Suvir

Dhan-Saee (lentil and vegetable stew)

 

Dhan-Saee is my take on what a baby born to a vegetarian marriage of Dhan Saak and Saee Bhaji would be. A nod to the Parsi and Sindhi food and forkways. A celebration of pulses and vegetables. Add more as you find in your refrigerator or the market. Switch them around to meet your fancy.

The dish has wonderful heat that doesn’t bite the tongue the way green chiles (hot peppers) do, but a warmth that comes from the use of whole spices. A comforting discovery of tastes and flavors that build with each bite. That entertain beyond the bite as well. A lingering enjoyment. Simple in its putting together yet complex and layered in its character.

Mili Juli Dal

 

You can use whatever lentil you have at home, and in whatever mix you want. Today I used arhar, chana, dhuli moong and urad, and moong chilka.

Dal is something most Indian homes eat in some way, shape or form daily. It is a staple in our homes. Inexpensive, nutritive and delicious.

Soul Kitchen: Birbal Ki Khitcheree

Locked in, with grim scenarios spelled out across television screens and mobile apps, no place to run or hide? Under these circumstances, it almost seems facetious to say, don't worry, so we won't. But what we can do is bring you a series of comfort food recipes put together by some of the most celebrated Indian chefs in the world. These may qualify as comfort food, but it's definitely not ordinary. Our star chefs will tell you the magic ingredient that will nudge it up a notch to qualify as gourmet. 

This recipe of mine is the first of a series. Follow the series here and the recipe below. 

Garlic Chutney: Made for Usha Bua (paternal aunt) with hopes to indulge her as she always does me

Usha Bua believes that garlic chutney is good for her health. Belief and faith are as important as fact and medicine to the overall goodness of our being. 

If garlic, has her eating more plan based food, which she does as a vegetarian, then who am I to question the science that might not find veracity behind the flawed studies cited to her about the curative powers of garlic. 

Dr. Willet of Harvard School of Public Health often says that is spices, aromatics (garlic and such) and herbs, can get people eating mostly plant based diets, then go ahead and believe what you want to, and eat lots of good veggies, whole grains, legumes, pulses, and herbs and spices - and find yourself doing good to your body. 

And so, this birthday of my beloved Bua (dad's cousin sister), I was on a mission to make her a jar of spicy and delicious garlic chutney.

Multigrain warm salad: A road to greater satiety!

Armed with an arsenal of vegetables, a plethora of spices, and a deep rooted desire to cook and share, is all one needs to create deliciousness that is at once delectable and good for you. 

Comforting foods do not need to be poison. 

One must cook in comfort, with pride in the act of cooking, feeding (and sharing). 

Mindfulness, being present in the present, and a hunger for sating ones senses and feeding ones soul are the most essential ingredients needed for cooking comfort food that is also good for mind, body and soul.