Monday, September 28, 2015

Food : Sprouts Egg Pulav - My experiment

I was alone again today. What better could I think to engage myself in something I enjoy? Yes! Cooking has been my passion out of work. No one who cooks, cooks alone. In the kitchen, I am surrounded by generations of cooks past, mother’s advice and menus of cooks present, the wisdom of cookbook writers.
The more experiments you make, the better food.
When cooking, go by your own taste. So I came up with a unique recipe combining sprouts, eggs and some leafy vegetables. Considering the healthy benefits, I just mixed them and cooked for my lunch which turned out amazing.




















The recipe, if you want to try – SPROUTS EGG PULAV 
Serves 1 person
cooking time 20 mins
Preparation time 15 mins

Ingredients:

Cooked rice 1 cup (basmati or sona masuri)
Cooked sprouts – Green Gram + Horse Gram – 1/4 cup
Egg – 1 
Fresh Methi leaves – 1/3 cup chopped
Onion small – diced lengthwise
Green chillies - 4 slit lengthwise
Ginger-garlic paste or grated – 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds – 1/2 tsp
Cashews – 5
Garam masala – 1tsp 
Coriander leaves(cilantro) - fresh
Yogurt or curd - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste

Procedure :

1) Heat the pan and add 2 tbsp oil/butter 
2) Add the cumin seeds(jeera) until they splutter
3) Add the cashews and saute as they get colored fast
4) Now add the onion and saute for 30 seconds
5) Add the ginger garlic paste and green chillies until the aroma comes up 
6) Now add the chopped methi leaves, garam masala and fry them  for a minute until the rawness is gone
7) Add the curd and sprouts. Saute for couple of mins so that the curd is absorbed in the mixture
8) Add egg and mix it like a burji. Add salt per your taste and mix the cooked rice
9) Saute carefully so that the rice does not become damp and remove from the stove
10) Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve hot

Note:

1) you can add desiccated coconut while mixing other ingredients for rich taste
2) you can serve it with raita or shorba
3) you can alter this recipe for biryani taste as well
4) vegetarians can use either tofu or paneer instead of egg 
5) sprouts was microwaved for 7mins before using

Cooking is one failure after another, and that’s how you finally learn.


Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Food : Soya Chunks Pulav

The next best thing to eating food, is talking about it.
Your food choices each day affect your health — how you feel today, tomorrow, and in the future.
Good nutrition is an important part of leading a healthy lifestyle.  Being a vegetarian it is important for me to derive the proteins into my body. Excellent source of protein is Soya Chunks and my favorite too. 
It is quick to cook, with a protein content far greater than that which comes from meat.
Soya chunks are dry when you purchase them. They need to be reconstituted in water, which causes them to become spongy. Plain soya chunks do not have much flavor at all, but they absorb sauces, spices and flavorings well. Use them to make stew, soup, curry and masala dishes, salads and stir-fries.

When my wife was away, I decided to try soya nuggets for my lunch and came up with my own recipe from the experience I have gained with cooking for some years now. I wanted something very simple and minimal masala as against to the Indian food. I hope you like it just like I did. 

This being my first blog for a cooking recipe, I hope to continue my experiments and share with you guys who are like minded and open to trying varieties. 

Recipe - SOYA CHUNKS PULAV 
Serves 1 person
Cooking time 20 mins
Preparation time 15 mins

Ingredients :
Cooked rice 1 cup (basmati or sona masuri)
Soya chunks - 10 to 12 soaked 
Onion small - diced lengthwise
Green chillies - 3 slit lengthwise
Ginger-garlic paste or grated - 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Cashews - 10
Cinnamon - small stick
Cardamom - 1 
Cloves - 2 
Frozen green peas - 1/4 cup (as per your choice)
Beans - 1/4cup (as per your choice)
Carrot - 1/4 cup (as per your choice)
Coriander leaves(cilantro) - fresh
Yogurt or curd - 2 tbsp
Salt to taste

Procedure :
1) Heat the pan and add 2 tbsp oil 
2) Add the cumin seeds(jeera) until they splutter along with cinnamon, clove and cardamom
3) Add the cashews and saute as they get colored fast
4) Now add the onion and saute for 30 seconds
5) Add the ginger garlic paste and green chillies until the aroma comes up 
6) Now add the vegetables and fry them until the rawness is gone and crunchy enough to eat for about 2 mins
7) Add the curd and the soya chunks and saute for couple of mins so that the curd is absorbed in the mixture
8) Add salt per your taste and mix the cooked rice
9) Saute carefully so that the rice does not become damp and remove from the stove
10)Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve hot

Note:
1) soak the soya chunks in hot water for about 20-30 mins and dry away the water
2) you can add desiccated coconut while mixing other ingredients for more taste
3) you can add any other vegetables of your choice
4) also try adding methi leaves as they suit best with soya nuggets
5) you can add garam masala instead of the spices I have mentioned
6) you can serve it with raita or shorba
7) you can alter this recipe for biryani taste as well

Benefits of Soya chunks:
Nuggets are extremely high in protein.
They are pure vegetarian beans, hence good choice for the vegetarians.
Nuggets is rich in protein diet and essential for complete nutrition.
It is proven a healthy food item for young as well as for old people.
It is un-problematic food item, especially for diabetics and heart patients.
Soy oil is also very healthy in cooking.
Soya nuggets provides a good amount of vitamins, minerals, fiber and protein for growing children.
Soya contains high amount of fiber, it helps in loosing weight as well.
Soya bean is one of the best non-fish sources of essential omega-3 fatty acids, that can help in reducing the risk of coronary heart disease.
Soy protein can provide positive results for people with high blood pressure.
Soy protein has various benefits for the women, especially during the post-menopausal years.

Happy Cooking!

Friday, September 18, 2015

5 years..

5 years is a very long time.. Its time to revive my blogs..
Better late than never..
Lets not talk about what held me back or what changed my priorities.

Back to writing and reading... what I enjoyed the most..
Sometimes restarting the old hobbies is the best thing to do in life to keep yourself going..

.. and life goes on

Sunday, February 14, 2010

For You..


So much to say that I love you
Now that so much I need you
How would it be if you leave me
Feel it for me to believe me
I want to love but not alone
Living for you and dying.... for you

This is one jingle that caught my attention for the day.. Its just awesome.. and has so much to convey in just few lines. Oh my valentine.. this song is dedicated for you on this special day..
My search is still on.. and am waiting for you..

Sometimes... you just leave it god..
here I am.. for you..
Do you see my love for you growing?

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Is that all in life..


I would work towards getting the self-confidence which is less expensive and more satisfying in the long run, at least for me.

Some probably chose not to fully express their point of view. They seem to know what they want but not why they wanted it and whether it would actually satisfy their needs ever. That to me felt like living life in the reverse. Again its individuals view. If everyone was here to lead their lives individually what purpose does it serve to say it's a co-existence? Where do relations fit in here..

Reproducing the conversation transcript to let you know the thoughts of what people think:

X: leave it yaar... let me first become something in life......

me: and what is that something, X? Is it a definite goal or a horizon without an end?

7:30 PM     X: fame, money etc.....

     me: To what end, X?

7:31 PM     Is fame as important as life?

X: well...tell u once I get these two...

     me: Some of the people who do the greatest acts in their lifetimes don't get fame..

7:32 PM     Rudolf Diesel, after whom the fuel is named, the inventor of the diesel engine was not even recognized for his invention till after his death.. he died in poverty..

      and fame is something that Rakhi Savant can get if she parades semi-naked on a show..

7:33 PM     Is fame more important than achieving something worthy of fame?

     X: lol....

     me: No seriously..

      which aspect of fame are you after?

      The aspect of doing something great or getting noticed for it?

7:34 PM     X: tough to answer....

     me: It shouldn't be...

7:35 PM     ask yourself..

      if you would do things going out of your way for the benefit of people, even if you don't get the recognition..

      or whether you just want to be a page 3 celebrity..

     X: well m not rakhi sawant nor diesel..

7:36 PM     me: I always thought you were a confident and ambitious person, X..

      Confident people don't need to hanker for fame..

      After all, what is the meaning if somebody recognizes your work or not?

7:37 PM     Will it change the effectiveness of what you do?

      Steve Waugh comes down several times to India to help underprivileged children and NGOs and he does it whether the cameras are clicking or not..

7:38 PM     X: well... I don't know abt others..what they did n what they not.. I just want to get noticed ..thts it....

7:39 PM     me: What drives that desire, X?

7:40 PM     X: donno

me: You are a strong person, X..

      you don't need somebody to endorse that you are so..

      So I don't understand this need to get noticed..

7:41 PM     X: no...m not... i think all useless things......

7:42 PM     me: and where is the happiness here? If ten thousand people say you are a great person you fell happy? Vindicated? What if the next day twenty thousand people call you a b***h? something worse? Is that when you start thinking that you are worthless?              

X: LOL...dont make me think too much pal....


7:43 PM     me: Not at all, X..

      You should be the index of yourself...

      and not allow somebody else to make a judgment about you..

      You should know your worth.. and not let somebody else push it up or pull it down at will..

7:44 PM

      Nobody is perfect, X..

      nobody is fearless

7:45 PM     Nobody is free of temptations..

X: I know yaar....

     me: nobody is full of virtue..

      but every single person has to have faith in oneself..  X: :)

7:46 PM     me: You are a great person, X.. and you should not feel the need to get it endorsed by a group to realize it..

      Fame is what insecure people aspire for..

      They think it's a cloth that can cover all the bad patches..

      hide it from public view.. X: he he

7:49 PM     so u tell me...what should be done....

     me: Aspire to do great things, that is a worthy ambition X..

      What is fame? Money?

      They are no goals..

7:50 PM     Money is still a good goal..

      For you need money for everything in life..

      But fame? That is a silly pursuit..

      not unless you believe the fame can propel you even further.. you and your cause that is..

7:51 PM     X: hmm.... well m nothing now....so want to become something first.....

     me: that's not at all true..

      If you have nothing now, you can never be anything, X..

      I'm being very blunt, sorry for that..

      But you need to realize that there is latent potential in you..

      That's not nothing..

7:52 PM     If you don't have talent, potential, you will go nowhere..
     X: hmm

     me: Everyone of us has something..

7:53 PM     But many think they don't have anything. ... and that's when they go down in life..

      I might not be earning a fat pay-packet today, but I know I have potential..

      I believe that I can manufacture my own opportunities to come up even further.. that's not nothing..

7:54 PM     My bank balance may be nothing, but I'm NOT nothing..

     X: :) thts very much true what u said abt u...

     me: And it's true about you too, X..

7:55 PM     There is only one type of respect that really matters in this world, X..

      That is self-respect.

     X: :)


me: I don't need somebody to tell me that I am worthy of their respect before I respect myself..

      X, you don't need fame..

      You need self-respect.




Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Being me..


Radio Jockey(RJ) one of the passionate professions I dreamt to be on.. Did it for sometime during college.. My show on 91.1 FM used to happen every weeknight 9PM-12AM…The show I did was to ask the listeners of my show to drop in a SMS and I would call them back. Also just in case listeners wanted to leave a voice message 24/7, they hadto dial and reach out my IVR, speak their heart out and confess on what they wanted…this IVRS facility provided yet another platform me to connect with my listeners…and I realized that a lot of listeners started using the facility to reach out to me, may be they felt it more comfortable than a direct conversation. This is just like how you vent your heart out with a stranger exactly when you are unable to express the same with your loved or close ones.

One day, anonymous person had left a message saying that she is plagued with guilt about how she left her boy friend in lurch and got married to another…she kept in touch with her ex thinking she will try and ease out things with him, but realized that he was still not over her, and was insisting he would never marry another which made her feel even worse about things…for now she had changed her mobile number, but couldn’t help feeling guilty about the fact that even while she was with him, she never really explained to him why she would never be able to convince her parents about this relationship and why it wouldn’t work out..

This is such a classic situation…one thing I did not understand is that if people are already aware of such facts at the onset of a relationship and they know they won’t have the guts to stand up to their parents regarding their choice of a life partner, then why go along with the whole charade? or do we have a tendency to just leap into things, thinking jo hoga toh dekha jaayega [enaadru amele nodkoteeni]…I am thinking of the guy who must be left wondering what went wrong suddenly? How do you come to terms with the fact that somebody who professed to love you for a lifetime had suddenly chickened out and opted out of the relationship without even giving a proper reason? and the girl changing her mobile number must be another slap on the face…but maybe at that point it’s better for her to break all ties with him, and try to sort out things in her head…nahi toh agar aise hee baatcheet hoti rahi, toh samajhne samjhaane ke chakkar mein dimaagh ka dahi naa ban jaaye…[if not if the conversations continued, you would have gone insane]

As for the girl, I did not understand that it’s at times really hard to withstand the emotional blackmail that parents can put one through when they want their way…and sometimes it’s just easier to give in and surrender to their demands, and go by their wishes…but then you have to gather enough inner strength to let go of your past and start afresh, as like in this case, unless and until she stops thinking about her ex, and lets go of the guilt, she will not be able to give his 200% to her newly-wed hubby, her new life ,which deserves nothing but her best effort..

I hope she can get sorted out soon… can forgive herself for being weak, taking the easy way out and in the process hurting somebody so badly…and I hope her ex is also able to accept the fact that it’s over, and that its time to move on…can only try and imagine what he must be going through...
This is one incident I just reminisce for the days I spent as a RJ.

PS: tried out a different kind of narration to bring out some thought flow I was going through.
PPS: if you find it close to life, yes it is.
PPPS: Wanted to jot a story about this incident, bringing out the emotions involved in the situation. Somehow was lazy to narrate.

Monday, November 16, 2009

By My Side..



Save me from tears,
relieving me of fears.
For it matters my life,
with never ending strife.

Why are you so mean, 
allowing me to wean.
You wanted me to alight,
and make you feel alright.

Another day goes by,
without knowing the reason why.
Is that all you have,
me without any salve.

~Mohit