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There’s not a lot of culinary genius behind this idea for Red Bell Pepper and Black Bean Tacos. Except that was easy. Tasted good. Surya loved them. Healthy. These Red Bell Pepper and Black Bean Tacos are genius! They are easy, delicious, healthy and (maybe) will even win over your toddler. Hard shelled tacos are [...]
I had already well established that stuffing puff pastry with delicious fillings only leads to more deliciousness when I started making puff pastry samosas. Then one Tuesday this past summer at about 4 p.m. I had a seismic realization. My daughter’s pre-school teachers were coming for a home visit. I would be expected to serve [...]
Happy Diwali! This is our first year celebrating Diwali since Surya has been old enough to understand the holiday. We’ve been reading her Amma, Tell Me About Diwali (which I would recommend) and just lit diva’s together tonight. To make it even more special, we’re taking these cupcakes in for her pre-K class tomorrow. No, those [...]
I stood in my kitchen thinly slicing a bunch of radishes feeling slightly awestruck by their beauty. The hot pink skins and unblemished, creamy white interior. The way they sliced so thinly with little effort on my part. A pile of them collecting on my cutting board looking like little pieces of pretty paper. Like [...]
If you believe my Twitter profile, I was forced to leave Brooklyn kicking and screaming. If you saw the kitchen that I get to cook in now, you would know that’s not exactly the whole truth. Earlier this year, we packed up our house and moved our family across one bridge, two rivers and one [...]
This past week had a first for me – I signed up for a CSA. I resisted for a long time because I had visions of seasonal vegetables languishing in my fridge. But we’ve been pretty good for the last few months about not letting our fresh veggies see too much of the inside of [...]
Eating cold lunches is almost like not eating lunch at all. At least to me. But I do have my limits and slaving away over a hot stove on a hot day is not within them. When I snuck out of yard work early this weekend, I knew I had to come up with something [...]
Indian mothers have this way of making the difficult seem routine. At least that’s how it is with Indian mothers of my mother’s generation. I’ve had this conversation often with Indian women of my generation. We recall the meals our mothers cooked daily – often after coming home from work and completely from scratch without [...]
Peas – my family can’t seem to get enough of them. Here’s yet another rendition of Mattar Paneer, this time with chewy triangles of pan fried tofu. For other variations, try Matar Mushroom (Peas and Shitake Mushrooms) and Matar Paneer with Grilled Paneer (Peas and Grilled Paneer, a Farmer’s Cheese). To get chewy triangles of tofu [...]
Shredded green zucchini koftas mixed with besan flour (chickpea flour or gram flour), minced green chili peppers and cilantro, red chili powder and salt then shallow fried until golden and tossed in a mild tomato masala sauce.
Holy hot avocados. Until this summer, I hated avocados (and guacamole). After a taste of my friend Christina‘s guac (just to be polite) this summer, I’ve converted. Especially when they are hot. I toss cubed handfuls into eggs with cheddar cheese (green eggs no ham) and into stir fries. The few friends I’ve shared this [...]
If you’re in need of recipe ideas, check out Gojee – a New York based start-up that curates recipes from food bloggers all over and personalizes recipe suggestions to user preferences and user-specific ingredients. You enter ingredients that you like (or have), and Gojee gives you ideas. You can even input dislikes or allergies, and [...]
We almost always eat dinner together. Rajat and I have done that since we first got married. Even if one of us is working late, we wait for the other. Eating together as a family became even more of a priority after Surya started eating real food. It gives us a chance to sit down [...]
Chewy like Israeli couscous. But better. Because it’s pasta. Have you tried toasted fergola yet? I drenched it in a fresh tomato-pesto sauce.
Turkey Day was never about the Turkey. At least not in my vegetarian family. There’s always a lot of curiosity around what vegetarians eat on Thanksgiving. And Indians. A part of me feels like I should be having a magical tandoori tofurkey. [Note to self: Next year, make tandoori tofurkey. Make it magical.] We usually [...]
I’ve confessed that I cheat a little right? You’ve realized I’m not Martha right? We’re clear on this right? We’ve reached that point in our relationship where we discard with niceties right? Ok. It’s settled. Either you already figured it out or I’m telling you now. I like shortcuts. I love traditional Indian cooking. But [...]
My next Indian cooking class will be this coming Saturday, November 12th at 1:30. I’m still trying to finalize the menu. Any suggestions? Trying to build a menu that teaches the basics. Hope to see some of you there! xxoo, Nithya
Too many wasted meals of grilled vegetable plates for the vegetarian diner at restaurants had left me a little cynical. That changed this summer as we experimented with grilling. There was lots of grilled corn, grilled stuffed tomatoes, grilled potato kebabs and this grilled cauliflower with a spicy tomato sauce. I tried to cut the [...]
A few weeks ago, Jennie Perrillo of In Jennie’s Kitchen lost her husband, Mikey, to a sudden heart attack. Literally – SUDDENLY. He was helping their youngest daughter ride her bike, told her he needed to sit for a minute and then died. There were no goodbyes. No heads up. At 5:52 p.m. one Sunday, Mikey was [...]
We’ve been spending our weekends since August on Shelter Island – which means room for Surya to run and play in between “beach time” and “pool time” (and occasionally “ice cream time”). A few times, I’ve carefully toted my masala dabba along with me to cook Indian food. Cooking in someone else’s kitchen – especially [...]
Dear Friends, I wanted to share a new site that I helped launch last week, Half Pint Gourmet, a website for kids recipes developed by parents, for parents. As a new mom, I often find myself stuck in ruts. And yet, I care a lot about food and what Surya is eating. It’s important to [...]
I’ve searched for a long time for a way to create a file of recipes I want to try. I bookmark recipes. I print them out. I email them to myself. I thought about a weekly post of a recipe from around the blogosphere to try. All of these methods ultimately fail (though I never [...]
I used to think of grains – as in grains which are not used in traditional Indian cooking – as a bit bland and boring. There. I said it. Sad but true. For years I avoided the bins of farro (barley), oats, wheat berries and quinoa assuming they were meant for vegetarians who didn’t like [...]
ily too. It’s summertime which means I can literally start feeding my farmer’s market obsession. What’s popular in your farmer’s market right now? Ours is full of golden, yellow squashes, green zucchinis and pearly white onions. And juicy red tomatoes. My crisper was pretty full before Surya and I took a stroll to the farmer’s [...]
Have you ever made a dish once, had it turn out perfect and then made it again following the same steps with still good – but not great – results? Sometimes I chalk this up to kitchen karma. But really it may be the quality of the ingredients you’re using. When I was recipe testing [...]
A great simple sauce uses pantry ready ingredients that you’re bound to always have on and imparts a deliciousness with layered flavors that masks it simplicity. We all have a few of these up our sleeves. Sometimes they are so simple though that I forget them. There’s a great sweet and sour Indo-Chinese sauce we’ve [...]
Many of my recipes call for “green chilies.” Green chilies used in Indian cooking are small, heat packed chilies. They are about the 2 inches to 3 inches in length. Unless we g to the Indian grocery store though, these chilies can be tough to come by. What do you substitute for these green chilies? [...]
As a lifelong vegetarian, I almost always ask for substitutions at restaurants. If the answer is no, then fine – so be it. But I also almost always call ahead to ask if the chef is cool with making substitutions to accommodate a vegetarian diet. If the chef won’t do it, then you probably won’t [...]
As promised, here’s the paneer makhani recipe that I shared at yesterday’s New York Times Cafeteria. Their team did a great job of recreating the recipe. It was a lot of fun to step into their kitchen to be greeted with the smells of an Indian home kitchen with packages of authentic Indian spices littering [...]
I’m hosting a chef’s table in the New York Times Cafeteria today featuring a Paneer Makhani Burrito…unfortunately you have to work in the building to come up and enjoy a taste. If you do work in the building, please swing by and say hello! And check back tomorrow for a very easy paneer makhani recipe [...]
When you see Kofta on an Indian restaurant menu, it is usually for Malai Kofta. Malai Kofta is a decadent affair – a deep fried cheese dumpling in a creamy tomato sauce. I wanted something healthier and fresher. I also wanted to use up a bottle gourd squash in my fridge. Then last Sunday, [...]
Almost every weekend, we go through some combination of farmer’s market, local market, FreshDirect shopping. I make mental menus of each day’s meals. Having Surya home during the day means my menus also have to take into account her lunch. We don’t always stick to the menus I come up with – because invariably life/work/cravings [...]
Have you ever combined unlikely ingredients only to discover unexpected deliciousness? Tamari sauce and pecorino romano cheese don’t exactly scream best friends. But the combination of salty tartness from the tamari and musky cheesiness from the pecorino romano just works. And with crunchy bits of cumin, these tacos are a family favorite. Even the baby [...]
Exciting news – Hungry Desi was featured in Cook Vegetarian’s round up of vegetarian cooking blogs. I was excited to be in the company of 101 Cookbooks, Allotment to Kitchen and Tinned Tomatoes. Here’s a copy of the article. http://documents.scribd.com.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/et1ww1wsgw6t3m.pdf?t=1300760389 http://documents.scribd.com.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/5kjs9
Mothers will go to great lengths for their children. Ten months ago, I wouldn’t get within five feet of a banana. Their sweet taste makes me gag. The smells gives me a freshly pinesoled elevator style headache. I ate one once and had the worst stomachache of my life. And now? Well, now I can peel [...]
Kale chips have been everywhere. Every magazine and food blogger seems have to have shared a method, recipe and variation. With each article and post, I rolled my eyes a little. Because we already love kale in my house. In my head I was thinking “I don’t need to transform it into a faux potato [...]
Puff pastry is an ingredient where no matter what you stuff in it will lead to delicious-ness. So go figure if you stuff it with spiced potatoes and peas, you end up with flaky, buttery, spicy delicious-ness. For Superbowl Sunday, my friend Jason came over and we formed a samosa stuffing assembly line. Then we [...]
There are lots of people who seem to love hating Rachel Ray and Sandra Lee types. But isn’t a 30 Minute Meal or one that’s Semi-Homemade better than takeout? I’m not talking about the type of fast and easy processed foods that got Ruhlman riled up. I’m talking about cutting some “traditional” corners while still [...]
Is there anyone who doesn’t like Nutella? Is that possible? I’ve convinced myself that Nutella is good for me. Healthy even. Isn’t it? I am guilty of hearing tidbits of “facts” from unreliable sources and repeating them as sound, test and tried and true facts. When I want to. When it’s to my advantage. As in, [...]
As I was wiping the contents of my spilled masala box from my floor (after having just refilled it), I couldn’t help but think it looked beautiful. The reds and yellows and darks brown with white grains of salt between. Any suggestions for a caption for this photo? Here are some that came to mind [...]
I neglected Hungry Desi’s first birthday. And then its second birthday. So I decided to ring in my 100th post to Hungry Desi with a giveaway. A little thank you to all of those who make it fun for me to blog about cooking Indian and vegetarian food, to those who read about my adventures [...]
Note: This contest has now ended. Congratulations to Meera, lucky #2! Thanks to everyone for entering and sharing your favorite Indian dish! I have some fabulous new ideas. I neglected Hungry Desi’s first birthday. And then its second birthday. So I am ringing in my 100th post to Hungry Desi with a giveaway. A little thank [...]
Cooking when guests are over has become tricky with Surya around. She loves to be in the kitchen, clinging to my legs and wanting to be picked up. It’s hard to keep chopping onions when an adorable 2.5 feet tall little cutie pie is dying for you to pick her up and cuddle. So you [...]
When I get an idea in my head, it’s hard to get it out. The first is that when I saw these bowls in Crate and Barrel, I knew I needed to make a soup worthy of eating from them. The second is that when I heard New York was getting 7 to 12 inches [...]
