Changes in the house décor, changes in the upholstery, changes in the wardrobe, change in life partner too… we don’t have any qualms about it. But yes, when it comes to cooking chicken in a different style, maybe in a zip lock pack or using herbs or dry pressed herbs in our dishes. We bet! There are more than second thoughts to it.

Most people, especially our mommies, wouldn’t be comfortable with the change in the style of cooking, and even their blender for that matter. But, who hasn’t heard of change being an inevitable part of our life?

The chefs in the city too have come to terms with this reality. So, here they are whipping interesting delicacies with different techniques of cooking, new range of spices and state-of-the art kitchen gadgets.

Brajesh Chandra Ghansiyal. Photos: Vinay Malik

Brajesh Chandra Ghansiyal, executive chef with Voodoo-26, talks about the four feet long blenders, and the multi-purpose slicing machines, which have made life easier and brought about a huge change in cooking as well.

“Cooking is an art. And now, it is being improvised with the use of newer techniques and gadgets. You have technology and science making foray into the dishes as well,” says Brajesh, who then takes us to the whole state-of-art machinery that he has gathered. Rice cooker that works on a thermostat, steam kettles, doughnuts cutting machines, combination ovens…cooking has become technically refined.

At Voodoo, the idea is to provide customers with dishes, which would go well with their tastes. “We are open to experimenting, but at the same time I am stuck to the idea of providing everything with a twist.”

He adds, “Where some dishes are being made in contemporary techniques, others are just going back to the basics. Our Zaika special Table d’menu available on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday has dishes like Kashmiri rogan josh, sukhi subzi, steam rice, paneer pasanda cooked using traditional and modern spices and flavours,” he says.

And talking about contemporary, Sous chef Raman Preet Ahluwalia at Hotel Taj-Chandigarh knows it all— right from the newer techniques that are being used in cooking, to even some that have not found place in the city, but are largely being used elsewhere in India and abroad.

“You can define today’s cooking as an amalgamation of traditional with the contemporary, seasoned with science and technology,” says Raman, who whips up new names that have come into cooking, making it more of an experience. “However, I want to begin with saying that the modern techniques of cooking help in retaining the nutrient value of the food, and at the same time, saves on time too,” he smiles.

So, what’s cooking? We mean in a newer style. Offers Raman, who begins by breaking a myth in cooking, “Most people believe that olive oil is the ultimate weapon for all remedies. It is good in some aspect, at the same time it has it is high on cholesterol as well.”

According to the Sous chef, “olive oil could be as good as mustard oil, it’s just that different oils have different benefits. Gastronomy delights are waking up to this fact. It is good to use different oils at different times and derive the benefits.”

Oil..eek..You could be scaring the health or the pseudo health freaks. And this is where the new techniques come in place. Charring (heating prime cut of meat in a pan, flash cooked on a high temp) is one of good ways to retaining nutrients and has no involvement of fats.

This is generally used for fish (tuna or sword fish) and then served with fresh lettuce. Grilling meat without fat, like the Hyderabadi style of making pattar ka ghost, wherein the meat is placed on a slab, and is uniformly heated by the wood or coal below. Yet another method, which retains the nutrient potion to a good extent is confit. Puts in Raman, “It is a method that involves slow cooking, for a long period, such that the resultant ingredient just melts in your mouth.”

He elaborates, “This is how the meat gets preserved as well. So, you could have a confit of duck leg, or confit of vegetables.” Last but not the least, is en papillote (means in the bag). Adds the chef, “The chicken cooked in the bag with a vaccum seal and then put in moderate temperature water, at 290-310 degree fahrenheit.”  

Well, this isn’t all. A mention of technology is a must. Combination ovens have taken over the traditional chef kitchens. These ovens serve more than one purpose. You can steam, roast and steam roast together. The steam roast chicken retains the juices, saves nutrients and has affined texture.

For Manoj Singh, chef-de-partie from Western Court, organic food vegetables are becoming pretty popular in veg dishes. “The trend in the food industry are half way in advance and stuck at some place. We don’t need newer techniques of cooking for we already have zillion traditional methods to cook food,” he says.

All said and done, the chefs cannot rule out the possibility that people are health conscious, or even they claim to be one, and they would feel satisfied to dig into a dish, which reads fat-free.

jasmine@tribunemail.com.

Flirting is the gentle art of making a man feel pleased with himself,” wrote Helen Rowland, a famous American journalist and humourist. While the very universal act of flirting gets interpreted differently in different cultures, we tried to check out the flirt quotient of the city youth and what it means to them.

A casual act of making someone feel good is how Rana Sidhu, owner of Go Adventure Sports from Panchkula interprets flirting. “I don’t see any harm in putting across your emotions in a sensible as well as suave manner,” quips this ‘single-and-ready-to-mingle’ fellow.

But you should never offend the other person, he quickly adds. Ask him about the ‘flirt zones’ in the city and he says nothing can beat the good-old lake. “I am a regular jogger, and Sukhna is a decent place to spot good-looking people,” he smiles.

For, Jasmine, an MBA student, flirting is a healthy way of giving and receiving compliments. “A compliment or two, made in good taste, only make your day brighter. Guys should remember that a bit of innovation would always earn them extra brownie points,” she says. Recalling a particular incident, Jasmine said once a guy made a beggar put a slip with his name and number on her car’s windshield.

“It was so cool. The very thought of that incident still brings a smile,” adds the chirpy girl. She believes that harmless flirting can pave way for a serious relationship in future. Geri route, she says, is the Mecca of flirts.

Amanjot Gill, an engineering student, has an interesting theory to support flirting. “It’s good for one’s emotional health,” says the boy, who recommends keeping it subtle. “As long as the other person takes it in a good spirit, it’s okay,” adds Gill, for whom Sector 35 joints are hot favourites when it comes to making those ‘killer moves’.

The key is not to harm or hurt anyone, says Mansi Bansal, a B Com student, who feels that casual flirting certainly spices up things in life. But here is her word of caution: “It’s important to maintain a certain distance. At times, we tend to go over the top and invite trouble.”

Jayanti Banerjee, city based psychologist says that flirting is a relative term that gets interpreted differently. “If one is equating flirting to a casual exchange of compliments not hinting at a serious relationship, it’s alright but yet you need to be careful,” she says. “One needs to keep in mind the context, the others person and absolutely adhere to the limits.” Sometimes the very innocent flirting can also lead to emotional problems,” she warns.

mona@tribunemail.com.

Western diet makes an individual more likely to be withdrawn, anxious, aggressive and delinquent. Western diet may have a negative impact on adolescents’ mental health, according to a new study.

In the study of 1600 14-year-old adolescents, Dr Wendy Oddy, from the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research in Western Australia, found that a typical Western diet increased a child’s chance of developing emotional and behavioural problems.

During the study, Oddy identified two distinct dietary patterns that influenced the well being of an individual. The Western dietary pattern was linked to hamburgers, pies, sausage rolls, confectionery, red meat, refined grains, full-fat dairy food, as well as dressings and sauces such as ketchup.

However, the healthy dietary pattern consisted of red, yellow and leafy green vegetables, fresh fruit and legumes, wholegrains and fish.

“We then adjusted the analysis to take into account things you would expect to be associated with mental health, like family functioning, family income, single mothers, biological fathers not living at home, parents who smoke and parents’ education.”

The researchers found that Western diet makes an individual more likely to be withdrawn, anxious, aggressive and delinquent.

Oddy said that although teenagers were generally getting enough of the “good” foods from the healthy diet, they were also getting a lot of the other less healthy foods from the Western diet.

“There’s a lot of snacking that’s going on in between meals and a lot of drinks that are readily available and are being consumed as snacks,” she said. — ANI

The study’s volunteers had to work at least 20 hours a week and have family commitments. Most people were married and 80 percent had at least one child living at home.

Statements included in the questionnaire included: “the time I spend with my families interferes with my work responsibilities”; and “when I get home from work I am usually too frazzled to participate in family activities”.

In the study, respondents were categorised into those who set themselves very high standards but felt they did not meet them, those who set high personal standards and were happy with their performance, and non-perfectionists.

At work, 38 per cent of women did not feel they met the high standards they set themselves, compared with 24 per cent of men, the study found.

When it came to home and family life, 30 per cent of women felt they were failing to meet the standards they wanted to compared with 17 per cent of men.

Study author Dr Jacqueline Mitchelson, assistant professor in psychology at Auburn University in Alabama, said: “None of the research I’ve seen which splits perfectionism into groups has found a gender difference so it was completely unexpected.

“I’m not sure where it comes from, and we need more research.” Professor Cary Cooper, an expert in organisational psychology and health at Lancaster University, said women often felt blameworthy when juggling work and home commitments.

“They have what we call the double shift - trying to juggle working and competing at work and then carrying out duties at home with men only helping at the margins.

“They then feel guilty that they’re not doing well at work because of home commitments and they’re not doing well at home because of work commitments.” He added: “Women suffer from perfectionism. They tend to be more conscientious, working to 100 per cent.” — ANI

Anxiety, excitement, exhilaration and stray nervousness among the participants were perceptible as over 75 artistes in all age groups thronged the Government Museum and Art Gallery hall. Some alone and some escorted by guardians, were seen seriously concentrating and humming their favourite songs.

Chandigarh has all the assets to be adorned with the sobriquet of City Beautiful, the sprawling gardens, unique Rock Garden, Lake Sukhna welcoming the panoramic natural beauty of Shivalik foothills and residents with ultra modern lifestyle. And now the first ever new voice to be adjudged and crowned of the eve of World Music Day on June 20 at the Plaza will add to the charm.

Accordingly the Chandigarh Tourism Department and Society for Tourism and Entertainment Promotions (STEPS) organised an audition for the Voice of Chandigarh at the museum hall. Despite advertisements in newspapers only 75 artistes in all three categories took the audition. As many as 24 prospective contenders have been short listed for the coveted title and other categories.

Participants in the younger section (10-18) scored over their senior counterparts and won hearts, especially Shakshar (14) modulating his voice to depict emotions in “Tum jo mil gaye ho ”.

The child prodigies spelt magic rendering old film songs with contents much beyond to their conceptual grasp. Be it the national Balshree-2008 and state award winner Urvi Manocha (10) coming with old hit Oh Basanti pawan pagal or Niharika Yadav with Muje bhool gaye saawraiya or Shilpa Rajpal (11) with Aapki nazron ne samjha. Berimming with melody and confidence, the artistes in the age group of 18-25 put up a better display of laya, sur and taal.

However, the participation was much less than expected by the Administration. The short listed artistes will vie for laurels in the final round of live performance before the audience at Plaza on June 20. Similarly, the Chandigarh orchestra/band will be selected out of nine participating groups and winning ensemble will perform on the eve of World Music Day.

Will she, won't she? That was the question being asked on whether Shatrughan Sinha's daughter Sonakshi would accept Salman Khan's film offer. And she has now said yes.

Sonakshi was offered a role by Salman in a film to be produced by Arbaaz Khan. But Sonakshi, apparently in two minds about a film career, decided not to do it. She had studied fashion designing and that's what she wanted to pursue as a career.

The girl hadn't bargained for Salman's persuasive powers. Apparently he kept asking Sonakshi and her parents - who are very fond of Salman - until they finally relented.

And now Sonakshi has finally said yes to the untitled film, which begins shooting in a couple of months.

Said a source very close to the project: "Salman saw Sonakshi at the Fashion Week and told her to lose 10 kgs. Sonakshi decided to lose 30 kgs. And not by starving herself. She maintained a balanced diet, went to the gym regularly and embarked into water sports. Within no time she was stunningly slim."

That's when Salman got doubly persuasive and that's when Sonakshi relented. The film will be directed for Arbaaz Khan Productions by Anurag's brother Abhinav Kashyap. This would be Arbaaz's first production.

Apparently the director went to Arbaaz to sign him an as an actor, but Arbaaz in fact offered to produce it.

Said, the proud father Shatrughan Sinha: "Acting was never on the cards for Sonakshi. But I remember as a child she was very cute and I had promised she would do an ad. This is perhaps a fulfilment of that promise. As long as she doesn't compromise the dignity of our family I've no objections to her doing films.” — IANS

Two of Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar's big budget films may have bombed this year, but it doesn't worry director Sabbir Khan who has cast him in his ready-to-release mega-budget directorial debut movie Kambakkht Ishq.

"Failures of Akshay's movies don't affect me at all because a movie is a movie, and as a director, you just want to know whether the audiences want to see it or not," Khan said in an interview.

"Everybody goes through ups and downs. An actor's last success doesn't mean anything for a director. That way we wouldn't have had any more movies of Amitabh Bachchan or Shah Rukh Khan or Tom Cruise," he added.

Both of Akshay's much-hyped releases this year- Chandni Chowk To China and 8X10 Tasveer, bombed at the box-office.

"I think whosoever's worked with Akshay will want to repeat him. He becomes an instant favourite because of the person he is. He is a genuine human being and a brilliant actor," said Khan who earlier worked as an assistant director in an Akshay starrer, the 2004 comedy Mujhse Shaadi Karogi.

The first time director, who has scripted Kambakkht Ishq, was in the capital to promote the film.

Shot at Universal Studios in Hollywood as well as Italy, Venice and Mumbai, the romantic comedy has much publicised cameos from Hollywood stars like Sylvester Stallone, Brandon Routh and Denise Richards.

Releasing July 3, the film has been produced by Sajid Nadiadwala. "Both the producer and I dreamt big and we sort of took a simple and interesting story and made it larger than life," said Khan, who is the son of 1960s lyricist Noor Dewasi.

When asked if he was apprehensive about filming Hollywood big shots, Khan said, "I'm a director and I can't let anything overwhelm me. I'm the captain of the ship and it's my job to lead a crew of 300 people every day. So I can't be nervous filming them (Hollywood stars), though I was excited for sure when they agreed to be part of it. I had no apprehensions because we were so well-prepared, but it was great shooting Sylvester Stallone and Denise Richards. The Hollywood stars are the USP of the film. They have some very interesting cameos in the film."

Starring Kareena Kapoor in the female lead, it also has Aftab Shivdasani and Amrita Arora in pivotal roles. The producer is aggressively promoting the film, but Khan has been sidelined from the promotional activities.

Asked about his subdued presence, he said: "It's very natural that my name is subdued. It's only my first film as a director and nobody knows me. Sajid, Akshay and Kareena are very famous people and if the film is known by them, it's absolutely great to have better known people to be associated with the film." Khan is slated to direct another project with Nadiadwala early next year. — IANS