10-minute Rasmalai
This is barely a recipe–and worse, it’s not the kind I really advocate considering all the canned stuff it’s made from. But. I will make…
Arbi Tikkis: Deep fried Colocasia Nuggets with Yogurt Dip
It’s really hot in this part of the world right now. Metabolisms are sluggish, and kitchens are too hot to cook anything in. I have…
Baked Karanji and Baked Namakpare
The original, Marathi version of this article appeared in Loksatta on November 10, 2012 and can be read here. I got married on Dassera, and…
Baklava with Samosa Pattis (or Wonton Wrappers)
No, I’m still not coming to terms with the fact that Indian stores do not carry ready rolled pastry. Surely you remember this rant? I’m…
Bhadang
MK loves munchies—with chivdas and bhadangs topping the list. No matter how large a batch of chivda you make, it gets over in no time….
Bisi bele bhath: Sambar rice
When down, eat rice. I always go by that. Nothing can comfort you like a good serving of carbohydrates. This Bisi Bele Bhath (BBB) or…
Black and White Wednesday No. 5
Tapeli; traditional Maharastrian copper utensil used for cooking rice. Every time I go to Pune, I go to the Tulsi Baug Market, which is Pune’s…
Chakolya/Daal dhokli
A long forgotten Sunday lunch dish; a close cousin of the Gujarati daal dhokli, this lentil-based pasta is a favorite with my family. Just what…
Cheat’s Haandvo Recipe (Baked!)
Almost every corner kirana (grocery) store in Mumbai stores little plastic packs of Idli, Khaman (Yellow dhokla), Dhokla (the white kind), and Theplas, each with…
Chicken Sukka
If you’ve been reading along for a bit, you probably know by now, how much Mrs. B means to me. She entered the family…
Chivda
MK loves his munchies, as you know from here. It’s been a while since I made any. And because we’re just recovering from a tiff,…
Chutney pudi
When my great grandmother passed away and the family started sorting her things, they found a great deal of writing—diaries full of the family’s…
Chutney-stuffed pomfrets
My fisherwoman has been getting us the cutest little pomfrets this past week. They fit snug in the palm of my hand (which, I assure…
Crab and Pineapple Curry
{Scroll down for the giveaway!} This year is going to be about stepping out of my comfort zone. In the kitchen and otherwise. I think…
Creamed Corn (Maharashtrian style)
When we were kids, the only kind of corn we got in the markets was the white corn. Like a string of the best pearls,…
Crisp Koli Masala Prawns
A few months ago, when I first met an old blogger friend, Anjali Koli for the first time, she showered me with treats–some homemade peanut…
Dosas: South Indian Rice and Lentil Crepes
There are some things I absolutely must, always have in my fridge–cilantro, coconut, yogurt, lemons, and dosa batter. If even one of these is absent,…
Festive sweet
Food processor focaccia and 100 posts
Turns out, the last post I wrote was my 100th. This little jhola of mine has been with me through so much–I started writing the…
How sugarcane jaggery is made
I have always been incredibly fond of jaggery. One of my earliest memories is of sitting with my friend Madhura on the stairs of the…
How to make Ghee
Ghee. That quintessential Indian fat that must make an appearance as a cooking medium or condiment at every authentic Indian meal. I don’t know what…
Kaale Gaajar ki Kaanji
Come spring, Radha kaku would try and find out if her sister, Auntie Evie had any plans of coming down to Mumbai. Radha kaku had…
Kairi Panhe | Aam Panna | Raw Mango Cordial
I’ve been feeling a bit uninspired lately. There’s too much going on at once and I feel I’ve lost all creative abilities. The scorching heat…
Kokum Juice Concentrate
Before Maushi and Kaka moved to their lovely little red bricked bungalow in Khanapur, they lived in a rented love nest on the upper floor…
Maharashtrian Goda Masala Recipe
My great-grandmother was the world’s best cook. I know everyone says this about their mums and grans and aunts and other members of the maternal…
Maharashtrian style stuffed chilies/peppers
One of my favorite things in the vegetable market, to look at and shop for, is the variety of chilies/peppers. I love the hotness and…
Mango chutney
My maternal grandmother always had some chutney or other in her refrigerator. It’s a tradition I try to maintain. Not half because I like to…
Mango phirni: Mango and Rice pudding
Ramzan evenings on Mohammad Ali Road in Mumbai are an institution. I remember going there just before the day’s fasting came to an end and…
Mango sasav: Mango curry
If you’ve been reading my blog (ahem), you will remember this mango curry recipe. I make it every season, by the kilos, and it gets…
Mango sasav: Mango curry (1)
I have been resisting mangoes for a while. Actually, since Dada passed away, nobody in the family has been enthusiastic enough. The picture of a…
Mangoes, pickles, and a home lost
The Khanapur house had three mango trees. Against the red brick exterior of the house, the mature green trees offered a majestic and warm welcome…
Marathi Mejwani at APB Cook Studio
Rushina, my dear food writer friend and pioneer Mumbai food blogger, is always one to encourage regional cuisine awareness and give it a bit of…
Masale bhaat with field beans
Rice is globally loved—one, because it’s versatile enough to accommodate almost every flavor; and two, because it cooks fast. I think a traditional masale bhaat…
Metkoot Recipe (and a Metkoot-based Salad)
My daughter has a stomach infection. Why? Because she’s teething at the speed of light and is tempted to help herself to whatever she finds…
Naarali Bhaat
Apart from the fact that Naarali Poornima is the day Coastal Maharashtra celebrates the coconut and that fisherfolk offer coconuts to the sea on this…
Paakatlya purya: Indian fried breads in syrup
One of the fondest memories MK has of his paternal gran are of her “paakaatlya purya.” I had never even heard of this super traditional…
Pan-grilled Tandoori Chicken and Spinach Raita
I was craving for some tandoori flavors but the thought of all the grease was scaring me. With cuz Ashish’s wedding barely a week away,…
Patole: Rice and coconut dumplings in turmeric leaf
Aai’s picture, courtesy: Nirmala Purushotam My maternal gran has been one of the biggest influences to my culinary obsession. As a kid, I would…
Patra or Alu vadi: Colocasia leaf rolls
Nothing can get fresher than a bunch of recently cut greens. A bundle of un-torn, fresh-as-the-morning greens tied up in string or with a blade…
Phansaachi Athla-Gara Bhaaji (Stir fried Young Jackfruit)
Summers in Khanapur were redolent with the heady fragrance (or stench, if you didn’t like them) of ripe jackfruit among other aromas such as mango…
Pineapple sukkem (Goan-style Pineapple Curry)
Last year, on our annual trip to Goa, we ate at Mum’s Kitchen. This quiet little place located in a quiet little residential area near…
Piyush: Shrikhand shake
What do you do when the party’s over and there’s just one serving of Shrikhand left? You make Piyush! The Maharashtrian version of lassi, this…
Potato and Pea Samosas with Sweet Fennel and Chili Dipping Sauce
It was in the dark space under the main staircase. The chapel was right next to it but who cared about god other than during…
Prawn Karanjia (Prawn Turnovers)
MK can’t stand my fisherwoman. I don’t blame him. She’s kind of…insistent. Unfortunately, when she comes in every other morning, I’m usually attending to Avanee’s…
Prawn moilee
I love prawns. But you know that, don’t you? From here and here and here. You know how I simply must buy them when the…
Prawns Curry: Prawns in Coconut Milk
Mrs. B gets hysterical every time the fisherwoman passes by. “I’m coming!” she’ll yell five storeys below and dishes are instantly abandoned in the sink,…
Puli Inji Prawns: Prawns in Tamarind and Ginger sauce
Being born into a Maharashtrian Brahmin family usually means eating chincha-gulachi aamti (tamarind and jaggery based lentils) at least thrice a week. We have tongues…
Puliyogare Gojju (Masala) Recipe
Geeta came to the Gore family as a young girl to work as a general help around the house. She would lay the table and…
Ragda Pattice
My mum insists she hates cooking. She’s an artist, a dreamer. She says she’s rather spend a day at the art gallery or reading a…
Rava-khoya laddoo: Semolina and evaporated milk balls
Avanee turned four months old this 28th. The rate at which time passes by these days! A whole year has passed by since I got…
Recipe video: Batatyacha Kees or Indian Hash Brown Potatoes
Every Thursday (like many other Indians on many other days of the week), my staunchly non-vegetarian, whiskey-loving grandfather would decide to please the gods and…
Recipe video: How to make Bebinca
When I saw this video on Nags’ blog, I knew that I had found the easiest way to convince my filmmaker brother to make a…
Recipe video: How to make Chicken Curry
My maternal grandmother has a thing against tomatoes. Especially when they’re used in traditional Indian dishes. See, tomatoes came to India very recently. Souring agents,…
Recipe video: How to make Gingerbread cookies
Every year, we celebrate Christmas with as much (if not more) enthusiasm than we celebrate Diwali. We put up the tree and do gifts. I…
Recipe video: How to make Jowar (Sorghum) Raita
The Japanese have their cherry blossom parties; Maharashtrians and Gujjus have their Hurda or Ponk parties. Unfortunately, most urban dwellers have no clue what this…
Recipe video: How to make Mango burfi (Fudge) and Diwali wishes
I hope you’re having a lovely Diwali–surrounded by loved ones and so drunk on happiness that the diyas and lanterns are all dimmed by the…
Recipe video: How to make Masale Bhaat (Spiced rice)
I know, this makes it two rice recipes back-to-back. But it’s one of those things–those modes one tends to fly into. You know, like when…
Recipe video: How to make Meen Moilee (Kerala-style Fish in Coconut sauce)
I treasure my utensils and kitchen appliances with more love than my wedding ring. And if I were to choose between my Kerala-style clay pots…
Recipe video: How to make Tomato Saar or Tempered Tomato and Coconut Soup
No matter what part of the world you grew up in, I’m sure a teeny bit of your childhood memory store is occupied by tomato…
Recipe video: How to make Undhiyu
The last time I wrote about Undhiyu (albeit with a different spelling), I promised you better pictures. This season, I am back with something even…
Recipe Video: Sol Kadhi
Of the few Marathi-Goan dishes that appeal to a universal audience, is Sol Kadhi. It is typically served with indulgent fried seafood and other spicy…
Recipe video:How to make Nut chikki/Brittle
Lonavla. That tiny spot on Maharashtra’s map that looks like a piece of broken chikki. The entire town is perennially wafting with the aroma of…
Restaurant review: Diva Maharashtracha
After losing interest in Ovenfresh after a long queue thanks to renovation (and their conversion to vegetarianism), Amma and I headed to Diva Maharashtracha in…
Saffron and Cardamom Lemonade
On Ranade Road in Dadar, there once sat a man who sold lemonade. Limbu Sarbat, actually—the Maharashtrian version of lemonade. On a crowded corner of…
Saffron Sondesh
Many years ago, in the bright and airy classroom of Grade 1, I was first introduced to Bengali Mishti–Bengali sweets. My classmate and bench partner…
Shrikhand
I sometimes wonder if my in-laws think of me as the eternal “jeans-wearing,” “diet-food-eating,” “rebel feminist” soon (daughter-in-law). Which, I guess, I am (evil laughter)….
Spice box | Black and White Wednesday No. 7
This is my contribution to Susan’s weekly Black and White Wednesday event. It is a picture of dried red cherry chilies and cumin seeds–one…
Stuffed Chili Pickle
One of my earliest memories of eating pickle is from way back when I was in primary school. Because we lived in a company township…
Surmai curry: Kingfish in spicy coconut curry
I’d been trying to clear out my fridge for the past three days with a good success rate in preparation for the Amritsar-Dharamshala trip. (Yes,…
Tagine-inspired Chicken with Root Vegetables and Saffron Couscous
When the first real showers of the Mumbai monsoon finally strike, I go into one-dish-meal mode. I cannot, cannot, cannot bring myself to make or…
Tender Cashew Stir Fry
Early summer is when the cashew trees bear fruit. And nut. All along the rich, fertile coastline of India, cashew trees are laden with a…
Thalipeeth Crackers with Thecha Dip
{Scroll down for the giveaway winners!} All of last year, I spent in wrapping some projects up, writing my book, being pregnant, and then of…
Tomato and Raisin Chutney
My current favorite snack is a couple of crackers dipped into or topped with something. Non fussy, easy to put together, enjoyable, and filling. That’s…
Top 8 Mango recipes
Every year, when the first tart green raw mangoes make their appearance in the market, I start planning the dishes I want to make. I…
Ukdiche Modak: Steamed rice and coconut dumplings
As a child, perhaps the only reason I waited for Ganesh Chaturthi was the modak. An order would duly be placed with a Vile Parle…
Undhiyu
One Sunday winter morning, year after year, my grandfather would leave his Cooperage apartment and catch a cab to a dusty by-lane in Girgaum, the…
Vaatli Daal
It would be incorrect for me to say that some of the traditional Indian recipes I have here are of tremendous archival value. They’re not–they’re…
Welcome to my new home, everyone! And a recipe for Methaamba (mango relish/chutney)
Since I started writing My Jhola in 2008, it went through several avatars, progressing in appearance, content (intent, even) through the years. Early this year,…