Award-winning writer and cookbook author Nicole Parton dishes up food and fun in this lively blog! Husband Ron taste-tests, photographs what’s cookin’, and at times shares and enjoys his own creations. PS: You’ll also find me at https://whatsonnicolepartonsmind.blogspot.com
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Showing posts with label Dinner Party Series: South Asian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dinner Party Series: South Asian. Show all posts
Today’s blog marks the final entry in a six-part series on preparing an Indian dinner. Knowing how much I enjoy cooking, my life-long friend Judy Peterson gave me one of the best surprises I’ve ever had by inviting Ron and I to dinner and asking her friend, Kuldip Ardawa, to cook as I watched and learned.
With no idea what was in store, it was enormously fortunate that we happened to bring Ron’s camera so I could illustrate Kuldip’s step-by-step presentation. Kuldip concluded the meal with Chai - the sweet Indian tea of which there are many varieties. This one is Kuldip’s!
Kuldip Ardawa’s Chai:
2-½ c. water
2 orange pekoe tea bags (Kuldip uses Tetley or Red Rose)
6 cardamom pods (cracked open)
1 in. length of cinnamon stick
2 tbsp. granulated sugar
1-½ c. whole milk (to promote Chai’s rich flavor, don't use skim!)
Bring all ingredients except milk to a boil, allowing to simmer 5 min. Pour in milk and briefly return tea mixture to a boil. Lower heat to simmer a further 2 - 3 min. Strain and ladle directly into mugs from the cooking pot or decant strained tea to a teapot. Serve with additional milk, if desired.
Kuldip Ardawa: Preparing the Chai
Stir the aromatic delicacy with care: It doesn’t take long!
Ready in minutes: Chai, straight from the pot!
It's been a pleasure working with Kuldip Adwara! If you live in the area around Vancouver and would like Kuldip to give you and your friends Indian cooking lessons, or would like her to cook an Indian meal for your next dinner party, drop me a line at nicoleparton172@gmail.comand I’ll put you in touch.
Over the past four days, I’ve given you some ideas to create an Indian feast, courtesy of my Canadian friend Kuldip Ardawa, South Asian cook extraordinaire, who gave me a cooking lesson! When this series concludes tomorrow, I’ll tell you how you can hire Kuldip to do the same, or to prepare an Indian feast in your home.
This is actually not my first attempt at Indian cooking. I once belonged to a Gourmet Club, in which the members tried a different style of ethnic cooking each month.
Following the current month’s meal, the members decided on the type of meal they’d try next time. After they agreed on that, they later met again with their own or the library’s cookbooks to determine what they’d make and who’d be cooking what. Each person made one dish - and Dollinks, I’ve never eaten better! I raise that subject merely to say that you don’t have to do it all yourself! Our Gourmet Club met in different members’ homes; everyone shared the load, and everyone did the dishes.
Food is a great way to bond with neighbors and friends. Even if you order most of it from a deli, try making one dish you can call your own, and share your meal with a friend! When I was a single woman, not so many years ago, I squashed a table for six into a minuscule space and made wonderful dishes in a pass-through kitchen with almost no counter space. I’m not pretending it was easy, but it can be done. Hosting guests at your table will bring great richness and joy into your life!
But on to today’s fabulous recipe for Gulab Jamun, a sugar-soaked Indian sweet cake that - to my western sensibilities - tastes much like Rhum Baba, for which I have a permanent craving and weakness, which is why I never make it. I regularly read the recipe in secret, licking my lips. On the rare occasions that I order Rhum Baba in a restaurant, I have trouble containing my emotions:
Where was I, again? Ah, yes …
Gulab Jamun:
To Prepare the Cake:
1 c. (250 mL) powdered milk
½c. (125 mL) all-purpose flour
1 tsp. (5 mL) baking powder
2 tbsp. (30 mL) unsalted butter, melted (no substitutes)
6 tbsp. (90 mL) milk
Mix and combine dry ingredients. Stir in melted butter and milk, adding more milk if necessary to make a soft dough. Allow mixture to rest 5 min. (Doing so will expand the gluten in your flour, start the baking powder’s leavening process, and allow the molecules of the dry ingredients to more fully absorb the liquid). Rub a little butter on the palms of your hands to keep the dough from sticking. Pinch pieces of dough to form 10 or 11 smooth rounds the size of a ping pong ball between the palms of your hand. Allow these balls of dough to rest 5-to-10 min.
Heat 2 or 3 in. of oil in a clean skillet over medium-low heat. Test the oil’s heat with a little dough: The dough should bubble gently, as though it were simmering. When the heat of the oil is about right, carefully slip the dough balls into it, keeping the heat as low as possible. The balls will expand in the hot oil, flipping over by themselves. Cook about 2 min. or until each is slightly darker than the color of cinnamon.
Kuldip says the best way to test for doneness is to remove one ball and gently slice it, to gauge that it is cooked throughout. Drain the tiny cakes on paper toweling and set aside. Poke hot cakes with a skewer, pouring hot liquid directly over them. Cover the bowl and soak cakes at least 1 hr., allowing the steam and heat to hasten the process of the cakes’ absorption of the syrup.Serve hot or cold. Makes about 10 cakes.
To Prepare Enough Sugar Syrup for 10 Cakes:
3 c. granulated sugar
3 c. water
Combine sugar and water in pot. Boil rapidly 5 min., stirring occasionally.
Guilty pleasures!
Gulab-Jamun with frozen vanilla yogurt and a dash of vodka.
Someone - please! - save me from myself! I could eat the fry bread called Bhutura all day long! It is decadent. Kuldip Ardawa, the superb home chef and caterer who showed me how to cook the past few days’ Indian recipes, calls this South Asian bread “something like roti” and a “cousin of naan.” I call it flat-out scrumptious. The secret to its intriguing flavor is the addition of cumin seeds to a baking powder dough. Here’s her lip-smacking recipe!
Bhutura:
1-½ c all-purpose flour
Pinch of cumin seeds
Pinch of salt
1 tsp. baking powder
2 tbsp. natural yogurt
Whole milk, as needed (Kuldip says you can use reduced-fat milk, but not skim)
Corn or canola oil, as needed
Combine dry ingredients. Add yogurt, combining with fingers to mix through. Gradually add whole milk until mixture binds together as a medium-soft dough. Knead until no longer sticky, adding no flour to your work surface but flouring your finger tips. Dough should be shiny, smooth, and pliable. Allow dough to rest 10 to 15 min. While dough rests, add oil to a depth of at least 3 in. in a high-sided pan or deep-fat fryer. When oil is hot but not smoking, drop small piece of dough into pan; if it puffs up and “bubbles”in the oil but doesn’t brown or burn, you’ve achieved the correct heat.
Keeping a watchful eye on the heat of the oil in your pan, pinch small balls of dough (larger than a ping pong ball, smaller than a tennis ball) from the larger one. Quickly dip each small ball of dough into a bowl of flour, rolling and flattening between your palms to 4 in. or larger. Working with one flattened round of dough at a time, drop into hot oil. Dough will puff up. Using tongs, turn over after a few seconds, deep-frying until Bhutura turns a light golden color. Drain on paper toweling, repeating with remaining balls of dough. Makes approximately 6 Bhutura.
Pinch off small balls of dough, rolling them quickly in flour
Flip the bread with tongs when it starts to bubble
Drain fat well, removing to paper toweling to drain further.
Seen on adjacent countertop, next Bhutura is ready to go!
Don't let these over-brown ... They need only a few seconds to cook!
Are your mouths watering, Dollinks? Are your knives and forks at the ready? This is the third in a six-part series on preparing a South Asian meal. In-home caterer and cooking instructor Kuldip Ardwara, of the Surrey/Delta area outside Vancouver, Canada, recently taught me how to make and serve these lovely dishes. What fun it was for me to have a cooking lesson “outside the box!” This vegetarian dish was especially delicious! I’ve known many gifted cooks and Kuldip is clearly one of them. Her hands flew in six different directions as she prepared this meal, and I could barely keep up. “What spices did you just add to that dish, Kuldip?” Answer: “The usual spices!” The woman is a tornado.
Paneer with Peas:
½ small onion, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, peeled and slivered (preferably organic)
1 piece of ginger, ½ - 1 in. in length, peeled and chopped fine
½ tsp. turmeric
1-½ tsp. garam masala (see Note)
Pinch of cumin seeds
Salt, to taste
Package of paneer, diced (see Note)
½ c. fresh or frozen peas, uncooked
3 c. cold water
Sauté onions. Add garlic and ginger. Cook for 10 seconds. Add turmeric, garam masala, cumin seeds, and salt. Stir. Add paneer and peas, stirring into spice mixture 2 min. Add cold water. Bring to boil and immediately reduce heat, simmering 15 - 20 min., until mixture thickens. Keep hot in covered dish until ready to serve.
Believe it or not, Kuldip's simple individual-sized pots - ideal for keeping
hot foods hot in the oven - were bought in a Dollar Store!
Another exquisitely spiced dish!
Note: Garam masala is a powdered mixture of Indian spices widely used in Indian cooking. If you can’t find it in the spice or ethnic foods section of your local supermarket, check a South Asian food store or order it online.
Note: Paneer is a soft, fresh cheese with the consistency of tofu. You’ll find it in Indian or Persian food stores, or by asking your grocer to order it. Medium tofu makes an acceptable substitute.
If you missed yesterday's post, Dollinks, you must read it! This is the second of several postings about how to make a complete Indian meal, as related to me by South Asian home chef Kuldip Ardawa. Kuldip lives in the Surrey/Delta area of British Columbia, Canada. She does home catering and offers private cooking lessons. If you'd like to contact her, drop me a line through this blog.
Chicken with Spiced Spinach:
1 tbsp. oil
1 large whole breast of chicken, skinned and boned
½ small onion, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, peeled and slivered (Kuldip uses fresh, organic garlic for the best flavor)
1 piece of ginger, ½ - 1 in. in length, peeled and chopped fine
3 - 6 small green jalapeño peppers, chopped (see Note)
1 tbsp. cumin seeds
½ tsp. turmeric
1-½ tsp. garam masala (see Note)
1 pkg frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry (or, steam and finely chop 1 bunch fresh spinach, steaming and squeezing dry) Salt, to taste Water, as needed
Heat oil in skillet until sizzling. Dice chicken, adding to oil in pan. Salt to taste and stir-fry until all pinkness is gone, liquid from chicken has completely evaporated, and chicken appears dry. Set aside in small bowl. In same skillet, sauté onion, garlic, ginger, jalapeño peppers, and spices until first four ingredients have softened. Add well-squeezed spinach, stirring until mixture is very dry and no water remains. Add the chicken to the spinach, stirring to evenly combine the chicken and the spinach. On high heat, add just enough water to create steam as the spinach cooks. Salt to taste. Return chicken to pan, stirring 2 min. to combine flavors. Keep warm until ready to serve. Serves 3 - 4.
Note: Although I’m not a huge fan of hot, spicy foods, the three jalapeño peppers Kuldip used in this recipe provided a mild pleasant balance of flavors. For more of a “kick” with this dish, she suggests using six peppers. Kuldip recommends that you choose peppers well-filled with seeds, because that’s where the heat is. Peppers with a pointed end will have a greater concentration of heat; peppers get hotter as the summer and early fall progress. I recommend you wear disposable latex gloves when chopping any hot peppers.
Note: Garam masala is a powdered mixture of Indian spices widely used in Indian cooking. If you can’t find it in the ethnic foods section of your local supermarket, check South Asian food stores or order it online.
Dice onion, garlic, ginger, peppers.
Add cumin seeds and other spices to above; set aside.
Fry chicken until pink disappears and chicken is dry.
Set chicken aside; fry onion, garlic, ginger, peppers, spices.
Add puréed, very dry spinach to spiced onion mixture.
Add water as needed to steam spinach and chicken ...
Return chicken to steaming pan, allowing flavors to blend.
Keep warm in a covered dish in the oven until ready to serve.
Today’s recipes are a special treat - not just for you, but for me! I recently had the privilege to meet a charming and talented home chef from the Surrey/Delta area of British Columbia, Canada. Following the massive introductory hug Kuldip Ardawa gave me, she quickly began performing culinary magic in a friend’s kitchen. In just over an hour, she whipped together a superb Indian dinner that I'll never forget!
As I took notes and photographed Kuldip's step-by-step presentation, she taught me how to make Spring Rolls, Chicken with Spiced Spinach, Paneer with Peas, Bhutura, Gulab Jamun, and a deliciously flavored Chai. Unless you already cook Indian food, some of those names may sound as unfamiliar and intimidating as they first did to me (I initially assumed Gulab-Jamun was a guy I dated in high school). Have no fear, Dollinks! You're about to embark on a culinary adventure! I took many photos of Kuldip at work, so will run her recipes over a number of days to keep you from feeling overwhelmed. You'll be as surprised as I was to learn how something this delicious could possibly be so easy! I can't stress enough the value of setting a restful, beautiful table - even if you live alone. Having a candle and a pretty place setting will aid your digestion and well-being. Here's the table my friend Judy and Kuldip Ardawa set for this simple but magnificent dinner:
A beautiful table ...
A beautiful meal! We tried to eat modestly, but all had seconds!
To launch this six-part series, I'll begin with Kuldip's wonderful recipe for Spring Rolls - an Indian version of the anytime-favorite that's equally popular in Oriental cooking. Yes, Dollinks, I’m well aware that you can buy ready-made Spring Rolls in your grocer’s freezer section - but why would you? These are tastier, cheaper, and easy to make! Neither Kuldip nor I wants you to be a slave to your kitchen. That's why we each recommend that you buy pre-packaged squares of Spring Roll pastry, found in your grocer's freezer case.
Spring Rolls, Indian-Style:
1 tsp. oil
½ head cauliflower, broken into very small pieces (the size of coarse bread crumbs)
1 tsp. cumin seeds 1 tbsp. garam masala (see Note) 1-1/2 tsp. turmeric
Salt and pepper, to taste 1 pkg. frozen Spring Roll pastry, thawed (refreeze leftovers) Additional oil, as required
Heat oil in medium skillet, adding broken bits of cauliflower, cumin seeds, garam masala, turmeric, and salt and pepper. Stir-fry 5 min. until softened but not crispy or browned. Cool to room temperature. Lay 12 - 15 pastry squares on clean work surface. Spread 2 tbsp. cauliflower mixture near edge of each square, folding pastry over filling before folding in sides. Finish rolling pastry and transfer to greased baking sheet (or baking sheet covered with parchment paper), ensuring seam is on underside of spring rolls. Repeat with remaining spring rolls, lightly dabbing surface with oil so pastry will brown evenly. Preheat oven to 375 deg. F. Bake 20 - 25 min., until rolls are crisp and golden. Makes 12 to 15 Spring Rolls. Note: Garam masala is a powdered mixture of Indian spices widely used in Indian cooking. If you can’t find it in the spice section of your local supermarket, check a South Asian food store or order it online.
Dab rolls with oil and bake
Kuldip Ardawa: Remove rolls from oven when golden
Enjoy with your favorite sweet or spicy sauce!
Tomorrow's dish from Kuldip Ardawa: Chicken with Spiced Spinach!
