It was always a treat for us to eat 'South Indian' food . Delhi had a handful when were growing up like Dasaprakash, or Saagar , and we would always look forward to a dosa- idli lunch or dinner.Our menu , like our knowledge was limited to these items . We clubbed all the dishes that were not North Indian as South Indian! As cities grew, migration increased , the menu and our knowledge increased and the benefit passed on to our taste buds . We discovered a delicious and light dish originating from Kerela , called the Vegetable Stew with Appams . I remember relishing these at one of my favourite restaurants, the Konkan Cafe at the President Hotel when I was working in Mumbai . Wholesome and ve

I have been loving the food pictures in my Whatsapp inbox from many of my friends and relatives. I was dreaming of a roasted yellow lentil, Moong Daal , the way my nanny cooked it . We would relish her daal endlessly(seriously!) , eating it with our hands enjoying each morsel. She knew we loved her daals and would prepare them for us, day after day , when we would visit my parents home. We did not need any accompaniment with them. Just Daal and rice and we would be satiated. Another dish that she would prepare for us was shallow fried Arbi or Colocasia. Generally children eat this vegetable with much fuss , but as soon as it was placed on our table , it was gobbled up. She would prepare it p

While growing up , we only ate paneer or cottage cheese that was made at home . It wasn't store bought . It was deliciously creamy , soft and fresh and that is why most of us grew up loving Paneer . My nanny would keep some pieces aside for me with sprinkled with rock salt and to this day I have to eat some pieces this way .Palak Paneer (spinach with paneer)and Matar Paneer (Peas and Paneer) , dry crumbled paneer and of course my mothers JEWEL tawa paneer (recipe posted before )were our favourites! Paneer is a refined product that was developed in Punjab through knowledge from nomadic pastoralists and is made from spliting hot milk with an acid like lemon juice, collecting the curdled portio

Since 1850's when Pao bhaji or 'bread with spicy and very tempting potato and mixed vegtable in tomato gravy 'made its way as a lunch dish for the Mumbai mill workers , it has been the eternal favourite of many ...the famous street food of Mumbai has made its way into many households , all over India , and this is one food that can be eaten at any time of the day. Usually eaten with a Pao or a white soft bun doused in tons of butter , served with onions and lemon , we felt like having this for breakfast ...But with freshly baked whole grain bread . Some state, that the Pao or Pav got its name from the Portuguese who had a brief stint in Mumbai (then Bombay ) before it was gifted to the Engl

There are many varieties of daal or lentils , and since we do have lentil on our table daily , it would be nice to have some variety in taste. I came across this recipe of daal in the 'Book of family secrets by Zarine Khan...very easy and flavourful . It is a mix of two daals with Gourd , and since I had a lot of bottle gourd kept at home thanks to our our home kitchen garden that gave a great harvest this season. Dalcha is a stew made with Mutton and a gourd with chana daal , but we want to keep it very light this lockdown , and of you want to try something different , this is a perfect vegetarian version for a light meal. Hyderabadi Dalcha Ingredients 3/4 cup mix of Toor(Split Pigeon pea

Kathi Rolls or wraps always remind me of my mother. If she was treated to a kathi roll , all was well… We usually had a chicken or Paneer (Cottage cheese)double egg Kathi roll at the famous Nizams Kathi, but today , keeping in view with light lunches I prepared a vegetable roll. You can omit the Egg on the Jowar wrap if you don’t have egg. But it does give it a lot of added flavor. I have used Jowar or Sorghum Millet as the wrap as it is gluten free and packed with nutrients . Thanks to the Millet table , the jowar wraps were a hit ! Have a bite and you will know 'All is well….. Mixed Vegetable Jowar (Sorghum)and Egg Kathi Rolls.... You cannot eat just one ! Ingredients For the Filling : 1 ½

I have been asked a number of times by many ; what I am missing the most during the lockdown. While I am taking each day as it comes , learning to enjoy the present , I do think of the times when I would drag my little sister to most of my food walks in India. Last time I was there, I had persuaded her (though she doesn't need much of that !) to visit Hyderabad with me . She loves Andhra style food and she had taken me to Andhra Bhavan in Delhi that serves food you cannot get bored of and can keep coming back for more. Both of us love eggs and never miss an opportunity to try out any dish that has it as an ingredient. So today when the weather here is beautiful , I never miss a chance to coo

Today is the festival of harvest in Northern India. An important day as certain crops are harvested in the Punjab region. Similar festivals are celebrated in the south and east of India too. It is the arrival of spring , hope and renewal which is much needed worldwide now. As an offering, I decided to prepare a simple meal that is synonyms with this festival .. As a child , we often had these on our tables , some I have shared before .... My grandmothers famous sarson ka saag , Amritsari chole that I savoured on my trip there and Jowar (Sorghum)Naan , which I recently learnt because of my love for the grain. This was apparently served at Shahjehan , the great Mughal rulers table ...and to en

Sindhi Kadhi is one of many versions of my favourite Kadhi preperations. Kadhi is usually made with a base of gramflour and depending upon of the region of India , the other ingredients are used. For example in North India , sour yoghurt is used as one of the ingredients , in Rajasthan , it is spicy and in Gujrat it is slightly sweet ..and Sindhi kadhi is soupy , tangy and a bit hot and spicy. I have adapted the recipe from @cookinacurry Sindh is a part of Mordern day Pakistan being its third largest province. It borders Gujrat and Rajastan in India, thus the spread of its delicious cuisine in both countries. During your days at home , eat light and according to the season wherever you are.

When my aunt send me a shot of her delicious freshly baked chocolate chip cookies , I had to bake a healthy alternative and have a bite too ... So this is for all the mum's or dad's who would love to treat their little ones more often with the worlds favourite cookie! I prepared these with oats flour ,substituted eggs with flax seeds and used Dark chocolate chips. Ingredients 160 gms of Oats flour Pinch of sea salt 1/2 tsp baking soda 75 gms melted butter 45 gms of raw sugar or jaggery 1/2 tsp Vanilla extract 1 egg or 1 tblsp of flaxseeds mixed in 3 tblspns of water 150 gms of dark chocolate chips To Prepare 1. In a bowl, sift flour, baking soda and salt. 2. In another bowl mix the melted bu

When you run out of eggs and your little one asks for a chocolate cake treat ...you substitute eggs with flaxseeds ..and make it healthier, adapted from one of Bobby Flay's recipes . Ingredients: 4 tblspn melted unsalted butter , cooled 11/2 cups of Oats flour 2 tsps baking powder 1/4 tsp salt 3 tblspn flaxseeds in 9 tblsp of water , this recipes calls for 3 eggs 1 cup jaggery or any sugar you chose to use 1 cup greek yoghurt 1/2 tspn vanilla extract 1/4 cup oil To prepare: 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees farenheit. Line your baking tin and spray with cooking spray or grease it . 2.Sift the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. 3. In another bowl, combine the flaxseeds, yoghurt

Tehri , which is the vegetarian version of a Biryani incorporates potatoes in rice cooked with spices, popular in Awadhi cuisine , is as near as a Bazbatha could get. Batha is rice in Kashmir..I first had my taste of this simple but delicious dish at my mother-in- laws home . We would make a very similar dish at my grandmothers home which was i think was in between a Tehri and a Bazbatha but I do love the mix of the simple spices and aroma of a Bazbatha. The uncooked rice is sauteed before placing on a 'Dum' or cooking in water. Every household must have their own way of cooking this dish, adding their twists to it. I learnt this recipe from a very old manuscript of kashmiri recipes of hand