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Food Talk
Feast for the eyes too
You should enjoy the
party on New Year’s Day as much as the guests. What is placed on the
dinner table should look special, says Pushpesh
Pant
PARTIES,
before they are fun, can cause a lot of headaches — and many of these
are related to recipes. During the festive fortnight, there is a real
risk of encountering and coping with jaded palates. Much sleep is lost
brooding "will the guests wince when they have a sneak preview of
the delicacies spread and somehow force a smile that shouts d`E9j`E0 vu
loud and clear?"
We have learnt by
experience to serve more then one thing ‘new’ when planning our
menus — improvising on classical themes (whenever within reach,
eschewing the temptation to desperately grasp but not to fight shy of
experiments that can’t hurt).
The most important
thing not to forget is that you should enjoy the party as much as the
guests. Translate this to mean that long hours of ‘sweat and blood’
should not be spilt in the kitchen. And, what is placed on the dinner
table should look special —out of the ordinary — without
exotic-sounding identity tags that mask leftovers in a buffet.
Finally, there are friends
with good taste and ample means who believe there is nothing that
compares with intimate one-dish meals — we disagree most respectfully.
That is the stuff Sunday brunches are made of. The precaution that you
must take is to lighten the meal adequately. Let the variety provide the
riches, not the artery-choking fat. We share with great pleasure two of
our favourites. Happy eating and Happy New Year!
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rangeen
kashtiyan
Ingredients
Sweet bell
peppers medium
(two red and two
yellow) 4
Button mushrooms
(cleaned well and
chopped) 200 gm
Dried herbs:
parsley,
rosemary and
thyme
`BD tsp each
(You can replace
these
aromatic herbs
with others
of your own
choice, just take
care that nothing
overpowers the
taste of
mushrooms)
Vegetableoil 2
tbsp
Salt to taste
Method
Heat the oil in a
large flat frying pan, add mushrooms, sprinkle the herbs with salt
and cook on medium flame till the moisture evaporates. Do not
allow the mushrooms to dry completely. Make boats by cutting the
peppers in halves and removing the core. Scoop spoonfuls of herb
mushrooms into these colourful boats.
Sweet,
brilliantly hued flesh — cold to touch and refreshingly raw —
of the peppers provides the perfect foil for the subdued yet
subtly seductive khumbi.
Best of all, both the dishes —
feast for the eyes — don’t chain you down in the kitchen and
are easy to tame. |
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Gobhi ka keema
Ingredients
Cauliflower
(large, washed well) 1kg
Peas (fresh,
lightly boiled and shelled) 200 gm
Garlic paste 1
tbsp
Ginger paste 1
tbsp
Medium onions
(sliced fine) 4
Medium tomatoes
(chopped fine) 4
Cloves 4
Black cardamoms 2
Cinnamon stick 1
inch
Bay leaf 1
Kashmiri red
chillies 1 tsp
Zeera powder 1
tsp
Haldi powder `BC
tsp
Garam masala 1
tbsp
Each of mace, and
nutmeg powders `BC tsp
Vegetable oil 4
tbsp
Green chillies
(slit and deseeded for garnish) 4
Salt to taste
Method
Make a mince of the cauliflower
— resist the temptation to grate! Heat oil in a thick-bottomed
pan and when hot put first the bay leaf, then the cloves,
peppercorn, cardamom and the cinnamon. When these begin to change
colour, add the sliced onions and fry till light brown. Now put in
the ginger and garlic pastes and stir fry for a minute or so, then
add the tomatoes with the powdered spices. Keep frying till oil
separates. Add the cauliflower mince, and the peas, mix well,
reduce heat to low medium and cook covered, stirring regularly. Do
not add any water. Remove form heat when the gobhi keema still has
some bite. Garnish with lightly fried green chillies and onion
rings. |
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