 1 tablespoon ginglee oil
* 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
* 4 dry red chilly
* 1 tablespoon kadala parupu
* 1 tablespoon ultham parupu
* cluthc curry leaves
* fresh coriander

1. Soak Rice with hing and salt for at least 3 or more hours
2. Grind with coconut - it should be watery/pouring consistency
3. In a kadai (vandli) roast the remaining ingredients except the coriander
4. Add the rice and coconut mixture to the kadai and cook (keep stirring) till it thickens to a dough like consistency and all the liquid evaporates
5. Add coriander and make into little oval kozhaikotai
6. Steam in an idli patharam

Arjun makes a mean coriander chutney that would go well with this....that's a broad hint to you dear chap to send it to me or add it to the post!!

Food Fetish

2010-05-27T13:55:00.000-07:00

I love food... live for food...dream about food...talk about food...obsess about food....get my drift? I would be lost without my sense of taste. Cooking for people ....friends/family sometimes perfect strangers is a sensual experience...instant gratification...I first learnt to cook when I was 8....taught by my peripa who felt it was a life saving skill that everyone should know...barely able to reach the cooking range he propped me on a manai so I could stir the pots....from my mother I learnt to use my sense of smell to know if I had forgotten to add salt....I can't remember a time when anyone was turned down a meal at my amma's house no matter what time you arrived...she is a natural cook....I know everybody thinks their mother is the best cook in the world....in my case all who know her think she is a wonderful cook and makes sublime food....I used to hide the fact I love to cook from friends as a teenager for fear of being taken less seriously...as a nascent feminist at the time cooking seemed to be the ultimate capitulation to patriarchy...and then living abroad new vistas opened up...food was a wonderful connect with most people...I used to go to supermarkets simply to watch what people put in their shopping cart...you can tell a lot from that...if they are single or a family with kids...health conscious yuppies....if they have pets...over the years people have asked me for recipes and I figured this would be a more efficient way of putting it out there... so let the festivities begin!

Mirentxu's Salad Dressing - Mirentxu and I went to University together ....she lives in Beuno Aires and if you ever stop at her table ask her to fix you a salad....I still remember it after all these years...its simple and easy but sublime....

Ingredients:
* 1/4 spoon rock salt/maldon salt
* one or two cloves garlic peeled
* 1 generous tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
* a sprig of parsley stalks removed
* 1/2 lemon

Steps:
1. In a mortar and pestle pound garlic and salt to a paste
2. Add the parsley and pound a little to release the flavors
3. Add olive oil and lemon and mix the dressing
4. Grind fresh pepper and adjust seasoning

This dressing works well for most anything. Its light and summery and sometimes I replace the lemon with a splash of balsamic vinegar. Also a caveat the measures are approximation so you may want to play around with it till you find the balance that suits your taste buds:)