There are a number of Indian recipes which never find their way to the restaurant menu. Omelette curry is one of them. This is a very easy dish and it can be cooked in a jiffy. When the omelette boils in the gravy, it swells up a little, absorbs the flavors of the gravy and becomes soft and juicy. This curry is made in different ways in different parts of India. I am sharing an omelette curry recipe from West Bengal (Kolkata), where it is called dimer jhol, and is cooked in a simple way. The gravy is always less in this dish, for a more concentrated and culminated taste arising from carefully chosen spices mixed with the eggs’s own flavor and aroma.  In addition, this dish is handy when you don’t have a sufficient number of eggs to feed a large(r) group of people.  For instance, if you only have 3 eggs and you need to make egg curry for six people, you could easily add some besan (gram flour) to the 3 beaten eggs to add more substance. In this way, the omelettes would be denser and bigger and one omelette would easily feed two.

 Bengali omlette curry

[Mustard oil is pungent and Bengalis love to cook with this oil. Once the oil is heated and begins to smoke, the raw smell goes away, leaving an appetizing aroma behind. However, you can substitute with canola or sunflower oil if mustard oil is not available. ]

 Ingredients:

Eggs: 6

Onion paste: 2 tbsp

Green chilli paste: 1 tsp (divided)

Milk: 2 tbsp

Salt: ½ tsp for the omlette and 1 tsp for the gravy

Finely chopped onion: ½ cup

Finely chopped garlic: 1 tbsp

Ginger paste: 1 tsp

Bay leaf: 1

Cinnamon sticks (one-inch each): 2

Cloves: 6

Green cardamoms: 4

Peppercorns: 10–12

Dried red chillies: 2

Coriander powder: 1.5 tsp

Cumin powder: 1 tsp

Turmeric powder: ½ tsp

Yogurt: 2 tbsp

Spring onion greens’ paste: 1.5 tbsp

Mustard oil (or white oil)

Water

Method:

Break the eggs together in a bowl. Add ½ tsp salt and beat well. Add the milk, onion paste and half the green chilli paste and beat once more. Divide into six (or eight) equal parts and shallow-fry each part to make six (or eight) vertically folded omlettes. Keep aside.

Heat oil to the smoking point. Add the bay leaf and dried red chillies. When the chillies darken a bit, add the cinnamon sticks, cloves, green cardamoms and peppercorns. When these start sputtering, add the finely chopped garlic and sauté for 1 min. Add the chopped onions and sauté till the onions are browned and soft.

Add the ginger and sauté for 3 min. Now make a paste by mixing the salt, turmeric, cumin and coriander powders with a little water (roughly 3 tbsp). Add this paste to the pan and keep the flame at medium. Sauté constantly, till the mixture starts leaving oil. Sprinkle some more water and sauté till oil starts leaving from the mixture one more time.

Mix the yogurt, spring onion greens’ paste and the rest of the green chilli paste together in a bowl with around 2 tbsp water. Add this yogurt mixture to the pan now. Sauté for 5 min and then add 3 cups of warm water.

 When the gravy starts boiling, slowly insert the omlettes, one at a time.

 Cover and simmer for 5 min. Serve with rice or chapattis.

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Dal is a stew made with lentils, which is very common in every traditional Indian household. When a baby starts eating solids, an Indian mother will most likely give him mung dal, as lentils are extremely nutritious. It is rich in proteins and thus, an essential component in a balanced Indian vegetarian diet. More and more people all over the world are switching over to vegetarianism/veganism and enjoying dal as it serves as a wonderful alternative to meat, fish or dairy product (also see Patty’s post on veganism and dal). A diet rich in pulses also promises a healthy fibre-rich palate, which, indirectly, is good for the heart!

 A few words before we begin making this wonderful North-Indian dal:  all the lentils used should be fresh (new). Aged lentils take longer to cook.  It is extremely important that you check the expiration dates before buying dal. Aged dal is also of lesser nutritional value. If you are not sure whether the lentils are fresh, the best option would be to boil the split mung and white gram together (which take longer to boil) with the mung/arhar  lentils.  Once softened, you could then add the red (Masoor dal) lentils until they are cooked through.

 Some additional notes:

• You can replace butter with ghee in this recipe.
• Garam masala powder is available in Indian stores; you can even make your own at home. There are many different combinations of garam masala and there is no unique recipe for this. My favourite homemade garam masala for any vegetarian dish would be a fine powder of the following, lightly roasted spices: five cinnamon sticks (1 inch each), 5 green cardamoms, 10 peppercorns and 5 cloves.
• The amount of water may vary according to individual preference, which will change the amount of salt that should be added for taste.
• This dal is spicy. It doesn’t taste good if you lower the amount of spices. So be generous with the use of spices to experience an unforgettable taste of this North-Indian-style exquisite dal!
• Try using onion paste, if making an Indian curry or dal. Onion paste brings about a rich flavour and an aromatic and thick gravy, which is so appetizing!

Pancharattan Dal (A Mixture of Five Kinds of Lentils)

Ingredients:

Split mung pulses (chilkewali mung): ¼ cup

White gram (urad dal): ½ cup

Mung pulses (mung dal): ¼ cup

Split red lentils (masoor dal): ¼ cup

Yellow pigeon lentils (arhar/tuvar dal): ¼ cup

Finely chopped onions: ½ cup

Onion paste (coarsely ground): ½ cup

Finely chopped garlic cloves (big): 10

Asafoetida[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asafoetida] (hing; optional): 2 pinches

Turmeric powder: ½ tsp

Cumin seeds (jeera): ½ tsp

Fennel seeds (saunf): ¼ tsp

Salt: 2 tsp (plus extra, if needed)

Sugar: ½ tsp

Ghee (Indian clarified butter): ¾ tsp

Tomato (medium chopped): ¼ cup

Tomato paste: ½ cup

Coriander leaves (finely chopped): 3 tbsp

Cinnamon sticks: 2 (one-inch thick)

Cloves: 5

Peppercorns: 12

Bay leaves (medium): 2

Green cardamoms: 4

Fresh red or green chillies (slit): 4

Garam masala powder: 1 tsp

Oil: 4 tbsp

Water

Method:

Wash the lentils (together) and soak them for 1 hour. Boil them with enough water to submerge them in the pressure cooker (two pressures on high flame and then simmered for 12 min) with the finely chopped onions, bay leaves, asafoetida, half the salt and half the garlic until you get perfectly cooked lentils. None of the lentils should be hard when you press them between your fingertips. Ideally, for this recipe, the red and the mung lentils should be very soft and ‘mushy’ after boiling. The other three lentils must be soft but the shape should be intact even after boiling.

In a non-stick pan, add the oil. When the oil starts smoking, add the cumin and fennel seeds. Also add cinnamon sticks, cloves and peppercorns. When the cumin seeds just turn brownish, immediately add the onion paste and the rest of the garlic and sauté continuously over medium flame till the onion paste is dry. Add the chopped tomatoes and continue to sauté for 5 min or till the tomatoes become soft.

 Now add the boiled lentils and if you want, this is the time to add some more water till you get the consistency you love (ideally, this dal is on the thicker side). Add the fresh chillies, tomato paste, the rest of the salt, turmeric powder, sugar and the garam masala powder and let the dal boil over a medium flame for 5 min.

Add the ghee and continue to cook for 5 more min. Switch off the gas and garnish with chopped coriander leaves. This dal goes well with naan, chapatti or rice.

The post Pancharattan Dal (A Mixture of Five Kinds of Lentils) appeared first on Zomppa - Food Good, Social Good.

Over time, I’ve noted which vegetables and meats these restaurants use to make delicious Thai Green curry. I really enjoy curries with succulent duck meat as we rarely incorporate duck meat in India. As it is currently the season to smell freshly made roast duck in the street markets of Hong Kong, I decided to buy some roast duck breast to create my own out-of-this-world curry experience!

Thai Green curry can be sweet, it can be spicy or both. I love a balanced, sweet and spicy combination, so I made some changes to the basic Thai Green curry paste ingredient list that caters to my taste. If you like this dish to be spicier, simply add a few more chillies to the paste. Make this paste well in advance and keep this refrigerated. No need to restrict your Thai green curry paste to Thai green curry – let your imagination go wild and you will find yourself using this paste in a variety of other ways as well (try using a little of this paste in your regular bread dough, in any savoury batter for deep frying or in your paratha – flatbread – dough for that spicy punch!).

Thai Green Curry Paste

Ingredients:
Green chillies: 10
Coriander powder: 1 tsp
Shallots: 70 g
Garlic: 40 g
Cumin powder: ½ tsp
Roasted belacan[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belacan]: 1 tsp
Galangal slices: 2
Coriander roots (not leaves): 10 g
Mint leaves: 20 g
Lemongrass: 2 stalks
Kaffir lime leaves: 3
Kaffir Lime zest: 1 lime
Sweet basil: 40 g
Black peppercorns: ½ tsp
½-inch fresh turmeric root: 1

Method:
Blend all the ingredients to a fine paste and store in the refrigerator.

Now, lets try making an authentic Thai Green Curry!  There are certain points to bear in mind while making this curry:

• Cooking duck breast pieces for a long time in green curry changes the flavor and texture of duck meat.  Over-cooking can make the meat hard and rubbery.
• Lemongrass is not the same as lemon juice and has a sharp lemony aroma, minus the sour taste. If you do not get this ingredient, do the following (my own lemongrass substitute): mix juice of one lemon, five drops of lemon essence and ¼ tsp granulated sugar. This is equivalent to the effect of two lemongrass stalks. But, fresh lemongrass is undoubtedly unbeatable.
• There are two green-coloured ingredients in the green curry paste: green chillies, sweet basil and little mint. Without these green ingredients, your curry will not be green. So do not omit these. Also, do not use cilantro leaves for making the paste green.
• If, after adding all the ingredients, you discover that the green curry is too spicy for you, add a little brown sugar to the boiling curry, but do not overdo this process.
• If you get fresh (or canned) straw mushrooms, you are lucky. If not, white button mushrooms are okay.

Thai Green Curry with Roasted Duck
[The recipe serves 5–6 people.]

Ingredients:
Roast duck breast (with skin; sliced): 250 g
Thai aubergines (cut into half): 5
Babycorns (cut into half, lengthwise): 6
Plum tomatoes: 8
Green bell peppers (cubed into medium-sized pieces): 1
Snow peas: 8
Halved straw mushrooms (can be replaced with white button mushrooms): 8, if straw; 5, if button mushrooms
Pumpkin (cubed and skin removed): 8
French beans (chopped into medium-sized pieces): 5
Coconut milk: 400 ml
Warm water: 1 cup
Sweet basil: 7–8
Salt: According to taste

Method:
Heat the oil. Add 5 tbsp Thai green curry paste (recipe above) in 1 tbsp vegetable oil. Lower the heat and add the coconut milk, stirring continuously until the coconut milk starts separating oil.

Add the pumpkin and the French beans first. Then add the remaining vegetables and salt. Add the fish sauce and the warm water. Stir and simmer for 10 min.

Add the sweet basil and sliced duck meat and cook for 3–4 min. Garnish with a few fresh sweet basil leaves or mint.

Serve hot with steamed rice or noodles.

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One of the more fascinating results is rooted in a 20+ year study conducted by Dr. Campbell on lab rats.  Briefly, the study took two groups of rats and fed the first group with 20% animal protein and the second group, only 5% animal protein.  Both sets of rats were given enough Aflatoxin (a fungus, mold that is highly carcinogenic) to get cancers.  Long story short, every single rat fed the 20% protein had liver cancer or precursor lesions and not a single rat in the 5% group had cancer or lesions.

In a separate study, the results are even more astonishing.  When the team decreased the animal protein of the 20% rats to less than 10%, Dr. Campbell found that the cancer lesions on the liver decreased in size and number.  In a nutshell, the results of this study suggest that cancer can be jump started, restarted, slowed and even halted by adjusting the level of protein intake.

Somehow, I found myself discussing both studies a couple of times in the past few weeks – mind you, I never once rudely interjected my stories of these studies or interrupted someone just to spew some analytical details about lab rat study results.  Instead, I diplomatically and gently relayed these stories to welcomed audiences and within a relevant context – but it didn’t take long before the welcome wore off.

What has amazed me the most about people’s response is not so much the unwillingness to seriously consider the implications of Dr. Campbell’s results, but rather two other elements of the response:  1) the outright defensiveness and/or need to explain the necessity for all things animal protein in their lives and 2) how quickly many audience members hastily write Dr. Campbell off as a quack, a farce or some kind of a ‘pretend doctor of real science’.

Sometimes, I end up feeling attacked – “Well, do you eat meat?  Are you vegetarian?  Do your kids drink milk?  Are you growing cancer cells in your body?”

Yes, my family and I eat meat and drink milk.  But I want to change our diet – a diet that is already relatively low in animal protein, but that still has major repercussions on our environment, our wallets and potentially, our health.  The implications offered by Dr. Campbell’s studies are controversial given the state of our beef and dairy lobbying prowess on capital hill, but they are anything less than astonishing, intriguing and incredibly convincing. Whether or not we become vegans is an entirely separate question (I highly doubt it); however, I do think it is possible to decrease our animal protein intake to something less than 5% over the course of the next few years – I’m calling this the 5% Diet.

For many, this might seem like an extreme interpretation of Dr. Campbell’s data, but for my family and our needs, its definitely plausible.  Will all of this change in lifestyle and diet be worth it all in the end?  Only time will tell, but I can’t wait for time.  I have to make a decision about how we are going to eat our way through life based on the information offered up now.  Personally, if there is a small chance that changing our diet can prevent rapid and unnecessary deterioration and emotional heartache, I’d argue that the change is worth it.

Besides, I doubt my family will miss the level of meat and dairy we currently consume or that we will go hungry anytime soon – there are so many scrumptious non-animal based foods and variations on those foods that we haven’t tried yet.

The 5% diet.  Ch-ch-check it out.  As a bonus for considering this diet, I’ve included a recipe for my version of Dal, a delicious, creamy lentil and kidney bean dish served up with some brown rice and bread.

Patty’s Pretend Dal

1 cup of brown or black lentils, soaked and fully cooked

1/3 cup of kidney beans, soaked and fully cooked

½ cup of tomato puree

1 tomato, diced

1 onion, diced

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 garlic, minced

½ inch of ginger, grated

1 green chili, finely diced

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon chili

½ teaspoon fenugreek

½ teaspoon garam masala

2-3 cups of water (more if necessary)

salt

¼ – ½ cup of half and half (optional, if you dare)

Directions:

In a large pot over medium to low heat, add the oil and then, the onions, garlic, ginger, tomatoes, green chili, cumin, chili, fenugreek, 1 teaspoon of salt and garam masala.  Stir frequently until the tomatoes and onions begin to cook down, about 10-15 minutes.

Once the onion and tomatoes have cooked down, add the beans, tomato puree and about 2 cups of water (the water should cover the beans by about 2 inches).  Bring to a boil and then let simmer for about 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

After 20-30 minutes, check the dal for seasoning and add more salt if necessary.  Serve with rice or naan and a little bit of yogurt to manage the heat, if you want.

The post The 5% Diet: A Variation on a Dal Recipe appeared first on Zomppa - Food Good, Social Good.

A spread of Indian whole spices

Discovering Indian cuisine is a gastronomical journey through the “spice route”! Indian spices can weave magic to any bland dish with their versatility. The reason why India boasts thousands of recipes is because of its amazing variety of spices and spice mixes (powder or paste of an assortment of spices), along with a plethora of cooking techniques and other ingredients.

The traditional stone is still used for manually grinding whole spices. The texture and taste of the final product are much better, as compared to the modern grinders!

Spices are good for you!

Indian spices have amazing medicinal properties, and the popular ancient Indian medicinal practice known as Ayurveda employs these wonder spices for various kinds of healing, with no side effects!

For example, research has proved now that turmeric (active ingredient: curcumin) has anti-cancer, anti-arthritic and anti-inflammatory properties. Warm turmeric-milk is extremely effective against indigestion and sore throat. Similarly, cloves have healing properties against toothache, gum decay, asthma and acidity. Fenugreek seeds help in easing any kind of pain and are given to women after child delivery. Ginger is very effective against cough and colds. On the other hand, cumin is known for its healing properties against indigestion and other stomach problems.

Popularity of Indian spices

The importance of spices in India and the world is immense.  So much so, that there is a separate authority for the promotion of Indian spices worldwide, called Spices Board India, maintained by the Ministry of Commerce, Government of India. The board does a lot to support and maintain the development of Indian spices, which are the “heart” of Indian cuisine!

Spices in three forms: whole, ground and paste

Whole spices being dry-roasted perfectly: ready for the grind!

The whole spices mainly include fenugreek seeds (methidana), bay leaves (tej patta), dry red chilli (sabut laal mirch), nigella seeds (kalonji or mangrel), aniseed, nutmeg (jaiphal), mace (javitri), cumin (jeera), black cumin (shahi jeera), mustard (rai), coriander seeds (sabut dhania), Cinnamon (dalchini), brown cardamom (badi elaichi), cloves (laung or lavang), fennel (saunff) small and big, white sesame seeds (till), green cardamom (elaichi), tamarind (imli), dry ginger (saunth), black peppercorns (kali mirch), black pepper (kali mirch) and poppy seeds (khuskhus).

The ground spices (powders) are coriander powder (dhania powder), pomegranate seed powder (anardana powder), turmeric powder (haldi), dry mango powder (aamchur), asafoetida (hing), red chilli powder (laal mirchi powder), cumin powder (jeera powder) and mint powder (pudina powder).

Ground spices and masalas

A few masalas (mixture of spices) like paan masala, pav bhaji masala, chat masala, garam masala, chana masala, tea masala, sambhar masala, tandoori chicken masala, meat masala, jaljeera and kasoori methi are very famous and used commonly in Indian households and restaurants.

These are the common Indian spices. However, there are many more too!

Relishing Indian curries!

Curry is believed to have originated in India. A curry is a side dish, cooked with a combination of spices and herbs, along with one or more kinds of vegetables, fish, meat and/or egg and sometimes, the fruits. During the British rule in India, curry was introduced slowly to the Western palate.

Originally, the word “curry” was the British way to pronounce the Tamil word kari, the Punjabi, Sindhi and Gujrati kadhi and the Bengali tarkari! Alternatively, the word curry might have originated from the word “karahi”, which is a cooking utensil, also known as wok in English.

Roughly, there are more than one thousand curries existing in India itself!

Two tried-and-tested recipes of spice mixes (masalas)

Garam masala: This versatile masala is added to increase the richness and aroma of a huge number of dishes in India. You may alter the amount of this masala in a dish to suit your spice tolerance. There is, however, no set measurement for the ingredients in any masala. But I am sharing with you the one I have tried and tested almost on a regular basis for almost seven years now. Store them in airtight containers in a cool, dry place. [Tip: Replace the lid of the container immediately after use to prevent the aroma from escaping.]

For the basic garam masala, two cinnamon (one-inch) sticks, four cloves and six green cardamoms are ground to a fine powder.

For making the special garam masala (used especially in meat dishes), you need the following, to be ground to a fine powder: two cinnamon (one-inch) sticks, four cloves, six green cardamoms, two brown cardamoms, 1 tbsp black peppercorns, 2 tsp caraway seeds, 1 tbsp cumin seeds, ½ tsp nutmeg powder and ½ tsp mace powder.

[Note: The commercially available readymade masalas such as tandoori masala, dhansak masala, sambhar masala, chana masala, etc, have either garam masala or curry masala as one of their constituents.]

Curry powder: This can be made in a couple of ways. The amounts of the ingredients may be varied. The recipe given below gives great results!

Dry-roast 2 tsp coriander seeds, 1 tsp cumin seeds, ½ tsp fennel seeds, ½ tsp  fenugreek seeds,  3 dried red chillies and 3 curry leaves until these become nicely browned and release a rich aroma. Put these (after cooling) into a spice mill or a grinder to grind them into a very fine powder. Now mix ½ tsp turmeric powder and ½ tsp salt with this and store in an airtight container.

Jaljeera: the healthy and spicy Indian summer drink!

The famous Indian summer drink: Jaljeera

The word “jal” means water and “jeera” means cumin. This is an exotic North Indian drink, which is very popular in Indian restaurants worldwide. This is a spicy drink and an appetizer, which is believed to not only cool the body (because of mint in them) in hot weather, but this aids in digestion (attributed to the cumin and rock salt) as well! It is a drink served in Indian get-togethers and cultural ceremonies.

The jaljeera drink has lemonade as the main constituent. This is mixed with the jaljeera powder and finely chopped mint or fresh mint paste is added at the end, topped with unsweetened mini gram-flour balls called boondi (optional). Following is the recipe of light jaljeera.

Ingredients:

Cumin seeds: 1.5 tsp

Dry ginger powder: ½ tsp

Dry red chilli (optional): ½

Black peppercorns: 5

Fresh mint leaves (finely chopped): 4

Black salt: ¾ tsp

Dry mango powder (aamchur): ½ tsp

Sugar (optional): ½ tsp

Asafoetida: two pinches

Lime juice: 2 tbsp

Cold water

Method of preparation:

Make a paste of the mint leaves with black salt, dry ginger powder, dry mango powder, asafoetida and sugar.

Dry-roast the cumin seeds and the dry red chilli till these release an aroma and are lightly browned. Add the peppercorns and roast for another 1 min over a low flame. Cool this mixture under open air and grind to a very fine powder.

Mix this powder with the mint mixture and store in an airtight jar. This becomes the jaljeera powder.

To make one glass of jaljeera, put the lime juice and 1 tsp of jaljeera powder into the glass. Add cold water to fill the glass. Check for salt and sugar and adjust if needed.

Sprinkle a few chopped mint leaves at the top or use salted boondi [link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boondi].

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Typically, I spend most of the DC summer cursing the heat and humidity, dodging tourists and doing a whole lot of grumbling about “actually living here”.  (True Story: During Cherry Blossom season, I actually tried wearing a whistle when I ran on the National Mall to clear a path through the crowds.  However, the Capitol Police didn’t find this cute.  So, I had to stop.  Can’t fight The Man.)  This year, instead of being annoyed that my regular jogging route is jammed with gawkers staring at old monuments, I’ve taken the attitude of “if you can’t beat ‘em…”.  Thanks in part to Michelle Obama’s focus on healthy eating, this summer is the perfect one for a food lover like me to be a Tourist in My Own City.  I kicked off my summer of DC sights last week at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival.  This food-centric, hands-on event happens every year and features three focal points around which eating, entertainment and crafts/trades revolve.  Columbia, the Peace Corps (celebrating 50 years) and Rhythm&Blue/The Motor City are the highlighted areas for 2011.  Here’s a glimpse.

Hurry! You've only got 5 more days to catch this year's exhibits and activities!

I was astounded by the authenticity of the Festival.  Almost all the demonstrators are from the areas represented- many have translators on hand to facilitate the face-to-face interactions that make this an amazing event.

The Columbian industries and crafts exhibits were so colorful!

The Peace Corps' tents featured countries they've been stationed in but focused on areas of Southeast Asia and Western Africa. Kids can look, touch and even help with the crafts being demonstrated.

Besides crafts and skills unique to the countries, cooking demonstrations happen almost hourly.

Columbian Food Demonstration: Ssshhh, translator! Be quiet so I can practice my Spanish!

Peace Corps Cooking Demo Schedule: Only drawback- health code prevents tastings! Boo!

The Festival is flanked by the Smithsonian museums as it sprawls down the National Mall.  The smells of the food tents drift from the Capitol Building to the Washington Monument.  How could you resist stopping? Each of the food tents features not only regional cuisines but also beers unique to that area!  Cheers!

After all that eating, it’s time for some activity!  Cultural music and dancing can be found throughout the festival.  People are frequently dancing barefoot in the grass under the shade of tents or in the center of the aisle in the musical arenas.

Finally, I was so pleased to see that there was nary a fast or junk food item in sight.  Instead, fruit booths and fruit drinks were set up at periodic intervals.  Plus, there was a free filtered water bottle refill station!  So eco-conscious!

I left the Festival not feeling the slightest bit annoyed by crowds.  Instead, I felt an unfamiliar emotion about my city.  Don’t quote on me this, but I think it maybe just might have been…pride.

The post Tourist In Your Own City: Tidbit of the Day appeared first on Zomppa - Food Good, Social Good.

Today's Special

“Masala is the symphony, oil is the orchestra.”

If you like food, the Daily Show, Queens, or know about what it’s like to be an immigrant, this light-hearted, sweet movie is must. Aasif Mandvi (Daily Show) plays a son of Indian immigrants trying to make it as a sous chef in a fancy French restaurant in New York City. He has to take over his dad’s failing Indian restaurant when his dad has a heart attack – only he doesn’t know how to cook Indian food. In comes a taxi driver, played by the legendary Nasseruddin Shah, and the rest follows.

It’s not a flawless movie, but I’ve been waiting for this since I saw the trailer.

With lines like “Cumin is such a saucy wench,” it’s sort of a foodie’s escape. Just make sure you have some good Indian food waiting for you when the movie is over.

The post Today’s Special: TidBit of the Day appeared first on Zomppa - Food Good, Social Good.

Tea map

In doing some research for this post I figured I should ask some of my fellow Zomppas for their tea preferences and habits, and also some folks on Facebook. In so doing, I have discovered at least three new blends of tea that I absolutely have to test out. I have appended the string of varied responses at the bottom of the post and hope this post will generate lots more discussion on our comments section so that I and others, can discover some new tea varieties and cultures to test out. So please, tell me about your favourite tea!

Ok, so are you all ready for your history lesson?

My mother's Kutani Bone China Geisha Girl Tea Set (Lithopane)

The human race has been drinking tea for thousands of years. History/legend has it that tea was discovered in 2737 B.C.E. by China’s mythical second emperor, Shen Nung, when leaves from the Camellia sinensis plant happened to land into an open pot of hot water he had. History then narrates that the beverage went on to become popular in Korea and Japan, and then throughout Asia and the Middle East. Tea started to establish a presence in Western culture in the 1600s and 1700s, but owing to its expense, only the upper classes could afford it. By the 19th century, the cost of tea came down and a booming trade between the East and West unfolded. Incidentally, did you know that the development of the teabag was quite by accident? In 1908, a tea tradesman named Thomas Sullivan started putting loose tea in little silk bags and sent them to his clients who then mistakenly put the bag in their hot water without opening it.

What thoughts or images come to mind when you think of tea? My first recollection of drinking tea was when I was about six or seven hanging out with my friends after school in the town of Quartu S. Elena, Italy. They were of Iranian background so their parents served Persian tea (a loose tea blend usually made up of black teas like Darjeeling and Earl Grey, often with a hint of cardamon or rose water) in little glass cups along with sugar cubes. On many occasions, they also brought out their samovar, an originally Russian metal device that heats water and keep it warm. I absolutely loved the fragrance and taste of that tea, and as I got older, I was allowed stronger servings. The teapot holding the tea leaves pours out a very strong blend which certainly needs to be watered down.

When we moved to Northern Ireland, I was then surrounded by people drinking strong black tea with milk in it. Sorry Brits, Irish, and Indians, but despite having lived on these shores intermittently for some 15 years, I have never warmed to the taste of tea with milk in it. It is still my mother’s preferred choice of tea and when I am at home, I usually sip on some Punjana, one of Northern Ireland’s leading tea brands (incidentally, they do export to the U.S.).

Current tea selection in the house

Over the years, I have tried many teas and have many favourites which include Jasmine Green Tea, Earl Grey, Ginger and Lemon, fresh loose Chamomile, sweet tea with fresh mint, and more recently Twinings Rose Garden tea. Interestingly enough though, if I had to pick one particular tea at the exclusion of others, I would have to go back to my weekday afternoons spent in Italy at my friends’ place after school sipping the delicious brew of Persian tea that their mother always had simmering on the stove as we watched cartoons. Nothing beats that!

What others had to say:

Zomppa Belinda: “Man. ALL TEAS. Seriously. I am not a coffee drinker, I am a tea drinker. I don’t like fruity teas though! I love jasmine tea, white tea, English breakfast tea…I drink mine black. But my usual? Every morning I drink Lungching green tea.”

Zomppa Patty: Yerba mate, chai or english breakfast tea.

Zomppa Lys: I drink a lot of Jasmine and Green Tea, but I love mint tea too!

Zomppa Lena: I guess maybe almond tea, because its so sweet and fragrant. Very relaxing.

Zomppa Liz: I have lots of favorite teas! But I think chamomile, from the flowers (v. tea baggies), is my favorite. I grew up with all sorts of herbs and teas in glass jars sitting on the counters of the kitchen, and chamomile is one of the prettiest to me. The women in my family swear by it’s soothing powers, good for tummies and for sleeping.

Alaistair in Northern Ireland: Chai when I need something tasty other than coffee otherwise, Lady Grey.

Hazel in Northern Ireland: Other than a cup of tea that someone else made for me, good bog standard black tea with milk in it. Second spot goes to Persian tea.

Mojdeh in Seattle: Love rooibos! Also a good, fresh, loose leaf peppermint tea.

Gemma in Northern Ireland: Another lover of Rooibos and mint tea “because it’s delicious and better for you than black tea but without the nasty dryness of green tea and mint tea because it is so yummy and great for your digestion.

Nami in Spain: While coffee is his beverage of choice, Persian tea is his preference

Victor in Finland: likes white tea with mint

Anisa in Dubai: Sadaf Persian tea with cardamon

Kimmo in Finland: Organic peppermint and liquorice with honey. He highly recommends Numi teas.

Dorothy in Italy: Roiboos but also peppermint in the mornings.

Michelle in Northern Ireland: One of her favourite blends comes from Pukka Herbs and is called love tea, a sweet floral infusion of rose, chamomile and lavender.

Sanura of MyLifeRunsonFood gave a most delicious description of her tea experience every day: Japanese green tea is my favorite. I make a 2 cup pot almost every morning, steeping the leaves for 2.30 to 3 minutes. Then the same leaves are steeped again for 6 minutes for a second pot of tea. For the third pot, a little mint leaves is added for more flavor, and the tea is steeped for 9 minutes. This is done throughout the day. The first pot is stronger with more caffeine for the mornings. The last pot is more herbal with less caffeine, which is more appropriate for early evenings.

So, come on, spill! What’s your favourite tea?

Oh and everything you want to know about tea can be found on this great website In Pursuit of Tea.

Check us out on Simple Lives Thursday and Tip Day Thursday!

The post Teas of the World appeared first on Zomppa - Food Good, Social Good.

This first challenged asked: what defines Zomppa and why should Zomppa be the next food blog star? Voting begins September 20. Check out our profile here . Yeah, we’ll remind you.

About Me and Who I’m Looking For: Egg. Huevo. Ei. Oeuf. Yai. Dan. Tamago. Dalgyal. Uovo. Agg. Jajko. Yai. Bayd.

I am well traveled, and though folks around the world know me by different names, depending on where I am, I am recognized worldwide. I enjoy being scrambled and fried, and I am always up for being poached. I love hanging out with my friends, Bacon and Sausage.

I’m looking for the right writer who will celebrate my uniqueness and versatility, cares about where I come from, enjoys traveling and learning about the world, loves to laugh and have fun, and able to hold serious conversations with me.

About Your Matches: Based on your profile, Egg, we have found 8 potential matches. These 8 matches are women who come from all backgrounds, representing every continent (except Antarctica), ethnicities, religions, professions. Some are married, some have babies, some are single, some have pets, some have plants. They all believe that food is more than what we eat, so it’s no surprise that they are also all contributors of an international food magazine, known as Zomppa. If you find the profiles of these “Zomppas” interesting, please contact the writer. Best of luck and hope you meet your match!

Profile 1: Belinda

About: First-generation New Englander living in the American South
Food Passion: advocating food justice, a healthier food system, knowing where food comes from
How she likes her eggs: Sunny side-up

Profile 2: Citadel Moon

About: Haitian-American-Bostonian mother of two, one with severe food allergies
Food Passion: creating kid-friendly, gluten-free, allergy-friendly recipes
How she likes her eggs: Egg whites

Profile 3: Kat

About: American-Irish-Italian shuttling around Europe
Food Passion: prioritizing the pleasures of food in life, fine cappuccinos and fresh seafood by the beach
How she likes her eggs: Fried eggs with baked beans

Profile 4: Liz

About: multilingual Quechua-Japanese Californian
Food Passion: honoring those who grow our food, celebrating the women who care for our land
How she likes her eggs: Half-Huevos Rancheros, half-steamed

Profile 5: Lys

About: Globe-trotter of Norwegian stock cooking in southern California
Food Passion: mastering the art of fine baking and cheese-making, promoting local, fresh foods
How she likes her eggs: Scrambled with fresh chives and homemade feta

Profile 6: Patty

About: multicultural mother of two raised in a U.S. military family
Food Passion: advocating organic foods, making treats the homemade way with a naughty twist
How she likes her eggs: Raw, straight up

Profile 7: Tonija

About: Washington, DC, bilingual, multiracial mother of two
Food Passion: sharing meals with family and friends, promoting the enjoyment of guilty pleasures
How she likes her eggs: Deviled

Profile 8: Tsering

About: Tibetan-Canadian born and raised in exile in India
Food Passion: devising easy, healthy family recipes as a vegetarian in a carnivorous household
How she likes her eggs: Medium-boiled

Egg, meet the Zomppas.

The post Project Food Blog #1: Food, Meet Zomppas appeared first on Zomppa - Food Good, Social Good.

I had the fortune to visit and eat my way through Vancouver last year, and truly, it is an eating destination for all the athletes, families and visitors from around the world.

Location: The Water Street Cafe, Vancouver, BC

From the “Snow Leopard,” Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, the first skier from Ghana to Samir Azzimani, the lone athlete from Morocco, the Winter Olympics is the time when athletes from all over get to showcase and represent their respective nations. The Olympics allows the world come together and see how similar we are: who didn’t want to hug Canadian figure skater Joannie Rochette after her bronze-winning performance after her mother’s sudden death or feel for the Dutch speedskater Sven Kramer who was on his way to the gold only to be mistakenly sidetracked by his coach?

Yet despite sugar-coated messages about an increasingly shrinking and equal global society, regional inequities seem to be deepening further. From falling water tables to rising temperatures, we’re in deep, deep trouble, particularly as food demand increases. However, while the troublemakers are global, the consequences seem to fall heavier in certain regions. For example, while China is reducing malnutrition (although urbanizing to a degree that hurts grain reserves and the environment), the percentage of malnourished children in India is astonishingly high. I have written a bit on inequity in India and the issue of hunger and malnutrition.

So is there a solution? GMOs?

Pankaj Mishra pointed out the hypocrisy of a ‘modern’ India heading on the path towards Modernity, while children and farmers live in increasing debt and dependence on a growing bureaucratic food system. India’s “successful” Green Revolution in the 1970s when staple food production increased as a result of “aid” and “advanced” crop techniques are now seeing more dire consequences, including farmer debt, food insecurity, widening urban-rural gap, and rural income inequality, not to mention malnutrition, dependence on foreign oil. Between 1993 and 2003, 100,000 farmers committed suicide in rural areas, clear signs of desperation.

Food aid?

Development aid seems to be determined by the invisible hand of foreign policy and domestic agribusiness, rather than by goodwill, at least in the U.S. For example, according to journalist Celia Duggar who focuses on food aid, the U.S. requires all donated food to be grown in the U.S., driving up cost and delaying delivery of needed food. What does this mean? That middlemen, including Archer Daniels Midlandand Cargill, made over $700 million in 2004 by selling food commodities through USAID.

Meanwhile, those in Haiti coming out the devastating earthquake has to keep waiting for food while counterfeiters create fake food coupons. Take a look at this chart from 2007 that follows food aid.

Source: New York Times

In whose interest do these policies lie?

CARE turned down $45 million in federal food aid, citing that some of these policies hurt the people they are supposed to help. Instead of donating tons to middlemen, then, how about finding and supporting the indigenous programs that work directly with those in need, such as a revolutionary community kitchen scheme in India to combat malnutrition? Or giving cash donations to support the World Food Programme, which has gotten 75% more food for countries such as Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia by buying corn grown IN those countries rather than shipping them from the U.S. (novel idea?). After all, it doesn’t seem fair that only SOME of us get to eat food like this.

Location: Kirin, Vancouver, BC

For those of us working in the do-gooding world of development and relief aid: it’s time to stop patting ourselves on the back about our wonderful intentions and seriously take a look at our results. When it comes to food security, there shouldn’t be a Gold medalist or Silver medalist.

We should all be standing on the podium together.

The post Inequality of Olympic Proportions appeared first on Zomppa - Food Good, Social Good.