ISBN13: 978-1-4363-2075-7 (Hardback)
ISBN: 1-4363-2075-5 (Hardback)
Pages: 185

This book is a collection of easy to prepare contemporary recipes created for the modern living and entertaining. The recipes are simple, global very approachable to impress your guests. It has recipes for more than one hundred elegant, savory and sweet dishes such as Moroccan Lamb, Sole tamarind curry and squid with fragrant chili dressing.

These creations reflect my Indian heritage, with plenty influences from my travels to Far East Asia, Middle East and south America. It is filled with fresh flavors, and practical advice, and this book is an illuminating guide to real entertaining for a modern cook.

Click here to read an excerpt from the book

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Barnes & Nobles

Here is a one of my favorite recipes from the book SPICE

Crispy Sardines

SERVES 4

1 pound sardines, cleaned
4 tablespoons vegetable oil

For the paste:
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
4 garlic cloves peeled and crush
1 teaspoon hot chili powder
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
Sea salt
For serving:
Lime wedges

To make the spice paste, grind the lemon juice, ginger, garlic, chili powder, turmeric, and a little salt together to a fine paste, using a pestle and mortar or a small blender.

Using a sharp knife, slash the sardines diagonally on both sides to allow the flavorings to permeate the flesh. Rub the spice paste all over, and set aside to marinate for 10 minutes.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Cook the sardines in batches if necessary: Place in a single layer in the pan and fry over a low heat for about 2-3 minutes on each side until brown crisp. Serve hot with lime wedges.

Marinate

Serves 4

1 medium yellow squash, sliced on bias
1 medium zucchini, sliced on bias
1 medium eggplant, sliced into 1/2-inch thick circles
1 red onion, sliced in 1/2-inch thick circles
2 Roma tomatoes, sliced in 1/2 lengthwise
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and quartered
2 Avacado, peeled, seeded, and cut in half
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoons coriander seeds, toasted and ground
1/2 tablespoons fennel seeds, toasted and ground
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

Preheat grill to high.

Prepare all vegetables. Place vegetables in a roasting pan. Season vegetables generously with salt,pepper, spices and toss with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Place vegetables, cut side down, on the hot grill and cook for a couple minutes on each side, or until tender and nicely marked by the grill.

Remove from grill and toss with an additional 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Serve

1 pound fresh spinach, chopped ½ lb button mushrooms, chopped
1 cup almonds, chopped
¼ cup cranberries, dried
1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 tablespoon garam masala
Salt to taste
3 ½ pounds leg of lamb, trimmed of visible fat, de-boned and butterflied
¼ cup malt vinegar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon dark chili powder
1 cup sour cream
1 medium onion, minced
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
2 tablespoons melted honey, plus extra for drizzle
1 teaspoon clarified butter
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon white pepper powder

Mix together the chopped spinach, mushroom, almonds, cranberries, cilantro and garam masala.Make 2-inch long, deep cuts, each about 2 inches apart, over the entire outside surface of the leg of lamb.

In a bowl, mix together the malt vinegar, oil, salt and chili powder and rub well over both sides of the meat, making sure you work it into all the cut sections. Spread the spinach mixture on the entire inside surface. Then roll the lamb into a log. Tie the roll with a kitchen twine crosswise and lengthwise to secure it.

Mix together the sour cream, onion, garlic, honey, clarified butter, coriander, cumin, and pepper and rub well over the outside surface of the meat. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator at 6 to 8 hours.

Preheat the oven to 400° F

Transfer the lamb to an oven proof dish, along with its marinade and roast for 30 to 40 minutes. Reduce the heat to 300° F and cook until the lamb is golden brown and tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the string from the roast, cut the lamb into 1-inch slices and serve hot, drizzled with honey.

Tips and ideas when cooking with skewers:

When using wooden skewer, make sure you soak them before you cook.

Skewers can be done ahead of time: simply marinate overnight

Experiment with different mediums such as rosemary or lemon grass to skewer meats or vegetables

Create a colorful contrast and flavor by adding cherry tomatoes, peppers or mushrooms between layers of meat

Create a grilled dessert by skewering pieces of your favorite fruit

“Double up” use 2 skewers so that it is easy to cook and the meat will not roll over when flipping.

Do not have a grill a cast iron char grills with handles which fit over two burners is perfect for those crosshatch lines on grilled meat, seafood and vegies.

Stay tuned for interesting recipes………

Above images clockwise

Green Chili and Thai Basil Marinade
Chicken Tikka Skewers
Lemon and Sage Chicken Skewers
Cheese and Vegetable Skewers

“Cooking for Life” Presents TASTE FOR LIFE

Join Honarary Lead Chef Vikas Khanna from New York City

and Chicago’s Top Chefs

Featuring Master Sommelier Alpna Singh (Host of Check. Please!)

Tantalize all your senses with culinary samplings from Chicago’s hottest restaurants and tastes of fine wine from around the globe. Stir your soul with the sounds of live entertainment from singer Greta Pope, Enjoy a whiskey tasting with your dessert and bid on exciting live and silent auction prizes.

Touch the world with your commitment to ending violence.

Thursday, April 17, 2008
River East Art Center
435 East Illinois Street, Chicago, IL 60611

Watch Past events organized by cooking for life

There is no single right way to cook any Indian dishes, nor is there a single proper way to serve an Indian meal. The Indian recipes can be made using a variety of techniques - experimentation and practice are the keys to success!

Spices are to Indian cooking what basic stocks, sauces and dressings are to the Western cooking.The exotic spices add warmth, pungency, heat, and subtlety to dishes. Cooks are judged on their skills in blending seeds, powders and pastes. Adventurous chefs may juggle a dozen or more spices in one dish, but most good Indian home cooks do just fine with around six mainstays, although you may want to keep other spices handy for adding extra flavor dimensions to particular dishes.

Essentials

* Chilli powder
* Cumin seeds
* Garam masala
* Coriander powder
* Turmeric powder

Handy spices

* Black peppercorns
* Cinnamon sticks
* Cloves
* Coriander seeds
* Fennel seeds
* Fenugreek seeds
* Nigella seeds
* Nutmeg and mace
* Dried red chillies

Buying and storing spices
Spices are at their best when used within three months of purchase. To ensure maximum freshness, buy whole spices rather than powders, and grind only what you need. Buy spices from an ethnic grocer rather than a supermarket. Prices are surprisingly low and quality is top-notch. Store whole spices in tightly lidded jars or in the freezer.

Cooking with spices
Toasting whole spices before grinding them intensifies the flavors. To toast, or dry-fry, heat a griddle over a moderate heat, add the spices, and shake the pan until you catch a warm, nutty aroma - it doesn’t take long, about 30 seconds. Similarly, dropping whole spices into a spoon of hot oil also releases essential oils - ‘Tadka’

We all love a good bottle of wine! You’ve just had dinner with your significant other, and the half-finished bottle of wine remains on the table. It’s late, and you both have work in the morning, so you’re not thrilled with the idea of polishing it off right away.

But it’s a good wine, and cost a lot more than the bargain bin selections at the local wine shop. So how to ensure that the aroma, taste and character of the wine remain consistent for days – or even weeks – after opening?

There are several options these days to keep your wine fresh after it’s first opened, from high-tech preservation systems to simple tricks. “If you’ll be finishing the bottle in a day or two, simply re-cork it and refrigerate it and you’re good to go. In fact, aerating wine can actually improve the flavor after a couple of days.”

But if you’d rather save the remaining wine for weekend entertaining or beyond, here are a few things to know:

Re-pressurizing the bottle is a must. There are several ways to do this. Manual pumps that stick through the cork like a syringe will suck out the oxygen and create a vacuum inside the bottle – necessary to stop oxidation. Simply pump until you feel significant resistance, and you’re done.

Automatic vacuum preservers take out the guesswork. These high-tech devices cost anywhere from $30 to $100. Just press a button, and in just a few seconds they’ll remove the excess air in the bottle before inserting a wine stopper, creating a vacuum that will preserve the bottle for as long as 14 days more than simple re-corking.

Insert a wine preservative. Just point the straw into the bottle, spray a couple of blasts and re-cork. Comprised of a safe, odorless and colorless mix of inert gasses, usually Nitrogen and Argon, these preservatives create a barrier between the wine and the air remaining in the bottle.

Go pro. A new breed of restaurant-quality wine-preserving systems are trickling down to the consumer market. These systems allow upright display, on-tap-style dispensing and Argon gas preservation of three to eight bottles, so there’s always a variety of choices on-hand and ready to serve. Wine Saver Pro offers a classy looking, chrome and black, five-bottle model for around $1,000 and a three-bottle version for $800.

These above tips were taken in conversation with a wine expert and a good friend Dan Soskin, founder of PINOT , the wine accessories superstore in Philadelphia’s historic district. A must see!

Also visit an interesting site www.indianwine.com

I spent most of my time around Kochi (Cochin). We were filming for a TV series ” Food of India “.

Kochi is a gourmet’s delight and at all the cuisine is as diverse as it is remarkable. There is a huge variety in seafood, from shrimp, crisp-fried mussel, grilled prawn, lobster and squid done just so and, of course, soft-shelled crabs tossed Kerala-style. But the meen pollichathu, a delicious fish fillet coated with spice paste, wrapped in banana leaf and roasted should be a priority. There is the staple kappa kari, which is fish and tapioca, and puttu (steamed rice cakes) with beef roast. Again Grand Hotel’s restaurant comes top of my list.

Chinese fishing nets

Fort Kochi’s ‘You buy, I cook’ beach side food stalls, not far from the Chinese fishing nets, offer good fresh seafood and beautiful views. You can also choose from fresh catch prawns, pomfret, snapper, shark or king fish. You can choose your own “catch of the day” from one of the fishmongers opposite the fishing nets. Then, take it to one of the nearby “fast food” shacks where they will cook it for you.

Curious to learn more about the local cuisine!!

I recommend some hands on cooking experience, with Nimy Paul

Nimmy, a professional cookery instructor,conducts cookery classes. She teaches guests the nuances of traditional Kerala recipes. She offers food and hospitality to guests at her home. Nimmy and Paul belong to traditional Syrian Christian community in Kerala. In keeping with the tradition of their families they enjoy having guests and serving good food.

Enjoy!

Spiced Burgers Video Taping Session April 2008

EMC Locations, Boston - MA, Modern Indian Cooking Workshop & tasting, March 12th & 13th 2008

Vanguard Locations, Malvern - PA, Modern Indian Cooking Workshop & tasting, Feb 25th to 29th 2008

Cook Book Club: Whole Foods Market , Saturday, February 16th 2008

Hari Nayak at Barnes and Nobles Nov 2007

Thanksgiving 2007

Fosters, Philadelphia book event
Nov 17th 2007

Padma Laxmi and Modern Indian Cooking
October 27th 2007

SERVES 4

* 2 poblano chiles
* 1 pound potatoes, peeled and diced into (1- inch) cubes
* 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
* 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* ¼ cup celery, diced
* ½ cup green pepper, diced
* Salt to taste
* 3 cups fresh corn kernels or frozen corn, thawed
* 2 cups vegetable stock or water
* 1 cup cream
* 1 tablespoon curry powder
* 3 tablespoons cilantro, chopped

Pre heat the grill or a broiler. Grill or broil the chilies until the skin begins to blacken, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let steam until the skin loosens, about 10 minutes. Peel the chiles and chop coarsely, Set aside

In a small sauce pan, add the potatoes and enough water to cover and cook until tender. Drain and set aside.

In a large sauce pan, heat the oil, cumin, onion, celery and pepper and sauté until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Add salt and corn and cook for 3 to 4 minutes longer. Stir in the roasted chiles, potatoes, stock, cream, curry powder and 1 tablespoon of cilantro and simmer until the soup thickens, 20 to 25 minutes.

Serve hot garnished with the remaining cilantro.

Grilled Chicken with Kokum Apple compote

SERVES 4

* 2 tablespoons coriander seeds
* 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
* 1 teaspoon cardamom pods
* 1 (1-inch) piece cinnamon stick
* 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
* 1 tablespoon ginger, chopped
* ½ teaspoon ground cloves
* 1 teaspoon cayenne
* 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
* Juice of 1 lemon
* Salt to taste
* 1 pound (4 breasts) trimmed boneless chicken breasts

Place a small frying pan over low heat and dry-roast the coriander, cumin, cardamom and cinnamon until aromatic. Grind the roasted spices to a fine powder using a spice grinder.

Place onion, ginger, cloves, cayenne, oil, lemon juice and salt in a blender or food processor until smooth. Add the roasted spice mixture to the onion paste.

Marinate the chicken with the spice paste. Cover and marinate for 2 to 4 hours.

Preheat the grill to 350 º F. Grill the chicken pieces for 5 minutes on each side on the grill, or until the chicken is tender and cooked.

Compote

* 2 tablespoons butter
* 2 granny smith apples, peeled, cored and chopped
* ½ cup apple cider
* 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, toasted and ground
* 1 teaspoon ground cumin, toasted and ground
* 2 tablespoons kokum, seeded and chopped

Cook the butter in small saucepan over high heat until golden brown. Add the apples and cook stirring until caramelized about 5 minutes. Add the apple cider and cook until the liquid had evaporated about 5 to 7 minutes. Mix in the coriander, cumin and kokum and cook for 1 minute. Set aside until ready to use.

Yellow Pear and Cherry Tomato Salad with Cumin

* Serves 4
* 2 tablespoons lemon juice
* 2 tablespoons red onion, minced
* 2 teaspoons honey
* 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
* Salt to taste
* ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
* 2 teaspoons cumin seeds, toasted and coarsely ground
* 2 cup yellow pear tomatoes, halved
* 1 cup red cherry tomatoes, halved
* 1 cup orange cherry tomatoes, halved
* 1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped.

In a small bowl combine the lemon juice, red onion, honey, olive oil ,salt, red pepper flakes and cumin. Whisk until well blended.

In a large salad bowl, toss together all the tomatoes. Pour the dressing on top, add the chopped basil and toss gently to mix well. Serve immediately.

Black Tea Cinnamon Truffle

Makes 5 Dozen Truffles

* 1 pound semi sweet chocolate, finely chopped
* 2 cups heavy cream
* 1 cinnamon stick
* ½ cup tea leaves
* 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
* Cocoa powder, for dusting

Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl and set aside

Using a small pot, bring the cream and cinnamon to boil. Remove from heat, add the tea and infuse for 5 minutes. Strain the hot cream through a fine sieve over the chocolate. Using the back of the spoon, press the tea leaves to extract as much flavor as possible. Allow the cream to soften the chocolate for 2 minutes. Using a whisk, stir the chocolate mixture slowly until smooth. Add the butter, stirring until mixed. Transfer the chocolate cream mixture into a flat pan and cover with plastic wrap, making sure the plastic wrap touches the entire surface of the mixture. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours until the chocolate is set.

Place the cocoa powder in a shallow plate. Using a teaspoon dipped in hot water, form ½ inch balls of the chocolate mixture. If the mixture gets too soft while working, refrigerate until set. Roll the truffles in cocoa powder and store in an airtight container in a cool place for up to three weeks.