The Travails of a Punju Foodie

Pasta a la Traffic Lights!

2008-10-03T23:16:00.003+05:30

ahh! now if you've got a fridge that's got a mix of red, yellow n green traffic-signal-looking bell peppers what do you do?!

First! You open that can of beer for some inspiration! Take the packet of pasta and put into boil! Let the inspiration of a stressful day grab you as you set about chopping chopping chopping all the bell peppers... toss them in with the pasta and add a lil salt! While it all boils take the few tomatoes you have and chop those to bits too! Now.. with all the stress busted carefully drain off the water and chill the pasta under cold running water... maintains the color of the peppers and keeps the pasta from sticking together! Take a pan and saute the tomatoes... open up a few leftover ketchup packs from home delivered food.. add sum chili sauce (red / green.. whatever you can lay your hands on!)... add sum garlic powder and add sum freshly ground pepper (makes all the difference!) and stir it up! Mix in the Pasta and the bell peppers and keep it on slow fire for 5 odd minutes stirring in between s l o w l y!

Lo n Behold! Garnish with any good looking green leaves... Open the 2nd can and settle down with a nice movie! :)

~ enjoy the weekend folks!

coming back to life!

2008-09-29T00:27:00.002+05:30

and where her days have sped she hasn't known!

kitchens have revamped... a lot of bengali food has made it her way... a few cocktails et al! But she has barely found the time to take a pause and write it all out for you! she promises to be back soon!

as of now life is on a rollercoaster and her peace is far! Meanwhile to keep you interested:

'I feel sorry for people who don't drink. When they wake up in

the morning, that's as good as they're going to feel all day. '

~Frank Sinatra

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may create the illusion that you are tougher, smarter, faster and better looking than most people.

'When I read about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading.'

~ Henny Youngman

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may lead you to think people are laughing WITH you.

'24 hours in a day, 24 beers in a case. Coincidence? I think not.'

~ Stephen Wright

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may cause you to think

you can sing.

'When we drink, we get drunk. When we get drunk, we fall asleep. When we fall asleep, we commit no sin. When we commit no sin, we go to heaven. So, let's all get drunk and go to heaven!'

~ Brian O'Rourke

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol is a major factor in dancing li

ke a retard.

'Without question, the greatest invention in the history of mankind is beer. Oh, I grant you that the wheel was also a fine invention, but the wheel does not go nearly as well with pizza.'

~ Dave Barry

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may cause you to tell your friends over and over again that you love them.

To some it's a six-pack, to me it's a Support Group. Salvation in a can!

~ Dave Howell

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may make you think you can logically converse with members of the opposite sex without spitting.

La Casa

2008-06-16T22:31:00.003+05:30

Just when I thought I was going to give up reviewing foodie places on this blog, I land up in a place that forces me to entice you to go there! :D

This amazing place in Jayanagar 4th block is a drop out of heaven! You walk in to a green green plant filled zone with beautiful cane shaded yellow lights, wrought iron tables and chairs and an ambiance which literally says.. 'hey! good to see ya! find your comfort while we serve you!'. It is completely unobtrusive! I know exactly what Bar meant when he said that you can come here at 3 in the afternoon on a Sunday, read your book, do your thing, keep havin beer and eatin stuff and walk out when you want and you will feel like its been a purrrr-fect day! :)

We came, we sat and then all we could do was be silenced! Order is as follows:
1. Chicken Nebraska: It's an open chicken sandwich with loads of fresh green herbs and cheese on it! 2 open sandwiches infact served with salad and generous amounts of nice chunky french fries!
2. Golden Fried Baby Corn: 2 bowlfuls - 1 of the baby corn and of the accompanying french fries!!!
3. 1 Pizza: I don't remember the name but the toppings were all verrrryyyyyyyyyy generous and loaded!!
4. 1 Chicken in red sauce and another in white mushroom sauce
5. 1 Macaroni with loads o veggies in red sauce.

Ahem! We were 3 people, all that food and 2 pitchers of beer! We sat for an extra 45 minutes just to find it in ourselves to finish this half pitcher which sat there staring at us as we were near the point of a nuclear blast if any one of us exploded! And the bill u ask?? 1460 bucks ONLY!!!!!!!

Now tell me.. the most amazing food! The most amazing portions too! Really Good beer (good to find a good food place with goood beer as well!)! Sheer and complete unobtrusiveness! And how much do you pay for it?! :)

This is a place which is definitely pinned as a 'must must go'!!!

La Casa

4th Block,Chintal Plaza,10th Main,33rd Cross
Jayanagar, Bangalore, 560011

+91 80 26554613‎

+91 80 26910732

Italy de baad Punjab!

2008-06-16T20:02:00.004+05:30

The pasta's turned out good! And her battery of hungarians stays testimony to that! Even someone who had not had Pasta before loved it! :)

The one in red sauce: Saute lotsa fresh garlic (finely chopped). Add to it again finely chopped tomatoes... saute and more saute till water dissappearate! Then add Tabasco sauce, chili sauce, a wee bit of mustard and loads of grated cheese and tumble it all together! Then add the pasta (obviously, boiled drained, cold watered, salted!) and cook on slow fire for about 5 minutes till the sauce coats the past! Serve as hot and as fresh as possible! (I had a bunch of late lateef's comin over... so....!)

The one in white sauce: Now white sauce is as versatile as there are genres of music! A li'l bit of drums, some good bass and trumpets and saxophones or just a song..! Oops.. I meant some thinly cut onions, maida, salt n milk and lots of black pepper are the basics.. vary it with garlic / nutmeg / mushrooms / corn / capsicum et al! To this delightfully playful sauce add the pasta and let the sauce coat the pasta for about 7 mins and ur done again! :)

The weekend found her experimenting with her brand of butter chicken! Now I've roamed left right and center in 'Namma Bengaluru' for want of some authentic butter chicken and I always come back disappointed! Tried a place called "Punjabi Dhaba" run by a Sardar himself... and was stunned beyond words to notice the butter chicken gravy as thin as sambhar and with curry leaves (kadipatta) in it! Have even gone to 'Oye Amritsar' and come back disappointed yet again! So well... I took it upon myself this time! It was again in Sanju and Anamika's kitchen! :D Now take onion paste.. tomato paste... ginger garlic paste... same old Indian style bhuno it all... add to it a paste of almonds and milk (generous mix)... then add the masalas! And the haldi phobic me again recommends not to add haldi! (i have no clue why I'm so paranoid about it!) and add 2 tablespoons of honey.. Mix bhuno et al.. let it just turn into this overwhelming bulbous mix! For authenticity of color you can add the orange color as well.. now add the chicken and let it cook cook and cook till it not just becomes soft but also absorbs all the masalas beautifully! By now the chef was down some vodka and a shot of tequila and the labor of masala was progressing well! Now add the cream and stir it slowly making sure it all blends... cook for another 10 mins... slow fire... let the smells of it pervade your soul... let the creaminess of it feel your hands... and then ladies and gentleman top it all with almost a cup full of melted butter! Simmer for a couple more minutes.. this time around make sure its covered so that that the aroma of the butter seeps into every tiny shred of the chicken! and yes.. what you have is before you now will be delightfully authentic "kukkad makkhanwala!" :) Goes amazingly well with Gin served neat with chunks of watermelon and chat masala mixed into the glass!

And the crowning glory comes with 'Rum de Rajma!'. C(r)ook up the Rajma as you usually would (without the haldi puh-lease!!!) add to it a generous 60-90ml of apni desi Old Monk! It's not just good for the tatse.. it's awwsumm for the color as well! :) This people was lapped up by an audience of 3 as if there's no tomorrow! [if u wanna know how i do my rajma in detail lemme know! :)]

Stay c(r)ooked! :)

C(r)ooks week in!

2008-05-23T16:55:00.004+05:30

The c(r)ook has been having a lot of field days!

She reached home last friday night from work and decided to feed 4 hungry men! (and her appetite rivals theirs any damn day!) :) So it was 15 eggs in a yum curry! Keep the eggs to boil and settle down with the onions and tomatoes! Shortest, simplest way to make the curry nice and thick is to run the onions and tomatoes in a mixer! Saute the onions till pink, add ginger garlic in generous amounts and continue to 'bhoono' and then add the minced tomatoes and stir once in a while till it changes color from a soft pinkish red to a nice deep brown-red! Add the masalas as u please and then 'bhoono' some more! If you have coriander/mint chutney at easy access adding some of it is a good idea too! There on ad lots of curd and stir around till the oil separates... add a lil water to get to desired consistency! Meanwhile the eggs have boiled and u get one of the mushtandas to peel all 15! and then you're lucky if he offers to cut them too! :) plonk em in and keep on slow fire for 10 mins while the 'blub blub' begins to sound like music to the ears as the smell wafts and settles in every corner of the house! Lo and behold! :)

Egg curry tastes best with onion rice! Add coriander to it if you please.. the flavor is amazing! However, if you have just come back from office do with the shortcuts of Jeera Rice / Bread! :)

On another given day in the week she decided she needed some TLC and so fell sick! Her knight in shining armour stepped into the kitchen and lo and behold was prepared scrambled eggs with mushroom and cheese.. hint of mustard.. some garlic powder and it tasted right out of a gourmet chef's kitchen! :)

Her quick fix breakfast for him... Mushrooms and tomatoes sauteed with garlic powder, butter, salt and pepper! Bread covered with cheese slices and then dump the tomato mushroom dumplings on and thereon layer it with sausages! I tried the cheese and onion sausages this time around and have fallen in luv with them! You can try any kind you please!

If you are the Jamun loving kind of person here's a coktail u can try:
whiskey + soda + jamun juice + a wee lil bit of coke/pepsi! It sounds really absurd and looks a very funny purple but it tastes damn interesting!!!! :)))

If you have the time and are brunching before going to office a quick fix is mooli parathas! They are a lot faster than the aaloo and gobi...! Just grate it, squeeze out the water... add the masalas.. add anar dana (its not being there will not make a difference.. but its being there makes all the difference! :) ) and add a green chilli cut real small! Tip: Go slow on the salt!

A pasta quick fix: Take a packet of knorr soup (the white base.. non tomato).. add a weeny bit of water to it so that it becomes a thick sauce... tumble the boiled pasta in... add a bit of mustard and some pepper / tobasco sauce! Garnish with sauteed bell peppers in all colors! :)

And that's a lot! I plan to experiment with some more pasta tonite! :) May the guinea pigs be well fed! Ciao! Happy C(r)ooking!!

Truly dhaabe di Chef!

2008-05-06T02:59:00.003+05:30

The knight in shining armour (more so on a shiny bike) calls her his 'dhaabe di chef!' And it was proved beyond any inkling of doubt!

6 PM: Ok! You have 8 people coming over... and the 3 of us are already here!
Hmmm..... need chicken, paneer, smirnoff and tomato juice! Run Lola Run!

7 PM: Shopped, home and in the kitchen!

The Paneer pasanda?!:
Cubes... ginger garlic paste... salt; pepper; soya sauce; chilli sauce! Leave for 10 mins and saute in a pan till charred on all sides!

The Chicken story:
Chicken breast pieces... a packet of curd... 2 eggs... salt; red chilli; ajwain.. all mixed! ("Moteeee.... kitna gandh machaa rahi hai!" To this pat went the reply: "a good chef (ah!) is not afraid of messy hands!) :D Anyways.. after creating the 'gandh' by mixing all the stuff with the chicken you leave it for 10 mins. Then... char grill in a kadhai...! Sprinkle loads o aamchoor.. and ur set! :) The compliment: "maamla antshant hai!" :D :D

Keep the bloody mary's flowing and the chicken rolling... get a bday cake and voila! They had a bday party for her bonehead on a bike! :)

Happy Birthday and Bon Apetit!

I now rightfully proclaim myself "dhaabe di chef!" for managing the feat of feeding and satiating with bloody mary's (where the bartender was Granpa!) 8 people with the notice of a mere hour! (to which Big Bro stares open mouthed and goes.... "It's a feat that takes a week to accomplish you know?!!!) :D

The New Dhaba!

2008-04-25T09:59:00.005+05:30

The dhaba is not out of business! :) Worry not!

The dhaba was busy being shifted to a new location, a new home! The inaugural ceremony of the new kitchen was held yesterday with a full Punju meal in tow! :) The perfect house warming gift: a set of Brilliant Shot Glasses and Beyond Brilliant Martini Glasses! :D (luv ya Ammu!)

Menu:
Chicken Curry
Dal Makhani

Now the chicken curry is easier than any other dish to make! The tricks: Marinate the chicken in a lot of ginger garlic paste and forget for 2 hours! Use mixied onions and sizable chunks of tomatoes... use fresh ginger juliennes and use moderate quantities of the 'khada masala' (bay leaves, the star, dried onions, pepper balls). Trick: Freshly done homemade garam masala and 1 fresh cut green chilly to garnish! Most of the times it cooks in it's own oil and water and u don't need to add extra water for the gravy... if you do jus spice up the masalas a wee bit to avoid losing taste! :)

Dal Makhani: This was a first time experiment with her! 1 cup black sabut dal (do not... DO NOT ask me names of dals!!!!!), 1 cup Rajma! (It's best if you let it stand in water overnight... in case you forget, boil them for about 5 mins and then put the whole thing in a flask for an hour! And then pressure cook a li'l extra!) :) Minced onions and tomatoes and a ginger garlic paste... all bhunoed well.... all the regular masalas... a lil extra coriander powder and no haldi at all! Cook as usual... slow fire it for as long as you have the time (food on slow fire definitely tastes different and better!) Add cream / milk and let boil... top it with a dollop of butter / cheese! :)

Folks ate in complete silence... :) She knew it was good!

Accompaniments this time were a myriad variety of cocktails since we had in our company a cocktail guru! One of em was oh so refreshing! (muddle fresh cut ginger, add lime cordial, add vodka, sprite and soda... top with long cut cucumber!) The Master reveals that the taste is of the cucumber... the spirits pull out the juices and lo and behold is the most refreshing cocktail I have ever had! :)

Also in tow: A bottle of Chardonnay! :) Cheers to the new kitchen and more importantly... Cheers to the bundle of friends who gobble up whatever is cooked in ani da dhaba! :)

C(r)ooking!

2008-03-17T15:06:00.005+05:30

She was back in the kitchen of heaven....! And on the menu was Shepherd's Pie and Chicken Stroganoff!

But before the chef was unleashed... she was served the yummiest 'prawn pickle'! Awwwsum is not the word! :)

Well... we set to work... angelic helper(s) (yup... lucky me with 2 beautiful helpers!) boiling potatoes and cooking rice! Marinating the chicken in the basics of ginger garlic paste, salt n pepper! Peeling n chopping onions and pureeing the tomato! Chopping every veggie that came into sight! Mushrooms, capsicums, babycorns et al! :)

Started work on the Shepherd's pie... :) onions, ginger garlic, and the pureed tomatoes... bhunoes till beautiful n aromatic... lil salt n lil pepper...! Add the keema... :) bhuno bhuno n bhuno some more... add soya sauce to make it nice n brown and pressure cook the entire mix for half hour! :) Layer a bowl with mashed potatoes (boiled potatoes, milk, cheese, salt n pepper - all in generous punju quantities!) Pour in the mince and cover with another layer of potatoes! Cover with cheese and bake for 10 mins! :) The whiff of it will tell u it's done! (for a saner indicator - browning cheese on top!)

The chicken was being worked in parallel... take the marinated chicky n pan fry it in butter till its well done. The veggie cutting spree?! Well take em all n saute in butter... now there's a trick.. if u have mushrooms then saute those first.. (let their water evaporate), then add the baby corn n other veggies (it's a greeny dish so avoid the reds n yellows as much as u can!) n then add a ton of capsicum! Don't cover while sauteing or the capsicum will lose its beautiful green! Also add slices of fresh cut ginger.. the aroma is sinful! Now over the chicken add 'maida' and bhuno! (me and bhuno happen to be old frenz i guess! :D) Pour milk over the entire mix and let it get thick while stirring! Once at desired consistency add salt, pepper and oregano and the let the flavors mingle... To this tingly mingly mix add the stir fried veggies! Surround with rice (any form and flavor... i used soya-chilli rice) and serve piping hot!

An amazing kitchen helps to prep up awwsum food! :D And the angels in the kitchen along with nice heady homemade nutmeg wine go a long way n preparing a hearty full-fill-ing meal! :)

Bon Apetit!

Stones

2008-03-09T11:49:00.003+05:30

When saturday has been working and the week has decidedly taken its toll on you... head for Stones! :) Nothing too fancy here... the overall darkness with light camouflaged under posters of bands and singers works well for the place!

Only Beer will be your elixir and a plethora of good snacky food..! :) Several choices exist for wholesome food as well. Each pitcher is accompanied with a plate of peanuts!

The place does not have a DJ! Make a request and the entire CD of the band will get played... (well at least till somebody else makes a request!) The music is not jarring and thus perfect to unwind with after a long week!

Service with a smile and good service! Added plus, given the location, there's lots of parking place in the surrounding lanes and by-lanes!

We were a bunch of 5 nuts out of which 4 work in the IT Industry! To each his/her own travails and a place to catch up with each other's lives over beer while unwinding... tat's Stones fer ya! :) A bunch of snacky stuff, topped with Dosa Chicken (it's a must have given the nice fluffy dosas!) found their way right into our starved stomachs as conversation flowed all around!

Stones
100 Feet Road,
Indiranagar
Bangalore

Ph: 41481572, -73, -74

Home away from Home! :)

2008-02-25T00:13:00.003+05:30

First up a biiiii....g thank you to the special hosts for having me over!

Next up.. the dhaba shifted base today and made the 'jannatofied' kitchen of Anamika & Sanju it's own! It's a kitchen straight out of the fairytale of cooking!!! From the stove to the chimney... it's like miraculous! Touch the cabinets and they open! Lift the cupboard doors a wee bit and they open up like 'khulja-sim sim' to reveal themselves! Even the dustbin cabinet was like touched by a magic wand! So the c(r)ook was in Kitchen heaven and having a ball of a time! From a futura cooker to perfect non stick stuff and wooden spatulas! From decorated mats to the awwsum cutting boards to the lovely selection of cups and bowls to the perfect glass ware to the oh so perfect e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g!!!!! This chef now knows what her heaven would be like!

It started with a weeny bit of chaos with the mutton being uncut but that was corrected soon enough! :) The chef had a lovely glowing helper (who ended up doing most of the work!). Anyways... :D On the menu:
1. Chicken in Brown Sauce
2. Mutton 'Kohlapuri'
3. Kerala Porotta's (ordered!) (bracket 2: spelling duly corrected after a Mallu yuppie jumped up and screamed: parota --> WRONG and SACRILAGE. It's a different story altogether that it's sacriLEGE! ;) )
4. Rice (nice n spiced up!)

The chicken was easy... with sauteing the onions, ginger garlic and capsicum... taking the tomato paste and reducing it over high flame... giving it a dash of salt, pepper and soya sauce! Meanwhile we have been marinating the chicken in ginger-garlic, salt and pepper and 'Jack Daniels!' :D Grill the chicken over some more JD and once tender and done pour the sauce over it and mix in the sauteed bowl! :) Cook a bit more for the flavors to seep in and lo n behold 'Chicken in Brown Sauce!'

The mutton demanded a whole host of onions and tomatoes.. standard desi masala... :) hold off on the haldi here again! Add to it a whole packet of 'Parampara Mutton kohlapuri' masala and bhuno it nice and well till it leaves it's oil! Pressure cook with bay leaves, big elaichi, black pepper balls, cloves and cinnamon sticks! :) Give it close to half an hour! And there you have it!!

With a salad of onions, tomatoes, carrots and olives and the parotas and rice the whole meal was one of the best she managed to turn out! (The kitchen and the angel helper had a huuuuge role to play!) :)

To top it all came ice-cream and eventually an amazing cup of tea made by the "host"! :)

It was a blissfully beautiful day... "perfectly perfect"! (To go with it was a nice heady glass of home made nutmeg wine!) :)

Guided Tour! :)

2008-02-04T23:41:00.000+05:30

Warning: Exploration ahead!
ani-da-dhaba --> barrista --> pecos --> koshy's!

It started with meeting up with Khatri (a cute crazy whacko who she met at a darling friend's wedding and it was quite enuf to know him for 10 mins to know that this would be a great friendship!) and Mommyyy aka Shekhar aka Mum! (ahem! long story here.. tell me when you wanna hear it!)

Mum called up and was like 'Motee' (aka yours truly), I'm hungry! Yours truly sets open the gates of her dhaba to cook for a veggie... ! It's simple stuff... yellow dal, aaloo ki sabji n rice! It had been long since such simplicities had engulfed my life! :)

The nice hearty meal found us ready enough to walk the streets of Namma Bengaluru and we were sitting at the Barrista at the Barton center which can be one helluva crazy place on a Sunday! But with the sky giving us premonitions of rain and nice music playin.. the "Irish Caffe" became a must try and is now a must have the next time you are there! :)

The three soldiers trudged along and explores Bengaluru apart from food while munching on Popcorn and Masala Corn on the Cob! :) (~to each his own!)

Next stop after wading through a number of book stores and buying Dad a birthday gift was 'Pecos!' The place as usual attracts me no end! All the reviews that I’ve read about this place have described it as an Institution! It lives up to that and it’s habit forming!

The waiter with his own beer belly and a red and white checked shirt with the sweetest smile on his face takes charge of the whole floor and lets the people get lost in the music and the beer and the popcorn! Every pitcher gets you a pack of popcorns!

The choice of food complements the rustic look of the place… everything is finished to look blissfully grimy… the lampshades, the arches, the walls! The furniture is wrought iron with paint peeling off and the chairs are actually a modified barstool with the wooden surface proudly reading ‘Pecos!’

The music is a delectable mix of stuff like Dire Straits, Lynard Skynard, Eagles and stuff like American Pie! American Pie is a standard! Monday’s become a tad easier with the after glow of Pecos! :)

And then after a walk through the streets and a race that Khatri n me decide to have we end up at Koshy's! Another Institution!! :) Bare bones, basic and classic! Rustic! Old faded table cloths.. old fashioned clear glasses with borewell water… typically typically irani! A few fans scattered over the ceiling… lots of smoke from cigarettes… but it was a nice cozy warm n not stifling inside! There’s a seperation of the Smoking and Non-Smoking areas to the extent that the non-smoking is called the jewel box, has an A/c and i’ve heard prices are steep there! And yes, the use of laptops is not allowed inside the jewel box! (Mystery… any answers people? ) But true Koshy’s is smokin koshy’s with it’s claim to fame as even Pt Jawaharlal Nehru dined over there! Also.. there’s a gigantic Iron (Press) with MTV Style awards kept there.. so it had us wondering for a few moments! :)

Women in saris who smoke, women in capris and short skirts who smoke, women with 2 pigtails.. women who don’t smoke.. men with beards and long hair, men in casual shirts… men with arms around their girlfriends… all kinds of smokin and non smokin people… groups of women chattering away… groups of men enjoying their beer! It’s a come as you are, do what you want place and everybody… EVERYBODY is totally comfortable in their skin!

So if you wanna take a break.. let go of your masks.. enjoy good food/coffee/beer… let your hair down and head straight for this beautiful experience! It is indeed an experience! The house special is ‘appam with mutton stew’ but that’s only and only a sunday breakfast item! So the day you find it in your bones to wake up on a sunday morning before 9… you wash your face and brush your teeth and head straight for koshy’s! yes… it sells like hot cakes so it’s best to be there before 930!!!!!! (I’ll tell you the day I manage it!) Till then i'll stay happy with the keema curry and rice and the mice mutton toast! :)

And that people was a foodie's tour around Bengaluru's best!

Mutton-a-la-stew!

2008-01-10T00:52:00.000+05:30

Have a couple of posts lined up! Doing the one with "Daddy's Special Mutton Stew" first! :)

The great Bar had been promised a treat of mutton stew! Lo and behold I set to work in the kitchen on a fateful Saturday morning! Step 1: Clean the mutton realllllyy well! and then put in a lot of ginger-garlic paste (freshly done) and add 'garam masala'. The garam masala should have cinnamon as one of it's ingredients apart from the standard plethora that goes in! :). Add soya sauce generously! (yes garam masala and soya sauce. you got that right!) Leave for at least an hour if not more. But not more than 2 hours else it'll start reeking of these flavors!

Heat some oil and add black pepper balls, tej patta, cloves, cloves of garlic as well, badi elaichi and that one masala that's shaped like flowers! (i dunno the name!) Careful here now.. the oil will pop and burst! (yes.. injury sustained). Add tiny round onions (if tiny is a problem then diced into chunks is good), tiny round potatoes and coarsely diced carrots and stir like stir fry!. Add the marinated mutton to this beautiful aromatic mix and let the mutton romance the kadhai (cook on slow fire without covering) till it leaves a li'l oil... the mutton will leave it's oil so u'll know it's cooked. It won't be soft and chewy yet but it will be cooked. The water/soy sauce et al will have dried out and oil will have come out! At this point mix in loads o black pepper and add some more of the garam masala. Tumble the entire mix into a cooker. Add about 2 huuuuge spoons of vinegar and cover the rest of the mutton with water! Give it 2 whistles and then let it cook on slow fire for another 25 minutes! Turn gas off and let it cook in the heat within! Open the cooker... add a lil cornflour (take some cornflour in a teeny vessel and mix in water.. then pour the mix sloooowwwly over the mutton!) and give the whole thing a weeny boil.

Lo and behold! Mutton Stew!! :)

Psst... another tip for the Rajma... instead of using cut up onions and tomatoes try using ones u've just run in a mixie. it'll give a smoother texture and a thicker gravy! :)

The reward was half a bowl wiped out by Bar alongwith a full loaf of bread in minutes! Reward part to was from a colleague who went on to say, 'I have never tasted mutton like this in all my life! My vocabulary fails me here!' And it ended up being his birthday gift as well! :)

Sweet Tooth

2007-12-26T01:51:00.000+05:30

And twas Christmas! And so she was concocting up chocolate biscuit pudding..!

~ n before she could photograph it.. twas attacked!

Simple: Packs of 'Marie Biscuits!'. Dip em in lukewarm coffeeeed milk and arrange a layer in a bowl! On top of that a layer of chocolate (cream, drinkin choc, coffee n sugar all mixed in dil khol ke!)... a layer of yum walnuts, cashewnuts and raisins! Keep building layer on layer on layer till you run out of wither biscuits or sauce or space! :D

Chilllll for an hour and voila! Eternal Sin! :)

Merry Christmas folks!

Dysfunctional...

2007-12-23T12:30:00.000+05:30

The kitchen has some elaborate plans comin up... as of now it's just cooking up basic stuff... maggi-a-la-italio was created by adding chilli flakes, oregano and loads o butter to the normal 'Masala Maggi' pack! :)

To keep ya company till my menu-de-elaboratos takes shape:

Green Day!

2007-12-12T16:16:00.000+05:30

Dying of hunger 2 roomies reach home at 930 in the night after a looong day at work! Plan: Methi aaloo n parathas!

The yummy Parathas are all a credit to roomie! So much so we ended up having 5 each n dunno where they went!!

The methi aaloo was a first time again... :) The trick: Pluck the leaves and add salt (without washing) and keep for about 15 mins. The 'kadvaa' will go away! Meanwhile.. fry the aaloos (can't cook methi for too long so the only way for the potatoes is to cut em up n fry em!) Mix it all together with onions, tomatoes and the standard masalas! Voila! Methi-a-la-aalu n Parathas!!

~ A very satisfied grin! :D

Experiments at the dhaba!

2007-12-09T23:42:00.000+05:30

Lazy Sunday morning... ohk! ohk! Afternoon! As I lazily crawled out I suddenly wanted to cook something different today!

Menu:
1. Chicken in red wine sauce.
2. Tomato Corn Gratin

Secret to the chicken.. roast to semi soft! and then let it cook in the wine sauce later...! Wine sauce... hmm... pour wine into the charred remains of the chicken... heat to boil and let catch fire! :D (serious!) simmer and add soy sauce.. simmer some more... add the roasted chicken and let it soak up on slowwwww fire! :) ahh! the flavor just goes in deeeep!

The Gratin is easy... tomato slices.. reduced over gas. Add oregano and chilli flakes. Mix bread crumbs and cheese and layer over the tomato... top layer of corn in thick white sauce! Ta-da!

Top it all with vodka in black grape juice along with black-forest cake! Now that's a feast!

Verdict: experiment successful! This shall be tried on a larger scale now!

Indian Coffee House

2007-12-09T03:52:00.000+05:30

This weekend has decided to be exceptionally out of the kitchen!

The afternoon found me walking the streets of Bengaluru with Bar. We walked past the coffee house and somehow Bar had the vague notion that it served only coffee!!! He stands humbly corrected...!

Saturday afternoon... pretty much just out of bed... apples in the name of breakfast... running to the bank to make a credit card payment and then looking around for a black sweater yours truly insisted on buying! Hunger had to strike! :D

First order:
1 mutton cutlet!
1 scrambled eggs on toast
1 omelette with chips!
2 cold coffees!

After the aforesaid has been made to vanish in seconds (apart from the coffee) another plate of mutton cutlets makes its way to us! 12 seconds flat and our tummies have devoured that as well!

As we sit sipping on the cold coffee, our eyes wander to the rustic look of the place... it's b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l! The rickety old fan.. dirty old walls... benches for sitting... the ornate hats of the waiters... the sepia paled posters... the tiny 'katori' with 'saunf' and the bill... (which was just 110 for so so much!)... It all added up to a fantastic Saturday afternoon! :)

(The coffee house in Jabalpur is where dad had proposed to mum! :) )

Location: Indian Coffee House
13, Mahatma Gandhi Road,
Bangalore, 560001
080 25587088

Verdict: For a quintessential Saturday afternoon while exploring Bengaluru... this is it!

The week that was!

2007-12-05T22:57:00.000+05:30

Heya! I know I've become slow, but a damn busy work life has me off the streets! Can't keep me outta my kitchen though! ;)

The week saw me cooking almost everyday! Shortcuts a-la-pasta! :D

Short cut 1: Take a packet of Knorr soup... instead of the 4 cups o water just add about 1 n half! nice thick pre flavored sauce is ready and all u gotta do is add in the boiled pasta!
Short cut 2: Take a tetra pack of tomato puree.. add to it finely chopped garlic! (don't make that face.. keep the garlic flakes in water for half an hour and it peels and chops like a charm!). Mix em and let the puree cook just a bit. Add as much grated cheese as desired and add the Pasta! Presto! Tomato garlic Pasta at your service! :)

Now ain't that easy?!

My kitchen saw a few fiasco's with a mixer full of cold coffee exploding like a coffee hand grenade burst all over it and a whole packet of milk burnt (yes burnt) to bits while being boiled! My maid still hasn't given up on getting the vessel spanking clean! :) (Burning milk though considered auspicious under Indian beliefs, is not a good idea! It smells like burnt rubber tyres and doesn't leave the house for a good 3 days!) Phew!

Quick fix Maggi! Lotsa maggi, lotsa butter, chilli flakes and oregano leftover from lotsa Pizza being ordered by roomies! Mix it all! For the non veggie to delight, add in sausages or salami! :D

It saw me make masala parathas as well! Those with butter or honey are sooooo yum!

:) Work looks like it's becoming a lil manageable now.. so I'm planning to cook one of my weekend feasts this weekend or next for sure! Lets see how much I can get coaxed!

Try the quick fixes and lemme know what you think!

Desmond's

2007-11-20T21:58:00.000+05:30

So Granpa and two other angels alongwith yours truly decided to have a mini reunion (i've jus come back from home after a nice 10 day holiday!) and catch up with each other at Desmond's (the one in Koramangala).

It's a nice white wall with a big black door that greets you.. the outside look is 'interesting'. Yellow lights, dark wood furniture and a certain myriadness about the place!

(one of the angels!)

The tables have been done up well... only to be reduced in their glory by bottles of sauce which are downright dirty and ugly with their labels peeling off and one of them with a missing cap!

Anyways... the hungarians ordered cheese balls! A li'l dry but good nonetheless! And humongous! Nice with Beer... (the Beer glasses were a nice touch with them being the slim, tall variety!)

(cheeeezy! ;) )

Granpa and the angels set about wondering what to eat! The non vegetarian is spoilt for choices, but the veggies have a limited platter! The continental is what we had... so the Punjabi food (which is served!) calls for another review sometime!

Thus arrived 2 large (oops.. correction! 1 large and 1 pint sized) sizzlers and a quantifiable bowl of spaghetti. The non vegetarian it so happens is spoilt for portion sizes also... The veggies they assume likes to starve! This was duly brought to the notice of the 'manager' who ended up being suspiciously 'a lil bit too receptive' about the whole scenario and offering to add the portions... The offering was declined. (In Granpa's words, "someone needs to just tell them. That's it!" ).

Well... the non veggie had stuffed herself to the brim and the two angels were dying to have dessert! The 'Blueberry Cheese Cake' is definitely a don't miss... 'The New York Cheese Cake' tastes of more butter than cheese and is conveniently avoidable! I've been here before.. the chocolate mousse is sheer and utter sin! :)

All in all... an okeyish experience which could have improved by leaps and bounds with some careful and much needed attention to detail. 'You are not paying a bomb for anything!' ;)

Location: Desmond’s

#48, The Terminus Residency,

5th Block, Koramangala Industrial Estate,

Tel : 41466300/ 01

Verdict: Food is Good. Desserts are a must have. :) Okeyish on the pocket... with Beer, the cheese balls, spaghetti, 2 sizzlers and 2 desserts we spent about 1200 which is pretty decent! But not a place where conversation flows or you forget your cares... Try it for yourself to like it or lump it! :)

Whats my story, Morning glory?!

2007-11-16T00:28:00.000+05:30

Story goes that a Punjabi female, nicknamed "bhookhi sherni" by Mommy dearest hit the town called 'Bengaluru' and was skeptical... (land of idli dosa.. how will she survive?!)

Thus began an exploration with partners in crime - an exploration of both foodie-drinkie places and of a different kind in my own kitchen!

Thus we have the Travails of a Punjabi Foodie exploring Namma Bengaluru!

Characters:

Bar (how the name came about is a story too long!): The stoic who gets his moods of going just to drink up nice or to stuff up since he's in the mood for goooo...d food! (also ace blackmailer when it comes to feeding him home cooked food!)

Granpa aka Mite (pronounced "Mighty" and how these happened is something we'd rather forget!): My bestest admirer and my worstest critic! What would I do without him?!

Off and on we have a few more addons and 'the boyfriend' was here last week who has gone on to say, 'Madam, the way to a man's heart is through his stomach! Yahan toh invasion hoke surrender ho chuka hai!' ;) (This from an ace chef himself!)

Bon Apetit!