Author: sujatanz

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BHUBANESHWAR, INDIA

There is much more to India than the golden triangle. Bhubaneswar, Odisha is the state capital and a city with a 100,000 temples. The city is well connected – less than 7 hours by train from Kolkata or there are flights from anywhere within India.

Konark Sun Temple

This is my fourth visit to the city and honestly speaking thoroughly appreciated the beauty of this city on this visit. The city and her people are very resilient as they bounce back quickly after every major cyclone. The huge banyan and pipal trees spread throughout the city also caught my attention.

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RATATOUILLE

If ever I had to represent summer on a plate, this would be the dish I would create. This is a recipe that is a classic but evolved over time. Having said that it tastes different every time I make it, owing to seasonal changes.

I love the flavours and also what this dish stands for. For me, it is about summer vegetables, long evenings and barbecues. You can serve this with crusty bread for light dinner or serve it as a side dish with barbecued meats. Either way, it is super easy, delicious and vegan plus it adds to your vegetable intake for the day.

Ratatouille

INGREDIENTS

400g butternut pumpkin, peeled, seeded and chopped

1 large red onion

3 zucchinis, chopped

2 peppers, 1 red and I yellow, cored, seeded and chopped

1 eggplant, diced

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MASALA KICHADI & RAITA

Masala Kichadi and Raita

Kichadi is essentially a dish made with rice and lentils. There are so many versions of this dish and it is comfort food in a way – because it is simple, easy to prepare and so creamy. Incidentally kichadi is one of the first solid foods babies eat. My version, of course is a spicy one and makes for a very convenient, one pot dish.

INGREDIENTS

300 grams Basmati rice, rinsed well

100 grams mung dhal, rinsed well

150 grams onions, peeled and finely sliced

300 grams medium potatoes, quartered or into eighths

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MIXED VEG BHAJI

Mixed Veg Bhaji

This is a dish that keeps on giving. I say that because I tend to make a large batch and use it for toasted sandwiches or Indianish quesadillas a few days down the week! To make the dish more balanced and sumptuous, I add a tin of chickpeas. You can use seasonal vegetables of your choice.

INGREDIENTS

½ cauliflower about 400 grams, washed

1 potato (150 grams), peeled and cut into bite sized pieces

1 carrot (100 grams), peeled and cut into 5cms batons

1 cup of cut frozen beans

½ cup frozen peas

1 x 400 grams tin of chick peas, drained and rinsed well

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CHARMING ADELAIDE AND SURROUNDS

Holy Trinity Church, Adelaide

There is something for everyone in Adelaide, South Australia. Whether you are looking for the best restaurant, hotel, wine, gin or the beach, it’s all within easy access of Adelaide. Okay, they may not have won the title best botanic gardens or most scenic, for me, this city has ticked both those boxes as well. Prior to Europeans arriving on 28 Dec 1838, The Indigenous Australians called the Adelaide area Tandanya, which means the Place of the Red Kangaroo. Adelaide was a planned city and it was named after the wife of King George IV. At first the settlers were British or Irish but in the mid-19th century many Germans settled in Adelaide and the surrounding area.

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A MEXICAN FIESTA – VEGAN BURRITO BOWL

A Mexican Fiesta with pot of beans, colache, arroz verde and pico de galle

When I think of Mexico, I think of hot chillies, corn, tortillas, beans, tomatoes, avocados, cactus, Mayan empire… When the Spanish conquered Mexico in the 16th century, they added to the culinary evolution and what we have is a cuisine that is as rich and varied as the county itself. Here is my very basic elements to create a vegan burrito bowl. You can add a fajita to this or mix and match in any way you wish.

POT of BEANS

This is so simple but so delicious. Be sure to get good quality dry black beans and when you soak them, they are a deep claret coloured. It is worth the effort to make from scratch and recommend resisting the urge to use tinned ones as the end result with dried black beans is just so much nicer tasting.

INGREDIENTS

400 grams dry black beans

300 grams onions, sliced thinly

5-6 garlic cloves, peeled

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PAKODIS

Pakodis

In northern India, these onion dumplings are called pakoras and in the southern regions they are called pakodis. In my opinion, pakoras have softer centres whereas pakodis are really crispy. It is a popular street snack in the South, where there is a stall around every street corner and the tired workers are drowning their tiffin of pakodis with hot masala chai. The smell of these dumplings being fried is equally tempting!

INGREDIENTS

1 cup besan or chick pea flour

¼ cup rice flour

300 grams onions, peeled and sliced finely

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CHOW MEIN

Chow Mein

Chow means stir-fried and mein (shortened from meing) meaning noodles. It is served all over the world with variations in Westernized Chinese restaurants.  Just as with any other dish, it has been noted that chow mein tends to be very different from what is served in China and is heavily modified to fit the taste preference of the local dominant population.

What most people don’t know about India, is that there are a number of Chinese that settled down in India in the late 18th century and so there is a distinct Indo Chinese cuisine.

I have tasted many a time in India and my version is based on that memory.

INGREDIENTS

 400 grams dried egg noodles

300 grams firm tofu

200 grams mushrooms, sliced

1 red pepper, cored and sliced

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PUMPKIN GNOCCHI WITH BURNT BUTTER

Pumpkin Gnocchi

When we were newly married, my husband used to surprise me by cooking special one off meals. On one such occasion, he made the most perfect pumpkin gnocchi. Alas, we didn’t save the recipe. I have been wanting to replicate the same for many years and after lots of trial and error, this recipe works and thus ending my quest for the perfect pumpkin gnocchi recipe. This is slow cooking and perfect if you want to spend a Sunday afternoon lovingly preparing for the family for dinner.

INGREDIENTS

1kg pumpkin (I used a piece of crown pumpkin with the blue grey skin)

2 teaspoons olive oil

450 grams flour plus more for rolling out gnocchi

1 whole nutmeg, grated freshly

½ teaspoon white pepper

A couple of pinches of sugar

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