Serving Mangoes

 A present from my mother who is now in her 83rd year 

My friend tells me that she once visited the home of her best friend’s father in law in Lahore.   Her host had been a senior officer in the Pakistani Police.   He gave my friend a mango and invited her to peel it.  This was the first time my friend had been presented with a mango.   Not surprisingly she made  a nonsense of it with juice, peel and flesh all over plate.   Disappointed, my friend’s host dexterously carved away the skin of the whole fruit with his knife in a single strip and plated them with golden slices while discarded the large stone with very little waste and hassle.  Apparently that method was called “the English method” in Pakistan,

 With their tough and sometimes hairy, sinewy flesh and large stone a mango has more than a little in common with a joint of meat.    There is a knack to carving it so let me show you how

Step 1. - Hold the mango upright on a chopping board with one hand (the stem should be at the top) making sure the cheeks of the mango are to the left and right of you

Step 2. - Cut down one of the cheeks (making sure the knife edge is running down the stone and do the same on the other cheek.

Step 3. - Now turn the mango 45 degrees to the left or right and cut down the edges again with the knife edge running down the side of the stone again (both sides)

Step 4.- Discard the stone or as I used to do eat any last morsel of mango off it like eating a spare rib.

Step5.-  Slice and eat , My father always liked to take his mango with a pinch of salt and ground cumin- a tradition in Gujarati cuisine.

Mangoes are plentiful in India.  It produces the largest quantities and also most varieties. China is the next largest producer.

Raw ripe mangoes are simply delicious. They can also be made into sweet and savoury chutneys,. Their pulp can be eaten with fresh puris or served in lassis. However I prefer to eat them as they come.

Fruit formed a major part of my diet when I was growing even though I was living in Yorkshire in Northern England. I was given fruit each day by mother after meal and it was always chosen and bought very carefully. My mother did all her shopping at an Indian grocer which was conveniently located at the end of our road. I would tag along with her on her shopping trips. I would watch her inspect the stock and gauge what she wanted to buy with her keen eye. She introduced me to some weird and wonderful fruits like fresh tamarind, guavas, pomegranates, watermelons, fresh sugar cane and chickoos which I will write about on another occasion.

Mangoes were the star fruit in our household and I would look forward to their coming into season which was between May and June. The varieties were always Kesar, Alphonso andRajapuri.  Imported from India.  It was a real education shopping at this gem of an Indian store with her, When I was  a child it was exciting and delightful to see her cut into one.

Tip 1. - To buy a ripe mango ready to eat, choose one that gives slightly under a little pressure from your thumb.

Tip2.- Smell the mango ( stem side). It should have a sweet fruity aroma. Avoid a sour alcoholic scent as that indicates an over ripe mango where the sugars have started to ferment.

Tip3.- Look for a full bodied plump mango. Do not worry about little brow flecks. That's a characteristic of the fruit.

Tip 4.- If the stem falls off very easily- it’s a another sign that the mango is over ripe.

Tip5.- Store them at room temperature. Only place them in the fridge when they have ripened to the desired  taste, Eat them  the same day  and watch out for dribbles as mango juice stains clothes badly.

India s independance day

photo:one Indian .com

Today is Indian s Independence day. Marking the end of the British Raj in 1947 in India . Raj means rule.

The Sanskrit name for India is Bharat Ganarajya. Sanskrit  is ancient language of India.

Indian  now has a population of 1.2 billion spread across many regions. From those  regions there is a vast array of mouth dishes.

To help you celebrate Independence day I share with you my recipe for mango pickle with a Gujarati influence..

To make this you will need:

Ingredients:                                                                

1 medium size green mango (firm)

1 tbsp of oil

1/2tsp crushed fenugreek seeds

1tsp chili powder ( less or more to tatse)

A pinch of turmeric

2-3 tbsp sugar

Heaped tsp of coriander powder

A few cardamon pods (slightly crushed)

Salt to taste

50ml water     

Method
Cut the mango into chunks (steam for 10 min's) - cool and mix with the sugar and leave to rest for one day in a jar. Then in a pan add oil and spices. Cook this through until the spices and oil have combined into a loose paste. Add the water 60 ml and stir- then add in the marinated magoes. Simmer for a few 10 mins on a low heat. Cool and store in a jar. The sweet pickle should be sticky and a little orangery brown in colour.  A rested chutney for a couple of days is even tastier so be a patient. This recipe is yum and it can be served simply on fresh Indian bread.

Try this recipe for quick rotlis ( make 4)

Ingredients
2 handful scoops of chapati flour ( 100g)
A knob of butter
Enough warm water to form a dough (100ml)

Method
Form 4 dough balls from the mixture
Roll each into15cm diameter using slightly floured surface
Cook in a non stick flat pan for 40 secs on a medium heat, flip it over for a 1 min until brown flecks have foamed , flip it back over turning the heat up and press on one side of the rotli with a clean tea towel on one half of it allowing the hot air created inside of it to puff the rotli up, and then do the same on the other half - once it has fully puffed up remove it from the pan. The rotli should have brown flecks now on both sides now-  do not cook it for more than 40 secs firstly as it will not finally puff up fully when its turned over.

Slightly cool and spread the rotli with pickle roll it up and enjoy!

Eid Mubarak.

Eid al Fitr (Sweet Eid) is the first Eid of the year and celebrates the end of Ramadan.  It also marks the anniversary of the Quran being revealed. Eid al fitr is the feast of breaking the fast. Ramadam is a period of either 29 or 30 days of fast from dawn to sunset. Muslims around the world embrace this fasting period with great focus and respect.You may remember my article on Global  Festivals and holy days in which I mentioned the second Eid al- Adha (salty Eid) celebrated later in the year. 


Through out the period of Ramadam each day after sunset - the fast is broken usually by eating a date. The date is believed by many Muslims to be a super food and that the best dates come from Medina in Saudi Arabia, which is where the prophet lived and also where he died. See my article 

 Ketupat

There are of course Eid celebrations all over the world and it usually starts with a bath and dressing up in new clothes, after which dates are eaten and then a visit their local mosque for special Eid prayers. According to wikipedia the Muslim community make up 23 %  the worlds population which is a considerable size of  all the religious groups:  There are 1,600million Muslim people. So there are lots of special dishes from a variety of countries on offer like; Ketupat (rice cakes) served in Korea. Dolma (stuffed vegetables) served Bosnia and Brongkos (Oxtail meat tofu and beans (served in Jakarta) 

Some Muslims I have spoken to express how calm they feel through out this period . And that is a time for peace and reflection and that it gives them great focus; including the Birmingham cricketer Moeen Ali   who claims fasting and playing cricket for England is no distraction - in fact quite he opposite.

Eid - al Fitr is a celebration with many types of food and dishes which may be eaten with friends and family. In my last artcle about Eid - al Adha I gave a recipe for  Tal Hue Ghost. Here is a quick sweet recipe for you to try that  help  celbrate this sweet Eid al Fitr

Barfi

Ingredients

125g Full cream Powdered milk

250 Caster sugar or add less

125 Water

 5 Green Cardamoms pods - seeds crushed

12  pistachio nuts shelled and chopped( unsalted)

Butter for greasing

Equipment

Sallow dish or baking tin lined with grease proof paper

Pan

Wooden spoon

Knife and chopping board

Method

1. Place the sugar and water into the pan. Boil and then allow to simmer for 6-7 minutes, until the mixture turns into a  sticky syrup
2. Add the powdered  milk, crushed cardamoms. pistachio nuts and mix well
3. Pour this mixture into the dish and leave to cool pistachio flakes on top
4. When the barfi has set cut into diamond shapes pieces

Tip:  Try adding a drop of rose water for a subtle fragrance, or desiccated coconut to the mixture before setting it. Or you could be very indulgent and cover the top with melted chocolate 

 Eid Mubarak

.

Eid Mubarak.

Eid al Fitr (Sweet Eid) is the first Eid of the year and celebrates the end of Ramadan.  It also marks the anniversary of the Quran being revealed. Eid al fitr is the feast of breaking the fast. Ramadam is a period of either 29 or 30 days of fast from dawn to sunset. Muslims around the world embrace this fasting period with great focus and respect.You may remember my article on Global  Festivals and holy days in which I mentioned the second Eid al- Adha (salty Eid) celebrated later in the year. 


Through out the period of Ramadam each day after sunset - the fast is broken usually by eating a date. The date is believed by many Muslims to be a super food and that the best dates come from Medina in Saudi Arabia, which is where the prophet lived and also where he died. See my article 

 Ketupat

There are of course Eid celebrations all over the world and it usually starts with a bath and dressing up in new clothes, after which dates are eaten and then a visit their local mosque for special Eid prayers. According to wikipedia the Muslim community make up 23 %  the worlds population which is a considerable size of  all the religious groups:  There are 1,600million Muslim people. So there are lots of special dishes from a variety of countries on offer like; Ketupat (rice cakes) served in Korea. Dolma (stuffed vegetables) served Bosnia and Brongkos (Oxtail meat tofu and beans (served in Jakarta) 

Some Muslims I have spoken to express how calm they feel through out this period . And that is a time for peace and reflection and that it gives them great focus; including the Birmingham cricketer Moeen Ali   who claims fasting and playing cricket for England is no distraction - in fact quite he opposite.

Eid - al Fitr is a celebration with many types of food and dishes which may be eaten with friends and family. In my last artcle about Eid - al Adha I gave a recipe for  Tal Hue Ghost. Here is a quick sweet recipe for you to try that  help  celbrate this sweet Eid al Fitr

Barfi

Ingredients

125g Full cream Powdered milk

250 Caster sugar or add less

125 Water

 5 Green Cardamoms pods - seeds crushed

12  pistachio nuts shelled and chopped( unsalted)

Butter for greasing

Equipment

Sallow dish or baking tin lined with grease proof paper

Pan

Wooden spoon

Knife and chopping board

Method

1. Place the sugar and water into the pan. Boil and then allow to simmer for 6-7 minutes, until the mixture turns into a  sticky syrup
2. Add the powdered  milk, crushed cardamoms. pistachio nuts and mix well
3. Pour this mixture into the dish and leave to cool pistachio flakes on top
4. When the barfi has set cut into diamond shapes pieces

Tip:  Try adding a drop of rose water for a subtle fragrance, or desiccated coconut to the mixture before setting it. Or you could be very indulgent and cover the top with melted chocolate 

 Eid Mubarak

.

Sushi and sashimi are often confused sashimi

I often hear people say that they have eaten Sushi when in fact they have eaten raw fish. That is not Sushi .
Sushi  is short grain sticky rice mixed with sushi vinegar. Sushi vinegar is basically rice vinegar with the added ingredients of salt and sugar. Rice vinegar is used to add a mild acetic taste to dishes such as Namasu, Tsukemono . And try not to get the vinegars confused with rice wine (Sake) or liquor (Miran) .

Sashimi means "thinly slices" its often refers to uncooked seafood but it can include cooked seafood and vegetables and certain meats such as beef or deer and cooked egg.

Sashimi http://foodswol.com/

Sushi can be eaten with any of these, in rolls or as topping. Sasmi however can be eaten in its own right.

Sushi http://foodswol.com/

One possible reason for this confusion could be that sushi topped with raw seafood is the most popular sushi in Japan and raw fish thinly sliced is the the most common sasmini as seafood is widely available and eaten by most of the population..

I was once told by a Japanese chef I must use sushi vinegar when making rice for sushi rolls to flavour the rice and not rice vinegar as its vital seasoning of sugar and salt that enhances the flavour of the rice otherwise its dull bland flavour. Its mind boggling as there are so many vinegars to choose from, however by following this simply rule it works a treat each time.Click on this link for a lovely sushi rice recipe and sushi vingar recipe

Happy Rolling

ઘી- Ghee

ઘી- Ghee as written in Gujarati, which is my mother tongue.

I have to say the scent of butter simmering away in my mother’s tiny kitchen stove twice a year filled our home with aromas that left me feeling a little woozy, to say the least. The rich scent of 5lbs of butter melting away overtook my olfactory senses to such an extent that I had stayed clear from the house until the process was complete.

Pann Leaves

However, I would help my mother prepare it though I was still a little girl. We unwrapped the packets of butter and placed them in a huge heavy-bottomed pan which she never used for any other cooking. And it was my job to run down to our local little Indian grocers shop to fetch a pann leaf or two which  I tore into strips ready for them to be added into the pot.

The pann helps the finished ghee curl better from a spoon when serving it. I loved doing this with her to see if it worked after each ghee making process. It always did and I was delighted. Basmati rice would add the most amazing comforting flavours. I could cope with that. Basmati means the queen of scent and as it ages this cooked rice has a beautiful nutty scent and it cooks a lot better with separate grains thus absorbing less water. This is something I will write about in more detail another time. Ghee added to such rice is heavenly, one of purest flavours I ever remember eating and savouring. I never really cared for the shop-bought product.

Picture from nourish kitchen .com

To make good ghee you need milk from cows that have been fed on grass and not much else. Cows roam freely in India even on the busy streets and roads of Mumbhai , rather than being hooted out of the way by drivers. A relaxed cow produces better milk although these will obviously be are dairy cows. Organic unsalted butter works well too. It can also be made from buffalo milk when ghee is used in Hindu religious ceremonies. The ghee made from cows’ milk is regarded as the finest and holds the most significance. Ghee is not only used in cooking but in many Hindu religious ceremonies such as birth, deaths, initiation into manhood weddings, and also as gift giving at funerals to aid purifying the soul . Ghee is used to light holy lamps known as divas - ghee lamps used to celebrate Diwali The Hindu festival of lights.

Its a product that does not require refrigeration as it does not spoil in warmer climates and conditions as long as its kept away from moisture and not exposed to air. In fact some ghees have been known to keep for up to 100 years.  It has a smoking point of at least 250 °C - butter which is only 85% of fat has a much lower smoking point when cooking. Flavoured ghee can be made; however, I prefer it natural to accompany bread and rice dishes and to cook with.  I call it liquid gold. Ghee is excellent for chapped lips. I would recommend it. Smear a little on your lips before you go to sleep to aid  beautiful soft lips and it really does help soothe a sore throat - my Father would add a little in his chai   

Although India is the world’s largest producer of Ghee (and it largest consumer) it is produced in other parts of the world too. It is great for lactose intolerant people as the milk solids are removed. The caramelised milk solid and proteins flavour the ghee adding a sweet nutty taste to the fat which makes it special and it has high smoking point that allows roasting without burning for longer periods than butter does.. 

The clarification starts with the pan of butter and pann leaf.  Slowly melt the butter on a high to medium heat until the butter has completely melted. Stir it once and then allow it to simmer for at least15-20 mins. The yellow liquid will start forming with white spots and bubbles on the surface. This evaporates away any water and removes the milk solids and proteins from the fat which will either rise to the surface or sink to the bottom of the pan which should be a light brown colour and caramelised- any darker and it will affect the taste of the ghees and it will taste burnt. Once the liquid has a refined clarity to it and you can see to the bottom of the pan its ready to take off the heat. Listen out for a sound of slight sizzling and the smell will waft around the room. The foaming and bubbling will take place several times before the liquid settles into a golden liquid with good clarity.   This is when you know its ready to remove from the heat and cool for 1-2 hours at room temperature. Strain through a piece of cheesecloth. The solids that have collected in the cloth can be eaten with a little almond flour and dates or on some fresh bread. This is tasty and very nutritious.

 I love this little recipe for my version of semolina and groundnut sprinkle delicious over mango ice cream.

Ingredients                                                                      

A handful of coarse semolina

1 tablespoon of ghee

1 tablespoon of sugar

5 cardamom pods peeled and seeds crushed

1 tablespoon of ground almonds

1 tablespoon of pistachios crushed.

 Method

1.     Melt the ghee in a heavy bottom pan.

2.     Add in the semolina

3.     Roast the semolina in the ghee and continuously stir it for about 20 mins until it is taken a slightly brownish colour.

4.     Allow it to cool then add the sugar, nuts and cardamon

Hope you like it too.

Food Tips for Dancers

I had a banana, peanut butter and date sandwich for breakfast and it was rather yummy. More interestingly it sustained me for the whole morning and well into the afternoon. That made me think about dance food. I can’t think of a better time to write this post.  It's  Ramadan for Muslims around the world .The first food that is eaten to break the fast each day is that great super food the date. Feeding the body with much needed energy.

It is always important to eat well and it is particularly important for those who require physical activity and concentration. That of course includes dancers. They need to eat well to replenish all the energy that they use up. However, foods that feed our body with energy and other vital nutrients require a little bit of understanding. Making the right food choices is not always easy.

So here are some tips for you as dancers to consider:-

1 Try to eat little and often.  It helps to keep your fire burning. It eliminates hunger pangs. It also stops you feeling sluggish which also happens if you eat too much in one sitting. It keeps you sustained.

2 Choose foods which are filling, healthy and unprocessed. Not only will that help keep you sustained, it will also supply the nutrients that build up muscle and bone strength and keep those organs working properly. In Hindu culture it is sometimes referred to as a "cleaner diet". The body then can then process nutrients from these foods more efficiently and transport the nutrients to the parts of the body where they are needed. Such a diet helps dancers to mobilise their bodies to the fullest extent possible.   After all, your body is your temple. It enables you to undertake the rigorous training that a dancer has to undergo.

3 Try to eat foods that fit your mood.  This is a rather important part of eating for anybody. Getting In tune with your body helps you make better food choices. Mood is usually an indicator that the body needs more of one nutrient than another. I was craving for some fish the other evening. I needed protein as I had not eaten any that day. Although it’s not only fish that gives us protein my body has become used to getting its protein from fish. Protein needs replenishing every day as the body can not store it. Protein builds and repairs tissues in the body which is very much needed for dancers. By no means are they the only benefits too.

4 Cook your food healthily. Steam or grill your food or even eat it raw. Think about what you desire to eat and visualise it your plate. Colour, texture and indeed taste helps are bodies to relax when eating and fully to enjoy the experience.  In terms of pleasure savouring well cooked food is not far removed from watching a dance performance. It is like appreciating the choreography and construction of the performance together with the lighting used and costumes worn and indeed how these costumes move on the dancers as they perform their piece to bring it all together.

So why eat dates?

Firstly dates are a super food as they have many nutrients, minerals and vitamins. Dates give dancers a boost of energy  as they contain natural sugars and are easy to carry around.  They are free from cholesterol and contain very little fat. They are a good source of fibre to help maintain your digestive system and avoid bloating. They have both soluble and insoluble fibre which helps the metabolism. They are a rich source of B vitamins which boost the nervous system that controls your thoughts and movement. In particular vitamin B6 which helps the body retain protein and carbohydrates - another very good source of energy.   They also taste delicious and are very plentiful in the shops this time of the year.

So why not snack on a few in between training this summer and see how you find them. There are many varieties to choose from and they are grown in many countries.

Many consider that the best dates come from Medina in Saudi Arabia which is where the Prophet lived and also where he died. 

Finally,  the best dates are enjoyed uncooked. I know some people like date pudding but to me stewing dates is rather like deep frying truffles. My favourite is the Medjool  variety

If you want to discuss this article or food and recipes in general email me at gita@gitamistryfood.co.uk. There’s lots of other information about food and recipes in my own blog and website.