kitchen chemistry

Sweet Indian Raita

2007-09-03T18:01:00.000-07:00

If you like Indian food and are not lactose intolerant, you like Raita - an Indian yogurt sauce. I have not personally tried this unusally sweet Raita recipe, but I am planning on doing so soon. Here is a very unique approach to a classical Indian condiment:

Ingredients:
350ml - yogurt
50g- shelled walnuts
75g – seedless grapes
2 bananas
5ml granulated sugar
salt to taste
5ml freshly ground cumin seeds
1.5ml freshly roasted cumin seeds
Chili powder to garnish

I am planning on tossing everything into the blender and then topping the result off with the chili powder. I'll see how it goes.

This recipe was extracted from the indianfoodforum.com. Their method for creation is as follows:

Place the yogurt in a bowl, add the grapes and walnuts, slice the bananas straight into the bowl. Add the sugar, salt and ground cumin and mix them softly. Before serving, sprinkle chili powder and cumin seeds.

Good luck.

-pk

A Very Nice & Very Healthy Tzatziki

2007-08-31T19:21:00.000-07:00

As a lover of mediterranean food, I had to try my hand at making Tzatziki sauce. My batch not only ended up being very tasty but was also quite healthy. Here goes it:

I beagn with a base that was:

1. 1/2 Low-Fat Sour Cream and 1/2 Non-Fat Bulgarian Yogurt (pictured above)

I whipped the two together and then added everything else:

1. 1/2 of a very juicy Lime
2. A little less than a lot of Dill
3. 3 pinches of curry
4. Some fresh ground pepper
5. A sprinkle or two of garlic powder
6. 3 baby english cucumbers
7. And finally as much shredded carrot that looked nice

The result was a smooth, healthy, refreshing, tasty and immensely enjoyed Tzatziki dressing.

Have fun.

-pk

A No Go on the Mango

2007-08-30T22:44:00.000-07:00

This evening, I whipped up what I thought was going to be an amazing marinade. My attention to detail was in full gear as I pulled out a blender to properly distribute each ingredient to every inch of the fish.

Again, I cooked tilapia this evening. However, rather than using a coconut milk base, I used a mango one.

My marinade consisted of:

1. 1/2 a fresh Mango, sliced
2. A good amount of Mango juice - my base (maybe a little too much)
3. 1/2 a Lime (maybe not enough)
4. A handful of cilantro
5. About 5 mint leaves
6. A sprinkle of Sea salt
7. About 1/8th of a tiny tiny green chili pepper (hot)

I tossed all the components in my blender and watched the off yellowish color substance dance.

Contrary to what I assumed, the marinade was a bit flavorless. I seared the fish and maybe I did not add enough juice to the pan. I wish I were an expert, then I'd know.

Regardless of my result, I think the combo has promise. If tried with different proportions, I think that this mix can make a name for itself.

-pk

Brazilian/South Pacific/ Indian Marinade

2007-08-29T12:23:00.000-07:00

I just returned to the States from Brazil. I have always loved Indian food, and when I got home I was craving a dish that combined Indian flavors but that also had a Brazilian touch. I bought tilapia fillets and whole squids, I marinated them in a combination that was:

3 parts coconut milk, 1 part lime juice

I then added a good amount of:

Curry and Cilantro

The result was superb. The exotic scent of the concoction overtook my entire kitchen and the flavors did exactly the same thing to my mouth. I highly recommend this mix. The result:

This is my first post, and as you can see, this is not a place where measurements are mentioned. My concoctions are purely improvisational - more often than not, I am left very satisfied and other times, it might be the exact opposite; the constant in my kitchen is that it is always exciting.

-pk