Month: July 2020

(repost from 2015)

I first tried cooking an Indian dish when I was a teenager, and it was an unmitigated disaster.  Despite that early and unpleasant experience, I’ve really enjoyed cooking Indian food for some years, and thought I’d share some of my wisdom, such as it is  :).

What’s comforting about making Indian food is that the meats and produce are pretty much the same as what we have in the West, and that the cooking techniques are basic, if sometime tedious, like stirring onions continuously for 20 minutes.

To my mind, there are four principal differences between Indian and Western cooking:  (1) spices and how they’re used, (2) the use of dhal (legumes/pulses), (3) the breads, and (4) sweets.  This is a long post about spices………..

One note about spices in general:  If you can, buy whole spices and grind them yourself.  Whole spices retain their flavor much longer than ground spices, and it’s easy-peasy to grind them — just use a coffee grinder:

And two notes about Indian spices:

(1)  If you can, buy them at an Indian market.  Not only are they likely to be fresher (who knows how long that bottle of ground cumin has been sitting on the shelf at Safeway), but also significantly cheaper.  I did an informal survey, and the spices at Safeway were between five and 10 times as expensive.

(2)  Indian spices want to be cooked.  That is, they’re rarely used raw.  Most Indian recipes call for the spices (whole or ground) to be cooked in oil as one of the preliminary steps in the recipe, and when they’re not, the spices should be dry-fried.  One example is garam masala, a spice mix which is sometimes used during the cooking process, but is sometimes sprinkled over a finished dish.

These are mostly pictures of Indian spices, which I’ve put into categories from “Must-Haves” to “Exotic,” with a few categories in-between, and “I Forgot These,” with a few notes.  My notes are limited to clearing up things that the giant ball of confusion aka The Internet wasn’t helpful for.  I’ve looked up the Hindi names for most of them.

1) Must-Haves:  These are the Big Five — most Indian dishes will use at least some of these, although most will also call for other spices.  Clockwise from the top, coriander seed/dhania, dried red pepper/lal mirch, ground turmeric/haldi, fennel seed/saunf, cumin seed/jeera.

Notes: Although some other Asian cuisines use fresh turmeric root, Indian cooking doesn’t that I know of.  As for the dried red peppers, they are just for heat and not so much for flavor, so you can substitute red pepper flakes or cayenne, or probably Tabasco, although I haven’t tried that  🙂

2)  Tier Two:  These are almost as commonly used.  Yellow mustard seed, black mustard seed (both rai), cardamom seed/elaichi, cinnamon/dalchini,

Notes:  I can’t tell the difference in a dish between yellow and black mustard seeds….some recipes call for one, others call for t’other, and some don’t make any distinction.  Mustard seeds are always used whole and fried in oil, and they have to be added to the oil before any other spices, and be cooked until they pop.  Be careful because as they pop they will cause the oil to splatter.

Indian cinnamon is “false cinnamon” or “cassia”, the bark of Cinnamonum cassia, in contrast to “true” cinnamon from Cinnamonum zylanicum, but it makes no difference.

Cardamom seeds…..see below.

3) Tier Three:  Green cardamom pods/choti (small) elaichi, black cardamom pods/badi (big) elaichi,  dried sour mango slice/amchoor, black peppercorns/kala mirch, mace/javetri, bay/tej patta, and nutmeg/jaiphul in the middle:

Notes:  Green and black cardamom pods are often used whole, especially in rice dishes like biryanis.  They aren’t meant to be eaten, but no one ever died from biting into them.  Two green cardomom pods equal one black one for cooking.

Amchoor is used a souring ingredient, similar to tamarind/imli.  I don’t know of any recipe that uses the slices as-is….usually it’s ground in the same way you would spices.

Mace/javetri is the outer membrane of the nutmeg seed, and has a similar flavor.  Nutmeg is….well, nutmeg!

Indian bay is a completely different species from the Bay Laurel usually used in Western cooking.  It’s the dried leaves of cassia.  It has a similar flavor, but is much milder than Bay Laurel.

4) Exotics:  These are spices that aren’t used in many recipes, but according to what I’ve learned, are essential in the ones that do.  Carom/lovage seeds/ajwain, nigella seeds/kallonji, black cumin, and white poppy seeds/khas-khas.

Full disclosure:  I bought carom/ajwain and white poppy seeds in anticipation of using them in recipes, but haven’t done so yet.

Just one note: black cumin (which isn’t black) tastes nothing like regular cumin, so that’s not a good substitute.  And there’s no good substitute for kallonji, which has a taste all of its own.

5 D’oh!  Things I Forgot:  My rather pitiful excuse is that these live in a different cupboard.  Cloves/laung, asafoetida/heeng, fenugreek/methi seeds, and saffron/kesar.

Cloves, sometimes used whole and sometimes used ground, definitely belong in the “must-haves” category.  The rest IME aren’t used as much.  How could I have forgotten fenugreek, my favorite Indian spice?

-R

(repost from 2015)

This is simplicity itself, and delicious with any sort of deep fried food (including French fries), but maybe best with samosas.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 C. plain yogurt
• 1 Tbsp. chopped onions
• 1/2 tsp. chopped ginger root
• 1-2 green chilies, seeded and chopped
• 1 tsp. salt
• 3/4 tsp. sugar
• 1/4 green pepper, seeded, cored and chopped
• 1/4 C. packed mint leaves
• 3/4 C. packed cilantro
• 1 Tbsp. water

Method:

    1) Blend it up and enjoy!

-R

I first started cooking when I was a teenager, out of self-defense.  My grandma was a wonderful woman, and could bake a mean pie; but otherwise, cooking just wasn’t her thing.

Occasionally I pull out a recipe from my “teen years” recipe box and try it again.  Most of these I haven’t made for decades, so it will be interesting (to me) if they have stood the test of time, and are as good as I remember them.

You do have a teen years recipe box, don’t you?   🙂 

Without further ado, here is Beefy Bean Soup:

Ingredients:

    1) 3 C. coarsely chopped cabbage

    2) I medium onion, chopped

    3) 2 C. water

    4) 1 x 17 oz. can lima beans (Safeway didn’t have either canned or frozen, so I did them from dried, 2 C. cooked beans + 1/2 C. cooking liquid)

    5) 1 x 12 oz. can corned beef, diced

    6) 1 x 10 oz. condensed bean with bacon soup

I had completely forgotten about corned beef in a can. Appetizing, no?

    7) 1 Tbsp. mustard

Method:

    1) Simmer cabbage, onion and water for 10 minutes, or until tender.

    2) Stir in the beans and their liquid, soup, and mustard.

    3) Stir in the corned beef and stir carefully so it doesn’t break up, until heated through.

    4) Enjoy!

Comments:  This was surprisingly good, with a very hearty beefy/beany/bacony flavor.  For me a bit salty from the soup and canned corned beef, so I ate it over rice.

Cheers,

This is a typical Moghul (Northern Indian) dish, so it is delicately spiced and has a creamy sauce.  The delicateness of the spicing comes from the use of cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon in contrast to a lot of coriander and cumin.  The creaminess comes from the use of almond butter.

If you don’t have almond butter (as I didn’t) grind the almonds as finely as you can, so the sauce isn’t gritty.

Ingredients:

• One 3 pound chicken cut up into 8-10 serving pieces
• 1-1/2 tsp. lemon juice
• 2 tsps. salt
• 6 Tbsps. vegetable oil
• 3 Tbsps. slivered blanched almonds
• 2 cups finely chopped onions
• 1 Tbsp. finely chopped garlic
• 1 Tbsp. finely chopped ginger root
• 1 stick 4″ Indian cinnamon or 2″ stick Western cinnamon
• 4 black or 8 green cardamom pods
• 4 whole cloves
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp. turmeric
• 1/2 tsp. red pepper or to taste
• 1 C. canned tomatoes, puréed or chopped
• 2-3 Tbsps. almond butter or finely ground almonds
• 2 Tbsps. chopped cilantro

Method:

1) Prick the chicken pieces with a fork and sprinkle them with the lemon juice and salt.

2) Fry the slivered almonds briefly in one tablespoon of oil, and set aside for garnish.

3) Measure out the spices.

4) Stir the onions in the remaining 5 Tbps. oil on medium-low heat until they begin to brown (this will take 10-15 minutes).  Add the ginger and garlic, increase the heat, and stir for two minutes.

5) Add the whole spices (cardamom pods, cloves, cinnamon) and stir for two minutes.

6) Add the ground spices and stir for two minutes.  Add the chicken, tomatoes and almond butter or ground almonds.  Cook for 50 minutes or until the chicken is tender. Remove the whole spices.

7) Garnish with cilantro and the almond slices.  Enjoy!

(repost from 2015)

This is good on its own, or as a filling for samosas.

Ingredients:

• 4 Tbps. vegetable oil
• 2 tsps. whole coriander seeds
• 1/2 C. finely chopped onion
• 1-1/2 tsps. finely chopped ginger
• 1-3/4 Lbs. potatoes,  boiled, peeled, and cut into 1/2″ cubes
• 1/2 cup cooked green peas
• I Tbsp. lemon juice
• 2-3 green chilies, seeded and chopped
• 1-1/4 tbsps. garam masala

Method:

    1) Heat the oil on high for a few minutes, then add the coriander seeds and fry until they’re browned, about 15 seconds.

    2) Add the onions and ginger root, and fry until the onions turn light brown, about five minutes.

    3) Add the potatoes and the peas, and stir rapidly until the potatoes begin to look dry, about ten minutes.

    4) Add the remaining ingredients and stir for a couple of minutes.

    5) Enjoy!

(repost from 2015)

Like aloo this is good on its own, or can be used as a filling for samosas.

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbps. vegetable oil
• 2/3 C finely chopped onions
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1-1/2 Tbsps. finely chopped ginger
• 2 green chilies, seeded and minced
• 1 lb. minced beef or lamb
• 1/4 tsp. turmeric
• 1-1/2 tsps. salt
• 2 tsps. garam masala
• 2 tsps. lemon juice
• 2 Tbsps. chopped cilantro

Method:

    1) Heat the oil and add the onions.  Fry them slowly, stirring constantly (about ten minutes) until they turn brown.

    2) Add the garlic, ginger and chilies, and cook for two minutes.

    3) Add the beef or lamb, and cook until it loses its pink color.

    4) Add the remaining ingredients except for the cilantro,and cook until the moisture has evaporated.

  5) Sprinkle over the coriander and enjoy!

-R

I first experienced samosas courtesy of an Indian colleague in my previous job, who brought in large trays of them from a restaurant as a treat.  My mind rebelled…pastry enclosing potatoes?!?…that’s like starch in starch, like a rice sandwich.

But they were delicious, and sometimes we also got the meat version.

These are labor-intensive, and making both the vegetarian and meat versions can fill a Sunday.  They are best just out of the fryer, but freeze well after cooking, and can be reheated in a 325 degree oven until crispy.

Ingredients:

•   1-1/2 C all-purpose flour or atta (Indian finely-ground whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 4 Tbsps. vegetable shortening or butter
• 6-7 Tbps. cold water
• 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• Filling, either aloo (potato) or keema (meat)
• Oil for deep frying

Method:

    1) Stir the salt into the flour.  Using a pastry blender, cut the fat into the flour.  Then rub the mix between your hands until it becomes a firm dough.

    3) Add a few tablespoons of water to the dough, and knead for ten minutes, adding more water as necessary.  The dough should be pliable but not sticky.  Cover the dough and allow to rest for 30 minutes.

    4)  Cut the dough into two pieces, roll each piece in to a ‘rope,’ and cut each rope into eight pieces.

    5) Put a small amount of vegetable oil onto your rolling surface, then using a rolling pin, roll each ball into a six inch circle.  Cut the circle in half.  Moisten one half of the cut edge with water and form into a cone:

    6) Add about a tablespoon of filling.  Moisten the top of the cone and seal.  IMPORTANT!!!  Be sure to seal all edges of the samosas with water (or you can use a bit of cornstarch in water), since otherwise the oil will get in to them during frying and you’ll have a greasy mess.

    7) If you’re as unskilled with pasty as I am, you’ll end up with a bunch of misshapen and inconsistently sized samosas.  Don’t worry, they’ll still taste good! (and they freeze well, but be sure to freeze them first on a pan so they don’t stick together):

    8) Heat the oil to 350 degrees.  Drop in five or six of the samosas.  The temperature of the oil will drop to about 300 degrees — keep it there.  After ten minutes, the samosas should be light brown.  Remove and drain on paper towels.  Continue with the rest.

    9) Enjoy with sauce!

-R

SFX Issue No. 6, 6-18 Feb. ’82

Side One:

Side Two:

Enjoy!

-R

Another compilation of stuff I taped from Scott.

Side One:

1. 6 x 7 – 2-1/2 Days in Love with You/ Cool TV Suit/ Always Waiting For (Mantra MNT45CD, 1999)
2. Sleater-Kinney – Words and Guitars/ One More Hour (Radio 1 28/7/1998 from the ‘Get Up’ CDS – Matador Ole 354-2, 1998)
3. Placebo – Every You Every Me (Sneaker Pimps version)/ Every You Every Me (Infected by the Scourge of the Earth) (from ‘Every You Every Me’ Virgin FLOORCD9, 1998)
4. Garbage – Special (Rickidy Raw R&B Mix)/ Can’t Seem to Make You Mine (from the ‘When I Grow Up’ CDS, Mushroom MUSH43, 1998)
5. Hole – Drag/ It’s All Over Now Baby Blue (from ‘Malibu’, Geffen GFSTD 22369, 1998)
6. Vengaboys – Up and Down (Positiva COTIV-1057243, 1998)

Side Two:

1. Snow Patrol – Little Hide/ Sticky Teenage Twin/ Limited Edition/ JJ (Jeepster JPRCDS004, 1998)
2. BIS – Action and Drama/ Eurodisco (Les Rhythmes Digitales mix) (from Wiiija 95cdx, 1999)
3. Hefner – The Hymn for the Cigarettes/ Grandmother Dies – Lisa & Me/ You Need a Mess of Help to Stand Alone (Too Pure PURE93CDS)
4. Deus – Hotel Lounge (Be the Death of Me)/ Jigsaw You (Island CIDX 603/854 190, 1994)
5. Supergrass – Pumping on Your Stereo (Parlophone CDRS6518, 1999)

Enjoy!

-R

Side One:

Side Two:

Enjoy!

-R