Usher in the New Year with droolworthy varieties
Usher in the New Year with droolworthy varieties
Call them pani puris, phuchkas or puchkas, these deep-fried balls are easily among the best roadside snacks
Every morsel and crumb of the eggless Christmas cake is as tasty as the traditional recipe
The much-loved gulab jamun has many variations. During a recent visit to Kolkata, I had one version — an elongated and slimmer cousin called ledikeni. Legend has it that it was prepared by a halwai in Bengal for Lady Canning...
There are very few dishes that can rival shab deg for its resplendence as a seasonal celebratory dish. The recipe originated in Kashmir and came to Shahjahanabad when the new Mughal capital was commissioned by the Emperor, who gave the...
A few careless words uttered in a film I was watching on the telly hit me hard. “Anyone can make a stew,” said Irina Asanova, female lead in ‘Gorky Park’, and got me all, please pardon the pun, stewed up....
Biting into a mutton chop one pleasant evening, I got thinking about this delightful snack that eastern India revels in. A chop is not to be confused with the western lamb chop, or mutton chaap, or something indescribable called a...
There is an old saying, ‘Catch them young!’ This is the best way, we are told, to spot talent so that kids with promise can grow up to be stars. This is as true in the kitchen as on the...
Every year, when the Durga Puja season arrives, we are bewildered by the mouth-watering temptations at different pandals. Pujo is celebrated with great gusto in West Bengal, Odisha and Assam, and also wherever the probasi Bengalis are domiciled. There is...
In this festive season, when sweet shops are lined with platters of laddoos, I am reminded of my village in western Uttar Pradesh. Laddoos were essential to every wedding feast and were served in pairs, or joda, before a meal...
Lotus is the national flower of India, celebrated in legend and lore. It is the stuff of metaphysical speculation and is depicted in sculptures and paintings. The stem holds the hundred-petalled blossom aloft, but serves the master unseen underwater. We...
You may have heard about a diner who went to a fancy restaurant, looked at the elaborate menu and ordered a dish that sounded most appetising: baby spuds sauteed in mustard seeds and curry leaves, cocooned inside a crisp and...
I had the good fortune of spending an extended weekend at Anand Kashi, a tranquil resort run by the Taj group (IHCL) on the banks of river Ganga, near Rishikesh. It has many charms, not the least its emphasis on...
History — or folklore — often comes wrapped in flavours. One particular story about Awadh never fails to tickle my nostrils. Legend has it that Asaf-ud-Daulah, the Nawab of Awadh in the late 18th century, had ordered that huge mounds...
Relish this baingan bharta lookalike from the emperor’s table
The crisp casing and flaky piece encased within makes it a foodie’s delight
Turkey may be a celebratory bird in the US where it is indispensable for the ritual Thanksgiving meal, but it is practically unknown in India, where people in different parts of the country have enjoyed ‘murgi’ and ‘murgabi’ — farm...
Rahul Verma My Tagore-loving Bengali family members like to recite a little poem penned by the great bard that they merrily or ponderously use for different occasions. In a nutshell, it goes like this: I have seen the world, the...
Along with ‘aloo dum’, the combo dish makes for a great pair, fit for the month of Savan
Commercially prepared fritters are often refried, with oil oozing. Fry these at home in small quantities and size to celebrate the rainy season
Rahul Verma A nephew who runs a restaurant in the United States introduced me to Creole-Cajun food, an interest that I later honed with the books of James Lee Burke. It helped me answer a riddle that had been plaguing...