PonPulari

I always tell you we have loads to catch up on, but I never get around to it… till now. Now that I’m somewhat back to my normal schedule, we can catch up, provided you’ve time to spare, so ready? Ok, so what would you like to have… tea… coffee… anything cold or something to munch on? Since I can only offer it virtually, please feel free to grab one yourself

I wanna share with you three different cooking experiences I had, one was fun, another was adventurous & the last one was a lesson! I’ll start with my apprentice experience, that’s where I had most fun. I worked as an apprentice at a bakery division of a local supermarket, here in Bahrain. I visit that place frequently, say twice or thrice in a week. Every time I go there, I’ll spend sometime in front of the bakery section, just staring at their glass shelves, full of cakes & pastries. As you might already know, bakery is my all time weakness. Well, one day as usual, during my staring session, the bakery supervisor came to me. As we chatted, he suddenly asked me whether I’d like to work there for a few days, just for a feel of the whole thing. Tada! The next thing you know, I was given an apron & a chef cap. Ready, set, wait… the biggest excitement is yet to come. All the employees in the bakery are North Indians and no I don’t have anything against them… but you see Hindi & myself aren’t the best of friends. For a moment, I thought, I became breathless… it was like air being let out of my excitement balloon. Anyways, somehow we communicated and it was fun! They all treated me like a small little school girl who’s on a picnic, thanks to my height. (Btw, I used to hate being treated like a small girl when I was growing up, but now somehow I like it… I guess that feeling is inversely proportional to my age Anyways, back to the bakery… I was offered the first share of every item that came out of the hot oven! And then there were stacks of cakes, both chocolate & vanilla. I could pick any & start playing with it… I mean icing it. There were tons of chocolate ganache, butter cream, praline etc; just waiting for their turn. So just like my 4 year old nephew plays with his play dough I started playing with food I had a fun ride for 3 days. Apart from enjoying the hustle & bustle of a live borma, I didn’t learn much. Ok, that’s not true, I learned how to pipe a butter cream rose, now that’s a good thing & I had a gala time too.

Ok, that was a fun ride, now for the adventurous one! Not too soon after, I was asked to take a cookery class for a group of 30 people, for a Malayalee association in Bahrain… the Kottayam Association to be precise. I guess I had an adrenaline rush at that time, because I accepted it without any hesitation! When I told Jose about my new adventure, seeing my excitement about the whole thing, he kept quite for sometime. I was wondering what’s wrong & then he said “I guess the association people are more adventurous by asking YOU to do something like that”… *sigh*! You see… I’m a person who panics when we have guests over, so imagine taking a cookery class! As the day approached, I had my panic attack. Unfortunately then, these Royal sick bags weren’t available, otherwise I could have used them! Why am I so freaked out? Well, you have to know one thing – I haven’t attended a cooking class, let alone take one. I just had no clue. Then I made a huge list of what all can go wrong. Yeah, that helps! I had just relived my MBA days of C++ & Java. I am clueless now as I was then! But you know that feeling… that you are sure to fail, so you dont care what the hell happens, yeah I had that.  And I guess I work the best under such situations! Because somehow once I started the class everything went well  (see on the job training works!) & I did enjoy it. I believe the group also enjoyed it.  Here’s something they gave me as a token of appreciation Thank you so much Dolly Aunty for believing in me & thanks a million to Sudin & Susan, for giving me the opportunity and also for your support.

Here comes the last one… lesson learned: I’m like a duck in water. I was thrown in, and now I’m trying to figure out how to paddle. That’s how my whole cooking experience has been. So that’s what I did next, attend a cooking class to really learn how it should be done. While I was at home in Cochin, I got the chance to attend a baking class. First I thought I could learn some more baking tips and styles, the science behind it, but more importantly I wanted to learn how cooking classes were given. That reminds me, in college whenever we used to study a new subject, it used to start with something like “Management is a science as well as an art”, that kinda stuff? Well, I always ignored the science part & considered the whole thing as art. So that’s what I did in baking also. I never bothered about the science part, like aeration blah blah… but in this class it was explained in simple terms, so that lay(wo)man like me could also understand. I also observed the whole process carefully, about how things should be arranged, how you need to organise the class & stuff like that. So now I’m all set to take another cooking class… are you interested ??

Anyways, the best thing about all these experiences was I made new friends… isnt that great!?

Btw, I forgot to tell you about the situation in Bahrain. See that’s what happens, when everything goes well, you take things for granted right? Thank you so much for your mails & messages & the positive vibes you sent . Situation has improved here since my last post. Things are slowly getting back to normal state.

So your coffee… tea is done? I wont take much of your time. I’ll just leave you with this simple egg & potato curry. The other day, one of my readers, Joyce, asked for an egg & potato curry. Here is something I came up with. It’s a mildly spicy curry, I think its apt to call a spicier version of stew. This curry should help you during lent. Also if you dont eat eggs, you can use veggies of your choice & make it a mixed veg curry. I know you are tired from listening to my ranting, but please dont forget to note down the recipe, ok? (Joyce, hope you’ll like it & you too.)

Here it goes:

1. Hard boiled eggs – 5
2. Potato – 1 small-medium, cooked & cut into cubes
3. Onion – 1 big, finely sliced
   Green chilli – 4 -5, slit lengthwise
   Ginger & garlic paste – 1 1/2 tsp, each
4. Coriander powder – 1 1/2 – 2 tsp
   Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
   Fennel powder (perumjeerakam podichathu) – 1/2 tsp
   Garam masala – a pinch
5. Thick coconut milk – 2 cups ( refer notes)
   Cashew paste – Optional (refer notes)
6. Coconut oil
   Salt
   Curry leaves

Heat oil in a pan & add finely sliced onions & salt. When onion becomes golden brown color, add green chilli & ginger garlic paste. Fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the masala powders & a 1/2 tsp of oil & fry for 3 minutes. Add cooked potatoes & mix well. Add thick coconut milk & bring to boil. Reduce flame to lowest & add hard boiled eggs & cook till the gravy becomes thick, say around 5 mins. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot with palappam, kallappam, puttu & chappathi.

For veg variation: You can use veggies like carrot, beans, cauliflower, green peas etc; Cook the vegetables first & add it along with the potato. Rest of the recipe is same.

Notes: I used potatoes & carrot also for this curry. We need loads of “chaaru” (gravy), so I’ve used 2 cups of coconut milk, you can adjust the qty to suit your taste. Also if you dont prefer a creamy curry, you can use medium thick coconut milk instead of thick coconut milk. To enhance taste & also give a rich flavor, you can add cashew paste also. Mix the cashew paste in coconut milk & add to the curry. To make cashew paste, soak a small handful of cashews in hot water for 5-7 mins & grind them to a smooth paste.

Why not leave a comment? Quick, head on over to MariasMenu.com for more tasty, delicious and simple recipes! Remember to check out the Recipe Index to find some easy-to-cook dishes. Don’t forget to tell your friends and family about MariasMenu!

I know I have been ignoring this blog lately, it feels funny to start every post with an apology for the long absence. I think it is time to come out and admit it -I might have lost interest in food blogging! Yes, I said it! I’ve been spending a lot of time on my [...]

Hey, how are you?I know it’s been a long long time…we have loads of catching up to do. Anyways I’m at Bahrain now. The thing is that I reached here last Wednesday & by the time I was ready to settle down, the country started unsettling. See, now that’s what I call …perfect timing! I dont know whether you heard, but some unrest was happening here for the past one month. It got escalated last Sunday & now a state of emergency is declared for the next 3 months.

Amidst all the not so good news coming in, my positive energy signal is very weak. I guess our little chit chat should help me to recharge. Tell me what’s happening at your end. All ok? Yeah..that reminds me, I got mails/messages from you asking about my India trip. I had a fab time back home. I was at home for around 1.5 months. I think I stayed at home for that long after a period of 8-9 years! So I did enjoy it & made most of it I did collect recipes, loads of them in fact. But I’m not sure when will I start trying it out. The current mood isn’t helping me to indulge in experimenting new stuff.

Now coming to this recipe, chammanthi (chutney, though it’s not the correct translation, its just to give you an idea) is very much a comfort food for me. What about you? Do you like coming home to a hot bowl of kanji & spicy chammanthi at the end of a long day? I do! I think that the recipe of chammathi varies from one home to another. This is how we make it at home & I love it. Now I’ve got 3 different chammanthi recipes for you, this is the first among the series Btw, are you on lent? In that case, do try this, it will definitely spice up your meal.

An update: We are attending this month’s Kerala Kitchen, hosted by Magpie. I thought I will send this chammanthi as our rep, what say? Magpie, hope Ms. Manga Chammanthi impresses you

Here it goes:

1. Coconut – 1 cup, scraped
2. Raw Mango (pacha manga) – 1/2 – 3/4 cup, chopped (adjust according to the sourness)
3. Crushed red chilli – 1 1/2 tsp (refer notes)
   Small onion – 3-4, sliced
   Ginger – 1/2 tsp, chopped
   Curry leaves – 2 leaves (do not add more, it will give a bitter taste)
   Salt – to taste

Grind together all the ingredients, preferably without water, till all the ingredients are incorporated. Once you grind it, try shaping into a ball & see whether its holding the shape, then your chammanthi is ready

Notes: Try not to add water, but if your mixie doesnt cooperate, you can add a tiny bit. Also if you dont have crushed red chilli, you can use 3-4 whole dried red chilli. Do a taste test of the mango first to see the sourness & add accordingly.

Why not leave a comment? Quick, head on over to MariasMenu.com for more tasty, delicious and simple recipes! Remember to check out the Recipe Index to find some easy-to-cook dishes. Don’t forget to tell your friends and family about MariasMenu!

Combination of veggies with paneer adds flavor. A simple to make masala curry that will be good with rice or roti.Ingredients1 medium – Potatoes,cubed1 cup – Green Peas500 gm – Paneer, cut to cubes2 pods – Green cardamom,1 big – Star Anise2 medium – Onion, sliced4 – Green chili, slit in center3 medium – Tomato, chopped1” piece – Ginger, choppedMasala powders2 tbsp – Coriander powder1 tsp – Red