Raw mangoes are celebrated in Andhra cuisine. Mamidikaya nuvvulu pachadi or raw mango chutney Andhra style is a delicious example of that. A pachadi, in Telugu, refers to a chutney rather than a yoghurt-based dish, typical of the cuisine of Kerala. Sour, green mangoes grow profusely in Andhra Pradesh and are available for quite a few months unlike in North India, where they are seen only in summers. Besides raw mangoes,…
This carrot thogayal recipe was shared by a dear friend’s mother, who has a vast repertoire of thogayals in her culinary quiver. Thogayal or thuviyal is essentially Tamil for chutney. Thick and on the drier side, it has similar versions in Kerala known as chammanthi and thokku in Andhra. This particular carrot thogayal is typical of the cuisine of the Iyer community of Palakkad; Tamil brahmins who migrated to this…
Guava pickle. Yes you read that right. All the regional cuisines of India have such an ancient tradition of pickling and preserving all kinds of vegetables (including vegetable peels), fruits, meats and seafood but rarely do you hear of a hot guava pickle. I knew of green guava chutneys, a sweet North Indian guava pickle (flavoured with fennel, fenugreek and mustard seeds like mango chchunda) and even a Rajasthani amrud…
It’s both delightful and amazing how a humble dish such as this radish pachadi or radish chutney can so dramatically elevate a simple home-style meal of rice and dal. Telugu cuisine, both from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana is famed for its pachadis – the word is used for both chutneys (which are generally ground or pulped) and pickles (which usually have chunks of the fruit/vegetable). In this case, the radish…
Prawn pickle, whether it’s eaten with dal and rice, spread on hot toast, or enjoyed with crispy dosas and fluffy uttapams – everyone has their favourite way of relishing this tangy seafood treat. I’ve always had store-bought prawn pickle, but this time the abundance of prawns sold by my fish lady inspired me to make my own. Eating homemade pickle is like eating vegetables from one’s kitchen garden, it’s a…
Trying a traditional kimchi recipe given to me by a Korean friend was long overdue. For the 3 years that we spent living in the same city, she would drop off a generous box of kimchi ever so often. We were hooked on the stuff. So when we bade each other farewell, she bartered her kimchi recipe for kulfi and fish moily recipes from me. …
What does a hummus recipe have in common with high school exams? When exam fever hits my 16-year old and he’s buried in his books all day, I need to stock up on healthy snacks that he can attack at any time morning, noon or night when he takes his refuelling breaks. And I’ve found that a couple or more bowls of different hummus in the fridge goes a long…
Blitz together 2 cups of basil, 1 cup flatleaf parsley, a fat garlic clove, a tablespoon of feta, 1/4 each extra virgin olive oil and sunflower seed along with a few peppercorns to make creamy, emerald green pesto that’s great with pasta, crackers and in sandwiches.…
I awoke with a sense of purpose today – to get my head down, put fingers on the keyboard and breathe life into Quiche ‘n’ Tell. And what better than a fruity marmalade to raise the inaugural toast. Ever since we arrived in South Africa a couple of months ago, one of my favourite things to…