Just a quick update on the spice grinder business. The James Martin grinder has proven such a success that I have done away with most of the ground spices like cumin and coriander. I have started to grind my own which really makes a difference; more so than using the old mortar and pestle.

T63

Yes Robert. They are all halves.

http://ayurzona.wordpress.com/2007/10/01/kitchari-a-basic-and-delicious-indian-meal/

Do any of you good guys and gals have a decent recipe for tandoori pheasant?

My wife and I shoot flying game and our golden rule is we eat what we shoot. Pheasant can be so dry and I have seen a number of celebrity chef recipes that concentrate purely on the breast meat, (cooked on the stove top!) which is such a waste.

If there is a good recipe for oven/tandoori pheasant I would be most grateful.

T63

I would suggest the BBC Madhur Jaffrey book from her first BBC series; it is one I leave and go back to constantly. At the moment Atul Kochur is one of my favourites so I am experimenting with a lot of his recipes. Anjum Anands books are also interesting. Camellia Panjabi has reissued her 50 favourite curries a few times and it is a very good book I have worked through, but she hasn't sorted out all the anomalies in the recipes.

I do buy Indian cook books from all over the world and I experiment mostly with traditional recipes. I started out with the BIR books, Kris Dhillon and Pat Chapman, many many years ago but having worked in various parts of the world I realised that there were so many different flavours to try that I didn't wish to concentrate solely on BIR.

Enjoy your cooking, you will make the errors that we have all made, burnt onions was my most common one, but do try as much as you can. Whilst BIR's make a cracking meal there are some very good traditional recipes out there.

I don't tend to do the BIR stuff very much being more of a traditionalist. However I did make the Rick Stein curry once. I don't recall how it turned out however. I know some people have raved over the curry.

Butter Chicken - Camellia Panjabi

Link to Camellia Panjabis butter chicken recipe. The video originally came with a revised copy of the book if memory serves me right.

Karachi Restaurant Bradford - Lamb Karahi with Rick Stein - Hmmmmmmmm curry

Saw this in the Times of India and thought of you!

A spicy route to good health
Spices do much more than just flavour your food. Used correctly, they are a storehouse of curative properties

Spice is nice and even nicer in traditional Indian cuisine. Think about it, what would our curries, gravies and sabzis be without essential ingredients like chillies, turmeric, coriander and the likes? And what would a tadka be without mustard, cumin and curry leaves? And there's that all important garam masala which - as the name suggests - is a blend of an assortment of spices.

But taste isn't the only benefit you can derive from spices. Ask the elders in your house and they are sure to start off a litany about the various medicinal properties of all the spices that are a part of everyday cooking. Yes, just like each of these spices have their unique flavour, in their own way they also work to contribute to our health. While turmeric is being researched for its potential to prevent cancer, coriander seeds, which have anti-inflammatory properties, are being studied for their connection to cholesterol reduction. The flaming red chilli is associated with a range of health benefits including reducing congestion, pain relief, prevention of stomach ulcers and even weight loss.

But as the golden rule says, you need to use them in moderation, as using these spices in excessive amounts may just work adversely and harm you. Below are a couple of spices (that we use rather extensively) and their medicinal properties explained:

Garlic (Lahsun)
Yes, it may give you bad breath but when you consider its medicinal properties, that is a small price to pay. Right from helping in maintaining cholesterol and high blood pressure levels to fending off colds, heart disease, infection and even impotence, garlic also has antifungal and antibiotic properties. Research has also proved that garlic has the ability to reduce the formation of cancer causing compounds and slowing the growth of tumour cells. It also helps raise the levels of HDL (good cholesterol) and prevent LDL (bad cholesterol) from building up on the walls of the arteries, thus reducing the chances of plaque formation. In fact, just two cloves a day can reduce your cholesterol level by a massive nine per cent. For those suffering from hypertension, garlic helps control the blood pressure by thinning the blood and keeping clots from forming. Remember, one can obtain the most out of garlic when it is consumed in its raw form, crushed or finely chopped. However, don't overdo it - excess garlic can irritate the digestive tract.

Ginger (Adrak)
Apart from flavouring your morning cup of tea, ginger works wonders to treat a whole lot of illnesses. Its anti-inflammatory properties make it a natural remedy for heartburn. It is also effective against morning sickness, migraine, cold and flu, stomach ailments and even those dreaded menstrual cramps. Ginger is also being researched as an effective treatment for ovarian and colon cancer as it has been found to induce cell death in ovarian cancer cells and slow the growth of colorectal cancer cells.

I went to a friends 50th birthday BBQ last night. Earlier in the week they asked if I could bring over some side dishes to help feed the masses. I presumed that they wanted something "curryish" as that is "what I do".

I new some veggies were attending so I knocked up a few vegetarian side dishes; this recipe went down very well. Personally if I were to cook it for guests at home I would drastically up the spices but it suited the occasion and the different palates. Here is the original version that I cooked up yesterday.

One thing I found was that 20 minutes cooking time left the rice and lentils with no bite so I think 15 minutes may suffice. I also pre-soaked the lentils for a couple of hours.

I use a 250ml cup and this resulted in a huge amount of Kitchari but it all went.

"Kitchari is a seasoned mixture of rice and mung dal. It is a meal which is capable of nourishing all tissues of the body. Kitchari is rich in protein yet easy to digest giving tremendous vitality to any individual. Ayurvedically, it is a tridoshic meal which means that it is suitable for all 3 constitutions or doshas- vata, pitta, and kapha.   It is also excellent for detoxification and de-aging of cells as well as any time an individual wants to give their system a rest.
Serves 6
Ingredients
1cup Mung Dal (split yellow) 2 cups Basmati Rice, white 8 cups Water
1 inch Ginger root, fresh, chopped or grated
2 teaspoons Ghee
! tsp.Turmeric
! tsp.Coriander Powder
! tsp.Cumin Powder
! tsp.Whole Cumin Seeds
! tsp.Mustard Seeds
quarter of a teaspoon of Mineral Salt
1 pinch Asafoetida (Hing)
Handful Fresh Coriander Leaves
1.5 cups Assorted Vegetables ? zucchini, asparagus, or sweet potato, corn, peas, or edamame can be used as well. (I added half a cup each of sweet corn, peas and baby broad beans)
If using you can saut? them along with the ghee in the beginning or add later.

Preparation
Carefully pick over rice and dal to remove any stones. Wash in at least 2 changes of water. If time allows let the mung dal soak for a few hours before cooking, as it helps with digestibility. If you have a particularly difficult time digesting beans, you may want to precook the beans for 20-30 minutes using 4 cups of water.   In a saucepan over medium heat, heat the ghee and add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds and hing. Stir a moment until the seeds pop. Add the rice, mung dal, turmeric, fresh ginger root, cumin powder, coriander powder and salt and stir.
Add water and vegetables. Enough water to cover all contents in saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes, uncovered, stirring occasionally.Turn down the heat to low and cover, leaving the lid slightly ajar. Cook until tender, about 20-25 minutes. Add fresh Coriander as a garnish and serve. Can also eat with fresh yogurt on the side."

Quote from: 976bar on August 07, 2011, 02:34 PM
Is this BIR or traditional Indian cookery? Sounds more like traditional cookery to me as I have never seen this on an Indian restaurant menu. That's not a bad thing and if it tastes really good I would be willing to try this, but there really needs to be some more feedback on what you thought how it turned out...... and why doesn't anyone post pictures of any new curries they make on here?

The dish is a traditional dish, hence it was posted in this section. I don't as a rule take photos of what I cook but will definitely make a point of doing so in future.

I only ever post the recipes that I think are good enough to share, but the whole taste thing is very subjective.

As a rule I find that most recipes in modern Indian recipe books tend to turn down the spicing. I usually ramp it up a bit; over the years I have got to know how much of this and that to add to satisfy my palate, this tends to mean copious quantities of garlic and chilli.