It is time to mirror upon what we have been having in our Chennai house – IshitaUnblogged
15 min read
Cooking at house has often been my mantra. I like cooking for my relatives and good friends. From road food items to wonderful dining food stuff, I like to check out the components that go into a dish so that I can replicate it in our kitchen at a later on time.
Meen Kuzhambu / Kulambu, fish gravy cooked in tamarind, coconut milk and spices
Contrary to what most men and women feel, we aren’t taking in Bengali meals at property just about every working day. In point, the Z-Sisters won’t have it that way and I am guessing neither the Bearded Biker and I would too. At the very least, not all the time. A meal or two over the weekends does revolve close to Bengali food items or a bit of Kolkata nostalgia – sometimes Chinese the way its created at well-liked meals kiosks in Kolkata – Karunamoyee or all over City Centre in Saltlake, or in a single of the famous Park Avenue restaurants like Bar-B-Que. Whilst the seem, really feel or style of the former is entirely distinctive from its latter counterpart! Then there is Italian meals. I imagine that I prepare dinner Italian meals quite nicely. At least, that is what the Z-Sisters say. I find cooking Italian foods particularly easy. Also, they flip out so exotic just by incorporating contemporary herbs or a selfmade sauce. Now, I am creating pesto pretty normally from contemporary basils that are plucked at beck and phone from our backyard. I stir them into pasta or grilled chicken, drizzle a very little olive oil … and Eccoci… our delightful foods are ready (some other post, some other day)!
Checking out regional dishes from South India
To simplify this blogpost, I’ve made a decision to concentrate on the new flavours I have been discovering soon after settling down in our Chennai household. Through the weekdays, the Z-Sisters bombard downstairs all around 11:30 am – 12:00 pm, demanding lunch. Big Z is fortunate to have attended college bodily for two months until the educational institutions have been closed down by the Tamil Nadu federal government as soon as once more, as a preventive evaluate. Lil Z has been attending online education for in excess of a yr now. The Bearded Biker is also heading to mark a calendar year of doing work from household. I just instructed him the other day, that I am acquiring spoilt with the believed of them being at home and coming with each other throughout mealtimes – a kind of a pleased thought for me. Originally, I would cook acquainted and straightforward-to-make dishes for the duration of weekdays – stir fries, fried rice, hotpots and grills. The weekends were being reserved for a little additional elaborate affair. Considering the fact that the time Matree, our fantastic are living-in girl has joined us, I have been on a spree of checking out regional cuisine. Matree is a Tamilian, born and brought up in Kerala-Karnataka border and is an fantastic cook. Whilst rather younger, she reminds me of conventional household cooks like my dida or mum-in-legislation who insist on using freshly floor masalas and really do not consider in fast monitoring the actions in cooking a dish.
Lemon Rice, a delicate and aromatic rice preparation
Cooking from scratch
I experienced meant to educate Matree Bengali cooking … progressively of study course, just like Woman M but have now determined to maintain my mission on hold. We are taking pleasure in the wide range of regional dishes so considerably, that I do not want to overburden her by educating her on Mustard Oil, Jharna Ghee and other nuances of Bengali delicacies. Also, Matree’s inventory looks to be endless as of now and she effortlessly moves inside of the diverse states of South India. Like common house cooks, her prerequisites for kitchen utensils are also quite traditional. Whilst for a long time, I experienced ‘managed’ with a espresso grinder for grinding my fresh masalas or non-stick woks for the tempering, Matree insists on what she is employed to… a Preethi mixer grinder or a good tadka pan for ‘thalippu’ or tempering. The chai has to be preferably manufactured in a saucepan (no brown sugar for her), the fresh milk is boiled in a Pigeon Milk Boiler and the curries are designed in a large kadai. Just about every other day, we have an Amazon shipping for Matree’s record. I had simplified my kitchen area life by giving up on all the miscellaneous gadgets and utensils that I thought essential a bit of TLC, that is tender, really like and caring. My intention is to delegate the day-to-day cooking and all kitchen associated things to do to Matree, so that I can re-concentrate on my writing. As a result, I am indulging in our Amazon spree to the hilt. The pantry home adjoining our main kitchen resembles a ware house store… new pots, pans, ladles and a whole good deal of kitchen area products. Initially, my favourite instruction to Matree was, “manage”. Translated, this intended employing whatever we already experienced, which ended up anyway proliferating out of the kitchen area boundaries into the cupboards in our residing area and eating home. I have now realised, that for Matree to operate at her comprehensive opportunity, she couldn’t be requested to ‘manage’. She would not compromise in cooking and each individual phase experienced to be carried out from scratch and at dwelling – be it fermenting the Appam mixture overnight or building Idi Appam noodles at property. No a lot more keep acquired ready designed batters and mixes!
Just about every evening just before winding down, as Matree and I come to a decision on the subsequent day’s menu, I talk to her to assume of a nearby dish that we haven’t tried out still. I also depart the regional menu pairing to her… if I advise something that does not go nicely, she will generally reject that. I am in no hurry to teach her Bengali cooking. I also have all the time in the world to savour all the new taste and flavours that she’s bringing to our desk. It was only at the time that I could not resist putting her puri making capabilities to exam and questioned her to make best phulko luchis to go with our weekend’s kasha mangsho, the gradual cooked tender goat meat (as proven below)!
Further than Rasam… tasty snapshots of our dwelling cooked meals… 50 shades of rice, lentils and Poriyal. Curry leaves for thalippu or tempering, and of study course as garnish.
“So, you will be feeding on Rasam now?” “Are you having Curd Rice and gun powder?” “No additional Mustard fish… only idli, sambhar and dosa?”
We have been these kinds of a vocal non-vegetarian family so considerably, we are continuously staying drowned with stereotypical concerns like above… as if coming to Chennai was a culinary exile. To be truthful, I did not hope to understand so lots of non-vegetarian preparations as I have carried out above these few months. A brief search on Google would reveal that 97.65 % in Tamil Nadu are non-vegetarians. An outstanding data in comparison to West Bengal keeping the percentage at 98 per cent!
My idea had been laid astray by most of the Tamilian buddies we have experienced – Brahmins who are vegetarians. If only we had an association with any individual from the Chettinad region or the coastal area, we would have been prepared for the delightful onslaught of non-vegetarian food that was possibly in store for us in Chennai.
RASAM. Soup type! The urge to have an reliable Rasam created at dwelling grew to become just about like an obsession immediately after hearing umpteen range of moments by actress Deepika Padukone that her favourite meals is Rasam and Rice. Also, with Rasam owning absent ‘viral’ in the US as the “immunity boosting soup”, many thanks to chef Arun Rajadurai who labored in Anjappar Princetown, I had to discover what produced Rasam so distinctive. The thing is, there is no single Rasam recipe. Rasams not only differ with components but also across people and provinces in South India!
Idli, Masala Vada, Medu Vada, Masala Dosa and Uttapam served with sambar and a assortment of refreshing coconut chutneys comprise the array of “tiffin”. The unique coconut chutneys make for an attention-grabbing style variants and I learnt that the Thengai chutney is the white coconut chutney with only the thalippu or tempering of roasted Bengal gram, green chillies, mustard seeds, urad dal, curry leaves and asafoetida. The crimson coconut chutney experienced roasted Sambhar onions (shallots), crimson chillies, garlic, ginger, roasted chana dal and curry leaves. Fresh new coriander leaves, eco-friendly chillies and a sprint of lime went into the earning of the environmentally friendly coconut chutney alongside with the common tempering. The Idli Upma (final graphic above) is a outstanding makeover with remaining in excess of idlis and adding the typical thalippu or of mustard seeds, curry leaves and channa dal.
Idiyappam with Hen Stew with coconut milk
The Bull’s eye Appam with a fried egg in the center is undoubtedly a culinary good art… and can be experienced with both the gentle Mutton Stew or the spicy Mutton Sukha, though equally preparations have contrasting style profiles. Cooked in the Kerala style, the hen and the mutton stew preferences surreal with a thick coconut gravy and the subtle fragrance of bay leaf, ginger, fried onions and full black pepper.
Lemon rice cooked in the Tamil style, paired with a crispy fried spicy okra.
Ven Pongal with Sambar and a Poriyal produced with beans (to start with photo earlier mentioned) and with Kara Kulambu or Kara Khuzambu (next image above and also down below), an very spicy and tangy preparing of a blend of vegetables.
White rice would make the great accompaniment to the spicy Kara Kulambu. Like a lot of variations of Sambar, Matree in some cases experienced her very own renditions of Kara Kulambu – like in the earlier mentioned, where she additional inexperienced mangoes, drumsticks and fresh coriander leaves.
White Rice with Dal, spicy Bitter gourd Poriyal and Papad
Curd Rice with Masala Cauliflower Poriyal
Bisi Bele Bhath with do-it-yourself potato chips and Papad is Matree’s favourite. Bisi Bele Bhath is a spicy lentil and rice dish that has its origin in Karnataka. With heaps of vegetables thrown in the dish, I felt that Bisi Bele Bhath could properly be explained as a spicier model of the Bengali Khichuri.
Ambur styled Biryani cooked in a strain cooker. Originating in the area of Ambur, this spicy Biryani is paired with Khattay Baigan, the brinjal curry or a spicy and tangy Kathirikai Chutney, the brinjal chutney and cucumber raita.
Poriyals are shallow fried or sauteéd vegetable dishes that can be built with every single possible vegetable. Cabbage Poriyal with refreshing grated coconut and bittergourd poriyal (to start with and next graphic earlier mentioned). In fact, amongst all the Poriyals I tasted so much, my favourites are the carrot-bean poriyal and the spicy bittergourd poriyal.
Kadala Curry, a rich Kerala type black chickpea curry with triangular formed homey Parathas with raita, the ‘Princess Raita’ as Matree phone calls it. She cooked the over dish in coconut oil and included a very little coconut milk, making it definitely distinctive for Maha Shivaratri
Malabari Parotta is the regional variant to Laccha Paratha in the way it is organized. Its attractiveness lay in the layered way in which the dough is rolled out and the refined flakiness as ghee is included when the parathas are cooked.
Meen Kuzhambu / Kulambu is a fish gravy cooked in tamarind, coconut milk and spices. I learnt to cook this from a reputed seafood restaurant in Chennai. When mine tasted really very similar to the 1 Matree cooked later on (the 2nd photo higher than), she designed hers with items of environmentally friendly mango that extra a complete new layer of spunk to the Vanjiram or Kingfish gravy.
Fried Vanjiram or Kingfish, Kerala design
Kerala design and style Spicy fried prawns and Kerala design and style Coconut Fish Curry with the best accompaniment of handmade Malabari Parota.
Final but not the least… Gun Powder or Idli Milagai Podi, the spicy powder made with coarsely grinding roasted spices. This powder is very adaptable and can be sprinkled in excess of nearly anything to spunk it up – a plain curd, the curd rice, uttapams and others.
Plugging in a little bit of nostalgia… alibi a neighborhood goli soda. And desserts to satiate my Bengali sweet tooth
Panner or Paneer Soda. The word ‘Paneer’ indicates rose-drinking water in Tamil, for this reason lending the name to the rose-water scented Goli Sodas… the flavor of Paneer Soda is extremely close to just one of my favorite drinks from my childhood… Bijoligrill’s Ice cream Soda.
Javvarisi Payasam or milk pudding designed with tapioca pearls as we celebrated Puthandu, the Tamil New Calendar year at household.
Badusha, fried dough balls glazed in sugar syrup
Sakkarai Pongal that we first experienced throughout Pongal, the harvest competition which is celebrated in January
In advance of I crossed into the borders of South India… foods wise
Just before Matree joined us and led us on a culinary roller coaster trip of South Indian fare, our Indian meals comprised of whatsoever I conjured up on each and every working day. In some cases, the menu would simply pop up in my head the earlier night time, or from time to time it would be a prompt makeover out of the stock in our fridge. There have been lots of these types of dishes, sharing just a couple of them (not Bengali foodstuff this time, excepting flexing the phulko luchi before on) …
This was a nostalgic spin off on a lunch we experienced at a little freeway eatery although travelling from Jaipur to Agra two a long time back again. The earlier mentioned spread received my family’s hearts – ready designed shop acquired chappattis, aloo or potato sabji, cauliflower sabji, extensive environmentally friendly peppers cooked in the method of a pickle, a masala egg bhurji or scrambled egg cooked in a spicy dry gravy.
Grilled hen marinated with spices, eco-friendly chillies and clean herbs like coriander and mint leaves
Chicken Bharta cooked in the type of Punjabi Dhaba at Ballygunge Phari in Kolkata
Sourcing meat, fish and meat … and tremendous refreshing vegetables
Just after resorting to the well-liked supermarket Nilgiris for groceries and its sister counterpart, Veggies for clean fruits and vegetables to begin with, we have now expanded our horizon a bit.
From all the conversations inside the community WhatsApp team, I have realised that there are many business people and starts ups who are engaged in developing artisanal products and solutions and fresh new organic and natural produce of the maximum quality. A great deal of these fruits and veggies with non-Indian origin, “fancy vegetables” as Matree calls them, are all grown somewhere in some farms in India ideal now. Orders can be positioned about WhatsApp and products and solutions are immediately delivered residence.
Referrals in just acknowledged circles and word-of-mouth are the primary equipment of publicity for substantially of these house-developed brand names. We are loving the good quality of the make and largely sticking to acquiring local deliver of the period. Ansio sets up a weekly vegetable market place in our community and I have previously been initiated to a good deal of regional vegetables like drumsticks, yams, unique kinds of bananas and other folks.
We buy our fish from J K Fish Stall in Adyar as they appear to be to have a excellent inventory of well-known Bengali fish that are flown in from Kolkata each day. Whatsapp conversations with the Bearded Biker and his maachwala, the fish vendor makes sure fast dwelling shipping and delivery of Bengali fish delicacies like Hilsa or “golda”, the freshwater large prawns. The other working day we bought refreshing fish like Vanjiram or Kingfish, Sankara or purple snapper and squids from the fishermen straight off the seashore in Kovalam. There could not have a extra remarkable escapade for fish lovers like us. We buy our rooster by way of online apps like Licious and Tender Cuts, sticking to the former for most of the instances. A regional butcher just outdoors our gate has sealed the Bearded Biker’s approval for meat – tender goat that I have perfected in slow cooking ala mum-in-law’s style. Sunday afternoons are now primarily reserved for gradual cooked goat curry with huge chunky aloo, or potatoes peeping out. The Bearded Biker has uncovered superb pork provider in SSD Meat Globe & Restaurant in Kilpauk, a bit far away from in which we are living. The cafe serves well known pork dishes like sorpotel, vindaloo, chilli pepper fry and pork roasts, even though they have their individual farm is exactly where the high excellent meat is sourced. We not too long ago identified one more position – a sort of a sanctuary quite close to in which we reside, The Farm. It is a B&B cum restaurant area located amidst rice fields, coconut groves and plantations. Aside from marketing clean make grown in their personal organic vegetable gardens, their item checklist is fairly amazing, specifically with the dairy products like Mozarella, Feta, Labneh and many others. We just lately started off shopping for clean milk from a dairy farm referred to as Arunodhyam on suggestion from our neighbouring resident. Anju, the founder, spoke to me at size to share her tale – how the dairy farm and the milking amenities is centered out of her seaside residence. Initially, she was delivering to a couple of her pals and its only in the course of the lockdown time period, additional folks acquired to know her for the reason that of phrase of mouth that led to her assume of growth. Lately, we requested farm fresh new watermelons, water apples and okras on repeat method (visuals down below) from Sri Durga Farms at Thirukazhukundram, a passion undertaking founded by Maha and Raja, citizens of our neighborhood. Each and every working day there are messages in the residents’ whatsapp group, some close friend or the other has some organic and natural farm and growing anything exotic… orders are right away placed and the products shipped home instantly. After we purchased oyster mushrooms that ended up absolutely amazing!
What conjures up me to cook dinner?
I believe that that cooking involves an trade of electrical power involving the person who’s cooking any dish and the individual who’s having it. It’s an act of demonstration enjoy and affection and must be executed as a ceremony – a thing that is performed from one’s heart. Matree listens to audio – Tamil appreciate tunes whilst she cooks. She also entertains phone calls on her cellular. At first, I experienced been a little skeptic about the latter but following observing her for a number of moments, I have realised that she discusses what she’s cooking and there’s so considerably of pleasure in her voice that it’s just about infectious. When she serves the meals, there’s often a sense of enjoyment and she looks so pleased to cook dinner. When we prepare the menu for the future working day, there’s a great deal of enthusiasm in sharing what she understands finest. She also has some ‘vague’ dishes in her repertoire – Indian pasta and Indian noodles (the impression down below) produced with Indian spices. Have you at any time read of Indian Mac and Cheese ? Properly, just now you did!
I am as motivated by cooks like Matree as I am by celebrity chefs like Gordon Ramsay. My cabinets are total of signed cookbooks and my ‘to-cook’ listing is filled with inspiration from the internet, food items bloggers I interact with, meals addas with loved ones and close friends above whatsapp … and of course, our travels. Some of which, I shall reserve for a long term write-up. For the time getting, what is heartwarming is that when 1 begins celebrating local festivities at dwelling, it’s indication that you have settled in nicely in one’s new dwelling. As is apparent from our Tamil festive sapadu very last 7 days as we celebrated Puthandu, the Tamil New 12 months!
Unblogging it all… Ishita
Thank you for becoming a member of me on my every day food stuff and journey journey on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter!
Some posts from my current Chennai Chapter:
Celebrating Bengali New Calendar year and Tamil New Calendar year at household
Celebrating Pongal with Sakkarai Pongal and other dishes
Kovalam Seashore | Acquiring fish at the seashore and a recipe of Beer Battered Squid
Lastly calling Chennai property
Rooster Chettinad cooked in a claypot
Home made spicy Hen 65
Disclaimer: This isn’t a sponsored publish, nor are there any affiliated one-way links for any of the brand names that could have been mentioned in this blogpost. The subject matter, story, viewpoints and views stated right here are my possess and all illustrations or photos are from my private album. Though you delight in examining my posts with whole lot of visuals, you should do not use any content from these posts.
