Dhaas Bindi

This simple side dish is impressively tasty, winning over even those who dislike okra for its "slimy" texture which is thoroughly removed.

Dhaas Bindi

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients:

8 oz fresh okra

4-6 cloves garlic, minced

1 gren chilli, minced

salt to taste

1/4 tsp turmeric

2 1/2 tsp coriander powder

1/4 tsp red chilli powder

a pinch of asafoetida

oil

Preparation:

Rinse okra with water and dry with a paper towel. Slice off the ends, and make a slit through the okra.

On a plate, mix together the garlic, chilli, salt, turmeric, coriander, red chilli powder, and asafoetida.

Carefully stuff the spice mix into the okra, taking care not to damage them.

Cooking:

Heat oil in a frying pan, and fry the okra, tossing every few minutes, until the stuffing is browned. Take care not to overcook the okra, as dark brown okra will not taste very good.

Serve hot.

Aloo Tuk

Not the curry, look above it. Common to Sindhi cuisine is Aloo Tuk, deep fried potatoes sprinkled with chaat masala. You can mix your own chaat masala (although finding all the ingredients could be more difficult than finding pre-mixed chaat masala, though you could probably make something acceptable without all of them), so a recipe is included.

Aloo Tuk

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time:

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

6 big potatoes

oil for deep frying

chaat masala

Preparation:

Thoroughly wash potatoes and slice lengthwide into four pieces each. Heat oil in a small pot, and deep fry the pieces for about 5 minutes at 325. Then remove them from the oil, and lay them on a flat surface and beat them flat with the back of a spoon- if they break a little, that's ok.

Return the pieaces to the deep frying oil and deep fry again, until golden brown (about 3 minutes). Drain on a paper towel and sprinkle with chaat masala.

Chaat Masala

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

1 tbsp cumin seed

1/2 tbsp dried mint leaves

1/4 tsp caraway seeds

1/4 tsp asafoetida

1 tbsp rock salt

2 1/2 tbsp dried manga powder

5 cloves

1 tsp ginger

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tbsp black peppercorns

2 tsp salt

Preparation:

Put all ingredients into a spice grinder and mix thoroughly.

Chapter 17 : Sindh (Pakistan)

The division between Indian and Pakistani cuisines is blurry, at best, due to the partition of India. Muslims and Hindus lived side by side in Sindh, where historically there had been no violence between the two groups. After the partition of India, however, the Sindhi Hindus found themselves increasingly the target of violence, relocating into India.

Sindhi cuisine is not vegetarian, although Muslim Sindhis observe Halal meat guidelines, so pork isn't common. Certainly, beef, lamb, fish, and chicken would be consumed, although in researching Sindhi cuisine we found a wealth of vegetarian recipes and eschewing meat seemed easier than not.

Curry, of course, had become well known worldwide, whether it be Indonesian Gulai, Japanese Curry Rice, Jamaican Curry Goat, or even German Curry Ketchup. But of course, it is originally from the subcontinent of India. Less well known is the Curry Leaf, which is commonly used to make curry in Southern India especially. This Sindhi recipes makes use of the enigmatic leaf.

This also uses Gram Flour, otherwise known as Besam/Besan. Gram flour is made from chick peas, and its unique flavor is used to make a sort of chickpea/butter ghee roux in this recipe. You might be able to replace it with white flour, although the flavor would certainly be very different.

Fenugreek can be found in most ethnic groceries, though not in mainstream groceries. It has a maple-like scent, and nothing else seems even vaguely like it.

Asafoetida is an allium that is found powdered, usually in Indian groceries.

Sindhi Curry

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time 1 1/2 hours

Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:

3 tbsp ghee

1 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds

a pinch of asafoetida

4 tbsp gram flour

salt, to taste

1 tbsp grated ginger

2 green chillies, minced

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp red chilli powder

20 curry leaves

1 tbsp cilantro, chopped

1 tbsp mint, chopped

2 tbsp tamarind pulp

1 1/2 chopped vegetables (carrots, okra, and potatoes, though you may need to pre-boil the carrots and potatoes)

Produce a Roux:

Heat the ghee, then add the cumin seeds, fenugreek, and asafoetida. Fry until lightly borwn, and then sift in the gram flour, stirring constantly. When the gram flour becomes golden brown in color.

Cooking:

Slowly add 4 cups of warm water to the gram roux., stirring in a little at a time. Add salt, ginger, green chillies, turmeric, and red chilli powder. Add vegetables and curry leaves and bring to a simmer. When vegetables are nearly done, Add the mint, cilantro, and tamarind pulp.

Serve with aloo tuk.

Kashmir Ki Kali

If one dish showcases the unique aromas of mustard oil and asafoetida, this peculiar dish is it. The original recipe called for peeling the potatoes prior to deep frying them. while probably traditional, I'd hardly call it necessary.

Dama Oluv

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 2 1/2 hours

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

2 lbs small red potatoes or fingerlings

1 cup mustard oil (possibly more for deep frying)

3 cloves

1 tsp cumin

1 pinch asafoetida

2 tsp red chilli powder

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp ginger powder

1 tsp aniseed powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup yogurt

1 tsp garam masala

1 tsp mixed black pepper, cardamom, and cinnamon powders

Cooking:

Clean the potatoes thoroughly, with a potato brush if you have it. Then boil them, skin on, until they are soft. Drain them, and prick them all over with a fork.

Deep Frying:

Heat the mustard oil in a small pot, and then deep fry the potatoes in the mustard oil until they become light, and most of the moisture has been forced out of them. Be patient! This step will take a while.

And More Cooking:

When finished, let the oil cool, and then pour 1 cup of oil into a large pot. Heat the oil, and then add cloves, cumin, and asafoetida. Stir it, and then add the chilli powder, turmeric, and 1 tbsp of water. Keep stirring until the oil begins to separate.

Add the yogurt, aniseed, and ginger powders, and stir until the yogurt is mixed in. Add the fried potatoes, stirring them until they are covered in the spice mixture, and then add enough water to cover the potatoes. Bring to a simmer, and cook for at least an hour, until the oil separates.

Add the garam masala, and the mixture of pepper, cardamom, and cinnamon powders. Mix gently, and serve!

The recipe takes both time and patience, but it is very unique and delicious!

Sikandar

Fenugreek probably isn't a spice you're familiar with, nor is it used in western cooking. You have tasted it, since the seeds provide the "imitation" maple flavor in pancake syrup. It is one of the oldest spices/herbs used, and you may find it in import stores. The Indian terms menthi and methi are the most common alternate terms.

Methi Maaz is a unique mix of lamb, mustard oil, and fenugreek.

Methi Maaz

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cooking Time: 1 hour

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

2 lbs boneless lamb, cut into chunks

2 lbs fresh fenugreek, chopped

1 cup mustard oil

1 tsp ginger powder

2 tso fennel powder

1 tsp turmeric

1 pinch asafoetida

2 cloves

4 brown cardamom pods

2 cinnamon sticks

1 cup milk

3 tsp dried fenugreek

salt to taste

Cooking:

Put lamb cubes into pot in 3 cups of water and boil until they are semi-tender. Remove the meat from the broth, and save the broth.

In the broth, add ginger powder, fennel powder, cloves, brown cardamom pods, cinnamon, turmeric, and milk and boil the stock for ten minutes. Then remove from heat and set aside.

Heat mustard oil and add adafoetida and salt. Using your hands, crush the fenugreek and fry for a couple of minutes. Add the meat and fry for a couple more minutes. Add the broth and simmer until it reduces to a gravy.

Sprinkle dried fenugreek on top, and serve with rice.

Chapter 9 : India - Kashmir

Half a century ago, India won its long-fought "peaceful" war of independence against Great Britain, onlyto split into two countries, India and Pakistan. One part of India, Kashmir, is precariously cut between the two, with India controlling a larger portion of this land.

Kashmiri food is similarly divided, between the vegetarian and non-vegetarian. The Kashmiri cuisine of the Muslims uses meat, lamb being the most popular, while the Hindus survive on a variety of vegetables, and both using India's amazing array of spices.

Butter Ghee

Butter Ghee is common across India for its rich flavor.

Mustard Oil

Mustard Oil mis common for flavoring and deep frying in Kashmiri cuisine. It's pungent aroma might seem daunting but it adds a wonderful flavor to recipes.

Asafoetida

Asafoetida is a spice whose aroma is so powerful, one can smell it sealed and frozen through plastic wrap. It smellls of rotten onions and garlic, and a pinch can flavor a dish.

And it tastes... wonderful. Sure, it might stink up your spice cabinet so badly it's all you smell when you open it, but once fried up in some oil the miasma of rotten onions vanishes and the flavor comes out.