Dal is unmissable in any Indian household, especially in a vegetarian family. It is cooked every single day, for both lunch & dinner. The variety of dals and pulses available in India, has been an inspiration for many creative cooks and housewives. Each region and each family has its own style to cook a dal....
Although I make Malpuas throughout the year, these spongy and light, crispy pancake-like Malpuas are made especially in the winter months. In the North of India, they are often served as breakfast! Just visualise the winter mist, weak early morning sun filtering through, people wrapped in shawls, huddling near the warmth of the coal-fired stoves...
Kanda “khekda” bhaji After months of heat in Pune summers, the first wild tropical rain comes down dramatically. Strong gusts of wind blow up the dust (sometimes roofs of houses too), then heavy showers often accompanied by rolling thunder and hailstones! Our penthouse flat had wide slanting windows in every room to look out onto...
BADAM CHAMAN Paneer is used in many recipes of North India and is a versatile ingredient to create many quick spontaneous vegetarian dishes. Often cooked cut in cubes, paneer itself has texture but not much flavour. It is what you combine with it or make of it that evolves into a delicious dish. In this...
Ranga Aloo diye Phulkopi In many recipe books and restaurant menus, all of us come across Aloo Gobi. This is a Bengali variation of it that I love much more. It is a colourful medley of vegetables and the spice seeds add a delicious titbit of flavour. The sweet potato is the real surprise element...
During my work in the organic sector, I had the opportunity to visit many tea, coffee & spice estates in South India. I cherished these visits as they were in the scenic, verdant mountainous areas of the Western Ghats. The visits felt like working-holidays, meeting earthy, down to earth people, who loved nature as much...
Certain fixed days of a week or some holy days as per the Hindu calendar, some people fast in India. On such days some fast just with water, fruits, and tea, but others call it a “fast” and just eat differently. No garlic and onions are allowed, but things like sweet potato and potato, cucumber,...
