Cook, My Dear!

Cooking is an art. Like painting, maybe. And each artist has their own style; abstract, realistic, surrealistic... I am at best the most basic artist, the paint-by-numbers artist! I need step-by-step guidance to create good food. The ingredients, the method... Thankfully, I at least have a good sense of measures-by-hand so I don't need to know how many teaspoons and tablespoons of each ingredient has to go in, it just comes to my hand. I think the trick is to understand each ingredient; the flavour it gives to any dish, the proportion required to keep this flavour just right. It's an ongoing process of experimentation and discovery.

I know its cliched, there are umpteen number of cookery sites on the web (many of which help me!), I don't need to add one of mine. But love of good food and the excitement of being able to make some myself prompts me share some of my experiences here. Don't worry it'll never turn into a regular food blog as I am not a regular cook. But someday I would like to write about Gautham's mother. In her own words, her motto is 'Cooking Health in the Kitchen'. I guess that was the motto of all our grandmothers and most of our mothers. Wish that at least some of us can keep the heritage alive. Hope that the art of healthy and fine cooking doesn't disappear like many goodnesses of yester-years.

Anyway, Gautham, who is usually the chef grande, was working in the garden today morning, planting a medicinal fence with 'Aadalodakam' (Adathoda Vasica) and I was left with some green peas soaking in water.

I checked the web and pulled out a basic recipe for 'Green Peas Masala'. Then I went, cook, grind, chop, chop, saute, saute, saute, cook, season...Voila! No, there's something amiss...think...some curry leaves sauteed in ghee...That does the trick! Eaten hot, it went beautifully with delicious 'appam'.

Well, the wonder is , Gautham complimented my curry. That's pretty 'cause my orientation towards the spicy North Indian food rarely suits his taste for subtler flavours. So, all in all I had a great time in the kitchen today morning.

Here's what I did :
Soaked green peas in hot water for a couple of hours (Advisable to soak it in plain water overnight). Pressure cooked the peas with salt. Ground coconut, with some fennel seeds, into a fine paste. Soaked some tamarind in a little water and extracted the juice (Since we did not have any tomatoes at home, I'd decided to experiment with tamarind). Chopped onions, green chilly. Heated oil, added crushed fennel seeds and sauteed till they were light brown. Added onions, green chilly and sauteed till onion is transparent. Added the tamarind extract (or tomatoes, if you have them). Added turmeric powder, red chilly powder, coriander powder, garam masala and salt. Sauteed till the spices lost their raw smell. Added coconut paste and sauteed for a couple of minutes. Added water for curry and brought to boil. Added the cooked peas and stirred till gravy thickened.
For seasoning, heated ghee in a wok and sauteed curry leaves and added this to the curry (This was also an addition by me).
Though I'd used some not-so-normal experiments, the curry turned out to be classical 'Green Peas Masala'.

Title Courtesy : Cookbook of the same title by Ms Niru Gupta (http://www.niruskitchen.com/)

Sharatettan : Pain Undiluted

C Sharatchandran, documentary filmmaker died in a tragic accident yesterday night. He was returning from a marriage function with his friend Sebastian who also succumbed to injuries.

One of his kind – That was Sharatettan! Passion for film-making combined with social causes, his voice was always one with the down-trodden.

In theatre, many a times a Sootradharan or Narrator carries forward the thread of the story. He may not be part of the story but his narration would have the power to bring about radical changes in it. C Sharatchandran was one such voice threading through the socio-political scene of Kerala.

Personally, you have been a Karanavar, an elder of our extended family. You have been an integral part of our lives. Both our childhoods, Gautham’s and mine, have been linked to you. We both share memories of ‘Kunjunni Maashum Kuttiyolum’. You were there at our marriage recording it for posterity.

Our little one misses out on knowing you. Maybe baby has already met you in that narrow zone between birth and death.

Last time we met, on another train journey, you talked about Chengara, Kanavu, future projects, and how you would one day soon come up to Sarang…

Your life was not yours, it was ours, the society’s. You leave behind many unfinished histories, a voice as powerful as yours is still needed.

Tears of anguish flow down my cheeks seeking some solace in the inevitability of death. But I remain angry and in pain… I seek the answer to only one question:
Karmam Thanne Lahariyayi Kondaadukil
Mattoru Lahariyenthinee Jeevithathil?

C Sharatchandran Filmography

* Save the Western Ghats March - The Kerala Experience (1987)
* No to Dams - A Pooyamkutty Tale (1988)
* Ellaam Asthamikkum Munpe (1989)
* Chaliyar the Final Struggle (1999, with P Baburaj)
* Kanavu (2001)
* Mareva - Narmada Song (2001, with K P Sasi)
* The Bitter Drink (2003, with P Baburaj)
* Neethiyil Ninnu Kudiyirakkappettavar (2003)
* Oru Mazhu Dooram Mathram (2005, with P Baburaj)
* Aayiram Dinangalum Oru Swapnavum (2006, with P Baburaj)
* Yours Truly John (2008)
* Bhoomiykku Vendiyulla Bali (2008)