Machar jhol is a classic Bengali spicy fish curry flavored with the goodness of mustard. The best way to eat this dish is with plain white rice. Here is a really excellent recipe. You must use a good mustard oil to make this dish as that is what gives it flavor. Generally mustard oil is available at any Indian grocery store.
Ever eaten the vine and leaves that the pumpkin grows on? In India this is rather common in the Northern parts and is really delicious and healthy. Here is how we make this dish in my mother’s kitchen.
This recipe is another example of the spicy side dishes called “achars” which are prevalent in Nepalese cuisine. This version is eaten over boiled potatoes but one can substitute the potato for any vegetables cooked or raw, such as cucumbers, radish, steamed asparagus – even tofu and so on.
Here is another really tasty tinda recipe. This seasonal gourd is available mostly in summer in India and can be found in some Indian grocery stores in New York too. Here is one of the ways that Surinder – the cook in my parents home in India, makes this vegetable.
Being of Pahari and Punjabi origin, kundru is one of those not so common vegetables which was constantly cooked in our home.
I’m not sure if this vegetable is available in the Western part of the world. It is also known as ivy gourd, gentleman’s toes, tindora or kovakkai – depending on which part of India you are from.
Often people are under the misnomer that “curry” is a spice that is often used in making all the delicious gravies and curries that abound in Indian food. However, a curry comprises of several ingredients and spices that are cooked together to actually create the final product.
There is a place for “curry powder” in certain kinds of Indian cooking but for most part – any curry that is created involves time and the culmination of several different elements.
Here is a recipe for a simple chicken curry.
Lentils or dals in Indian cuisine are often cooked into delicious aromatic stew like concoctions. However lentils can be cooked in stir-fried versions too and here is a simple recipe on how to do just that.
