Food talk
Jewel in the lotus This white onion recipe, which can be enjoyed with
dal-chawal or roti-subzi, is milder
and tastier than the usual pink stuff, says Pushpesh Pant
IT
is the classic case of giving a dog a bad name and hanging it. Pyaaz`A0or
onions are considered tamasik (included in the list of dark
foods) that arouse lust and other base emotions, interfere with nobler
thoughts and, at best, can play a subsidiary role in the resplendent (rajasik)
repast. It is true that today not many in this land are bothered about
traditional prescriptions and prohibitions but poor onions continue to
suffer due to a plebeian image.
When
nothing else is available or affordable, they are paired with roti
and salt but seldom is the vegetable given its due. Onions used in masala
remain mostly invisible and their contribution to taste and body of a
dish is mostly overlooked in Indian cooking. Its pungency is well
known but few are aware how sweet can it taste when embraced lovingly.
As a matter of fact, in recipes like ishtoo that use up almost
as much onions as meat, a tbsp or two of dahi must be added to
reduce the sweet taste.
Scientist friends keep
surprising us with the nutritional information that raises onions
constantly in our esteem. Low in calories, high in water content and
providing a rich supply of micro-nutrients and so on. Boiling or
roasting, it seems, enhances the taste and so on. The joys of
shallots, spring onions belong to a different realm.
All this and more was
recalled when we came across a small sack full of marble white,
perfectly spherical, onions in the mother dairy shop. When assured
that this import from Nasik was milder and tastier than the usual pink
stuff, we couldn’t resist buying a kilo and experimenting. Jewel
in the Lotus sprang to the surface almost by itself from the
recesses of sub-conscious. The form suggested the name that after a
bite seemed perfectly justified.
Jewel
in the lotus
Ingredients
White onions
(medium-sized) four
Tomatoes (freshly
pureed or
finely chopped)
200 gm
(For a
non-vegetarian option, the same quantity of cooked spicy mince
may be substituted)
Processed cheese
(grated) 100 gm
Bay leaf one
Cloves two
Brown cardamoms
two
Black pepper ˝
tsp
Kashmiri red
chilli ˝ tsp
Sugar 2 tsp
Oil 1 tbsp
Salt to taste
Method
Peel the onions. Wash
and pat dry. Scorch lightly on open flame. Using a very sharp
knife, make six sharp cuts ensuring that the segments remain
joined at the base. Gently part — pushing outwards — to
shape like a mini-lotus. Keep aside. Heat oil in a frying pan.
Put the bay leaf and the whole spices in it and when these begin
to change colour, add the tomatoes. Add sugar and salt. Stir in
the cheese and simmer on low medium heat for four to five
minutes till slightly thick. Scoop out with a spoon and fill in
the space between the ‘petals’ of the onion ‘lotus’.
Enjoy with dal chawal or roti-subzi — dispensing
with the run-of-the-mill onion and tomato salad. There is
nothing like being a lotus-eater and who knows when instant Nirvana
may knock at the door?
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