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Posts Tagged ‘food’

I’m quite mixed up.


When people ask me where I’m from, I try to explain this pie chart to them.



Add to that the places where I’ve lived: Shillong, Calcutta, and Delhi.


I’ve grown up eating all kinds of food and I’m quite comfortable with a variety of tastes.


Also the fact that I come from a seriously crazy food-loving family. Here are some examples:


My grandmom makes a mean lemon tart.


My aunt is a speciality cake queen.


My uncle is a genius with pork.


My mum makes the most heavenly biryani.


And my dad can bake more than a 100 fruit cakes in a day.


I wanted to celebrate all those wonderful food experiences and that led to this: I’ve thought about this 100 Indian foods (and drinks) to try before you die list for months now. There can never be a perfect representation, because we’re a great nation of incredible food. I have tried to represent as many places as possible, but I’m sure some wonderful stuff has been left out. This is just my list, but I thought it would be fun to share it with you all. If you’re not sure what the dish is, click on it for a brief web description.


100 Indian foods (and drinks) to try before you die


Aachar
Aam panna
Appam and chicken stew
Aloo gobi
Aloo paratha
Aloo tikki
Anda bhurjee
Avial
Bamboo shoot pork
Beef fry
Bheja
Bhel puri
Bhetki paturi
Bread pakora/ bread roll
Butter chicken
Chaat (papri, aloo, raj kachori)
Chicken pakora
Chicken tikka masala
Chiwra
Chole bhature
Chuski
Daab chingri
Dal baati churma
Dal makhani
Dahi bhalla
Dhansak
Dhokla
Dosa
Dubka
Egg curry
Fenny
Gajar ka halwa
Galouti kebab
Ghugni
Goan sausages
Gobi manchurian
Golgappa/Panipuri/Puchka
Gujia
Haleem
Idli and sambar
Jadoh
Jal jeera
Jalebi
Kadhai chicken
Kadhi
Kahwah
Kaju barfi
Kedgeree
Keema matar
Khandvi
Kheer/Phirni
Khichdi
Kulfi and falooda
Laccha paratha
Laddoo
Lassi
Lemon rice
Luchi/puri
Maggi noodles
Malabar or Kerala paratha
Malai kofta
Masala chai
Masala coke/pepsi
Matar pulao
Mishti doi
Momos
Moong dal halwa
Muglai parantha
Mulligatawny
Mutton biryani
Naan
Nihari
Paan
Paapad/poppadam
Palak paneer/shahi paneer
Pao bhaji
Paya
Pork vindaloo
Rabri
Raita
Rajma
Rasam
Rasgulla
Rasmalai
Rogan josh
Roll
Samosa
Sandesh
Sarson ka saag and makki ki roti
Shahi tukra
Shammi/sheekh kebab
Sheermaal
Sorcshe ilish
Sorpotel
Tandoori chicken
Thukpa
Toddy
Upma
Uttapam
Vada pav


I’ve been lucky enough to have eaten/drunk all of these. Leave a number in the comments below telling me how many you’ve tried :) Also, let me know what you would add to this list. Have I left out any of your favourites?


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All good things start small.

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It began with a question: Wouldn’t it be great to connect some wonderful food bloggers through a surprise gift exchange?

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Who doesn’t like surprise presents, right?

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Bloggers from all over the country were paired up with each other. Each blogger had to send their partner a surprise parcel with some local food stuff, small gifts, and anything else they wanted. (It was recommended to include a handwritten note.) Then you would blog about it.

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At the start we had 18 bloggers. Some couldn’t manage it, but most did.

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Here are all the bloggers who signed up:

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Deeps of Naughty Curry
Madhuri of Cook Curry Nook
Sarita of The Clean Toothpick
Pratiksha of Honeyed Pandemonium
Jeetendra of Moody Foodie
Siri of Cooking with Siri
Apeksha of Veggie Wiz
Poorna of Presented by P
Ameya of Kitty in the Kitchen
Sid of Chef at Large
Ruchira of The Great Cookaroo
Geetha of Fragrant Kitchen
Renuka of Pinch of Salt
Marsha of The Harried Cook
Sangeeta of Health Food Desi Videshi
Rekha of My Tasty Curry
Nikhil of Nonchalant Gourmand

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Largely it’s been a success. From the feedback I’ve gotten, it seems that some packages lacked thought, while some others really went all out. That was bound to happen I guess.

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All I can say for sure, is that my partner did not disappoint. Not one bit :)

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Deeps, who blogs at Naughty Curry is one of the warmest people I know, and her blog is stunning to say the least. She has easy to follow step-by-step images with her recipes that make it a pleasure to cook, and her photographs always make me hungry.

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Look at this stash of wonderful things she sent me!

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My parcel included:

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A lovely bottle of orange-champagne marmalade. Yum!

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Some Sri-Lankan Blackcurrant tea. Very thoughtful, because she knows I’m a tea person.

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Mango pulp. You can’t go wrong with this.

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Lindt Intense orange dark chocolate! I’m saving this to savour it greedily, all by myself :D

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And, my favourite thing: Masala biscuits which she baked just for me. They’re delicious by the way.

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I also got a beautiful handwritten note with some really encouraging, positive words. Did I mention that all the gifts were tied up with a light-blue polka dotted ribbon? Too cute!

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Thank you so much Deeps. You’re wonderful! :)

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If you’re curious to see what I sent to Deeps, go here.

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If we do this again (I really want to!), and you’re interested to join, just leave me a comment below saying you are and I’ll get in touch!
It’s a wonderful feeling to spread a little joy :)

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Starry night

A very close friend is getting married in 10 short days.

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We’ve been friends for 2 years, although it feels like I’ve known her for a lifetime.

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The first day we ever spoke we discovered that we both love our dogs with that crazy kind of love only dog lovers understand.

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The same year we both lost our dogs and we shared a pain that only we could understand.

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We’ve had some unforgettable holidays together.

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Taken about a hundred pictures like this one in different places.

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Here’s another.

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She’s my perfect shopping partner.

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She loves Van Gogh’s Starry Night.

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These are the Starry night-inspired birthday cupcakes I made her.

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She has an eye for the most beautiful things. (Check out her Pinterest boards here- you’ll see what I mean)

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If anyone looks good in anything- it’s her.

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We’ve eaten everything together- from a Wasabi chocolate cake to deep fried crabs on a beach.

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She’s attracted to colourful things like a bee to a flower.

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We shamelessly love Shahrukh Khan together.

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One morning when I was miserable, she left a warm blueberry muffin at my desk with a little note.

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It’s as though we’ve had many years of friendship and fun, all packed into 2 amazing years.

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And now she’s leaving, and I want so much for her to stay.

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But what I want even more is for her to begin her fabulous new life, with her wonderful to-be husband, and just be insanely happy in whatever she chooses to do.

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I’ll miss you Shriya, and I feel so lucky to have found a friend like you.

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I know for certain we have many, many more amazing memories waiting to be created by us together. Love you!

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Eating in Thailand

I’m back :)

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After a relaxing, refreshing, exciting, and most importantly delicious holiday!

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Thailand is probably my most favourite food destination. The abundance of fresh seafood, seasonal veggies, tender meat, and gorgeous flavours makes it an unforgettable culinary haven.

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I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

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A tiny eatery on the streets on Bangkok, with warm food, and warmer people.

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An interesting red drink called Rozelle, made from a fruit.

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Warm, gooey doughnuts in between frantic bouts of shopping.

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It was hard to pick a flavour, as you can imagine :)

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Plump pork sausages, grilled on a stick. Perfect for a rainy day.

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Grilled chicken wings on sticks. Beyond delicious.

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What we had to choose from. Obviously, we took three of everything :)

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Local beer- Singha.

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A dressed-up mixed berry breezer. I couldn’t decide if I like the drink better, or the jacket!

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My most favourite drink in Thailand: Fresh coconut water. So refreshing, and sweet.

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Assorted crepes with a million choices- fruit, chocolate, biscuits, cream.

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Up, close, and personal with Mr Crepe :)

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These are the ones we got. The cream was made by angels. I swear it.

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We felt quite adventurous trying these traditional desserts. How colourful, right?

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We picked out some colourful bits, and it was served with coconut milk, sugar syrup, and crushed ice.

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Blueberry ice-cream yogurt. Sweetness of ice-cream and the healthiness of yogurt!

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A local wine-cooler. Seems innocent enough, but rather deadly, especially when combined with other drinks.

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Batter-fried squid alters your life.

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Thai fried rice, wrapped in an omelet. Isn’t that ingenious?

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Basil beans and pork, with rice. Don’t miss the sweet, star shaped rice arrangement :)

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Cold Chrysanthemum tea. SO good.

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More fried rice, with fish sauce. I could eat this every, single day.

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Chicken noodle soup. Wholesome, warm, and wonderful.

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Little fried crabs. I died with happiness.

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Here’s a closer look at a little fella.

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Plump and crispy fried shrimp.

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Freshly prepared crab and shrimp, right on the beach.

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Take a look at the shrimp. Isn’t he magnificent?

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Show-stopping pork kebabs :)

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Fried squid with tartare sauce and salad greens. Delish!

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Assorted Satay.

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Dessert: Creme brulee, vanilla-bean ice-cream and mango in a fudgey sauce.

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Prawn spring rolls, in a bed of mini crisps, with sweet plum sauce = Happiness.

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Colourful cocktails to celebrate a perfect holiday.

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Are you jealous? You should be :)

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There are so many movies that celebrate food.

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Julie and Julia.

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Ratatouille.

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Chocolat.

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The Waitress.

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And there are so many lists on the web that remind us of these wonderful movies.

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Here is one.
And here is another.

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I don’t know about you, but the number of movies I’ve watched recently has drastically plummeted from earlier.

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This is because I’ve fallen in love with tv-shows.

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I like the continuous engagement, the time taken for character exposition, and the languorous days spent in bed watching episode after episode like a person who has no life whatsoever.

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I enjoy watching vampires, islands, chefs, detectives, housewives, doctors, and high school kids to name a few.

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Yes.
I know.
I am an addict.
A crazy addict.

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So celebrating my love for tv-shows, I’ve put together a list of my top 8 food moments in them.
Yay!

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# 8 Modern family
Season 2/episode 1 (The Old wagon)
The chocolate milk scene

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This is the classic choice a few unlucky boys are forced to make at some point in their lives- mother versus “the other woman in his life”.
Regular chocolate milk versus chocolate milk with a pinch of salt to “bring out the flavour”. And Sofia Vergara’s accent is plain delicious!

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#7 Lost
Season 1/episode 8 (Confidence man)
The peanut butter scene

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Even though there is no actual peanut butter involved in this episode, the whole scene is really heartfelt. Charlie tries his best to get some of the real stuff for Claire, but when he can’t find any, he wins her over with an empty bottle and his charm. He says- “It’s full, full to the brim, with stick to the roof of your mouth, oh, god, makes you want a glass of milk extra smooth. It’s the best bloody peanut butter I’ve ever tasted.” I can practically taste it myself.
(Thanks a ton Charlie- now I’m walking towards my jar with a spoon.)

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#6 The Mentalist
Almost every episode
The tea scene/s

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Patrick Jane loves his tea. He describes tea as “a hug in cup”, and frankly I couldn’t agree more. He usually makes it himself, swiftly dipping the tea bag in a warm cup. It’s most interesting however, when he drinks it under great stress or immense calm. If you’ve seen the season three finale, you’ll know what I’m talking about.
P.s- How painfully cute is he?

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# 5 Desperate housewives
Season 7/episode 19 (The lies ill-concealed)
The pineapple upside-down cake scene

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Gaby (the woman who ordered chinese for Christmas) hides a headset in her lustrous hair (I would KILL for hair like that), and has Bree give her instructions for a cake that her husband (Carlos) knows she didn’t make herself. When he asks her to replicate it and she fails, Bree secretly replaces it with a perfect cake. Gaby then presents the cake to her husband, and says (very dramatically) “If only trust were as easy to make”. It cracks me up! :)

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#4 Glee
Season 2/episode 3 (Grilled cheesus)
The grilled cheese scene/s

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This is the one where Finn sees the face of Jesus in a grilled cheese sandwich and prays to it. Puck is at his charming best in this episode, singing Only the good die young. The sandwich itself looks really delicious by the way- perfectly crispy brown and cheesy. It makes me hungry.

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#3 Sex and the City
Season 3/episode 5 (No ifs, ands, or butts)
The cupcake scene

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When Carrie and Miranda ate those delectable cupcakes outside Magnolia Bakery, it was a big moment in cupcake history. Many say the hysterical popularity of the cupcake began as a result of this episode.
Such is the power of television.
And cupcakes.
I rest my case.

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#2 Friends
Season 7/episode 11 (The one with all the cheesecakes)
The cheesecake scene

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For those who have seen this episode, you must remember that creamy, smooth mess that Chandler and Rachel ate off the floor. Rachel described it as “a buttery, crumbly, graham cracker crust, with a very rich yet light, cream cheese filling…”. Does that not sound heavenly? And don’t you just love it when Joey walks in, pulls a fork out of his pocket, and asks very matter-of-factly- “All right, what are we having?”

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#1 How I met your mother
Season 4/episode 2 (The best burger in New York)
The burger scene/s

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The gang travels all over the city looking for what Marshall says was the best burger he’s ever eaten. And the description of the burger…sigh…”The bun, like a sesame freckled breast of an angel, resting gently on the ketchup and mustard below, flavors mingling in a seductive pas de deux. And then… a pickle! The most playful little pickle! Then a slice of tomato, a leaf of lettuce and a patty of ground beef so exquisite, swirling in your mouth, breaking apart, and combining again in a fugue of sweets and savor so delightful.”
I’m drooling. Right. Now. (please say you are too)

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I feel bad for leaving out vampire shows (I LOVE them), but I couldn’t for the life of me think of a food moment in any of them!
Can you?

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Images courtesy:

Modern family
Lost
The Mentalist
Desperate Housewives
Glee
SATC
Friends
How I met you mother

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