My website had crashed on 25th October 2021! Dad has helped me to restore it but we seem to have lost all of the comments đ While he is still trying to work out on how to restore the old comments, the comment feature has been temporarily disabled on the website.
Edit: Comments have been enabled now, but we seem to have lost all the old comments forever đ
This winter I had gone to Andhra Pradesh with my family, visiting one of my father’s very dear friend. While there, M***** Uncle (my father’s friend, our gracious host), served up a delicious barbecue almost every evening! While it was hard to choose a favourite, one of the dishes I really enjoyed was his preparation of lamb chops. With a little to and fro on the phone, recipes and techniques were discussed and I finally felt confident enough to try it out myself. Am sharing his simple but amazing recipe here, hope you enjoy it as much as we did! đ
Today Iâm going to cook Sikandari Raan. For those who donât know, âSikandarâ is the Indian name for Alexander the Great (of Macedonia) and âRaanâ is the Hindustani/ Urdu word for the whole leg of a goat or lamb.
The name comes from the historical association of this dish with the invading armies of Alexander. As those who have studied history would know, that even after the departure of Alexander from India, Indo-Greek kingdoms persisted in Northern India for several centuries and there was a rich cultural exchange between these two civilizations.
This Christmas, while my 9 year old sister was baking a traditional plum cake (ably assisted by our mother đ ), I thought I’d cook something not so traditional for the main course – Meat Nihari!
Slow cooking on coals
Nihari used to be slow-cooked overnight in large pots in order to be given to labourers working on imperial construction projects. It is a dish rich in calories, to provide those engaged in hard manual labour energy through the day. Nihari was served free to imperial labourers.
When classically prepared, Nihari used to take approximately 6-8 hours just to stew, not to mention preparation time. Thankfully, with the help of modern technology and methods, it is much easier achieve the same result in less time.
The initial Covid-19 pandemic lockdown in India lasted from 24th March 2020 till 31st May 2020. During this period of strict lockdown, my father and I decided to undertake an upcycling/ recycling project, putting to use sundry glass bottles that had collected at home.
Keema (or kheema) is a dish from the Indian subcontinent associated with the Mughals. It was usually served at special occasions at Royal events. Keema is commonly served as a main dish, accompanied by pav buns or naan.
Some days back I decided that to make something different from the usual Indian food we have at home. Prior to COVID-19, we would have just ordered out takeaway from one of the popular places. Now, it was an opportunity for me to try cooking something different. The taco shells were ready made ones (out of a packet), the rest I put together myself.
Laal Maas (also spelt maans) is a quintessential Rajasthani dish, it literally translates to âred meatâ, in reference to the red colour of this curry.
Originating in the kitchens of Rajasthan, India and traditionally made using wild game like boar or deer, it has now been adapted to goat or spring lamb. In Rajasthan it is cooked using mathania chillis, which give it the bold red colour that is the signature of this dish and enjoyed with wheat or bajra (millet) chapatis.
Rajasthani cuisine wouldnât be half as glorious if Laal Maas wasnât an integral part of itâs vast repertoire.
The Chettiars of Tamil Nadu have a rich history and culture, as well as a unique cuisine all their own. Last weekend, I tried my hand at cooking one of the iconic dishes originating from the region – Chicken Chettinad. A fiery curry, it is traditionally served with appam or plain rice.
During the Covid-19 induced lockdown, amongst other things we missed, were some of our favourite junk foods. One day early in the month of May 2020, my 9 year old sister and I decided to do something about our junk food cravings – we would make doughnuts at home!