Food, Wine and Travel ... With Recipes: TableConversation.com

Microwaving by the Book

I tend to scorn microwave cookbooks. They seem practical and dull, oriented toward machines rather than food. The frequency with which they turn up in thrift shops indicates that others feel the same way.

Nevertheless, I bought a microwave cookbook recently. Of course this one is different, exotic and fun. I picked it up at Higginbothams in Chennai (Madras), a grand, high-ceilinged place that that is India's oldest book shop.

The book is “Cook and See. Part 5,” published by S. Meenakshi Ammal Publications in Chennai. The recipes cover north and south Indian dishes and continental food, a legacy of the British.  All are vegetarian.

Author Priya Ramkumar writes in her introduction: “This book is an attempt to prove that microwave ovens can dish out a variety of yummy recipes at the touch of a button.”

I have to admit that she is right, judging by her book at least, and my long-standing prejudice is wrong.

The recipes work, with minor changes that may reflect the difference between microwave ovens in India and the United States. And they are delicious, like this cream of tomato soup, which I have  adjusted slightly for American cooks. 

CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP
From “Cook and See, Part V” by Priya Ramkumar

1 pound tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
1 potato (I used a small russet potato), peeled and quartered
1 large carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
1½  to 2 cups water
2 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons milk
1 to 2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon white pepper
Heavy cream
Cilantro

Combine the tomatoes, onion, potato and carrot in a microwave proof deep bowl. Sprinkle with ½ cup water. Cover and microwave on high 8 to 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. (In my oven, this took 15 minutes).

Blend the mixture in a blender (or with a hand blender). Put through a sieve to remove seeds and peel.

Stir the cornstarch into the milk until smooth. Add this to the soup along with the sugar, salt and pepper. Add 1 cup water, or more if needed to thin the soup. Cover and microwave on high 3 to 4 minutes (8 minutes in my oven) until heated through.

Stir well. Ladle into heated bowls and garnish with a swirl of cream and cilantro.

Variations:  Season with ½ to 1 teaspoon garam masala. Add canned sweet corn. Garnish with croutons.

Makes 4 servings.

Green Curry from India

Thailand has green curry so popular that it’s on the menu at just about every Thai restaurant.

Not so well known is green curry from India, a fresh and interesting change from the usual heavily spiced,  tomato-red restaurant curries.

The place to find it is Flavor of India in West Hollywood and Burbank, where each day there’s a different chicken curry.

Lots of cilantro makes this one green. If you don’t like cilantro, don’t worry. The flavor softens as it blends with large amounts of garlic and ginger, onions, jalapeno chiles and--another unusual aspect of this curry--coconut milk.

Owner/chef Darshan Singh gave me the recipe when I dropped by for lunch recently. It’s not difficult, because it calls for few ingredients compared to the multitude of spices that go into some Indian dishes.

Long slow cooking in various stages is responsible for the smooth, mellow flavor. So be patient, and the results will be wonderful.

GREEN COCONUT CHICKEN CURRY
From Flavor of India

3 pounds medium-sized chicken thighs
2 cups cilantro leaves (1 bunch)
2 jalapeno chiles, seeded and coarsely chopped
¼ cup peeled ginger root, cut into chunks
¼ cup garlic cloves (about 8)
Water
1½ teaspoons Indian brown mustard seeds
¾ teaspoon ground coriander
¼ to 1½ teaspoons red chili powder, according to taste
½ teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons oil
3/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 medium onions, finely chopped
1 cup coconut milk

Remove the skin and excess fat from the chicken thighs and set aside.

Combine the cilantro leaves, jalapenos, ginger, garlic and 1/3 cup water in a small food processor and process until pureed. Scoop this paste into a bowl and set aside.

Using a spice grinder, grind the mustard seeds to a powder and set aside. Combine the coriander, chili powder, turmeric and salt in a small cup.

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or other large heavy pan. Add the cumin seeds and ground mustard seeds and cook until they crackle. Add the onions and cook until golden brown, stirring often to keep them from burning.

Add the cilantro paste and sauté for 5 minutes on medium heat. Add the ground coriander mixture, then the coconut milk and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes.

Add the chicken and ½ cup water. Cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked, about 45 minutes.  Serve with rice.

Makes 4 servings.

Tomato Hysteria in South India

I have seen tomatoes cause a fit of hysterics. And they were perfectly good tomatoes. As a matter of fact, wonderful tomatoes.

This happened in southern India, near Bangalore. It was breakfast time at  AyurvedaGram, the ayurvedic spa where I was staying. Most of us ate from the general buffet, a lavish spread of light vegetarian dishes. But some were on special diets related to the health issue that had brought them to the spa.

Across from me sat a beautiful young Indian woman, a banker from London with a handsome boyfriend, who called in at the spa occasionally.

She was on a diet, for weight loss I imagine. And she had been placed on an all-tomato regimen. This day, they had brought her the wrong tomatoes—either broiled when they should have been raw, or raw when they should have been broiled, I’m not sure. But the outburst was extraordinary.

It’s not that she was a nasty person, just that food has strong emotional components.that can be overwhelming, especially the lack of food considered vital to a desired goal.

At any rate, the meals at the spa were so good that I arranged an interview with the chef to get recipes. One of them was for a tomato curry that sounds almost too simple, but when I served it to guests, they wanted more and more.

If this curry had been presented to the young banker, perhaps she would have had a better day, and the rest of us would not have been startled out of our morning fog.

AYURVEDAGRAM TOMATO CURRY

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon oil
½ pound onions, finely chopped (1 ½ cups)
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 ¼ pounds roma or other small tomatoes, peeled and chopped
¼ teaspoon cumin seeds
1 ½ teaspoons minced ginger root
½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
Chopped cilantro

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large saucepan. Add the onions and garlic and cook until tender, 8 to 10 minutes.  Add the tomatoes and cook, uncovered, 15 to 20 minutes, or until softened.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 teaspoon oil in a small skillet. Add the cumin seeds and cook until a deep brown.

When the tomatoes are soft, add the cumin seeds and oil, the ginger root and salt, and simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes longer. Turn into a serving bowl and garnish with chopped cilantro.

Makes  2 cups, or 4 side dish servings. Double the recipe to make 6 larger servings, increasing the cooking times slightly if necessary.

Cauliflower: As Good as It Gets

Jayanta Paul, a chef from Mumbai (Bombay), cooked wonderful dishes for Maurya, a now-vanished restaurant in Beverly Hills. For brunch one Sunday, he prepared cauliflower so delicious that I begged for the recipe. Slightly sweet, with a sumptuous creamy tomato sauce, it would have fit right in at a Mogul banquet. 

I’ve lost track of Chef Paul, but I make his cauliflower often. Once I took it to a potluck dinner where there was a great spread of food, none of it Indian. Although it didn’t seem to fit, the cauliflower was a great hit and disappeared rapidly, while other dishes lingered. 

The recipe calls for dried fenugreek leaves (methi). These are readily available in Indian markets, but can be left out, or chopped parsley added for color, although the flavor is not the same.

JAYANTA PAUL’S GOBI MAKHNI
Cauliflower in Creamy Tomato Sauce

1 ½ pounds trimmed cauliflower
2 tablespoons oil
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
1 pound tomatoes
1 ½ teaspoons ginger paste
1½ teaspoons garlic paste
10 green cardamom pods
10 whole cloves
¼ teaspoon hot red chili powder, or to taste
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons slivered ginger root
2 tablespoons dried fenugreek leaves (methi)
2 tablespoons whipping cream
2 tablespoons honey
Chopped cilantro
   
Cut the cauliflower into florets. Wash in cold water and drain. Heat the oil in a non-stick wok or deep skillet. Add the cauliflower and 2 tablespoons water. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cauliflower is tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Cut the tomatoes into quarters. Place in a deep saucepan. Add 1 cup water, the ginger and garlic pastes (to make these, pound garlic cloves and sliced ginger root in a mortar until pulverized), the cardamom pods, cloves, chili powder and 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly, then turn into a blender and blend well. Strain through a sieve.
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in the cleaned wok or skillet. Add the slivered ginger root and sauté for 30 seconds. Add the strained sauce and fenugreek leaves and bring to a boil. Add the cauliflower and boil, uncovered, for 2 minutes.

Reduce the heat to a simmer. Add the whipping cream and stir to blend. Add the remaining tablespoon butter and stir until melted and blended with the sauce. Stir in the honey. Turn into a heated serving container and garnish with cilantro.

Makes 4 servings.

A Recipe Fit for a Queen

Not many people mingle with queens, but I am fortunate enough to know one of them, Smita Salgaonkar, who reigns as Mrs. Asia USA 2007.

Smita is statuesque, gorgeous, talented and smart. Best of all, she is a fabulous cook. Years ago, I watched her make South Indian dosais, swirling a batter of ground rice and lentils onto a skillet to make thin  golden “crepes.”   They were delectable, and so was the enchanting rose-flavored ice cream that she had prepared for dessert.

We didn’t know it then, but that ice cream predicted her future as clearly as if it had been an image in a crystal ball. Today Smita is founder and president of Neemo’s Exotic Ice Creams, which is based in Orange, California, and she has opened an ice cream parlor and snack shop called Saffron Spot in Artesia’s Little India.

The 25 flavors served there include her signature saffron silk,  rajbhog, a rich tasting blend of  pistachios, almonds and cashews seasoned with saffron and cardamom; mango, chikoo (sapote), lychee, pomegranate, badam (almond), kulfi (Indian style ice cream)  and banana cardamom.

Born in Mumbai, India, Smita lives in Orange County. Her royal activities and  businesses keep her busy, but when she has time to cook, she’s likely to make a favorite chicken dish, a recipe from Mai Ghag, mother of a friend and author of a small book of recipes for Indians living in the United States. 

Although Indian dishes often require complex seasonings and procedures, Smita’s Saffron Chicken is so simple it’s almost no work at all. A shortcut is to marinate the chicken in the seasonings overnight. Then all you have to do the next day is bake it with a topping of browned onions. 

SMITA’S SAFFRON CHICKEN

1 cup plain yogurt
½ cup water
2 tablespoons oil, plus more for frying
½ cup blanched almonds
8 medium cloves garlic
½-inch piece ginger root, peeled
2 teaspoons lime or lemon juice
1 teaspoon red chili powder
½ teaspoon turmeric
1 pinch saffron threads
1/8 teaspoon methi (fenugreek) seeds, optional
Salt
2 pounds boneless skinless chicken pieces
1 large onion, sliced lengthwise

In a blender or food processor, combine the yogurt, water and 2 tablespoons oil. Add the almonds, garlic, ginger root, lime juice, chili powder, turmeric, saffron, methi seeds and salt to taste. Blend or process until finely ground.

Place the chicken in a container with a tight lid.  Add the yogurt marinade and mix well. Cover and refrigerate overnight.  The next day, bring the chicken to room temperature. Fry the onion in 2 to 3 tablespoons oil until browned, which will take about 12 to 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Arrange the chicken and marinade in a baking dish with a lid. Top with the browned onions. Cover tightly and bake 50 minutes. Remove from the oven and let stand with the cover on for 15 minutes.

To serve, garnish the chicken with cilantro and serve over rice or with naan bread.

Makes 4 servings. 

OUT OF INDIA: VINDALOO

VINDALOO

From "Curry, a Tale of Cooks & Conquerors"

2 large dried red chiles
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
4 to 6 whole cloves
10 black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 fresh red chiles, finely chopped or pureed with water
1 tablespoon palm or wine vinegar
1 tablespoon tamarind paste or concentrate
6 large cloves garlic, mashed
3/4 inch gingerroot, finely grated
1 1/2 pounds pork stew meat, cubed
4 tablespoons oil
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
3/4 inch cinnamon stick
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 1/4 cups water
Salt
Dash (about 1 tablespoon) jaggery (palm sugar) or brown sugar
A few curry leaves, crushed

In a cast iron pan, dry roast the dried chiles, cumin seeds, poppy seeds, cloves, peppercorns and turmeric for 1 to 2 minutes. Grind into a fine powder in a spice or coffee grinder. Place in a small bowl and add the fresh chiles, vinegar, tamarind, garlic and ginger. Mix to a paste.

Place the pork in a large bowl, add the spice mixture and combine thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, heat the oil in a deep, heavy pan. Add the mustard seeds and cinnamon stick and cover the pan to prevent splattering. When the mustard seeds have popped, add the onion and cook until it begins to brown.

Add the pork and marinade and cook and stir about 10 minutes. Add the water and salt to taste. Cover and simmer 20 minutes, then uncover and cook gently 1 hour, adding water if necessary to prevent burning. Add the sugar and curry leaves and simmer 3 minutes longer.

Makes 4 servings.