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Food articles including view about Indian cuisine are posted in this section

Sara Gray from Easy Appetizer Recipes gives a heads up on Raclette grilling and some recipes..

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Raclette… what the heck is raclette?

Well, think of it as a combination of fondue and BBQ. It’s the most fun way to have a party or a gathering or a celebration for your family.

It’s special. It’s unique. And you’ll amaze your friends when you invite them over for a different kind of dinner. It’s the name of a meal that can be an entire meal or just as a fun appetizer.

The name comes from the practice of melting cheese and the French word “racler” meaning “to scrape.”

History buffs will tell you that this custom of melting cheese began on the faraway hillsides of the Valais region of Switzerland. This is recorded around the end of the 19th century. During the fall when life got chilly, and the wine harvest was coming to an end, the grape harvesters would bring their bagged or sacked lunches made up of a little loaf of brown bread, sometimes some cheese, and always, a bottle of wine.

As legends are told, the custom of raclette began with the men stabbing a piece of cheese with a large buck knife. They would then go to the fire made up for warmth and hold the stabbed cheese over the fire. As the cheese made contact, it would start to melt. The result was a beautiful golden texture just perfect for sopping up with bread or whatever else they had in their sacks.

As the men slowly scraped the melting cheese, others recognized how good it all tasted. And good it was! So begins a custom of grilling cheese that has a long tradition in both Switzerland and France.

Grilling Raclette cheese is only part of it.

Not only will you be thrilled with this fun and easy way to entertain, but anybody you introduce to it will immediatly want to have their own grill.

These recipes are many and varied. I’ve tried to include a couple of the best ones and will continue to add more as time goes on. There are endless varieties and ways in which to use this wonderful mode of cooking.

Below are some of my favorite recipes and some information about cheese and indoor grilling. Enjoy and grill to your heart’s content!

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Rohana ismail gives us a sneak peek into Malaysian Cooking…read on..

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Malaysian Food - A mix of ethic Indian, Chinese and Malay tastes

Malaysia is the home of multiple ethnicities which found its roots during the colonial times where hundreds and thousands of immigrants arrived here to find an honest living in this prosperous land.

The migrants mostly Chinese working in the tin mines and the Indians placed along the rubber estates brought along with them their cultures not forgetting rich culinary heritages. The cultures go along fine with their cooking where unusual traditional gathering usual accompanied by exotic mouth watering cuisine, that make up the Malaysian food recipes.

As time goes by these cooking somehow assimilated with the Malaysian local customs thus giving birth to a much more diverse and uniquely types of cooking not found anywhere else in the world, such as the famous roti canai, a kind of bread unlike any other bread is not made of yeast and has a uniquely oily textures, thanks to the acrobatic ways the dough is being flung around while in the process of making it.

The Indian Connection

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Guest Foodie, Yee Lee�Wong writes about unique street fast food in Hong Kong.

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If you have visited Hong Kong in the past, you should have tried the typical HK street food stalls and had a taste of the famous curry fish balls there. If you haven’t, then you must make sure you will try it the next time you are there.What is so special about it? Standing in front of a food stall like this, you will be able to see a wide selection of food choices. My favourite would be the curry fish balls and the pig intestines. Of course these may not sound mouth-watering to some of you but I am sure you will be able to find something which you fancy eating. Octopus balls, beef balls, minced pork balls, octopus, squids, chilli wrapped with fish meat, chicken wings or tips, fish balls and lettuce in soup, fake shark fin soup, cow tripe and many others are all available.

Just go to Mong Kok, you can easily find one at each street corner. Then of course, these types of stalls are everywhere in HK.

Most of these stalls do not provide seating but some do. With those few which provide seating, very often you will also find noodles available. When I was small, I used to enjoy a bowl of these noodles for lunch. At that time, it did not cost me more than HK$1 per bowl. These days, you will not be able to enjoy one bowl of such noodles for at least HK$15.

You can combine as many ingredients as possible in one of these bowls of noodles. The only difference is that the more ingredients the more expensive your bowl of noodles will be. There are already at least four types of noodles which you can choose from - greasy noodles, flat noodles, thin noodles or rice noodles. If you want you can have some vegetables. Apart from some Chinese noodles, you can also have the western choice of lettuce. Then there are the meat options. The most popular would be pig’s intestines, pig’s blood and pig’s skin. However, if these sound revolting to you, then you can choose some more common ones such as fish balls, chicken wings, meat balls, pork belly meat, fish dumplings, pork dumplings etc.

There is one thing to remember. One may not find these places very hygienic. I am not saying that you should refrain from trying any of these places since it is one of the specialties in HK. The food on offer is generally very well cooked, so you should not have any problems. What you need to do is just to be careful. If you are already having difficulty acclimatizing to the new environment, then I would advise you to leave these eating places until another time.

Gather your courage and I am sure the food from such stalls will not disappoint you!

Goji Berries are found in the high mountains of Himalayas. With a very high nutritional level than other fruits and vegetables, Goji Berries are said to be the solution to today’s stressed lifestyle. According to gojiberries.us, an online Goji Berries seller,

“The modern day executives are always tired with all the stress and running around that forms an essential part of their lives. This causes early aging and reduced energy levels for everything.

Regularly eating Goji berries, the Himalayan wonder fruit with the highest nutrition value and antioxidant properties can impart new energy levels and enable you to live an energetic life and carry out the daily grind with vigor.

Many people who now eat Goji berries on a daily basis have noticed improved eyesight, restoration of hair color, improved libido, mood enhancement, noticeable improvement in energy levels, better sleeping habits and more zest for life.”

According to another Goji Berry seller, http://www.go-go-goji.com/,

“Research has shown that many of the world’s longest living people consume regular daily helpings of a tiny red fruit that may just be the world’s most powerful anti-aging food—the goji berry.”

Source: prweb.com

Note: This article does not endorse or imply the usage of Goji Berries nor does it promote the companies mentioned. Readers are requested to make a rational decision based on expert advice.
 

Updated April 7th, 2008  

Indian food Kitchen Blog wishes all of you a happy Ugadi.

“Yuga Ugadi Kaledaru Kaledaru Ugadi Marali Baruthide” - As each year passes on with the Ugadi (new year), it will always return to ring the new year bells.

This article features facts about Ugadi celebration and also the popular recipes.

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Guest Chef Lynne Birch gives us 3 soup recipes to beat the summer heat ( Summer’s in India now). These make use of a food processor or a mixer and take less than 10- 15 minutes to make..

Summer Vegetarian soup

This is great tasting soup with a touch of Italy included. It is super easy to make and very healthy. It is particularly good on a hot summer day

an avocado - skin and pit removed of course
4 tomatoes - they may not be quite juicy enough (see below)
Basil to taste (Thai basil is really good in this)
4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

Process:

How easy is this soup? Simply throw everything into your food processor and mix until it is smooth. If you find that it is more like a smoothie than soup, simply add more liquid (or swap one of the Roma tomatoes for another more juicy variety). Pour into bowls, garnish as you wish (minced chives are nice) and enjoy.

Sensational Salsa & Black Bean

This soup is a very simple soup that takes just a few minutes to prepare. It can be served hot or cold, but always benefits from being heated. Roughly 4 servings

INGREDIENTS:

2 normal sized cans of black beans (any brand is OK, but try for low salt)
1 1/2 cups soup stock (Just use chicken, beef, or vegetable bullion)
1 cup of your favorite salsa (chunky makes a heartier soup)
1 teaspoon cumin (best to use fresh ground in the soup and you can sprinkle seeds on top too)
1/4 cup of sour cream
1-2 green onions chopped fine

Process:

Put the beans, salsa, cumin, and soup stock into a food processor (a blender is OK too). Puree the mixture until it is creamy in texture. Pour the mixture into a mid-sized pot and heat on low-medium until it is completely hot. This allows the flavours to merge. If you are going to serve it cold, move it to the fridge to cool off till it is time to eat. To eat it hot, simply serve into bowls and garnish with the onions and some of the sour cream.

Mango Soup

Mangos are simply divine. They are great as a fruit, mixed into drinks, added to salads. They also make a really good cool summer soup which is explained below.

Ingredients:

1 large RIPE mango (it will be soft, no squishy, to touch)
2 cups chicken soup stock (make your own or use bullion if you must)
1 TBSP lemon grass (available in most Asian markets, it looks like long
greenish reeds when you buy it)
1 TBSP ginger - Freshly chopped is best
Ground chili peppers to taste
1 cup yogurt (2% plain is best)
2 TBSP cilantro (chinese parsley) chopped fine

Process:

Chop mango and put in food processor. Mix briefly and then put in the ginger, lemon grass, chili and 1/2 cup of soup stock. Mix again till everything becomes very smooth. Move the soup into another bowl (be sure it is large enough) and mix in first the rest of the stock, and then the yogurt. This is best served cold, so put in fridge till you are ready to eat. Then put into bowls and serve with the cilantro as the garnish.

As the temperature starts to go up give these soups a try. They are all very simple and will add a new delicious and healthy dimension to your summer diet.

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Recipe Courtesy : Lynne Birch from My Kitchen Appliance. She writes on home decor and kitchen topics http://www.my-kitchen-appliance.com/.

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Soup Recipes at our site

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Japanese food, similar to Indian food, uses rice (mostly boiled) as part of thier menu. Here the author of Mycookery.com, Noraini Maksuri shows us 3 ways in which Japanese cook rice.

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Rice Recipes at Indian food Kitchen

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Rice may be cooked by 3 methods, each of which requires a different proportion of water. These methods are boiling, which requires 12 times as much water as rice; the Japanese method, which requires 5 times as much; and steaming, which requires 2-1/2 times as much.

Whichever of these methods is used, however, it should be remembered that the rice grains, when properly cooked, must be whole and distinct. To give them this form and prevent the rice from having a pasty appearance, this cereal should not be stirred too much in cooking nor should it be cooked too long.

JAPANESE METHOD - Rice prepared by the Japanese method may be used in the same ways as boiled rice. However, unless some use is to be made of the liquid from boiled rice, the Japanese method has the advantage of being a more economical way of cooking this cereal.

JAPANESE METHOD (Sufficient to Serve Eight)

• 1 cup. rice ;
• 1-1/2 tsp.
• Salt;
• 5 cups. boiling water

Wash the rice, add it to the boiling salted water, and boil slowly for 15 minutes. Then cover the utensil in which the rice is cooking and place it in the oven for 15 minutes more, in order to evaporate the water more completely and make the grains soft without being mushy. Serve in the same way as boiled rice.

BOILED RICE

Boiling is about the simplest way. Properly boiled rice not only forms a valuable dish itself, but is an excellent foundation for other dishes that may be served at any meal. The water in which rice is boiled should not be wasted, as it contains much nutritive material. This water may be utilized in the preparation of soups or sauces, or it may even be used to supply the liquid required in the making of yeast bread.

BOILED RICE (Sufficient to Serve Eight)

• 1 c. rice
• 3 tsp. Salt;
• 3 qt. boiling water

Wash the rice carefully and add it to the boiling salted water. Boil rapidly until the water begins to appear milky because of the starch coming out of the rice into the water or until a grain can be easily crushed between the fingers. Drain the cooked rice through a colander, and then pour cold water over the rice in the colander, so as to wash out the loose starch and leave each grain distinct. Reheat the rice by shaking it over the fire, and serve hot with butter, gravy, or cream or milk and sugar.

STEAMED RICE

To steam rice requires more time than either of the preceding cooking methods, but it causes no loss of food material. Then, too, unless the rice is stirred too much while it is steaming, it will have a better appearance than rice cooked by the other methods. As in the case of boiled rice, steamed rice may be used as the foundation for a variety of dishes and may be served in any meal.

STEAMED RICE (Sufficient to Serve Six)

• 1 c. rice;
• 1-1/2 tsp.
• Salt
• 2-1/2 c. water

Wash the rice carefully and add it to the boiling salted water. Cook it for 5 minutes and then place it in a double boiler and allow it to cook until it is soft. Keep the cooking utensil covered and do not stir the rice. About 1 hour will be required to cook rice in this way. Serve in the same way as boiled rice.

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Noraini Maskuri enjoys cooking and has professional training in bakery. She owns the site MyCookery.com and runs the blog at http://www.mycookery.com/blog/

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Now check out different Rice Recipes in our main site…