MellowDrama

When KFC opened an outlet in Chandigarh, it must have dreamt of cash registers ringing almost instantly; after all,  Punjabis are known to relish their chicken. Unfortunately though, the outlet found it a wee bit hard to attract customers, owing to the very typical taste of American fast food. Eventually things — rather ingredients — had to be toned to suit the Punjabi palate and now if you go into the same branch located in the Sector 8 market, you will hardly find a place to sit. This is a case in point that in India we know our taste buds very well. A huge range of fast food coming from various countries has had to be adapted to suit us. Look at the innovative pizzas that are available right, left and centre. Pizza Hut recently came up with as many as 15 variants of the Italian dish where flavours were derived from regional preferences. The names of these offerings were as sumptuous as the dishes themselves. You got to pick between Chettinad Paneer, Nimbu Mirchi, Sev Puri,

Thanks to this one dear girl, Prerna Uppal , I got an opportunity to do a couple of articles for a magazine called Prismma. One of the articles is out in the July-August issue of the magazine. The main character of this story is Black Garlic. If you have always liked the garlicky taste in your Indian or Italian dishes, you will love it all the more in the length and breadth your Japanese and Korean cuisines. Or maybe you would like to applaud the dessert for the taste lent to it by the black garlic. Yes, you read it right- black garlic- is here and is making place for itself in kitchens all over the world. The Culinary Gene: Black Garlic

You cannot escape its tantalising aroma as you cross the street and the mere mention of some of these preparations is sure to get your mouth watering. Yes! You guessed it right. I am talking about the rich variety of our yummy street food. Earlier on, no mohalla (neighbourhood), worth its name was complete without these street hawkers who would come to sell their preparation, especially to the women folk during afternoons. Street food today ranges from simple snacks like chaat, paani puri, sev, chuskis, jalebis to full meals like aloo puri, fried rice, chowmein, aloo matar kulcha for the working masses. Every Indian city has a special trademark ‘street food’ where it is a part of everyday life to take a snack break while catching up with the day’s gossip. Let us dig a bit deeper from one end of the country to the other. Delhi, the nation’s capital, could well be called the street food capital of the country. Dilliwallas, I think would like to take credit for the one-of-its

One of the most important festivals in Hindu tradition, Rakhi, has just gone by. This festival symbolising the great love between sister and brother is synonymous with yummy mithais being made in almost every household. We are two sisters but our mother made sure that we did not feel left out of the celebrations and so we were involved ceremoniously in making motichoor laddoos. Oh! What an indescribable pleasure it was. The whole process of making those yellow balls of delight would get us excited days before the actual event. As we grew up we came to love other variants of this versatile sweet. My sister, who is a much better cook than me, has gained proficiency in making modaks. Modaks are a popular form of sweet from western and southeren India. The mention of modaks brings to mind the colourful and vibrant celebrations of Ganesh Chaturthi. The sweet filling is generally made up of freshly grated coconut and jaggery while the outer shell is made of rice or wheat flour mixed

As a child I was totally taken in by the beauty of these small, white pearls called sabudana, which I thought were made of soap. I don’t really remember where I gathered that impression but my interest in sabudana led me to find out more about it. According to an urban legend, a European settler in Kerala once saw a local man sitting and digging under a rather tall and a thin plant. The European gentleman asked him what he was doing. The busy man answered in Malayalam, “Thappiyoka” which means ‘I am searching...’ The poor European thought that he had been told the name of the plant and gradually it came to be known as tapioca. Sabudana or sago is basically starch. It is extracted from the tuberous root of the cassava plant. Tapioca or shakarkandi’s root is processed to gain a white starchy liquid which is then factory-processed into desired shapes. The white pearls are the most popular one though I am sure you must have savoured it as roasted papad, or as fried sticks as well.

there are many waays to kneel and kiss the ground. i have been often told that there is so much in my life for which i should be greatful to god so i thought that today i will kneel. 1. for being born in palampur and enjoying peace, love and nature that are inherent to the surroundings of my city beautiful 2. for meeji. she is the most benevolent, caring, not-so-gentle, loving, accomplished and prettiest grandmother that ever lived on this planet 3. for my pest sister who is a shoulder i have leaned and cried on, my sounding board, and all the things that sisters are meant for 4. for all those who have taught me to read and write- teachers, parents and relatives. i would not have known the joy that comes to me while i do these things had it not for them 5.for my lovely hair- straight and black 6. for my sense of humour 7. for different people who came in my life when i needed guidance and love 8. for my well functioning body parts that have served me well for these 28