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Recipe: Spiced For The Season – Indian Spice Biscuits

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I suppose that biscuits were originally an English concept, known as cookies in the USA and popular across the world. Here in India, we do have our own versions and adaptations. Take for instance the nan kattai, which I shared my own pistachio-rose rendition of a few festive seasons ago. It is believed to have been created by Dutch bakers in 16th century Gujarat. Similarly, all over India today, little bakeries utilize millets and Indian flavours to make their own biscuits, giving us treats like ragi cookies. All these inspirations put together made me decide to bake Indian spice biscuits, and to share the recipe with you too.

I feel that Indians give a lot of importance to spices in general, and this is in part because many of them grow in India and are either native or at least traditional in this part of the world. They hold a very special place in our cooking, which is why they appear in everything from meats to sweets. Nutmeg, mace, saffron, cardamom and cinnamon come to mind as common elements. I’ve chosen to use a few of these to flavour these biscuits.

It is the beginning of the festive season this year, and of culinary indulgences, so I thought this would be the perfect time to share this recipe. These biscuits go well with the mood and the weather, and are ideal to have at tea time. If you are seeking more recipes in this vein to serve at your special occasions, the archive has lots to offer.

Another reason why I chose to try out a new biscuit is because I realised that I love hoarding props. I have quite a large collection in my kitchen, and I wanted to use some of my cookie cutters out of that array.

Strictly speaking, it’s not really a new biscuit for me, just one I haven’t made in some time. When my daughter was living here, we often baked together, and this recipe was one of our usual choices. It was so lovely having her company, with her young mind and her penchant for ideas and innovations. Baking these made me miss her, and I think I will send her a care package with these home-baked Indian spice biscuits.

Baking also makes me miss my mother. As I have mentioned in numerous posts over the years, she attended a baking class when we were growing up, and this meant that we had all kinds of interesting treats at home. For instance, she made cornflake cookies, dipping the dough in cornflakes before baking. At a time when cornflakes themselves were an unusual concept for us, we were fascinated by these. I remember plucking the cornflakes and eating them separately. I remain deeply inspired by my childhood memories of my mother in the kitchen.

I hope these Indian spice biscuits become a part of many more happy memories – for my loved ones and I, and for you and yours.

Indian Spice Biscuits

(Yield: Approximately 20 pieces)

175 grams unsalted butter

75 grams powdered sugar (sifted)

55 grams custard powder

175 grams flour

¼ teaspoon cardamom powder

½ teaspoon cinnamon powder

8-10 strands of saffron

1 teaspoon milk

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

 

Preheat the oven to 170°.

Meanwhile, in a small cup, add the saffron and the milk and allow to steep.

Line a baking tray with a silicone mat. Set aside.

With an electric beater, beat the butter until light and fluffy. To this, add the sugar and then the custard powder.

Beat gently, and now add all the spices. Sift the flour and baking powder and add it to the mixture.

Mix gently using your hands. Cling wrap the dough and refrigerate for 5-10 minutes.

With the help of a spoon, or using your hands, make small discs of the dough. Place them apart on the prepared tray.

Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes or until the edges are golden.

Remove and cool on a wire rack before consuming.

These delicious biscuits have a beautiful flavour to them, one that I am sure will pep up your mood in the late afternoon. You may notice that they are also eggless, which makes them ideal for serving vegetarians. Here’s wishing you a wonderful festive season ahead!

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brand poriyal

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I love the flavour of lemongrass. I find it very versatile: it shines in dishes like this vegan whole corn and lemongrass soup, in my early morning tea and even as a semi-decorative element in kachoris. This ginger lemongrass rice is just one of many ways that this wonderfully aromatic herb is used in my home.

Indeed, not only is it used in my home but it is also grown in my home, which means that I have access to fresh green lemongrass leaves whenever I desire them. I currently have this plant on my terrace so that it gets direct sunlight. It sits alongside my jasmines, which I am very proud of. Not only is the visual of them growing together very pleasing, but the natural fragrances that waft there in summer – with the flowers in full bloom giving off a heady scent, alongside the lemongrass – are really so beautiful.

Despite being a long-term fan of lemongrass, this ginger lemongrass rice is a new addition to my repertoire. My daughter is visiting and she loves to cook Thai food, which is what inspired me to bring the ingredient into a lightly stir-fried rice. The method for doing so is a little different, and you can see how to prepare it in the recipe below.

This rice is meant to be accompanied by a side dish, and you can experiment with a variety of cuisines. If I am serving this alongside an Indian dish, fresh coriander or a bit of cumin in the preparation will bring out complementary flavours. If I am pairing it with a Continental dish like a baked spinach (by the way, I will share the recipe for this soon), I may add mint instead. The lemongrass and the ginger remain constants. However you choose to accompany it, the rice itself will be quite flavourful, as well as fragrant.

I have shared quite a few rice recipes here over the years, from biryani to porridge to dessert. In South India, rice grows abundantly, and I’ve also discussed before how the regeneration of native varieties is important. I recently heard the environmental scholar Vandana Shiva speak in Chennai, and I feel moved to share her message. She spoke about how India must maintain our rich agricultural heritage, that farmers should have their own seeds and distribution network and not allow big companies to patent them (this is quite controversial – Monsanto currently has a monopoly on the world’s seeds). She also encouraged farmers to go pesticide-free and focus on seasonal produce, and said that organic food will become more affordable as more farmers choose these methods. It was a very enlightening talk, and these thoughts were on my mind as I prepared this dish. I hope that you too will explore more about these subjects. After all, they relate to our everyday lives and choices.

All said and done, rice is a staple in India, and while it contains sugars and starch, in the right quantities it does more good than harm. I hope we can all come together to be more mindful about our consumption. We can do good, too – even as we indulge.

 

Ginger Lemongrass Rice

(Serves 2)

1 cup rice

5 cups water

2 tablespoons grated ginger

A bunch of fresh lemongrass leaves

Salt to taste

1 tablespoon sesame oil

Finely chopped coriander leaves (for garnishing)

I have used basmati for this dish, but I would recommend using any good South Indian or Asian rice variety. Do keep in mind my prior suggestions for additional ingredients depending on the side dishes you prepare to serve this with.

Rinse and soak the rice in a pot. Add the five cups of water. Add the lemongrass leaves and cook until the rice is tender. Strain and set aside. Remove the lemongrass leaves and discard them.

In a heated pan, add the oil. Now, add the ginger and sauté for a few minutes. Add the cooked, fragrant lemongrass rice along with the salt. Mix gently, allowing the flavours to spread into the rice.

Garnish and serve, along with any other dish. This ginger lemongrass rice will certainly elevate the flavours of its accompaniment, and vice versa. Enjoy!

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Recipe: For A Spicy Concoction – Sambar Podi

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There are all kinds of powders, known as “podi”, and condiments in South Indian homes. Among them are: the coconut podi that we have talked about earlier, idly podi that is sprinkled over idly and eaten with ghee and makes for a great travel snack, podis using curry leaves or moringa leaves, and even gunpowder – presumably named this way by the British on account of its heat. This recipe is one such podi too. Last week, I shared the recipe for sambar using a readymade masala. Those of you who would like to use a homemade masala instead could use this sambar podi.

Traditionally, this sambar podi would be made fresh – ground, hand-pounded and added to the pot. Nowadays, with our busy lives, those of us who like having an entirely homemade podi make a jar of it and keep adding it to our sambar whenever we prepare it. It is more efficient, and greatly enhances the flavour of the sambar.

Of course, many readymades are equally good, and you know that I use them too. Still, we all also know that there’s nothing quite like homemade when it comes to certain ingredients, and of course when it comes to cooking itself.

Sambar Podi

(Yield: One small jar)

 

8-10 dry red chillies

2 tablespoons urad dal

1 teaspoon black pepper

¼ teaspoon methi seeds

1 teaspoon cumin

2 teaspoons coriander seeds

¼ teaspoon turmeric

1 pinch asafoetida

Salt to taste

1 teaspoon ghee

2 teaspoon desiccated coconut

 

Heat a pan. Add ½ teaspoon ghee. Once it has heated, add the urad dal and toast until pale golden. Set aside.

In the same pan, add black pepper, cumin, methi and coriander seeds. Roast well. Then, add turmeric and asafoetida. Set aside.

In the same pan, add a drop of ghee and roast a handful of dry red chillies. Next, roast the desiccated coconut. Allow all the ingredients to cool.

Then, add these to the blender: the urad dal, coriander seeds, methi, pepper, cumin and red chillies. Grind coarsely and add salt to taste, then all the remaining ingredients.  Blend until all the spices are mixed well. Allow to cool. Store in an airtight jar.

You can use this sambar podi in lieu of a store-bought one when you prepare sambar. The recipe for that is here. Enjoy with idlys, dosas or rice!

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Recipe: Effortlessly Excellent – Easy Biryani

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When my children were growing up, they were really fond of biryani. Biryani is a speciality in India. It is basically a type of rice, loaded with flavours, aromas and vegetables and/or meat. The specific ingredients included will be based on what is locally available, as well as preferences unique to a community – and it is made by many different communities, each in their own styles. By and large, the authentic method of preparing a fragrant biryani loaded with spices came with the Mughals, and trickled into other cuisines. The dish may even have other names in some parts of the country. We are fluid here when it comes to biryani, and it is very much a pan-Indian dish or dish category. A real biryani takes time, effort and skill – but I’ve perfected the recipe for an easy biryani that tastes very good, smells just as lovely and requires the above three elements only minimally!

So here’s the truth: I never really did know how to make biryani when the kids were younger. So I always resorted to this easy and quick method. I feel that this is essentially a masala rice in preparation, but it comes close in flavour and scent to authentic biryani.

However, as my children grew and started eating around the world, they got smarter and were quick to spot when my masala rice was being passed off as a biryani. So I in turn learned how to make real biryani too. That, however, is a long process. The traditional method varies both in its ingredients as well as its cooking. Today, I have opted to share a simple method for an easy biryani instead. While I have kept it vegetarian, you can add meat at the same time in the method that I add the veggies. All else remains the same in the recipe.

When I began to share recipes on this blog some years ago, one of the essential ideas that went behind its conception was that it should appeal to young adults. Whether they were off at university, or were newly-wed and starting a family of their own, I wanted to offer recipes that they could pull off with ease. So I like to present dishes that require accessible ingredients, and simple methods. While I do enjoy sharing exotic or more complex fare here too, and I quite often throw in traditional recipes that keep my readers connected to their roots, I do keep adaptability and time-efficiency in mind most of the time. I know this particular easy biryani recipe fits the criteria because it’s the version that I myself still keep making when I visit my kids in other locations, and encourage them to cook when they’re on their own too.

So, now that I’ve shared one of the core motivations behind how I come up with my recipes, let me also say: I hope this blog has served many. Feel free to leave comments on what else you’d like to see here or what you would like to know about the culinary realm, especially if you’ve just started your journey in the kitchen.

Easy Biryani

(Yield: Serves 2)

2 tablespoons ghee

1 bay leaf

2 cloves

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 cardamom

2-3 garlic cloves

½ cup chopped onions

2 cups chopped vegetables (beans, carrot, peas, potato)

1 tablespoon tomato purée

1½ cups water

1 cup rice

Salt to taste

2 teaspoons garam masala

2 teaspoons dhaniya/jeera powder

¼ teaspoon turmeric

Coriander and mint leaves (to garnish)

 

Rinse and pick the rice and set it aside.

Heat the ghee in a saucepan or pressure cooker. To this, add the bay leaf, cumin, cloves and cardamom. Once they have heated, add the garlic and sauté for a few seconds. Then, add the onions and the remaining vegetables. If you are using meat, add it now as well. Sauté on a medium or high flame.

Now, add the tomato purée. Stir for a few minutes.

Then, add the rice and the water. Add the remaining masala and close the lid of the pressure cooker or cover the saucepan. Allow to cook for no more than 2 whistles or until the rice is tender to the touch, but not too soft. Turn off the flame.

Once it has cooled, open the lid. Sprinkle with coriander leaves and mint leaves. Cover again for some time.

Serve while still hot. Biryani is usually accompanied with raita. Here is a fancier version of this curd side dish, if you’d like to try it out.

I hope you’ll enjoy this delicious, fragrant and flavourful biryani, and I also hope that you find it very easy to make!

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Recipe: ‘Tis The Season – All-Spice Cake

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The celebrations of Diwali are soon followed by the celebrations of Christmas, and when I was growing up this meant that we enjoyed a couple of months of ongoing festivities. My most cherished childhood association of Christmas has to do with a large Anglo-Indian family we knew. They were wonderfully warm and welcoming, and Christmas day for us was all about visiting them and sharing in the cheery mood in their home. Until they came into our lives, the festival was something I had only encountered in books, so to actually experience it was thrilling. I will never forget the first time I saw a Christmas tree, all decked out in their home. Under it, there were always such lovely gifts for us friends of the family, and I looked forward to these each year. Of course, there was also the spread of delectable festive goodies. These special memories are on my mind this month, which is why they have inspired my sharing of this all-spice cake recipe.

Fast forward to today, and Christmas now for me is all about absolutely delicious plum cakes, received from many friends. As you may know, plum cakes last for between six months to a year depending on how they are made. This means that I am at liberty to enjoy them for a nice long stretch. Just a slice at tea now and then makes the perfect accompaniment. After re:store cakes, of course!

I’ve never attempted at baking a plum cake myself as I know it’s a laborious process, both in technicalities and in love. Besides which, there is such sweetness in receiving them from dear friends. Nowadays, there are vegan and vegetarian and alcohol-free options out there, but there’s nothing like a good old rum plum cake. So while I’ve never gotten down to experimenting with it as a baker, I have really enjoyed making the next best thing.

This all-spice cake, made with a readymade all-spice mix that is full of the goodness of cardamom, cloves and more, has come out so moist and delicious. Maybe it will be one of my own seasonal traditions in future – and perhaps even yours.

This time of year is full of activity for me – visiting friends, special occasions, events, art shows and so on that I am really enjoying every single day. I am also kept busy with fulfilling re:store orders that bring delight into many people’s homes. So much so that it’s almost a struggle to keep up with regular posts on this blog, but I made a promise to myself that I’ll continue sharing my love of cooking with everyone I can reach.

So here I am with a recipe that you can learn to bake ahead of your Christmas feasting, or at any time of year. This will be followed by a cookie post, so do keep an eye out for that as well.

All-Spice Cake

(Yield: One loaf)

200 grams maida

175 grams sugar

60 grams milk

60 grams boiling water

1½ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon all-spice

75 grams oil

2 eggs room temperature

25 grams Greek yoghurt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

Preheat the oven to 170° C. Prepare an 8” loaf tin by lining it with butter paper and coating the edges with butter and flour.

Sift the flour, salt, all-spice, baking powder and baking soda separately. Set aside.

Mix the milk and hot water together. Set aside.

Now, beat the oil and the sugar together. Add the eggs and beat again. Add the vanilla extract.

Then, add the liquid and dry ingredients alternatively, folding each into the mixture with a spatula. Make sure the sides are scraped down properly.

Pour the batter gently into the loaf tin and bake for 35-45 minutes.

Remove from the oven and set the tins aside. After 15 minutes, remove the loaf and cool it on a cooling rack.

Decorate as you wish, and serve. Season’s greetings!

When I say that wish you lots of peace, I mean it deeply. In today’s day and age, we could all do with it – not just for ourselves, but for the environment, in the world, and for every community. Wishing you a very merry, peaceful and delicious Christmas!

 

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Recipe: Easy and Effective – Home Remedy Tea

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I have shared various medicinal or immunity-boosting beverages on this blog before, and here is one more to add to the list. It is a home remedy tea that can be used for sniffles, as well as to avoid getting them. You may notice that there are trendy drinks, or drinks for a season, that tend to suddenly be popular, with everyone praising the benefits of the same. My family too goes through such phases when it comes to different kind of foods and beverages. At the moment, this drink is our favourite among the healthy category.

It is meant as a post-lunch drink, and it works especially well at this time as it tastes rather like a tea (without containing any). This has pepper and ginger so it is quite flavourful, and is sweetened with some honey. That’s probably why my kids enjoy it. I’m not a fan of flavoured teabags, and prefer to make homemade concoctions like ginger water or turmeric water, or this home remedy which happens to contain both those ingredients.

Speaking of turmeric (which, as I love to remind you, is the re:store brand logo you can see at the top of this website and on all my product packaging), I must admit that my own most preferred healthy drink is either this turmeric shot, or even more simply, a glass of hot water with a drop of ghee and a pinch of turmeric. I firmly believe that the latter keeps viruses and infections away, and since I consume it at night, I can see that it influences good sleep as well. That one is so easy to put together that it doesn’t require a whole recipe as such, and I would encourage you to try it out too.

Even though the monsoon rains have been rather intermittent so far and COVID feels like it’s over, it’s important to keep our immunity up in general. I hope you’ll enjoy this simple, totally natural way to do the same.

Home Remedy Tea

(Serves 1)

2 cups water

½ teaspoon grated ginger

A pinch of turmeric

A pinch of pepper

1 teaspoon honey

 

In a pot, add the water along with ginger. Allow to boil. In a serving cup, add the turmeric, honey and pepper. Strain the hot water into the cup. Stir. Enjoy your home remedy tea while it’s hot.

Regular consumption of fresh juices and homemade beverages like this one do benefit our overall health. Here are a few more such recipes for you to explore: a soothing syrup with spices, raisin kalkand syrup and turmeric tea. Remember to choose the right one for the season, and for your current tastes or needs!

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Recipe: Spiciness From Spain – Patatas Bravas

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Last week, I shared the recipe for a saffron crème brûlée, a close rendition of my favourite dessert, crema catalana. Nostalgia for the vibrant city of Barcelona and for all the delicious food I’ve enjoyed there also made me fondly recall how I love patatas bravas too. It’s a typical Spanish dish, with a name that translates to “spicy potatoes”, and I’m so happy to share this recipe with you too.

Patatas bravas fall into the category of tapas or small plates dishes, and can be found delicious and cheap all over Spain. The best I’ve had was at a small and nondescript place, popular with the locals, that a friend took me to. They originated in Madrid, but I first enjoyed them in beautiful Barcelona, naturally. My husband used to export garments and I would accompany him on business trips to the city. We would often end the busy days with a plate of spectacularly-made Spanish potatoes. No trip, however short it may have been, was complete without some patatas bravas.

Intriguingly, I learnt that the Europeans did not consider the potato an edible item when it was first brought there from the Americas. It was looked down on by the elite as food that was only for labourers, who needed its energy benefits. The Spanish armies did consume it for this reason, however. When famines hit in the 18th century, the durable potato finally found pride of place in the European palate. Imagine: they deprived themselves of such deliciousness earlier!

Now, of course, the potato is hardly seen as humble. At El Tomás de Sarrià, the Barcelona restaurant that is most famous for the patatas bravas, their preparation of the dish is so renowned that the son-in-law of the King of Spain, numerous famous football and handball players and other celebrities have been known to frequent it.

But really, who doesn’t love potatoes? At home, we consume them in any form. Fried, sautéed, mashed, you name it. As much as I personally love them too, I do try to avoid eating them because I know how addictive they are. Once I start on just one wedge, I can’t stop myself from reaching out for more. Funnily enough, this is the same complaint – or compliment, rather – that I receive about my almond brittle. It happens quite often that a customer will call me up and say, “I couldn’t stop munching on them and have finished the batch you sent already! Do you have more?”.

These cherished “demands”, that I so gladly fulfil, also come from my family. For instance, whenever I make shakshouka, the family wants potatoes on the side. I discovered that patatas bravas are a brilliant accompaniment to that egg-based dish, and this multi-continental medley is much enjoyed at home. Every time I up my game a little bit, such as by substituting some plain vegetable dish for something more exciting like patatas bravas, the family decides that that’s the combo that they want ever onward. Do you ever find this happening – as your repertoire expands, the meals you prepare become more elaborate because the people you cook for begin to ask for specific dishes more frequently?

Our potato obsession at home is so intense that my husband even went so far as to buy an air fryer so as to eat healthier and feel less guilty about his consumption. But I personally feel that it’s better to have the oil-fried version occasionally than to use the air fryer every day. So that machine has been shelved for now, gathering dust in some poor corner. In the meanwhile, we are enjoying our almost-authentic patatas bravas, made with oil and love and lots of other good stuff!

Patatas Bravas

(Yield portion: 1, serves 2)

 

2-3 cups diced potatoes

2 cups oil for frying

Salt to taste

 

Alioli

2 garlic pods crushed

¼ cup mayonnaise

 

Bravas sauce

¼ cup olive oil

1 tablespoon paprika

1 teaspoon chili powder

Salt to taste

1½ teaspoons corn flour

1 cup vegetable broth

 

Patatas bravas are easy to make, and you begin with the potatoes and prepare the two sauces while they are frying.

Heat up the oil in a pan and deep fry the potatoes until they are golden. Drain them on a paper and then place them in a wide bowl.

Prepare the aioli sauce by crushing the garlic well and mixing it into the mayonnaise. Stir until well incorporated.

Prepare the bravas sauce by first adding the oil to a saucepan. Once it has heated, add the chili powders and flour. Stir till toasty. Then, add the vegetable broth gently and stir till emulsified. Boil on a low flame until the sauce thickens (this will take approximately 3-5 minutes). The sauce should have a consistency that can be drizzled.

To assemble the dish, simply drizzle the two sauces, aioli and bravas, over the fried potatoes and serve hot. You can also add some mayonnaise or sour cream, if you prefer.

I wonder what these patatas bravas will taste like if I swap the regular potatoes out for sweet potatoes. I’m definitely going to give that experiment a try…

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Recipe: Tinged With Goodness – Turmeric Tea

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I was recently down with a virus (thankfully, it was not COVID), and that was when I began consuming this turmeric tea every night. I had long been making it on a nightly basis, for my husband who insists on a cup of it before bedtime. Despite his urging me to have it as well, I somehow never did. That bout of illness was an important reminder for me that we need to keep our immunity high. Healthy, homemade remedies are a time-honoured way of doing this.

It isn’t that I wasn’t occasionally consuming turmeric-based boosters – such as this turmeric shot and this sniffle-season tonic  – but making a point to have a beverage like this one every night was just not part of my routine until a few weeks ago. However, there was a nightly drink that my mother would prepare for us while we were growing up. She would put a drop of ghee in a cup, add two pinches of turmeric powder, pour hot milk over this, stir it and make my siblings and I drink it. Like most children, we hated it. Now that I am older and appreciate the medicinal values of common ingredients, it’s been a pleasure to bring some turmeric back into my bedtime routine. Now, I can’t get enough of it, and even look forward to it.

I first consumed this drink while visiting my son in Bangalore. The lady who comes in to do his cooking prepared it one day when the kitchen ran short of tea leaves. She called it “a healthy tea” and offered it as a substitute. It was so refreshing that it became a keeper in my family, and I got the recipe from her and began making it once I got back home too. It was reminiscent of the homemade remedies I’ve known, and easy to prepare as well. When I look back on my childhood, I hardly recall being given pills; nor do I recall falling seriously ill. Common, seasonal illnesses were always treated with traditional, natural cures.

It’s a healthy tea indeed, made with the goodness of turmeric. Turmeric is an antioxidant, anti-bacterial and anti- inflammatory ingredient, and has been trusted for centuries as a disease preventative. It is not for nothing that a turmeric stamp is re:store’s signature, and has taken pride of place in the brand logo for six years now. You can see it right there on this blog’s header and on my product packaging too. To me, it represents good health and vibrance in all aspects of life. I love the ingredient for its versatility: it’s as useful in a curry as it is in a beverage like this.

It happens to be turmeric season now, and I’m planning to go to the South Indian heartlands where it is harvested to track the process. This adventure is something I will be sharing with you in time.

Coming back to this turmeric tea itself: you can experiment with more spices to flavour it with, depending on the season and what’s on hand in your kitchen. In rainy or wintry weather like what we’re having now in Chennai, the spices can be warming too. I like to just add lemon and honey, and sometimes a cinnamon stick or star anise. At home, we are currently mostly off dairy so we prefer it as a turmeric tea. You can turn it into a turmeric latte by adding milk and eliminating the lemon. As long as turmeric is the base, you can play around with the rest of the recipe.

The best part of this drink is that unlike my other turmeric remedies, which I use seasonally or only when I have fallen sick, this is good as a year-round drink. Many of us enjoy a warm beverage at night, and this makes for a great replacement (especially if you prefer to be dairy-free). Also, it kills your night-time sugar craving. This is good news for those of us with a sweet tooth, and I’m telling you this from experience! Something about this drink just takes away that itch. Quite the benefit, in addition to all its healing properties, no?

Turmeric Tea
(Yield: 1 cup)

¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
1 small piece of ginger
A few drops of lemon juice
¼ teaspoon honey
1 cup boiling hot water
Some star anise

Boil the water along with the ginger and star anise. In a cup, add the turmeric powder, honey and lemon juice.

Once the water boils, pour it into the cup.

Stir and drink while it’s hot.

Incredibly simple, yet so very soothing. As I said earlier, add selected spices to flavour the beverage further, as per your wish. Let this turmeric tea relax you, and heal you as you sleep. Sweet dreams!

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Recipe: Learning Something New – Ginger Chutney

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For many years, a lovely lady named Hamsa has visited a few times a week, to conduct a chanting class for me. She teaches me Sanskrit scriptures like the Vishnu Sahasranamam and the Lalitha Sahasranamam. I’ve been chanting for the last fifteen years and it’s a source of immense solace for me. Hamsa is from Andhra Pradesh, a region known for its spicy cuisine, and it so happens that one of my favourite condiments comes from there. It’s a ginger chutney sweetened with a hint of jaggery, and I’m delighted to share the recipe for it with you today.

Before the pandemic, I was a frequent customer at a wonderful South Indian restaurant where an array of chutneys would be served. No matter how diverse the spread, I would always reach instantly for the ginger chutney, so much so that I’d even ask to have any leftovers of it packed to take back home and enjoy with the next meal. One day, as we were chatting after class, I asked Hamsa if she knew how to make that fabulous dish. I was thrilled to hear her say, casually, that she made it daily! Of course, she then kindly brought me some a couple of times, after which I asked that she teach me the recipe. I’m a hands-on learner and I wanted to watch her preparing the dish. So one day when she visited, she prepared it in my kitchen as I eagerly watched the process, and I’ve been making it happily ever since.

I believe that we all experience learnings from any person. It doesn’t matter who they are, or in what form the learning comes, but it enriches us just the same. This is something that’s so crucial for us to keep in mind at this difficult time for India. If we keep our eyes and our minds open, we will perceive that all of life itself is a learning, and that we are amidst so many ongoing lessons given what is happening is the country and the world. We are learning about what works and what doesn’t, and what has to change for a better future. In our personal lives and relationships, we are learning something every day about how to get through this crisis – seeing which relationships can withstand it and how, seeing sometimes that the problem isn’t the other person but us, and so much more. These are valuable learnings that we must carry forward.

I’m grateful to have learnt this recipe from Hamsa, to add to all the knowledge she has given me over the years spiritually. She doesn’t just teach me chants, but also talks about culture and ritual, deepening my understanding of the same. When I’m feeling down, she will often suggest a mantra that I can say to strengthen myself. This is advice that has kept me in good stead through my adversities.

I’m sharing the recipe for ginger chutney with you today along with a slice of my life. After I have completed my baking, cooking and exercise schedule in the morning, I always sit down to chant. I genuinely believe in prayer, and in the power of hope. I believe that as a human race we will come out of this darkness, and when I am in prayer, my conviction in this is at its strongest.

With the current lockdown in Chennai, I now take virtual classes from Hamsa daily. I can read Sanskrit, and one of the things I appreciate about her teaching style is that she is very particular about pronunciation. This takes me back to when I was a little girl in a convent school full of wonderful Irish nuns, who insisted on precision in handwriting and enunciation. The lovely Mrs. Martanda, my English teacher, would teach us the difference between the spoken words “vow” and “wow”, for example. She used the Wren and Martin grammar book and various dictionaries as teaching tools. That I am able to recall these details decades on is a testament to the influence a good teacher can have, in any aspect of life. As I said earlier: we learn something from someone, every day. We are all students, and we are all teachers.

And so – I learnt this from Hamsa and I am now teaching it to you. It’s a brilliant ginger chutney made in the Andhra style. My version is drier than Hamsa’s, and I make it this way so that it lasts longer. It has a perfect combination of flavours – sweet jaggery, spicy red chilli and piquantly aromatic ginger, the last one being a particular favourite of mine. It’s so Indian, yet so doable in any part of the world, consisting of simple ingredients and a quick and easy process. In case you cannot source jaggery, try brown sugar or coconut sugar as a substitute. This ginger chutney lifts up the flavours of my Buddha bowls, my dhoklas, my dosas… it adds such a sumptuous taste to anything I pair it with.

Ginger Chutney

(Yield: 1 cup)

2 small cups washed, finely cut ginger

1 small (lime-sized) ball tamarind

8 dry red Kashmiri chillies

2 tablespoons urad dal

Salt to taste

2 teaspoons cumin seeds

2 tablespoons jaggery powder

2 tablespoons sesame oil

 

Add the oil to a pan. Dry roast all the ingredients – except the jaggery – until they all turn golden, on a medium flame. Finally, add the jaggery.

Allow to cool. Blend well together without adding any water. You can store this in the refrigerator for 10-15 days. As a dry chutney, it is inherently more long-lasting.

I’d love to know how you’ve been pairing the various dips I’ve been sharing. The previous two in this Indian condiments series were the Tamil-style raw mango thovayal and the Gujarati-style dry garlic chutney. In the past, I’ve also shared several fusion and Indian dips and condiments, all of which can be used creatively, and I hope you’ll be curious about exploring those too. Here they are: curry leaf and green chilli hummus, plum chutney, wood-apple chutney, coriander chutney and date chutney. Enjoy!

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Recipes

Recipe: Garlicky Goodness – Lasun Ki Chutney (Dry Garlic Chutney)

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What did you think of the raw mango thovayal that I shared in my previous post? I hope it added a tangy kick to your meals, and if you used it in any offbeat ways (such as as a marinade, or in a fusion dish), I’d love to know. The next dish I’m sharing in this dip series is another recipe that could lend itself to versatile use too. It also has an interesting dry-to-wet storage solution built into its preparation, which you’ll learn about below. This lasun ki chutney (dry garlic chutney) is a Gujarati condiment, one that always existed in my childhood food experiences, and I know it is also made Maharashtra, which borders Gujarat.

It is a dry garlic chutney with a fiery colour, and is made in a ball form that is supposed to last two or three days without refrigeration. This means it travels well, so it is often paired with the equally durable thepla on train journeys and so on. While I was growing up, my mother kept her lasun ki chutney in the fridge, which extended its shelf life a little further too. The concept is like this: it’s a dry chutney, made with minimal water, that is rolled into a ball and stored. Whenever one wants to consume it, one simply pinches some off, adds warm water, makes a paste and enjoys it as an accompaniment. Once water is added, it needs to be consumed immediately.

Aside from theplas, it is typically an accompaniment for bajra ki rotla, dhokla or handvo. Although we now enjoy it year-round, in concept it is the ideal winter condiment for more frugal meals. I am told that farmers in Gujarat typically consume it with bajra ka rotla, a flatbread made with pearl millet flour, in winters. Being very flavourful, it uplifts the thepla or other main staple without the need for other side dishes, especially when the harvest is scarce.

When I first started making lasun ki chutney, I began by making the soft version directly rather than the storable dry balls. I learnt the recipe for my grandfather, who came to live with us when he was 93 and absolutely had to have some of this lovely condiment at every meal. And at every meal, without fail, he would always say, “Garlic is very good for you.” He would sit on the floor and have a full Gujarati main course served to him, and he relished dipping his chapati into a bowl of ghee and eating it with lasun ki chutney. Perhaps because he reminded us every day that this is a nutritious dish, it grew on the rest of us too, and soon we began to have a side of spicy garlic chutney with most of our meals as well.

Garlic is indeed very good for us, and is well-known as an immune system booster, and as an ingredient that keeps blood pressure and cholesterol under control. It’s rich in antioxidants, manganese and fibre, among other nutritious elements. Plus – it’s delicious. Aromatic and pungent, it’s a pleasure for the senses.

That said, I would be remiss not to mention that there are communities that avoid garlic entirely as some believe that it affects the hormones in such a way as to charge us up and make us express our anger. If you do not eat garlic for this reason or any other, I’m afraid this recipe won’t suit you – and I hope you’ll explore the archives and find another one that does.

 

Lasun Ki Chutney

(Yield: 1 small cup)

 

10-12 cloves garlic

1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

4 Kashmiri red chillies (fried)

½ cup shredded coconut

1 tablespoon sesame oil

Salt to taste

 

Set aside all the ingredients, except the oil, in a food processor. In a flat pan, add the oil and once it has heated, pour the oil into the food processor along with the other ingredients. Make sure that you grind the mixture well. Your dry, coarse garlic chutney is now ready.

Now, make small balls and store them in the refrigerator. When you’re sitting down to a meal over the next few days, pinch off as much as you need, add warm water to make a paste, and enjoy. Have it with dhoklas or theplas, or even add it to Asian stir fries to spice them up, like I do. I’d love to know how you use it!

I’ll end this post by giving you a visual glimpse of the recipe that will round out this dip trilogy. In the photo below, you can see the raw mango thovayal and the lasun ki chutney – along with the forthcoming dish. Any guesses about what it is, or what its chief ingredient is?

 

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