Family Dinner At Baan Toa

It was an evening out with my large family at Baan Toa in Hyatt, Pune. There was a kind of festive mood but I couldn’t decide on which cousin to favor and choose my seat. Finally, the decision was made to separate the veg family from non-veg one, and I quietly squeezed in-between non-veg cousins to spend a lovely evening with interesting conversation and delicious Pan Asian food.

But what really impressed me was the décor. The water cascading against the tiled walls into the pool filled with cluster of red and green Dragon fruits, the sound of the dripping water and the dim lights gave a very romantic aura, and I was not surprised when I saw a young couple slicing a chocolate cake to celebrate their wedding anniversary.

We occupied the large dining room

The tables are already set with a plate of micro greens and three accompanying dipping sauces: hot garlic, shezwan and a cucumber relish. There were two more sauces on the side, one with coriander leaves and other with lemon grass.

While we waited for the order, we rolled the greens with sour n chilly sauce and played the game of guessing the ingredients.

The starter, an IceBerg salad was perfect; crunchy Ice Berg coated with Japanese peanut dressing, melt in the mouth, it was simply delightful.

We ordered just three different types of Dim Sums, mixed vegetables, chicken and prawns. The prawns were the best, succulent and sweet. I am told that this is the place that serves a special set brunch where there are variety of dim sums, some 15-16 different types of vegetarian and non-vegetarian, with salads and desserts.

I didn’t like the wanton soup at all, it was bland and even though I added sauces and chili vinegar, it was not satisfying. That’s when I heard some loud voices from the kitchen. The kitchen was too close to the dinning area where we were sitting and any commotion in the kitchen could be heard. Was it chef or were there some other cooks? but emotions in the kitchen was affecting the quality of the food. The Vietnamese rolls tasted raw, rice noodles too sticky, soup very bland.

The chefs have to be calm or the food may not taste good. Service was excellent with waiters apologetic about the loud noises from kitchen. The devil in me wanted to walk to the kitchen to see the commotion.

Maybe, had I gone in, the calm would have returned and I would have some really tasty cuisine that the restaurant is normally known for.

Lotus Stem With Potatoes

How cliché is the phrase “Lotus retains its beauty even though it is surrounded by muck”? Lotus symbolizes purity of mind and thought while amidst the impurity of the worldly affairs. Lotus is the National flower of India.

Each time I see this beautiful flower in a dirty pond, I am reminded of its goodness. It inspires art, religion, and folklore from times immemorial.

But, what about the lotus root, have you given a thought to its’ roots? It’s down there in the muck, dirty and coated with mud. You have to scrub it well before you can even use. It is relished for its taste and its nutritional value, not a thought is given to its origin in muck and mud.

Lotus stem is an interesting vegetable that changes its nature from the way you cook it. Have it raw, its bitter; cook and it has very unique, crunchy texture; stew and it turns starchy. Besides its high dietary fiber, Lotus stem is very rich in iron and calcium content. It is highly recommended for pregnant women. People with chronic complain of constipation can also profit from its use.

Unfortunately, you don’t see this Lotus stem at every vegetable vendor in Mumbai. You may find this mainly at specialized vegetable stalls. But whenever I see it, I am reminded of my mom’s experiments in the kitchen. Mom used to clean each pore with a matchstick, and cooked differently each time, sometimes in curry, sometimes bind them as koftas and sometimes make patties for evening snack. Mom made them in combination with carrots, or with potatoes or mushrooms. Whatever combination she chose, she always made a tasty meal.

This week I made lotus stem with potatoes.

Ingredients:

2 medium size onions

2tbsp mustard oil

2 green chilies

1tsp-grated ginger

4-5 cloves crushed garlic

2 medium tomatoes

1tsp turmeric powder

2tsp coriander powder

1tsp cumin powder

1tsp red chili powder

1tsp garam masala

2 medium size potatoes

200gms lotus stems

salt to taste

1tsp lime juice

coriander leaves for garnishing.

Method:

Step 1

In a heavy base pressure cooker, cook finely chopped onions in 2tbsp oil

Step 2

Cook till the color changes to light brown.

Step 3

Add ½ cup water

Step 4

Add crushed garlic, grated ginger and chopped green chilies.

Step 5

Add chopped tomatoes

Step 6

Add turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, Garam masala, red chili powder and salt

Step 7

Mix and mash till masala begins to dry.

Step 8

Add the chopped potatoes and chopped lotus stems

Step 9

Mix and stir till it begins to stick to the sides. Add 1 cup water.

Step 10

Pressure cook till 3 whistles

Step 11

Garnish with coriander leaves and lime juice.

Serve with hot buttered parathas.

Jack fruit Curry

The moment I saw the baby Jack fruit, many memories came flooding down my spine, like the trip to South India during my college days, when I bought a huge Jack Fruit (because all friends were buying), too heavy to carry, brought it home and then being scolded by my family for the strong aroma that dominated my house for days. It brought back the memories of my school days, when every lunch break, we sat under the shade of Jackfruit tree, (we had 7 such trees in the school compound) and my boarded friends complained of being served the same jackfruit dish too often for meals and how much they hated it. It brought the memories of my mom, who loved this fruit so much that she invented various innovative dishes to make it tasty, making us believe that we were having non-veg meals on vegetarian days.

Succulent, soft and sweet when ripe, the taste closer to banana and mango, it tastes best in salads and desserts. Very nutritious, like so many tropical fruits, it is rich in dietary minerals like calcium, potassium and iron. It is excellent source of energy-giving carbohydrates, fiber and micronutrients making it a perfect staple food.

During my recent trip to Jaipur, (I was attending a wedding), Jackfruit made its special appearance in the form of most spicy barbequed, fibrous dish. At a glance it resembled roasted Chicken but the taste was unique, it still lingers and I plan to replicate this dish soon.

But for now, I will make do with Jackfruit curry. 

Ingredients:

250gms Jack Fruit

200gms curd

1tsp garlic paste

1tsp ginger paste

5green chilies

1tsp turmeric powder

2tsp coriander powder

1tsp cumin powder

1tsp 5spice powder

2tsp salt

2tbsp oil

2 medium size onions

2 bay leaves

2 cardamoms

2 cloves

1inch cinnamon stick

2 dried red pepper

2 medium size tomatoes

Method:

Here is the step-by-step method for cooking delicious Jackfruit curry. (You can adjust the quantity of salt, chilies and oil to suit your taste)

Step 1:

Chopping the fruit is bit tricky. You need to oil your hands and the blade for smooth cutting. The hard wooded center and the outer spiky skin need to be discarded. The inner fibrous flesh is used for cooking

Step 2

The fruit has to be cleaned thoroughly, and should be either deep-fried or boiled.

Step 3

I prefer deep-fried because that gives a crunchy taste. But in this method, I have boiled it.

Step 4

On the side, prepare a curd masala by mixing garlic, ginger, chilies, turmeric, coriander powder, cumin powder, 5 spice powder and 1tsp salt

Step 5

Mix the boiled/fried jackfruit pieces to the curd masala

 Step 6

Leave the marinated fruit in the fridge for over 4 hours.

Step 7

In a separate pan, heat oil. Add bay leaves, cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon and dried red pepper. Add finely chopped onions and cook till light brown.

Step 8

Add the marinated fruit, add chopped tomatoes and cook till it begins to stick to the sides.

Step 9

Add 1cup water and 1tsp salt, stir it well, cover and let it cook till oil floats on the top

Step 10

Serve with hot buttered parathas or steamed rice.