I finally gave a green light to the cooking classes that had been at the back of my mind for quite a while now. It felt like the right time since Petrichor has been temporarily shut down and I can’t speak for when it will reopen. So it felt like the opportune moment to not give up on what I love doing most especially when good friends come up and lend the much-needed support, letting that pass would have been a foolish thing to do.
My doors opened to my friends who came rushing in with bottles of red and the sharpest knives ever!
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Poster from my cooking class
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I determinedly stuck to teaching Nepali cooking to them (although that's not the only thing on the menu) entirely because a couple of them can out cook some of the best chefs on any side of the world...and yea, you can't teach a fly how to fly, right?
It was one of the 'funnest' days ever!!
Helly's got the best job in the world - Baking and shelling peanuts!
Susannah - Stringing beans
Denna - Mistress of all food Italian!
A quintessential of every Nepali kitchen - the silauto lohoro!
Cath - Roasting tomatoes for the achar
Tomatoes and chives - In chopped glory!
And we sit down to savour what we cooked
Simi ko Tarkari in peanut and sesame seed marinade, almost on its way to the table.
Fresh mint leaves and dried dalle - ready to be ground
Blanching Tomatoes
Mula ko pickle
This side of heaven
Roasting a tomato for the Silam ko Achar for that charred, rustic flavor...on a gas stove!
Take a look at the “Beginner’s”
MENU :)
Sadheko ko Aloo/ Aloo ko Achar
(marinade method) – Marinated Potatoes in Mustard
Ingredients
1 kg Potatoes
4 Tbsps Mustard Seeds
Dried Red Chilies
Salt
Coriander Leaves
Lemon
Mustard Oil
Method
Boil potatoes
until cooked. Cut them into bite sized pieces.
Toast the dry red
chilies and mustard seeds in a pan or 3-4 minutes.
Grind them to a
paste with the coriander leaves.
Heat a little
mustard oil in a pan and add the paste. Cook until oil comes on top. Remove
from heat.
Add the mixture
to the cut potatoes with some salt to taste.
Add some lemon
juice.
Toss well and
serve.
Sadheko Simi (marinade
method) – Marinated Beans in Peanuts and Sesame Mixture
Ingredients
1 kg Beans
250 gms peanuts
250 gms sesame
seeds
Salt
Turmeric
1 Tbsp Red Chili
Powder
1 tbsp Paanch
Phoren
Slit Green Chilis
Lemon
Coriander Leaves
Mustard Oil
Method
Dry roast the
peanuts and sesame seeds in a pan and grind them to a powder.
Blanche the beans
in slightly salted water until just done. Drain.
Heat oil in a pan
and temper the paanch phoren with turmeric powder, red chili powder and green
chilies.
Add the ground
peanuts and sesame seeds. Mix well with the rest of the ingredients in the pan.
Add the drained
beans and remove from heat.
Mix well until
the marinade mixture coats every bean.
Add salt to
taste.
Finally, put some
lemon juice and coriander leaves.
Toss well before
serving.
Tamatar
ra Silam ko Chutney – Tomato and Seeds Tangy Condiment
Ingredients
1 Large Red
Tomato
2 Dalles
Mustard Oil
Salt
2 Cloves Garlic
Chives
Churpi
Method
Roast the tomato
until charred.
Mix dalles,
mustard oil, salt, garlic and tomato in a blender or grinding stone.
Pour the achar in
a bowl and top with chopped chives.
Rajma
Daal (Braising) – Kidney Beans Gravy
Ingredients
1 kg Rajma Beans
5 Cloves Garlic
1 Inch Ginger
1 Large Onion
2 Large Tomatoes
1 Cup Tomato
Puree
Yoghurt to garnish
2 Tbsps Nepali
Spice Mix
Garam Masala
Bay Leaf
Salt
Ghiu
Method
Soak rajma beans
overnight in water with a pinch of salt.
Cook them in a
pressure cooker until soft and drain.
Chop ginger,
garlic, onions and tomatoes to an almost paste like consistency.
Heat ghiu in a
skillet and the mixture.
Add the tomato
puree, Nepali Spice Mix and let it temper for five minutes.
Add the drained
rajma beans to it, mix well and cook in high heat until the beans simmer.
Then cook in low
heat for 30 minutes.
Sprinkle Garam
Masala and a dollop of yoghurt.
Garnish with
coriander leaves before serving (optional)
Halwa
– Semolina Dessert
Ingredients
1 cup Sooji / Semolina
4 cup
water
Sugar
to your taste
2
Cardamoms
Raisins,
Crushed Cashews and Almonds
Butter
or Ghee
2
Tbsps Heavy Cream (optional)
Method
Heat the butter and add the sooji to
it, continuously stirring it to prevent it from burning.
On the other side, heat the water
and when it is warm enough, add sugar and cardamom to the sugar-water mixture.
Stir until sugar blends with the water taking care not to let the water boil,
only letting it get warm.
When the sooji is done, add the nuts
and raisins to it and then slowly pour the sugar-water mixture onto your sooji
while stirring it.
Stir it continuously until the
mixture starts to thicken and remove from stove.
Garnish with crushed cashews and
serve hot.
Bhat
Boil 3 cups of rice in 41/2 cups of water until half done.
Drain and steam in low heat for 10 minutes or until done.
Serve hot with the accompaniments.
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