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Black bean, egg and mushroom fried rice

Chinese black bean has been all the rage in our household for a while now. Known as Douchi in Chinese, they are essentially black soy beans that are heavily salted and fermented and used extensively to flavour everything from stir-fried vegetables and meats, eggs, to rice dishes. These little umami-laden nuggets are salty and sweet… Read more »

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Moroccan spiced carrots with harissa, cumin & maple syrup

Harissa is a North-African spice paste that blows my mind (and mouth) on many different levels. Roasted peppers, chillies, coriander, garlic and spices form its base, and this fiery blend is used extensively to flavour meats, soups, stews, and couscous, apart from being used as a condiment in dips etc. I read somewhere that it’s… Read more »

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Balsamic-roasted Brussels sprouts

I have kale growing in my little terrace garden. When you look up information on plants that can handle humidity and soaring temperatures in tropical climates, kale is definitely one that wouldn’t feature anywhere on that list. I wouldn’t go so far as to say my plants are in the best shape (they seem to… Read more »

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Lotus stem with chilli and honey

I have this really annoying habit. I like to peer into other people’s shopping baskets to see what they’ve bought, and try and figure out what they might end up doing with it. I mean, I think you really can tell a lot about a person by what’s in their grocery basket. Shopping cart psychology… Read more »

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Sticky toffee pudding

I agree that this may not be the prettiest looking pudding out there, but I assure you that what it lacks in aesthetic appeal is more than compensated for in taste. Now that we are on this topic, I have a question – how on earth do you make something that’s sticky and gooey look… Read more »

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Cajun-roasted sweet potato fries

This is completely different – fries, but ones with the most desirable culmination of sweet and savoury. I hope I haven’t lost you yet, ‘cause these..these are so good. I love sweet potatoes. As you might’ve guessed from my earlier posts, I go a little cuckoo in the head with food pairings. Like this for instance…. Read more »

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Zucchini Kimchi

A lot of Chinese restaurants in India serve Kimchi as a condiment. That tastes like Indian pickle. Tossed with chilli powder and salt (and sometimes spices. eek). Having said that though, I do always end up mindlessly munching my way down half a bowl of the stuff whilst contemplating what to eat. I mean, it’s… Read more »

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Honeydew melon & cucumber gazpacho

Who goes and puts honeydew melon in a soup, right? Sounds bizarre. If you feel the same way, I wouldn’t blame you. But..I like bizarre. And this gazpacho is kind of just that. I’ve tried very hard to visually capture the exact texture of this soup, but I’m not sure if I’ve done a good… Read more »

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Yogurt syllabub

I know it sounds like I just made this word up! Syllabub is an English dessert that’s made with milk that’s been curdled either with wine or any other form of acid before being flavoured and sweetened. I’ve used yogurt here which we know has already undergone that process, so it’s essentially just a flavoured… Read more »

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Passion fruit cordial

My parents lived in the outskirts of the city in our farmhouse for a few years, while I was studying in boarding school. Even though I never got to be home for long periods of time at a stretch, I clearly remember really looking forward to going back there for the holidays. Our house had… Read more »

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Aubergine Parmigiana (Melanzane alla Parmigiana)

Remember that time I made this aubergine and broccoli pasta bake? So this is a slight variation from that, with regard to inspiration (and photo clarity. Thank goodness!) I’m slowly trying to get my head around exploring the plethora of options and features on my DSLR, so please bear with me as I share the developments… Read more »

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DIY : Thai yellow curry paste

There are precisely 2 things that make cooking Thai food from scratch hard for me. One, you don’t get the necessary ingredients very easily here; lemon grass, whenever I get my hands on I bulk buy and freeze, and kaffir lime leaves are almost never available (replacing it with lime rind I’ve found to be… Read more »

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Cinnamon French toast with stewed apples

I think this is my first breakfast dish on here. Which when I think about, doesn’t make any sense since I’m that person that loves to eat breakfast foods at any time of the day. No strict time restrictions in my head. A full English breakfast for lunch? Oh yes, please. Dosa for dinner? Hell… Read more »

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Lime & Basil Iced tea

I have an affinity for iced teas. Living in a city with soaring temperatures and oppressive humidity all year round, that doesn’t come as much of a surprise. My favourite would have to be the plain lemon iced tea closely followed by this peach version, but of late I’ve been trying a few other variations… Read more »