5 Spices 50 Dishes

I came across Ruta Kahate’s 5 Spices 50 Dishes cookbook while browsing Amazon and this ol’ book stood on top of the list with 41/2 stars. Being a bit bored of the South Indian cooking, I decided to give it a try.

As with all cookbooks, this onez divided into sections – Lentils, Meat, Chicken and Vegetables to name just a few. I tried Railway Potatoes, Mushroom and Peas, Steamed Cauliflower with Tomato Sauce and Cabbage stir-fry with a few improvisations to suit the palate. These are common-day recipes in most Indian households but the reason I highlight this book is its a pretty good starter for non-Indian folks interested in trying out Indian cooking at home. My only grouse is that having a hard-core veggie family makes it really difficult to find substitutes for meat-based dishes and as a result I have to contend with the most predictable vegetables.

The ingredients are simple enough and most recipes are simple and are usually a permutation/combination of the 5 spices listed on the blurb. The abundant images provided make it easy for readers to envision the dish they are attempting to cook . This book is recommended for first-time cooks, folks tired of searching food blogs and of course those who are trying Indian food for the first time.

Tea at Fortnum & Mason

What wouldn’t I give for a nice cup of Oolong tea and a slice of Sultana and Pecan tea bread on this lovely friday evening when I’m actually sitting at my desk in NYC. Sigh! The very thought prompted me to start writing about this wonderful book “Tea at Fortnum and Mason” that I discovered through Roses over a Cottage Door and after much debate ordered one from Amazon. The blog also made me think of buying a nice Royal Albert tea set which I plan to do so in maybe 4 years from now.

Anyways sticking to my point , this lovely bluish green book (seems to Fortnum & Mason’s signature color) by Emma Marsden features delectable recipes that can help you whip up an awesome high tea, something I was able to try in Sri Lanka! I tried the Sultana and Pecan tea bread recipe and it came out very delicious! Raks and I were so hooked on to this recipe that we made it again. I had to make a few measurement corrections to the recipe though to get that perfect flavor that we both liked. The cucumber sandwiches too came out great. Apart from that the book contains a few recipes for brewing tea with a few historical facts on high tea thrown in for good measure.

While the other recipes look delicious, they do need a bit of prep work and when I say this, I’m referring to getting all the necessary ingredients on hand. Totally worth buying for your recipe collection!

The Best of Laxman Series

R.K.Laxman is one of India’s most popular humorists and many TOI readers would be well acquainted with his witty cartoons depicting the follies of our government, our politicians and in general the life of Common Man as it stands today in India. Whether or not I read the headlines or any part of the newspaper, I always ensured to follow his Toon for the day.

I came across the series featuring the best of his cartoons while shopping for  books, and instantly bought a couple of them. The titles I have are “India through the Eyes of R K Laxman – Now and Then” and another one, the title of which I can’t recall. These books portray India and the changes the country went through from its Independence in 1947 until the present decade.

The character “Common Man” is an old man with wispy hair who is often seen hovering in the background listening in on conversations or being a silent participant in one. He is occasionally accompanied by his wife who seems to be vexed with either the Indian roads or the electricity dept or the rise of commodity prices. If you are looking for humor but still want to know the undercurrants of Indian life and politics, these are the books to look for. On the whole, worth keeping in your private collection!

Books to avoid

There are 2 more books added to my “Books to Avoid at all times” list and they are Anatomy of a Rose and 100 Flowers and How they Got their Names. While 100 Flowers and their names might make sense, Anatomy of a Rose is a deceptive title with an equally deceptive blurb.

100 Flowers and their Names does give good insight into the history of a flower although most of the history can be avoided. I’d rather go to wikipedia to read more about a flower than buy a book such as this.

As for Anatomy of a Rose, the book is not really about the anatomy of the Rose nor does it talk about Roses from any perspective. Instead its a refresher course in botany and would do well on the book shelves of a botanist. It has everything that I’ve read about plants and even more.

I was peeved by the amazing reviews that Amazon readers had given this book though. Probably the only interesting point that I uncovered is the presence of a flower, the darkest of the kinds, that absorbs all the colors of the spectrum. This is none other than Lisanthius nigrescens.

Sharman Russell just rattles on about how much he admires and adores flowers and their intricate geometrical patterns. He empathizes in abundance with the plants and their thoughts and motives for survival which while quite understandable doesn’t make this book any more interesting than watching a bee at work on a flower!

A Cook’s Tour – In Search of the Perfect Meal

Having followed Anthony Bourdain’s travelogue – No Reservations on Discovery T&L and also having bought 2 of his books, I was so delighted to discover a 3rd one in the library. Of the pile of books currently residing at my place, this book is on top of my “Must Read” pile.

A Cook’s Tour – In Search of the Perfect Meal is Anthony’s tour across the globe in search of people, cultures and local delicacies that not only follow age-old traditions but also are very unique to that place. The Introduction chapter provides very good insights of what constitutes a perfect meal and what a perfect meal means to a Chef. While I don’t usually post quotes from the books, some of the sentences are so compelling and so true that they need a mention lest I ever forget them…

“Of course, I knew already that the best meal in the world, the perfect meal, is very rarely the most sophisticated or expensive one. I knew how important factors other than technique or rare ingredients can be in the real business of making magic happen at a dinner table. Context and memory play powerful roles in all the truly great meals in one’s life. ..”

And then there is this another delightful paragraph that highlights the subtle art of making a dish special and magical -

“…When is food magic? What are the common denominators? Certainly, when food is the result of a brilliant and obsessive personal vision, it can take on mystical, magical aspects. At their best, chefs like to consider themselves alchemists, and some of them, particularly the French, have a long and glorious tradition of turning lead to gold…”

And so admiring a Chef’s take on the perfect meal and the alchemy of food…I managed to successfully complete the first chapter – Where Food Comes From. Now this particular chapter can be a bit gory and boorish for refined tastes and people who wouldn’t want to know where they got their pork from…for yes, its about the famous pig slaughter which is a cause for celebration in Portugal. Anthony describes in great detail…the preparation that the families make for the slaughter, the procedure of slaughter and well the party aftermath the slaughter.

You’d ask again..why did I read it? Curiosity. Wouldn’t you ever be interested to know what is considered a delicacy vs a gourmet vs a speciality of the place ever? I’d do that. And so I’m now ploughing through the 2nd chapter – Back to the Beach, where Anthony and his brother Chris do a trip down the memory lane…reexperiencing France and visitng their old house in La Teste. On the food front..tasting oysters and ofcourse the French wine. Anthony also ends up eating an absolutely gruesome, clumsily prepared portion of tete de veau. Less said the better

I tried plodding through the other chapters but as chapter 3 went by the content became too elaborate with the focus shifting to the author’s carrier as a Chef as well as the people he meets at the various places with emphasis on the local cuisines reduced significantly. I mean I had to literally browse through paragraphs to spot content about the local gourmets.

The other countries covered here include the journey to Russian pubs for the famed Russian Vodka, San Franscisco, Japan, Vietnam, Morocco and well NYC again.