Spaghetti Aglio Olio with Ham

Serves 2
Ingredients
200gms Spaghetti
4-5 Garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1 slice of Ham, diced into small squares
2 tbsp Fresh Parsley, chopped
2 tbsp Fresh Coriander stems, chopped
4-5 Sage Leaves, finely chopped
2 Red Chillies, finely chopped
2 tbsp Olive Oil
1/2 tsp Palm Sugar
Salt and Freshly ground pepper according to taste

Method

In two litres of salted boiling water, add 1/2 tsp oil and the dry spaghetti. Let it simmer for 7-8 minutes while you stir occasionally. Drain the spaghetti out.

In the mean while, in a flat pan, add the oil, chillies and garlic. Let the flavours infuse into the oil for 1 minute. The garlic should slightly caramelized (not burnt). You could add 1/2 tsp of butter if u want to give some more flavour and body to the spaghetti. Add the ham, sugar and sage leaves too. Saute for a minute and then add the spaghetti to the oil. Add the parsley and the coriander stems along with salt and pepper. Turn the Spaghetti on the pan till its coated with the oil mixture and the parsley. Take it off the pan, drizzle some more olive on top and serve hot :)

The simplest Aglio Olio ingredients are Oil, Garlic, Chillies, Parsley and Spaghetti. You can use just these and the dish will still be absolutely smashing.


Food Marriage tip
1) Spaghetti should always be cooked in salted water
2) Use Extra Virgin Olive Oil for dressings. In this case we are making a hot dressing, hence while adding Extra Virgin Olive Oil on the pan, make sure the pan is not too hot. The goodness of this oil goes away at high temperatures.
3) For this dish, its critical that the Spaghetti is generously coated with the oil mixture, else it will be very dry to eat
 

Papaya in Coconut Curry

Roasted Bell Pepper and Chicken Salad with Stir fried Pak Choii

Serves 2-3
Ingredients
200g Boneless Chicken Breasts, sliced in cubes
1 Pak Choi
2 Red Bell Peppers
1 Tomato
1 small Onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup Basil Leaves, chopped
1/2 tsp Coriander stems, finely chopped
1/2 tsp Palm Sugar
1 tsp Vinegar
1/2 tsp Ginger, finely chopped or grated
1/2 tsp Garlic, finely chopped
2 Green Chillies, finely chopped
2 tbsp Olive Oil
1 tsp Salt 
1/2 tsp Black Pepper, freshly ground

For the Marinate
1 tsp Salt
1 tbsp Green Chilly Sauce
1 whole lemon, squeezed

Method

Marinate the chicken with salt, green chilly sauce and lemon, for an hour

Roast the Bell Peppers and Tomato low flame until the skin is charred.I normally make sure that the bell pepper has softened a bit too. Sometimes only the skin chars without roasted them well. Once its done, put them in a bowl of water. It will help you to peel off the charred skin easily. Chop the bell peppers after removing the seeds. Same with the tomatoes.

Heat the wok in a low flame and add the oil. Add the ginger, garlic and chillies and stir for a minute. Add the onions and wet them until pink. Add the bell peppers and the tomato along with the salt. Add 1/2 a cup of water and put a lid on. Let it cook for 20 minutes and stir it occasionally. You will see that the bell pepper has started to soften. You should be able to mash it up easily. You can leave it to be chunky for an added texture. Add the marinated chicken. Mix well and put the lid on for 10 mins. Stir it a couple of times in between. Now you can add the coriander, pepper, palm sugar and basil leaves at this point and stir the chicken for 7-10 minutes more till its cooked. Keep tasting after taking the lid off. My mother hates me digging into fresh food but then it just helps me to figure if the chicken is cooked through or not. Over cooked breast pieces become very dry. No fun then. Add some vinegar, mix and take it off the stove.

In a flat pan, or a grill pan, stirr fry the pak choi leaves. Add salt to taste.

Now you place the chicken salad on the leaf, roll it up and bite in :)

Food Marriage Tips
1) Chicken marinate should always have salt and something acidic. You can use lemon or vinegar.
2) Roasted Bell peppers go really well with Basil. Its true for tomatoes too
3) Chicken breast on flame should not go beyond 15 minutes. The chicken will become dry and chewy. Lot of us Indians have the habit of cooking the whole chicken together for 45 mins or more. Separate the breast pieces. Use it for something else, or add them in the last 15 minutes of your cooking

No Garden Humour when her flowers were plucked!!

Hauz Khas Village: Hardly Rustic for a NYC Burger

My Saturday Lunch Experiment: Aromatic Egg Fried Rice

Somewhere in the Western Ghats

Tomato Pasta Sauce cooked two ways

Tomato Basil Sauce with Soya Chunks & Spaghetti

Serves 2-3 people
Ingredients
4 Tomatoes, blanched and peeled
1/2 cup Tomato Puree
2 tbsp Tomato Ketchup
2 Onions, finely chopped
1 Chilli, finely chopped 
100gms of Soya Chunks (I would prefer using chicken cubes or minced lamb)
6 cloves of Garlic, smashed whole
2 Bay Leaves
Fresh Basil Leaves
Fresh Sage Leaves
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 tbsp Olive Oil
Cheese, as much as you like

Boil water in a deep pan. Add the soya chunks with a pinch of salt and a few sage leaves. Turn down the flame and simmer the soya till light and fluffy (for around 2 minutes). Strain and retain the water. Chop the soya chunks to smaller pieces.

To Blanch Tomatoes:
Bring the same water to boil again and add the full tomatoes, a pinch of salt and a few basil leaves.The tomatoes will absorb the flavour from basil leaves. Strain the tomatoes. You can refregerate the stock for later use. Pinch the skin off the tomatoes while hot. It should come out easily. Remove the  Now just mash the tomatoes with hand in a bowl and keep them aside.

To Make the Pasta Sauce:
In a pan, heat the olive oil and add the bay leaves, chilies & garlic to it. Now add the onions and caramelize it. Add Soya and saute for 2 minutes.Now put the blanched tomatoes, basil leaves and puree into the pan. Add salt to taste. Keep in mind that the soya and tomatoes will be slightly salty. Stir well and put a lid on, for 15 minutes stirring occasionally. Add the tomato ketchup and pepper. Stir well and take it off the flame.

Serve with 200gms of Spaghetti. Garnish with some cheese, basil leaves and a drizzle of Olive Oil.

Roasted Bell pepper and Tomato Sauce with Penne Pasta

Serves 2-3 people
Ingredients
2 Tomatoes, blanched and peeled (See above)
3 tbsp Tomato Ketchup
1/2 cup Tomato Puree
1 Onion finely chopped
1 Bay Leaf
4 Garlic Cloves, smashed whole
1 Green chilli, whole
1 tsp Paprika
Coriander Stem, finely chopped
Coriander leaves, chopped
Red Bell Pepper paste (1 whole)
1 Yellow Bell Pepper, chopped in square chunks
1 Green Capsicum, chopped in square chunks
3 tbsp Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Cheese, as much as you like

To Make Bell Pepper Paste:
Roast the Red Bell Pepper on direct flame till its soft and its skin is burnt.Peel the skin while its hot. Put it in a mixer grinder to make a paste.

To Make the Pasta Sauce:
In a pan, heat oil and add garlic, bay leaf  and green chilli. Now, put the onions and salt on to the pan, and sweat them.  Add  blanched tomatoes, coriander stem, chilli paste, bell pepper paste and the puree. Stir well and put the lid on. Cook in low flame for 10 minutes and stir occasionally. Add the yellow bell pepper and capsicum and cook for another 5 minutes till they soften. Add pepper, paprika and tomato ketchup. Add the Penne Pasta and mix well. Generously grate cheese over it and let the cheese melt. Take the pan off the flame.

Garnish with Coriander leaves and serve.


Food Marriage Tips:
1) Tomatoes, Garlic, Basil Leaves, chillies, need each other to bring out the flavours
2) Spaghetti needs ample sauce and meat. Be generous in your servings.
3) Penne Pasta need a little less sauce than spaghetti, but need to be coated well. Penne Pasta goes best with ample amount of cheese. 
4) Whenever you boil the pasta, make sure you add a tsp of oil and some salt in the water. This way, the Pasta won't be bland and wont stick to one another. You can also add other aromatic seasonings into the boiling water.

Potato Rosti with Ham and Fried Egg

Serves 1
Ingredients
1 potato, peeled and grated (washed and dried)
2 slice of ham, cut into small squares
Salt to taste
1 tbsp Oil (Olive Oil will add a nice flavour)
1/4 tsp fresh Rosemary  (any seasoning that you may like. Oregano works well)
1 Green Chilli, finely chopped
1 Egg
Fresh Parsley or Coriander leaves, chopped

Mix the grated potato and salt. Keep aside for 10 minutes. Drain the excess liquid out of this mixture and dry the potatoes with a cloth. This will help in draining out the starch. Add ham, rosemary, chillies to it.

Heat a flat pan in medium heat and add theoil. Pick the potato mixture and squeeze the excess liquid out. . Now place it on the pan gently and flatten it into a thin layer without breaking it. Turn the flame to low and let the Rosti cook for 5 minutes on one side. Turn up the flame to make it crisp. Now use a flat spindle to turn it on the pan without breaking it.You should see a nice golden brown crispy layer on top. Let the other side cook for another 3-4 minutes again in low flame. Turn up the heat for another minute. Keep it in the pan for longer if needed, to make it crispy and crunchy.

Once done, take the Rosti off the pan and put it on a plate. Fry the egg on the pan, season with salt and place it gently on top of the Rosti. Add the freshly chopped coriander/parsley on top and serve.


You can just about use other ingredients in the Rosti Mix. I made another version of the Rosti with peas that were blanched and crushed and added to the grated potato.

Peas and Potato Rosti with Fried Egg

Food Marriage Tips

1) Eggs must always be seasoned with Salt

2) Potatoes will be crispy only when its moisture is removed. Remove all the starch you can, else the Rosti will be soggy

A Photo Essay of my Mom's Culinary Skills

Poached Pears

Poached Pears with Vanilla Cream

Maple Glazed chicken with Apple Salad and Bread

Pomegranate Ice Cream

Tapioca Pearls cooked in Indian Spices with Mango Milkshake

Tapioca Pearls cooked with Crushed Peanuts served with fried potato for all the crunch you need

Spiced Puris go best with Chilly Pickle

A Bihari Delicacy: Laung Latta (a sweet dish tied together with  cloves)

Khoya Gujiya ( a sweet dish made with a type of ricotta cheese mixed with dry fruits)

Poha

Customary Diwali Treats

Ladoos :)

Coriander Thai Rice with Honey Ginger Chicken

Gulab Jamun

The day that ain't ending

Do you know of a Zero Sum Game?

Either subsidized failures or glorious fame?

One Gladiator lived to save the day

The other buried in a grave astray?

Isnt it always, this or that, life or death?

Either the hate you had or the love you felt?

But self consumed portraits defy nature of land

They found safety in the convenience of the"AND"

Exclusive pedestals were crumbled to dust

Share the love and fuck the trust.

Face Palm

Review - Cafe Basilico, Bandra West Mumbai

It was one of those days where you just randomly decide to get out of home for a nice meal. A friend and I happened to be in Bandra for some work and it was dinner time and were searching for a good place to eat some Italian or European cuisine. Searched for some places on Zomato, found Basilico to be just around the corner from where we were at and decided to tick it off from our list. It was a quaint little place. It was a weekday and a dry day therefore the place was quite empty. We took a table outside at first, but it was a little humid that day. We did read in the reviews that the service was little slow. We took a chance still, as we were in no hurry. But then there is bad service and then when someone like me loses patience, something must have been really wrong than just bad service. I was made to wait for some 15 mins for the waiter to get water after reminding him twice, after already waiting for sometime since we got in. Got really annoyed with the heat and the fact that there was no water on my table still, we walked inside, asked the manager to get some effing water and took a table indoors. 

Things got little better after that. The menu was interesting and wholesome. There were lots of stuff in the menu to be tried out. My friend ordered a Pesto Scarmoza Chicken Roulade and I ordered Basilico's Char Grilled Rawas after reading Zomato reviews. We asked how much time they would take to serve us, skeptical about the service by now, and they said 20 mins. The food did come in 20 mins but I dont know why the waiters there wont serve me water. My glass would be empty for I dont know how long and I would have to beg them to get me some. 

The food came in. The Chicken Roulade didn't look very appetizing. It was arranged in a grotesque sort of way which would make your imagination run wild for a bit and you may think to yourself, should I eat this? Are people watching me eat this. It was overcooked. The bbqish sauce was not enough for the dry meat. The mashed potatoes seasoned with mustard oil served as an accompaniment, didn't go too well with the main dish. They should have kept the mashed potatoes simple and added more of pesto sauce. It wasn't a bad dish but it wasn't great either. We have had better.

Pesto Scarmoza Chicken Roulade 

However, the Grilled Fish was a Star. The grilled fish looked spectacular placed beautifully on delicately crumbled butter paper, which was charred to a golden brown colour around the edges. It was seasoned well with red chilly flakes and chopped coriander leaves glazed in a yummy lime cream sauce. It felt like a lot of care went into making and serving the dish. My non-fish eating friend nodded positively after a bite. I thought the seasoning was outstanding and the fish was cooked to perfection, actually just a slightly over but it could be forgiven. The fish was very fresh.  You could tell.

Charred Grilled Rawas

Plateful of Char Grilled Rawas

Yep, amidst this, yet again I had to call for the freaking water 2 more times. The meal portions were quite good hence we skipped desserts. They looked pretty alright though. 

Would try this place again next time, if I am in a mood for Char Grilled Rawas. A must have, here.

My WedDefday

I think I found what I would be listening to work all day :) The things I do, to get through excel sheets and power point. What a corporate slave.....

Egg Plant Bruschetta

I obviously was not planning to make Egg Plant Bruschetta right now. Who makes things out of brinjal willingly (secretly I do because i love them) :) I planned to originally make baegun bhaaja with nice steaming hot parantha but  moving my lazy ass after a nice spa filled day may be a mammothian task even for Ganapati Bappa today. I decided to snack for dinner.

This is what I made, despite the laziness

Ingredients

Eggplant, sliced (6 slices)
1/2 tbsp Ginger Garlic Paste
1/2 tbsp Soya Sauce
1/2 a Tomato (without seeds), diced to squares
1/2 a capsicum, diced to squares
1 Chilli, finely chopped
1 tbsp Oil (olive oil preferably)
1 tbsp Tomato Sauce (ketchup)
1 cube cheese, grated
A few coriander leaves

Salt, to taste

Marinate the eggplants in salt, soya sauce and ginger garlic paste for half an hour. 15 mins is fine too. Heat a pan in low flame and add the oil. Remove excess liquid from the eggplant and place it on the pan once the oil is hot.

In the meanwhile mix the tomatoes, capsicum, chillies, tomato sauce and some salt to taste.

Turn the sides of the eggplants after 5 minutes. You should see that it is caramelized on one side. Now place the tomato mix on the eggplant. Add the grated cheese on top.

Keep it on the pan for another 5 mins. Take it off the pan and garnish it with some coriander leaves and olive oil drizzle.

Have it with Red Wine :)

The night when Mumbai turned into an open Discotheque

While the music blaring outside my window comprises of awesome desi songs one can go full porky on..(SIGH i wish my friends were here, would have been on the streets) , I have been youtubing distracted from the world outside my window for this new post rock band I came across. It has influences of Radiohead, Sigur Ros, and the kinds, good day to share.

Band Name: Her Name is Calla - :)

The first half of this song is super awesome...can visualize it in so many interesting movie situations.

And this one has a good build up... Many different kinds of sequences, many kinds of stories, many kinds of....

And then guess what appeared on the suggestion list. A heartbreaker ofcourse

Friday Knight

This has got to be coolest and the most thoughtful present ever :) This is what I am doing on a Friday Knight. If I am not overtly overwhlemed post the read, will definitely try writing about it.However, I am most likely  to remain in a state of awe and shock with the awesome contents of this brilliant book :)

Plenty Moons Ago

There was a time of man and  his honour

Promises engraved not on a stone, but into his soul

Where truth swelled like sunshine,

Lies and traitors rebuked for shame

There was a time of shame

There was punishment and justice 

Where the guilty stood in admission

But with grace and courage to own up

There was a time where a man owned up

To his responsibilities, to his King,

To his Kingdom, and his beloved Lover,

Pride of Goodness bloomed in his heart

There was a time where a man had a heart

Sensitive to tears and pain, in empathy

Building great Kingdoms and Homes

Where he stood as bastion, through sacrifices and pain

There was a time when man understood pain

Not his own, but her tears.

He fought wars for her and slayed evil Kings,

He bought the moon back to her feet

There was a time when a man worshiped her feet

As a symbol of love and admission to femininity

Protecting her from the misery of the world

And fighting for her honour

There was a time of man and his honour

Honour of being the man. Honour for Love, 

For Bravery, For Destiny, For Pride

For Life, For Her and Her Honour

There was such a time, plenty moons ago.

The Knowing

Ignorance is hardly a choice and it being called "Bliss"is just an inevitable social cover up like the Virgin Mary. While ignorance is a function of faith, the dilution of its method may be far from initial comprehension. The method of dilution itself works in two steps -  At first, Gradual and then, the One fine day. Gradual dilution is like a benign tumor. It just grows on you, in you. You knowingly or unknowingly become comfortable with it and the curve of the function will hardly be steep, until one fine day. The "One Fine Day" is the cruder and most effective step. It mostly follows naivety of trust and blind faith. It cuts like a knife. It like this. For Eg: As a victim of consumerism, you Believe in any news you hear and see with or without skepticism. You go on for sometime.You believe. You preach. You Blog. You advertise. For some people it takes a lifetime. But that is because you have grown as the part of the system like the tumor. No harm yet, but just growing, ignorantly while your intelligent human mind is absorbing the perils, the destruction, the heartbreak to follow, feeding the chasm of your light-hearted personalities And then one fine day, it happens.It breaks. For some very evolved species, the naivete may just cease to exist. The cynics. Good for them but the process is important to appreciate whats comes next. And its not until you get up and see through it, when you know it is that One Fine Day. That explains that you are not just the victim of consumerism anymore, you are crossing over to the dark side. "One Fine Day" is not an expression. It is The moment of reckoning. It is when your personality starts becoming complex with the pollution of the real truth, albeit for the better.  While the illustration is used to substantiate the method, the point of ignorance transcending towards the Knowing is  the matter of importance here in its most profound cognizance. The use of the word Knowledge becomes a cliche and an unnecessary conclusion to the point, as Ignorance is only paucity of Knowledge in the realms of the literary and more sophisticated world. The profoundness lies not in knowledge, but the progress towards the Knowing. Its when you look beyond the knowledge of injustice, heartbreak, destruction, manipulation, tactical maneuvering, white lies, deep lies, compulsive lies, all of that, and beyond the justice story of the victim and the acquitted, beyond the painful process of the method. Its not a reaction. Its not a hate mail. Its not a consumer complaint. Its not a spiteful revenge. It is not Marxist.

When you can watch the world  pass by with that sweet smile of victory, a victory of attaining complete awareness and knowledge, when extreme reactions cease to exist, you know you have the Power of the Knowing.

My Travel and Living

The last one year, has been quite eventful. From moving into a new city, to getting into a new job, from meeting new people, to living a new and a different sort of life. A beautifully strange year, it has been. . The Bombay Struggle wasn't really a struggle again in the conventional Bombay way, but yeah, its been a struggle all right. Except for the house hunt. That was the stinker. Literally. But this interesting year will be cherished. A Sweet Pain of some sorts.

During all this "the struggle", I have had the luxury of the conventional escape. The elaborate  - Travel and Living.

In this one year I have travelled to over 13 different villages in Western Maharashtra, atleast 9 cities in India and 3 different countries. I also had a chance to travel to Spain, but that's another story. The chance will strike back again sometime :D planning. Saving. Ok, just planning.

Dubai was my latest. Two of my closest friends live there. Hence this was a blessing in disguise. A break after horrible two months. It was blissful to chill with them. I was taken out for the sight seeing, for dinner, for drives on the fantastic Dubai Flyover, shopping (gee) -  packed 3-4 days with no sleep- my forever gracious hostess, indebted to her always :)

View from "At the Top" Khalifa.



Visit to Singapore in Feb. Stayed at Sentosa hence was close to all the touristy stuff. My good luck had a close friend again come over to Singapore at the same time. The sad lonely trip became awesome :)

The Merlion ofcourse at One Fullerton.

Udaipur staying at UdaiVillas.  The most beautiful place ever. It was a dream. Partied at Jal Mandir till late. The folk dances, the food and everything, that is royal and exotic. One must try the Thai Massage at the Spa there. Its heavenly. And MUST meet the Oberoi Chef, Gaurav. I had the most exotic and awesomest icecream in the world as a part of the chef's experiment.We were the last of the guests in the season. I had a mushroom olive oil and truffle icecream  :) Yes weird but effing awesome. And oh! His awesomest basil dosa. Oh my god. Slurrrpp.

  

Must take these pics when you are in Rajasthan :)

My favourite location, of all the places, was Vietnam. Hanoi and Ha Long Bay were absolutely gorgeous. The food was brilliant, the city was beautiful, visited some local homes there which was supremely interesting. A fantastic holiday spot.  However, I went there for work. Not complaining. 

 

 Ha Long Bay

 A floating fishing village

My favourite food experience at Hanoi were these restaurants - The Tamarind, Quan An Ngon, and Wine Vine Boutique Bar and Restaurant. While Tamarind is all vegeterian (we had a lot of vegetarians in our group), Wine Vine served the best french food ever. The risotto there was the best  I have ever had apart from the usual frenchie stuff. Quan An Ngon was a perfect place to try out the local Vietnamese food. Ordered frog legs that they ran out of . Must try the pork spring rolls. The Vietnamese know how to cook. Tamarind was a good place for the weak hearted. Its totally safe for vegetarians.  But I dig the meat and the sea food. Brilliant. Mussels, Crabs, Pork, weird fish preps which i cant pronounce, baked oysters, and all that jazz.


The most exciting of them all were my visits to the Maharashtran Villages. The customary milky chai (which i am not very fond of) in every household. The highway food with different preparation of the star marathi dishes, the ghauti chicken with some local indian bread in Ahmednagar, shopping reallly cheap plants in miles and miles of nurseries on the pune highway, well one and half months was spent in just mad village hopping. The most beautiful ones were Ranjangaon, Talegaon(not a village anymore), and Karjat (popular farmhouse destination for bollywood)

This is from Daund, my most frequently visited village.

 Local nothings :) 

 A place where I would like to buy my farmhouse. From Pune to Talegaon :)

Ranjangaon. A village surrounded by hills from all sides. 

 My 300 bucks plant shopping

 :) a must

 Karjat Gaon, Right after the rains

                                                                                                                                  The famous missal pav

 Local Flavours