Indian borage leaf, also commonly called carom leaf or ‘ajwain ke patte’ is no novelty to Indians. Like many, I grew up watching my Mum tend this herb in her garden and when the Monsoons hit Indian shores, she’d make these pakoras as our evening snack. I decided to have a go at growing this […]
January in Maharashtra is closely tied to Makar Sankranti, a harvest festival that celebrates winter crops. It’s a time when millet and sesame naturally find their way into everyday cooking, shaping dishes that are practical, nourishing, and seasonal. Tilachi bhakri — a sesame-studded pearl millet flatbread — is one such winter staple. While bhakris are […]
If ever there were a vegetable that deserves the label ‘an acquired taste’ it is the karela or aptly named bitter gourd. The first time you taste it you could be forgiven for thinking that the chef has made a mistake and served some inedibly bitter vegetable. Some give up after that first mouthful, but […]
I have almost zero recollection of the time as a kid when I enjoyed red amaranth stir fry in India. Lal math, as it’s called in my native language, Marathi, never enticed me as a kid. But last summer when I decided to grow red amaranth from seed purely as an experiment, I was astonished […]
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 […]
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 […]
In the UK wild garlic appears in early Spring typically in old woodland in damp conditions. We are lucky enough to live within a short walk of a wild garlic glade where it carpets the woodland floor with green leaves from March followed by white flowers in April and May. If you are out looking for it you may well smell […]
We’re looking forward to a green Christmas and we are aiming to reuse and repurpose what we already have to decorate our house this year. Aarya, my daughter, and I made this Christmas tree from sustainably sourced silver birch logs and jute rope. Here are my notes about how we made it: Here are a […]
They say every snowflake is different, well my hand-made ones certainly are.If you are looking to add a bit of festive cheer to your home and, like me, you want to avoid all the plastic baubles and tinsel this year these are just the thing. All you need is some paper bags, glue and scissors.I […]
I love wild food, there is nothing more sustainable than food that you pick yourself. Whenever there is an abundance of fruit we naturally think about preserving. Chutneys, jams and pickles all spring to mind. So with the local hedgerows groaning under the weight of a bumper wild plum crop, I came up with this […]
Celebrating the bounty of my recent (and perhaps the last of the year) harvest on World Vegetarian Day today. But simply eating vegetarian food and harvesting vegetables isn’t enough if you truly care about the planet. One also needs to learn to put the people of the planet first, by accepting their culture and its […]
I wrote this piece to participate in New Writing North’s – A writing Chance contest and it secured my place in the final thirty. I am very proud to have achieved this given how little writing experience I have. Here’s what I wrote: As the world came to a standstill in 2020, our lives evolved […]
.
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?
Recent Comments