Anu Chenji

 

 

When I was a child, I wasn’t actually allowed to have food preferences. It was either eat whatever was on my plate, or face the consequences (namely, One Angry Mother). In spite of these strict restrictions, I managed to develop a distaste for capsicums and brinjals. Although my dislike for brinjal faded naturally, the story of how I was fooled into liking capsicum is another kettle of fish. 

 

I was probably ten years old, when my mother decided it would be more fun to have dinner on the terrace than at home (this was a common phenomenon – perhaps it was easier to get me to eat my food when there were multiple distractions). I was presented with a bowl of soup, which smelled delicious. It tasted even better. It was gone in a matter of minutes. I even ate seconds and thirds. I didn’t notice this at the time, but my mother was wearing a triumphant grin through this whole event. Still smiling, she asked me if I liked the soup. “Yes, it was super yummy!” I replied, all innocent. “Would you like to know what was in it?” Cue evil grin. 

 

I guess you can tell where this is going by now. Unwittingly, I had admitted to liking capsicum soup! That was the end of all conversation about capsicum for me. I could no longer say I hated it, because ONE TIME I liked capsicum soup. This was definitely a turning point in my childhood, as I realized that even parents could be manipulative to little children!

 

Amma, you will be happy to know that I have developed NEW preferences now. I will no longer eat cabbage, in revenge for your manipulative tactics. Ha!

 

 

 

 

 

 

As children, we tended to go for the sweets. As adults, unfortunately for our waistlines, we still do!! The only pickles I would deign to eat were the sweet ones – bellam aavakai (jaggery aavakai) and that too, if nothing else was available! I remember one conversation with a cousin at the end of which we decided that the best aavakais were the least chilli-ed ones! While too much chilli is still a problem – yes I am an authentic Andhra, at least half of me is! Today, aavakai with hot rice and ghee makes my heart sing for the day!

 

However much of a sweet tooth I may have, the genes come out in the making of the pickles. Store-bought? Sniff – is that a pickle? I have a friend who insists that if you can make pickles successfully, you’ve “arrived” as a chef! She says that it takes guts to make these – methinks it requires common sense and an ability to terrorise people! What’s that? Common sense basically in the cleanliness that pickles demand – a high level of hygiene, bathing, tying up hair so gross stray dandruff doesn’t fall in to spoil it, no colds and coughs so evil germs don’t breed in the pickle jar and so on…

 

Why terror? Coz it’s fun to scare people with “don’t breathe when i’m opening the jaadi (jar)” – this always results in an argument with my extended Tamil side of the family – (challenge to the Tambram-ism? ) Whatever – it has everyone jumping through hoops and THAT is a lot of fun – MWAAHHAAAHAAA says the Telugu Mugambo!!!

 

Back to basics – it’s really NOT that difficult to make pickles – here’s one you can make in ten minutes flat and enjoy for the month – gooseberry (usirikayi) pickle.

 

First bathe and then tie up your hair. Check for stray coughs and colds – if you DO have one, postpone the pickle making! Clean jar – wash and sun-dry or microwave till dry.

 

 

Gooseberries – about 18-20

Red chili powder – 3 tbsp

Mustard powder – 2 tbsp

Salt – 1.5 tbsp

Turmeric – 1 tsp

Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp

Sesame oil – 4 tbsp

Roasted methi seed (fenugreek) powder – 1tsp

 

Wash and dry the gooseberries. Prick all over with a fork. Set aside. In a pan, heat 2 tbsp of oil and add the mustard seeds. When they crackle, add 2 tbsp of chili powder and as it foams up, immediately add the gooseberries. Sprinkle a little water over the gooseberries. Cover and cook on a low flame for 4-5 minutes. Switch off, remove lid and cool. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Bottle and shake occasionally for 3 days. The gooseberries are ready!

 

“So how exactly do you make the thick pappu (dal) that Andhra households serve?” The inquirer was an elderly uncle of my husband’s and i was a new bride; the dish in question was “mudda pappu” (literally “lump of dal”)! Apparently said uncle had eaten it in many Andhra households and he had been trying – unsuccessfully – to get the ‘ladies’ to reproduce it in his kitchen – i must mention that I am married to a Tamilian and “pappu” by itself is not really a main dish in most Tamil households – it’s served as a couple of teaspoons to accompany other dishes.

 

His question stumped me though – how could anyone not know how to make ‘mudda pappu’?!! As it formed a major part of my diet till i got married, i thought it was one of those things that you just did – like making rice… or boiling water or sumpin… explanations and questions (do you roast the toor dal before cooking it? how much water should i put? how many whistles of the pressure cooker should i cook it for?) – phew!!

 

Got to thinking about it and realised that it’s exactly the same as teaching a South Indian to roll a perfect phulka – it’s acquired, NOT in the blood!! And each region has its own set of dishes for which they go “you really don’t know how to make this???” for everyday foods.

 

One of those everyday foods in a Telugu household is “maamidikaayi pappu” (raw mango dal) which i laughed my guts out to see on a 5-star hotel menu as part of an “exotic Andhra cuisine” festival!! “Seriously, you don’t know how to make this?”!!!

 

So here’s how to make this!

 

 

Raw mango – 1 small – peel and cut up any which way you like – i just slice them roughly – don’t chop up fine though. If the seed in hard, leave it in. If it’s still soft and white, discard. The hard seed is great to suck on while eating the dal – not very elegant though

Toor dal – 1 cup – cooked in 2 cups water along with a pinch of turmeric – 4 whistles and simmer for 5 minutes before you ask -you just might be an elderly uncle!!

Green chilies – 2 – sliced

Curry leaves – 2 sprigs

Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp

Urad dal – 1/2 tsp

Jeera (cumin seeds) – 1/2 tsp

1 large pinch turmeric

1 large pinch asafoetida

Jaggery – 1 tbsp (for a medium sour mango, more if it’s very sour)

Salt

Ghee (only ghee, oil just won’t do for this one) – 1 tbsp

Fresh coriander – chopped – 1 tbsp

 

Heat ghee in a pan and add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add urad dal and jeera. Add asafoetida, curry leaves and chilies. Fry for a few seconds. Add mango and turmeric and half cup of water.

 

Cover and cook for about 5 minutes till the mango pieces are tender. Add the jaggery and the cooked dal. Add salt and water till the dal is a thick pouring consistency. Bring to the boil and switch off. Garnish with coriander and serve with hot rice. You really don’t need a side dish with this dal – except maybe an ‘aavakai’!

“Click, whirrr… whatsapp” was my routine every evening as I consoled my very outdoorsy, athletic daughter who had elected to join the corporate world and by 5-ish every evening, was ready to jump out of her air-conditioned office window, having been cooped up the whole day without the fresh air she had grown up getting plenty of on the track and in the field!

 

Oh, and what i was whatsapping her every evening was a picture of whatever goodies I had baked/ steamed/ fried that day and the picture was to help her last through the next few hours before she came home from work – little ‘consolations’!

 

“Are you sure you want to do this??” had been my question to her as she finished college and made ready to join a consulting firm, knowing that she hated being cooped up for any length of time. Everyone learns lessons in their own time, I guess and said daughter being a quick learner – 45 minutes into day 1, was sure that this was not her thing in life!!!

 

Full marks to her for grit, however- she stuck it out over the next few months, learnt the ropes and became very, very good at what she was doing before deciding that now, it was okay to quit!  Those few months also saw some frenetic activity in my kitchen as I kneaded, rolled, stuffed and baked with a vengeance so she would have something to look forward to when she came back home and also to take with her to office the next day and share out with the other poor sods caught on the corporate roller coaster!

 

It is also this period that I have to thank for becoming a pretty handy baker!

 

Here’s one of the top hits to help last through your corporate workday – cinnabon rolls.

 

 

1 cup warm milk

2 eggs, room temperature

1/3 cup butter, melted 

4 1/2 cups maida (flour)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sugar

1 package yeast – 7 gm

1 cup brown sugar, packed

2 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

1/4 cup butter, softened

3 oz cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter, softened

1 1/2 cups icing sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt 

 

 

Dissolve yeast in warm milk in a large bowl. Add sugar, butter, salt, eggs, and flour. Mix well. Dust your hands lightly with flour and then knead the cinnamon roll dough into a large ball. It’s fun doing this and your arms get a good workout!

 

Cover the bowl and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour or until dough has doubled in size.

 

In another small bowl, combine brown sugar, cinnamon, and butter.  Mix them well. Sprinkle flour on a flat surface. Roll out your dough ball into a 16″ x 21″ rectangle roughly 1/4 inches thick then spread a 1/4 cup of softened butter on the dough. Next, sprinkle the rolled, buttered dough evenly with the sugar/cinnamon/butter mixture you prepared in your small bowl.

 

Roll up the dough starting with the longer side and cut into 14-15 cinnabon rolls – I prefer smaller rolls – less guilt about polishing off two small ones rather than one big one! Place the cinnamon rolls in a lightly greased 11″ x 15″ glass baking dish. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and let the cinnamon rolls rise until nearly doubled, which should take around 30 minutes.

  

Preheat oven to 180 C. Once your cinnamon rolls have risen, bake them in the preheated oven until golden brown, approximately 18 to 20 minutes.  The dough should still be soft, though fully cooked, especially toward the center of the rolls.

   

As your cinnamon rolls are baking, beat together cream cheese, butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract and salt for the icing. The icing should be spread on your cinnamon rolls when they are still warm, shortly after being taken out of the oven so that the frosting melts into the cinnamon rolls and your taste buds melt into fuzzy balls of anticipation!

 

“Don’t have too many of those or if you do, stay out in the garden!” was the admonition against eating too many of an all -time favourite – masala vadas!

 

Luckily, I come from a family who are all masala vada lovers – so we had plenty of company in the garden!! In fact, the son of a dear friend is so fond of these, he’s been known to put away twenty at a sitting. Naturally he is called “Waad-a-boy”!!

 

In the entire repertoire of South Indian cuisine, there surely is no “food item” as hot a favourite as these little morsels of crisp and crunchy, savoury yumminess! In my five decades, I have yet to meet a single person who does NOT adore these! In fact, I remember an uncle whose wife was one of the best cooks I’ve ever had the good luck to know (Ameena Murali mentioned in an earlier post – the lady with the magic fingers and the most awesome ‘kurma’) who, no matter how well she made these – masala vadas, would still insist that there was some fella in Rajahmundry (some 500 miles away!), who had a little roadside eatery who could make these better than anyone else in the world!!

 

Well, i don’t know about the Rajahmundry chappie, but for my part and for the rest of the cousins, my aunt’s masala vadais were the very top of the pops!

 

It was only many decades later that I came across another maker-of-masala-vadas as good, if not better – in fact, I am pretty sure that he is the THE king of masala vadas. The tiniest little hole-in-the-wall shop in Kotagiri, at a little corner called Danington (Donington which has undergone Tamilization!), a handful of ingredients – here is the man who has learnt to transform base “paruppu” into sheer magic!!

 

With a name like Adaingappa, the guy probably had to become the best at what he did to live down the name – the kids at school might have gone “Ada-inge-appa, Vada-enge-appa?” prompting him to one day throw one vada at said sniggering bunch of kids who then caught the whiff of the vada and instead of throwing it back, bit off a tiny bit???? That’s the way it must have happened!!!

 

Here is THE MAN’s recipe:

 

 

Chana dal – 2 cups – soaked for 2 hours

Green chilies – 4 – chopped fine

Curry leaves – chopped – 2 tbsp

Coriander – chopped – 2 tbsp

Onion – chopped – 3 medium

Salt

Oil for deep frying

 

Set aside 2 tbsp of the soaked dal. Grind the rest of it to a rough paste with very little water and the salt. Mix the rest of the dal and the chopped herbs and onions. Shape into flattish disks,s lightly fatter in the middle and fry on a medium low flame till crisp, very crisp!! The trick is to fry a couple of cloves of garlic in the oil first BEFORE you fry the vadas. There truly is nothing better. These vadas are so good they don’t even need a chutney to accompany them.