Browsing: Food Articles

Love a good food fight? Then you’ve got to watch Bravo’s Top Chef Masters which has a dozen award-winning chefs battling it out for the title of Top Chef Master and $100,000 for their favorite charity. This includes, for the first time probably, two noted Indian celebrity chefs – Floyd Cardoz and Suvir Saran.

In each episode the Lords of the Kitchen sharpen their knives for cooking encounters and dish out their specialties. For celeb watchers it should be quite a treat – Mad Men’s Christina Hendricks, Pop/Rock Group Maroon 5 and Pop Star Kelis serve as Celebrity Guest Judges. Celebrity chef Curtis Stone hosts the series and judges include James Oseland and noted food critic Ruth Reichl. Celebrities and food – a potent mix!

Ah, foodies! When we’re not eating or cooking or fantasizing about food, we’re shopping for eats, obscure and exotic spices and the latest cooking contraptions. And when we are not doing all of that, we’re watching cooking shows on the Food Network or salivating over food blogs on the Internet. And forget about casting our votes for the president, we can now actually have a say in who becomes America’s Hottest Chef! Now that’s powerful – and universe changing!

Eater, the popular foodie website, has anointed Vikas Khanna of Junoon the hottest chef in New York, based on voting by its readers. That’s really a delicious choice because Vikas is a creative chef with some wonderful dishes to his credit.

What can be more soul-satisfying than legumes and lentils slow-cooked to creamy perfection, with a touch of Indian spices? In ‘The Indian Slow cooker’ Anupy Singla shares 50 healthy authentic recipes passed down in her family and which work well for busy lifestyles.

In a time of Tweets, frenetic commutes and mountains of stress, imagine slooow cooking, food which cooks itself, slowly, deliberately throughout the day while you’re out earning a living or are just immersed in the latest best-seller. It’s almost like having one of the legendary ‘bhaiyas’ of India doing your cooking for you, and quite welcome in the US.

“This is one of our most beloved family dishes. It is very much in the Hyderabadi style, where North Indian and South Indian seasonings are combined” – Madhur Jaffrey.

For fans of Indian cooking, what can be better than Madhur Jaffrey? – Madhur Jaffrey simplified! The noted cookbook writer, who has won the James Beard Award six times, has taught countless women – and men – how to cook. Now she’s set off on a very 21st century mission: Saving time in a hectic world. These recipes retain the classic touch without the classic toil of gourmet Indian food.

Diwali tradition mandates you indulge in the richest of mithais and halwas during the festivities – laddoos, chumchums and burfi – amongst a myriad of classic sweets. To that list you can now add Diwali truffles – with a traditional Indian twist!

Ten years down, who knows what we’ll find. Dosas being served in American schools and college campuses? Dosas in vending machines? Dosas-to-Go at fast food outlets?

Two recipes from ‘Amrit: Luscious and Heart Healthy Indian Meals’ by Purnima Nandkishore with nutritional analysis by Karen Yee, MS, RD, LN. Read how the diet brought about dramatic changes in the health of Nanda Nandkishore who was at high risk for heart disease.

“This side is Delhi, so you’ll only find people. This side is Haryana, so you’ll find buffaloes. A lot of buffaloes,” says Sunil Bhu, a cheesemaker, as he talks to NPR in India.

“India has more than 39 million water buffalos. They’re just like the ones in Italy whose milk is used to make the Italian delicacy mozzarella di bufala. So the Indians thought: Well, if the Italians can make mozzarella, why can’t we?” So welcome to a new world where your mozzarella may came from India and your samosas from New York!

I always suspected Indian chili peppers were good for something more earth-shattering than merely spicing up our food. Well now the Indian military has discovered the true value of the formidable Bhut Jalokia pepper from Assam which is 100 times hotter than the Jalapeno. It will be used in smoke grenades to battle unruly mobs and nasty terrorists.

We know about halal chicken and kebabs but halal pasta and salad dressing? Halal Guacamole and halal Swedish Crab Canapés?

When you need to find a wonderful restaurant where do you turn? Forget reviews and restaurant guides, just hop into a cab and consult your taxiwalla!

Layne Mosler is a New Yorker who has found that the cabbie who knows his way on the streets of Manhattan can also guide you to the right restaurant. Constantly navigating the city, cabbies are a great resource for off-the-beaten-track inexpensive places with authentic food.

Jehangir Mehta’s Graffiti Food and Wine Bar is probably one of the smallest restaurants and its kitchen is just 50 square feet, but Mehta produces some big tastes, using spices from many parts of the world, including India and Persia. Recently Zagat gave it a 26 for food which says a lot about the quality of Graffiti’s food. Mehta is indeed a fearless warrior who is not afraid of strong spices or of blending them in unconventional ways.

Would you put green tomatoes in your dessert? How about basil or coriander? If you’re cringing, you’ve got to meet Jehangir Mehta, the pastry wizard who’s created a big buzz in Manhattan.

When Oprah features a vegan recipe from Madhu Gadia in her magazine, you know it’s hot! The good news is that if you happen to be vegan, can’t eat eggs or dairy, you don’t have to be exiled to a Siberia of bland vegetables anymore.In fact, there are some Indian vegan super foods that can light up the menu and give you all the nutrition and flavor that you need. So what are these magic foods?
(Image is of one of the super foods featured in the book – beans – transformed into Dal Vada Burgers)

Looking to find the perfect restaurant in your area online or via mobile phone? Searching for videos to check out the best tips from celebrity chefs?

Well, there’s good news – behind each of these culinary experiences, there’s an innovative company launched by young Indian-Americans who probably have food and hospitality etched into their DNA! Sidestepping traditional careers, these entrepreneurs have followed the pungent aroma of spices and flavors of food to start their own businesses.

Who would have thought you’d be getting gourmet food in the rough and tumble of a ball park? Leave it to celebrity chef Floyd Cardoz and Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group to bring elegance to the usual hot dog, precooked burgers and popcorn routine.

“In our family, the moment a child is born, my grandmother would come with a jar of honey and would dip her little finger into the honey and write ‘Om’ on the baby’s tongue with it. And my mother always tells me, ‘You just opened your mouth and licked up the honey and when she put it again, you licked it up again.”

The long hot summer is upon us, and wouldn’t you rather be in the pool than sweating it over the stove? “Summer is a great time to host a stress-free get-together,” says Rama Ginde of WannabeChef, based in New Jersey. “Entertaining this season can be informal, laidback and fun.”