Bottle gourd, also known as dudhi in India, is a very versatile vegetable. Although it’s classed as exotic produce in the UK, it has become a common find in Indian grocery stores across the UK. A long pale green bottle gourd with delicate white flesh inside dotted with soft edible seeds is rather delicious (and […]
During the British asparagus season from late April to June, I enjoy eating the spears raw as their sweet crunch and aroma is so appealing especially when they’re fresh from the farm. Add to that some shavings of fennel and you have the makings of a delicious spring salad. Who wants a boring tasteless salad? […]
The scent of wild garlic is once again wafting through the woodlands of Britain. This year it’s even been in the news, though sadly not for the right reasons. It seems it’s getting too popular for its own good and some people (or maybe restaurants) are over-harvesting this precious seasonal delicacy. Our local patch has […]
Puran poli and katachi amti go hand in hand and quite rightly so, given the process of making the former. You could say that this amti is a by-product of the puran poli making process scoring well on its zero-waste credentials. But more than that, it’s the dish that completes the puran poli. What is […]
It’s that time of year again when I binge on delicious and fairly healthy vegan fasting treats under the guise of celebrating ‘Mahashivratri’, a Hindu festival honouring Lord Shiva. I say ‘under the guise’ because this festival is anything but fasting for me and many Indians like me. It is believed that Shiva performed his […]
There’s always a place for salad in a Maharashtrian thali. A typical accompaniment in a wedding thali served alongside a myriad of chutneys and pickles, is this ‘khamang’ kakdi koshimbir or cucumber salad. It’s like a cucumber raita, only better. A well-balanced thali will usually include this cool cucumber koshimbir to offset the spicier dishes. […]
We take so many things for granted in our kitchen; if we want to make a quick ‘chole’ we can easily grab a tin of chickpeas from the store cupboard, pop it open, pour it into a pan with some fried onion, garlic, spices etc. turn up the heat and a few minutes later it’s […]
Other than increasing the nutrient value of legumes, sprouting also enhances their flavour and makes them easily digestible. Horse gram, a much underrated and inexpensive legume from India, is actually one of the most protein-rich lentils on the planet. It’s a powerhouse of protein, essential amino acids, carbohydrates, calcium, iron and fibre so no wonder […]
We Indians, never pass up the opportunity to make jaggery-based sweet treats in the cooler months. And the festival of Makar Sankranti gives all the more reason to make these ‘til-gulachi vadi’, as we call them in Marathi or ‘sesame-peanut flapjack’ as my English husband once described them as he popped one in his mouth […]
If there was ever a festival that celebrates the seasonality of produce, it’s Makar Sankranti – the first Hindu festival of the year that’s celebrated across India under various names. And this ‘bhogichi bhaji’ is just a beautiful way to commemorate this festival through food. The day before Makar Sankranti is Bhogi and it’s the […]
Black-eyed beans (also called black-eyed peas or ‘chawli’, ‘chavli’ or ‘lobia’ in India) are a much-underrated legume. Known as ‘usal’ (pronounced ‘oo-sal’) in the region of India I come from, this dish gives me some mean cravings in autumn when the weather starts to get a bit chilly and damp in the UK. These pale […]
I don’t need a festival like Diwali to enjoy my delicious stash of ‘chivda’ or ‘chiwda’. I make it throughout the year whenever my stocks are low, mainly to satisfy my untimely but guilt-free snack hunger pangs. Also, I enjoy savoury breakfasts a tad more than sweet ones and this Maharashtrian chiwda ticks all my […]
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Hi, I’m Rieethaa, a food photographer and recipe developer but most of all I just love cooking simple flavourful food that wakes up the sleepiest tastebuds, and I want to share some with you here. So come in and help me chop some onions, will you?
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