• Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Snapchat
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

MsMarmiteLover

  • Food
    • Recipes
    • Vegetarian
    • Vegan
  • Travel
    • France
    • Italy
    • Spain
    • UK
  • Wine
  • Gardens
  • Supperclubs/Events
  • About
    • Press
    • Books
  • Shop
    • Cart

Longitude 65>95 degrees: Global Feast visits the Indian sub-continent

August 4, 2012 Leave a Comment Filed Under: Food, Recipes, Uncategorized

Take four girls: L to R clockwise: Rekha Mehr, Pistachio Rose; Summaya, Pukka Paki; Meena, Sheba and Sumayya; Sheba of AI Cookery.

In the morning I don’t so much shower as oil the creaking joints of my body, in the style of The Tin Man, to get it up and working. I’m wearing my support socks all day, only removing them at night. Not an entirely flattering look at my age, kneesocks with a dress, a kind of geriatric Lolita. Linn Soderstrom, our Swedish chef, much younger than I, also wears them every day, as do many male chefs. Sore feet and arm burns are a sure-fire way to spot a chef; feet hurt also because of dehydration. I always forget to drink water.
Last night we ‘arrived’ on the Indian sub-continent. This is a cuisine famed for its spicing; Indian spices  have changed the world, encouraging discovery and trade through the ages. Today India still produces 86 per cent of all spices with smaller amounts produced by Bangladesh and Pakistan.
The kitchen was crowded for we had four guest chefs. Representing Pakistan we had the elegant Summaya Jamil, who has recently given up a lucrative career as a commercial lawyer to concentrate full-time on food. She cooked typical Pakistani fare, lamb chops and chicken biriani for our main course.
Representing both Gujurat, a North Eastern part of India, (her dad) and the UK(her mum) we had the warm and lively Rekha from Pistachio Rose who made the most sublime chocolate desserts flavoured with exotic spices. She sells every weekend in Portobello Market.
Representing Kerala, in Southern India, we had Sheba Promod who made delicious canapés and the starter. She runs a Keralan cuisine supper club in St. Albans. Keralan cuisine is influenced by Ayuverdic principles and makes great use of coconut.
Finally we had Edinburgh supper club hostess Meena of Chai Lounge supperclub whose parents hail from South Africa, part of the India diaspora, but her food is Gujarati influenced. She cooked the vegetarian main course.

Menu:
Gin and tonics by Williams Gin (we are in the malarial region known as Stratford)
Avocado, dal and curry leaf chutney cups 
Mini chicken, cardamom and black pepper cutlet balls
Eggs with caramelised onions and garam masala
Pakistani:
Green chutney chicken biryani
Paneer for vegetarians
Rose petal garam masala lamb chops
Beetroot and cumin raita
Chapati
Indian:
Baby aubergine and potato in peanut gravy
Khadi (spicy yoghurt soup)
Pilau rice
Dessert:
Dark chocolate tart infused with chai
Milk chocolate tart infused with chilli and nutmeg
White chocolate tart infused with a sweet fennel blend and pan
Indian shortbread favour

Together these ladies bustled, chopped, spiced, grilled and puréed their way through a good selection of authentic Indian sub-continental dishes. I remarked that the food was quite hot. “Oh no” said Summayya “we calmed it down for this. I didn’t put any chillis on the lamb chop for instance”.
One of the most thrilling moments was being taught how to make authentic chapatis. I’ve made them in the past but I’ve never been entirely happy with the texture which was too dry. Now I know why, you make them with boiling water, like a hot crust pastry. Here is the recipe:
Makes approximately 20 chapatis.

3 cups of atta flour (wholewheat flour)
2.5 to 3 cups of boiling water
1 dessert spoon of salt
A few drops of ghee (not too much, ghee makes the chapati hard)

Mix the flour, salt and ghee together then slowly add the boiling water. I do this in a Kitchen Aid mixer with a dough hook. When the dough looks fluffy, remove and knead by hand on a floured bench.
Note: the dough, like the recent thinking on bread generally, must be quite wet. You get to know by experience just how wet. You want it between sticky and malleable.
Cover the dough ball in clingfilm and leave to rest for half an hour.
Take off small sections of the dough and flatten it between your palms, pinching the edges thinner. I used a chapati press, like a tortilla press.
Then roll out your dough into a small circle, dividing the stacks of chapaties with squares of greaseproof paper. Put the stack in the fridge.
You can cook them directly on the flame where they puff up, or in a good quality non-stick saucepan such as Green-pan (which I’ve been using for the whole of Global Feast) or an iron crepiere or griddle.
Almost every night at Global Feast, we’ve made some kind of bread to go with the cuisine: be it pittas or sourdough rolls or buckwheat blinis.
Serve immediately with your meal.

Book here for Global Feast. Only ten more nights to go. Oh Christ. Someone kill me now. No it’s great, really it is. Coming up: Chinese, Singaporean, Vietnamese, Japanese, Kiwi, North American, Peruvian, Mexican and Brazilian.

Recent posts

Book for my first supper club since the pandemic: Midsummer

May 19, 2022

caponata budget gourmet recipe pic: Kerstin Rodgers

Two delicious budget recipes for the cost of living crisis

May 13, 2022

budget gourmet recipes pic Kerstin Rodgers

Cost of living crisis: three gourmet dinner party recipes that serve 4, for around £2.50

May 6, 2022

Previous Post: « Longitude 65>190 degrees: Russian Revels at Global Feast
Next Post: Longitude 105 degrees: China at the Global Feast »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

MsMarmiteLover aka Kerstin Rodgers.

Chef, photographer, author, journalist, blogger. Pioneer of the supperclub movement.

This is my food and travel blog, with recipes, reviews and travel stories. I also stray into politics, feminism, gardening.

Subscribe to my mailing list

msmarmitelover

Kerstin Rodgers/MsMarmiteLover
I’ve taken down the previous post as it’s poor I’ve taken down the previous post as it’s poor timing considering what’s happened over the last 24 hours. Being British I’ve not grown up around guns. It’s interesting to be on this course and find out more about the reality of them, although my focus is learning the ‘golden triangle’ of first aid, communications and navigation. But at the same time It’s depressing how in America nothing will ever change regarding gun law. RIP.
Me as a punk. #pinkhair @caplanmelissa Me as a punk. #pinkhair @caplanmelissa
Sniffin’ glue: Me n @Jaybladesmbe at the Loctite Sniffin’ glue: Me n @Jaybladesmbe at the Loctite pop up yesterday. I’m all about repairing and upcycling my brocante finds: this time a beautiful pale wood lamp shade stand which had broken off at the bottom. I’m going to rewire it with 2 core sky blue twisted fabric wire, pop on my hand sewn pleated lampshade I learnt to do @workshopminerva and it shall be beautiful. Don’t chuck out your chintz: repair it! #therepairshop #selfie #interiors #popup
in June I’m having my first supper club in two y in June I’m having my first supper club in two years: here is the link to book: https://msmarmitelover.com/product/midsommar-supper-club £50 18th June  Saturday night. Byo.
#chelseaflower coming up. Last year I bought these succulents and planted them in a vintage zinc garden sieve. Now they are flowering. My balcony is like a little greenhouse: I can grow aubergines & other plants that usually need to be under glass. #londongarden #may #plants #succulents in the garden
Lemon drizzle cake. The trick is not to stint on t Lemon drizzle cake. The trick is not to stint on the citrus. I used 7: 2 Italian lemons (from Lidl):some ordinary lemons and some limes (18p) at Lidl. Don’t be afraid to mix and match your citrus. I also used buttermilk from @fenfarmdairy in Suffolk from their honesty shop. Last night we ate it still warm from the oven. #cake #lemondrizzle #homebaking #citrus #buttermilk
A Simple tomato, goats cheese and basil salad, spa A Simple tomato, goats cheese and basil salad, spanking fresh asparagus / fried in olive oil, season, then add a little boiling water, not too much, put on the lid, dressed with lemon zest & Parmesan, @fenfarmdairy baron bigod cheese, good bread. This is how I like to eat. Claire’s plates found at the beccles brocante. #suffolk #suffolkfood #supper #dinnerwithfriends  #vintageplates
Can’t wait to see what they will be like when th Can’t wait to see what they will be like when they are fired. All my favourite themes: gingham and scallops. Thanks to @clairebelljar for a wonderful weekend and pottery workshop. Such fun! #workingwithyourhands #playtime #creativity #ceramics #pottery #suffolk
Making plates with talented potter & old South Ham Making plates with talented potter & old South Hampstead girl @clairebelljar in Suffolk. She has the most beautiful house I’ve ever seen. Such a joy to be reunited with her. #friendsreunited #makers #potters #scalloped #wildflowers #cowparsley #pottery
Another budget gourmet recipe, the Sicilian capona Another budget gourmet recipe, the Sicilian caponata, which is like a more interesting ratatouille, in which you add capers, olives & vinegar. £2.50p. I was asked to develop a series of recipes which were delicious enough to serve at a dinner party but also cheap. I shopped at Lidl. #costoflivingcrisis #budgetgourmet #recipe #vegetarian #vegan #lidluk
Mackerel pâté, a recipe that cost under £2.50. Mackerel pâté, a recipe that cost under £2.50. Lemon & herb smoked mackerel fillets from @lidl (take off skin)3 big scoops creme fraiche from Lidl and juice of half a lemon. Blend. Plenty of black pepper. Serve with bread. #budgetgourmet #costoflivingcrisis #eatorheat
Just wrote a very personal piece for @hamandhigh o Just wrote a very personal piece for @hamandhigh on my decade as a single parent on benefits, how I learned to cook & how things are so much harder now because not only are ingredients pricier but the cost of cooking them is too. 3 budget gourmet meals serving 4, for £2.50 each. #costoflivingcrisis #budgetgourmet #povertyshame #singleparents #foodblogger
Easter Sunday. Daffodil skeletons. Easter Sunday. Daffodil skeletons.
Just made @davidlebovitz recipe for blood orange u Just made @davidlebovitz recipe for blood orange upside down cake as I had some to use up. It tastes very marmeladey. Probably used too deep a pan. #sundaybaking #recipe #thelastofthebloodoranges #april #easter
Today learning how to build a dry stone wall in t Today  learning how to build a dry stone wall in the cotswolds which is famous for the picturesque walls & hedgerows. My teacher, Richard Gray, told us about the different stones: face, foundation, pin & coping. It is a mortal ( mortar?) sun to use cement on a dry stone wall- it means the stones can’t breathe. These walls last 100 years- they cost £300 a metre. A pro can build 3 metres a day. Richard once did a quote for kylie Minogue. His firm is Hillrise stonework. This course is run by @notgroveholidays There is a world championship for drystone walling. #craft #building #drystonewall #cotswolds #staycation
Ukrainian inspiration: cabbage rolls stuffed with Ukrainian inspiration: cabbage rolls stuffed with rice, mushrooms, garlic, dill. Baked with sauerkraut & mushroom stock for 1.5 hours. Delicious comfort food. #cookforukraine #vegetarian #cabbagerolls #sauerkraut #easterneuropeanfood
Getting there. Making a pleated lampshade for @sie Getting there. Making a pleated lampshade for @siennamarla’s living room. Fabric from @clothshoplondon training by @workshopminerva frame #making #craft #sewing #lampshade #interiors
Stuffed peppers with roasted buckwheat, feta, dill Stuffed peppers with roasted buckwheat, feta, dill and a sour cream, tomato & smoked paprika sauce. Kasha or buckwheat can be bought at polish shops. It’s a grain but full of protein. I did a recipe with it in v is for vegan - a stuffed cabbage. You can buy plain or roasted. #cookforukraine #buckwheat #kasha #stuffedpeppers #vegetarian #visforvegan
Ukrainian quick cucumber pickles dipped in honey. Ukrainian quick cucumber pickles dipped in honey. Strangely addictive. Recipe from next weeks column in the ham and high. #cookforukraine #supperclub #slavaukraini #pickles #dronedowner #ukraine #recipe
An etched glass window in my bathroom to replace t An etched glass window in my bathroom to replace the very fashionable fluted glass I had. Thing is this glass works better in a flat dated 1906. Glass by @baronglass  #interiors #etchedglass #bathroom #trellis #londonflat
Making Ukrainian Easter bread, with sour cherries Making Ukrainian Easter bread, with sour cherries and saffron, adapted from a recipe in Mamushka by Ukrainian chef @oliahercules #slavaukraini #easter #baking #sour #sourcherries #supperclub
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Archives

Copyright © 2022 msmarmitelover