Skirmishes with Kettles #765423
With Amma going on a business trip to Tirunelveli on Saturday (the business in question being my wedding preps) The Chief Chef cap adorned my head on Sunday. The day dawned beautifully with a cup of hot, steaming coffee...a lovely brew which energized Appa so much that we launched our 'Clean House on Sundays' drive with a never-before-found enthusiasm.
Together we swept away those cobwebs, swabbed the floor spotlessly clean, washed the many stinking clothes. While Appa relaxed himself in a refreshing shower, i set foot inside my arena for another brilliant display for those gastronomical juices. The only ammunition i found - Eggs, Onion, Raw mangoes :(
With a stacked cupboard even a novice can do wonders but with such materials will even a Taj Chef deliver? Naah, but the fighter in me wouldn't be defeated so easily.
Clap! Clap!* Drum Roll*
Strategy: Sambhar, Rice, Scrambled eggs.
Plan: Call Amma at Tirunelveli and find out where is Sambhar powder. The answer was, "The one in the RmKV bag, yet to be unpacked." Cooking is so Simple.
Setback1: There are 2 RmKV bags with 2 coloured powders, which is for Sambhar? Decided to rely on intuition than another STD call; i chose the darker one as Amma's Sambhar always looked brown.
Did all the necessary pre-reqs, like getting tamarind juice, adding two heaps of 'Sambhar powder', sauted the small onions with Vendhayam and finally poured in all together and waited for it to boil.
10 minutes. Hmm...it kinda smells like Sambhar but why is it looking like that?
20 minutes. Err...something's amiss. Added the Dal.
30 minutes...Still no signs of that promised Sambhar.
Call Amma again.
"Did you take the slightly yellow one? No? Silly girl, you used Puli kuzhambu(thicker dish unlike Sambhar) powder not Sambhar powder. Two? U needed just one."
That's settled. I took the concoction off the stove.
Lunch served.
Appa looked at the bowl of...let's call it 'My Sambhar'. He smiled and said, "So this is Sambhar that looks like Puli kuzhambu tho it is actually puli kuzhambu that should taste like Sambhar"
I mumbled something and we finished lunch with curd rice, pickles and scrambled eggs.
Late in the evening Somu called. Appa picked up the phone and the only thing he wanted to tell his adorable Maapillai was, "Oh she tried to cook and sadly i had to tatste it. It was not Sambhar by a yard's distance. All i can do is wish you the best and hope you know some cooking"...followed by peals of laughter.
My Appa is the greatest...critic!
Psst: As for the number in the title...Well every other blogger i know has at least one title with a number, so decided to join the bandwagon too :p
Together we swept away those cobwebs, swabbed the floor spotlessly clean, washed the many stinking clothes. While Appa relaxed himself in a refreshing shower, i set foot inside my arena for another brilliant display for those gastronomical juices. The only ammunition i found - Eggs, Onion, Raw mangoes :(
With a stacked cupboard even a novice can do wonders but with such materials will even a Taj Chef deliver? Naah, but the fighter in me wouldn't be defeated so easily.
Clap! Clap!* Drum Roll*
Strategy: Sambhar, Rice, Scrambled eggs.
Plan: Call Amma at Tirunelveli and find out where is Sambhar powder. The answer was, "The one in the RmKV bag, yet to be unpacked." Cooking is so Simple.
Setback1: There are 2 RmKV bags with 2 coloured powders, which is for Sambhar? Decided to rely on intuition than another STD call; i chose the darker one as Amma's Sambhar always looked brown.
Did all the necessary pre-reqs, like getting tamarind juice, adding two heaps of 'Sambhar powder', sauted the small onions with Vendhayam and finally poured in all together and waited for it to boil.
10 minutes. Hmm...it kinda smells like Sambhar but why is it looking like that?
20 minutes. Err...something's amiss. Added the Dal.
30 minutes...Still no signs of that promised Sambhar.
Call Amma again.
"Did you take the slightly yellow one? No? Silly girl, you used Puli kuzhambu(thicker dish unlike Sambhar) powder not Sambhar powder. Two? U needed just one."
That's settled. I took the concoction off the stove.
Lunch served.
Appa looked at the bowl of...let's call it 'My Sambhar'. He smiled and said, "So this is Sambhar that looks like Puli kuzhambu tho it is actually puli kuzhambu that should taste like Sambhar"
I mumbled something and we finished lunch with curd rice, pickles and scrambled eggs.
Late in the evening Somu called. Appa picked up the phone and the only thing he wanted to tell his adorable Maapillai was, "Oh she tried to cook and sadly i had to tatste it. It was not Sambhar by a yard's distance. All i can do is wish you the best and hope you know some cooking"...followed by peals of laughter.
My Appa is the greatest...critic!
Psst: As for the number in the title...Well every other blogger i know has at least one title with a number, so decided to join the bandwagon too :p
posted by Kumari at 8:10 AM
8 Comments:
LOL!!! :) God bless Somu! err...can he cook?1 ;o)
So you have some weapons to deal with your maamiyaar, naathanar, and other in-laws!!
To type in tamil, just type in the transliteration in this site:
http://www.jaffnalibrary.com/tools/Unicode.htm
and then cut and paste the tamil version in the blog.
And there was no hint in there. I love vikramadhityan stories.
Oh Oh, didn't you check for the "ability to cook" clause with Somu?? :O
My mom is writing me a recipe book (which includes many recipes including a "how to boil water?") as part of my dowry, I hope that will prove sufficient incentive for some Tamil reading man to be my gulaam for the rest of my/his/our life! :)
And err Sambhar with Scarmbled eggs? Aiyo Pavvam, to appa! :) Time to watch Mallika Badrinath on Jaya TV I am guessing! :)
And so many posts?????
Watch it, somebody we know will insist that you have no life! :))
@shub: Yes, God has blessed him with 'cooking talents'. Yipeee:-D
@Piggy: Thanks dude! No hints? Cool, then GM-4 wiull hit the screens soon:)
@Soups: Dats precisely what i asked at the 'ponnu-parthufying' ceremony and he answered in the affirmative. Why do you think i agreed? :p
When Amma is not in town, any recipe would be just fine... as long as it is edible!
All the best for the Blessed gulaam:) Damn why didn't my mom ever think of such ideas????
And loadsa posts is just to confound someone as to which post to honour with a nasty comment! plus thanks to your gun-wielding prowess, we wil be free for sometime at least? :-D
Yes, yes poor Chomu indeed. Good thing you get a lot of the MTR ready to eat stuff in the US !!
I guess it turned out better than my first attempt at making dosas !!
Wow! Atleast you seem to be trying to hone your cooking skills. I didn't even bother gathering some cooking skills before I got married.
My mom gave up and told my maamiyar (to-be then) that she should get herself prepared to teach me as I wasn't coming anywhere close to the kitchen!! Ha! Ha!
And to my own shock and surprise, I am cooking after coming to the US, and even having guests over who atleast claim they like the food! :)
How are preparations for the wedding coming along?
~Deepa.
@Vignesh: My cooking is definitely better than yours :p hehehe
@Deepa: Hey! What a pleasant surprise! Sadly i am miles away from becoming Sanjay Kapoor's(khana khazana fame)protege but that's alright!
Wedding preps are in full swing with just a month left :)
How are you & Shiv?
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