India on My Platter (15 page)

Ingredients (for
Halwa)

Method (for
Halwa
)

1.  Heat one tablespoon
ghee
in a pan. Add the beetroot and sauté on medium flame for eight to 10 minutes.

2.  Once it is tender, add the hot milk and keep stirring till it reduces and becomes thick.

3.  Add the sugar, mix well and cook till it reduces.

4.  Add the dried whole milk solids, one tablespoon
ghee
and cardamom powder and mix well.

5.  When the
halwa
is cooked and becomes thick, add rose water, mix well and keep aside.

Ingredients (for
Rabri)

Method (for
Rabri)

1.  Mix the saffron strands in three teaspoon warm milk. After five minutes add the
rabri
to this saffron milk and simmer for two minutes. The
rabri
will get a beautiful saffron colour.

Ingredients (for Chocolate Almonds)

Method (for Chocolate Almonds)

1.  Melt chocolate on a double boiler. As soon as it melts, add the cashew nuts and almonds to it. On a greased tray, place these chocolate-coated almonds one by one.

2.  Keep it inside the fridge for five to seven minutes or until the coating sets.

Ingredients (Jor Toast)

Method (for Toast)

1.  Cut the bread slices into bite-sized round or square shapes.

2.  Heat two tablespoon
ghee
in a pan and add two tablespoon sugar to it.

3.  Once it is hot and the sugar starts to melt, start cooking the bread slices until they’re golden brown from both sides.

4.  Assemble the dessert; spread saffron
rabri
on toast, place a small dollop of the beetroot
halwa
on top of it and garnish with chocolate almonds.

D
AY
46

20 September / Coorg

After Nadur, my next destination was Madikeri, 180 km south. A hill station in the district of Coorg, this area was extremely popular for large coffee plantations. Often called the Scotland of India by the British, or the Kashmir of the South by the rest of India, the aroma of coffee, cardamom and pepper infiltrate Madikeri. I took the opportunity to visit a coffee plantation called the Kaveri Coffee Estate. Reena, from the family who owns the plantation, took me through the plantation and showed me coffee plants of different varieties and age. Her oldest plant dated back to more than 50 years. The plantation had been converted into a homestay, where guests could stay at the plantation and take part in harvesting activities. I learnt that there are two types of coffee: Arabica and Robusta. While the latter is well suited for Indian climatic conditions and responds well to hilly areas and heavy rain, Arabica grows in the plains and does not require much rain. She explained how the coffee fruit is harvested when it is green, it is then dried, extracted and roasted, before it is powdered and sold.

My host was very soft spoken and knowledgeable. She was also an exceptional cook. I had the opportunity to taste authentic food of the district at the homestay. The cuisine was called Kodava and was named after the local community. This food was a mix of vegetarian and non-vegetarian fare. Reena explained how rice is a staple, because of how widely it is grown in the area. It is the foundation of their cuisine and is served in many forms. A few of the rice dishes that I tasted were
akki roti,
a type of crispy thin pancake of unleavened wholemeal bread cooked on a griddle, made from a combination of cooked rice and rice flour;
puttu,
a variety of steamed rice dishes;
kadam battu,
also called butter balls;
nu pattu,
rice threads similar to vermicelli. There was a typical chicken curry made with coconut and whole spices. Also, there was a sweet and sour pumpkin curry along with few chutneys to accompany the dishes. In my usual style, to thank her for her generous favour, I made
No Bake Coorgi Coffee Brownies
for Reena.

N
O
B
AKE
C
OORGI
C
OFFEE
B
ROWNIES

(Coffee-flavoured brownies prepared without an oven.)

Ingredients

Method

1.  Make a coffee concoction by boiling ¼ cup of water and mixing the coffee powder in it. Strain after 10 minutes. Mix this with the condensed milk.

2.  Line an eight-inch square baking dish with two crossed strips of parchment paper, letting the long ends hang over the sides of the dish. Grease lightly with butter.

3.  In a large bowl, mix together the crackers, hazelnuts or almonds, cocoa, and salt. Pour in the coffeecondensed milk mixture. Pour in the melted chocolate and stir firmly to combine.

4.  Empty this into the baking dish. Spread it evenly; if needed, cover it with a plastic wrap and press slightly with a pan or any heavy tool.

5.  Chill it for an hour or until firm enough to cut. Remove the brownies from the pan. Cut the brownies into small squares. The brownies are ready!

∼

After I left Coorg, and as I was entering the land of Ayurveda, Kerala, I decided to make a short detour to Calicut. I took some time off to visit the Kadavu Resort, an Ayurvedic retreat owned by a popular hotel chain. The resort is a gateway to the Malabar region, lush green palm hills flanked by bright blue water of the Chaliyar River. The general manager explained that it took a week to identify the body type of a guest who came for a healing treatment at the spa. After the assessment, the spa and Ayurveda treatment began. There was a unique diet pattern attuned to your body along with which you had to do various forms of yoga. All this was done alongside the river, to ease the pain.

This kind of spa treatment involved the use of essential oils, which were therapeutic in nature. With the abundance of spices and diverse medicinal plants in the area, this made sense. I opted for the
abhiyangam,
the full body massage, using clove oil. As much as I love travel, after being on the road for so long, this massage was just what I needed and two very strong masseurs did the needful. The humour of the situation wasn’t lost on me, neither was the relief that the massage brought.

After the massage I found myself in Shavakar, Kerala. I have lately become a fan of strength training and regional martial arts. So my next destination was Valabhatta Kalari Academy, known for teaching the ancient martial art
kalaripayattu.
I saw young boys and girls of different age groups among the students practicing. The youngest was six! The guru here explained that the basic requirements were dedication, focus and time. The training stage was divided into four categories. First was physical exercise
(maithari),
second was wooden weapons
(kolthari),
third was the metal weapons
(ankathari)
and the last was unarmed combat
(verumkai).
I saw them practising and I tried my hand at
kolthari.
I felt an immediate rush of adrenaline and I was filled with respect for all the students and their guru. There was one student, blindfolded, and he used a sword to slice targets—attached to other students—in half. Such was the precision of the training. Born and brought up in a devout Hindu family, I always like to seek blessings from my elders. I took a minute to touch the guru’s feet and carry his blessings with me through the rest of the journey.

As I took leave from the academy, I took a moment to think about my journey. I had covered more than 9000 km by road and I was almost at the southern tip of my beautiful country. In retrospect, I had grown each day and learnt new things that I could write an additional journal! Having said this before, I must reiterate my amazement at the diversity in nature, people, landscape, traditions and cultures in India. It might take more than a lifetime to experience and explore our very own brand ‘India.’

D
AY
47

21 September / Allappuzha

It was afternoon as I arrived at God’s Own Country. I was amazed, stunned, and in shock. For me, what I saw in the panoramic scene in front of me, surpassed my feelings that I had when I encountered Kashmir’s beauty. This was ethereal!

My first stop was an eco-houseboat on the backwaters. Kerala had recently overtook the Taj Mahal in Agra as the number one travel destination on Google search trends. Now, after coming here, I realised that this piece of information just had to be true because of the beautiful beaches, backwaters, the mountain ranges, the wildlife sanctuaries, and of course, the spice trails. One of the main reasons for Kerala being so popular was the encouraging support of their government. They were the first to declare tourism as an industry in India. Kerala is widely known for its ecotourism initiatives and I wanted to experience it first-hand. This was my first experience on the backwaters, an extensive network of 41 interlocking rivers, lakes and canals. I got aboard Pride Eco-houseboat run by Mr. Johnson. What was especially cool was that the houseboat had its own elaborate number plate. The houseboat was constructed with natural materials like wood, bamboo, coconut shells, husk and rods. Even the chair that I was swinging on was a cane chain. Mr. Johnson believed that when you are in the tourism business in Allappuzha you have to own a houseboat.

He made me observe the banks of the river and provided an insight into the lives of the people who were living along the river bank. There was a reason this area was called the Rice Bowl of India. The water level of the river was higher than the level of the fields along the banks, making it easier to irrigate and grow the rice, which actually required a lot of water to grow. Life along the backwaters was completely dependent on the river water. Even the foundation of the houses, of people living here, was built using sandstone from the riverbed. They worked on the rice fields and ate the fish they caught from the river. It was almost a self-contained environment. To take it a notch higher, they had ensured that tourists like me, not only got to enjoy the landscape, but also experience the culture and lifestyle of people living here. If you were of the creative kinds, you could use local ingredients, from the market on the backwaters, to cook for yourself, your family or friends. If you have the soul of a traveller, it is a must to spend a few days here enjoying the backwaters. Mr. Johnson was kind enough to lend his boat to me for the entire day and it was on the boat that I cooked
Kerala
Bhindi
Curry
for him.

K
ERALA
B
HINDI
 
C
URRY

(Okra cooked in tamarind and tomato curry.)

Ingredients

Method

1.  Soak tamarind in warm water and squeeze. About ¼ cup thick tamarind water is needed.

2.  Heat the coconut oil in a pan. Add the mustard seeds and let them splutter. Now add curry leaves, fenugreek seeds and dry red chillies. Then add the shallots and garlic. sauté everything well till the shallots are translucent.

3.  Add the chopped okra to this and sauté it for three to four minutes. Then add the tomato purée, turmeric powder, chilli powder and coriander powder. sauté well.

4.  Add the tamarind water, salt to taste and mix well. Add ½ cup of water and let it come to a boil. Simmer it for another 10-12 minutes with the lid on.

4.  Add the tamarind water, salt to taste and mix well. Add ½ cup of water and let it come to a boil. Simmer it for another 10-12 minutes with the lid on.

5.  Once the okra is fully cooked, take it off the heat and serve with steamed rice.

∼

After cooking, rest of my day was spent gazing into the horizon, watching the people in the paddy fields and wishing I had a boat of my own.

D
AY
48

22 September / Allappuzha

I woke up early to go to the local vegetable and spice market. I saw fresh beans, lemon, garlic, ginger, and different types of banana. An interesting ingredient that is a staple in Kerala is ‘tapioca.’ Seen in other parts of India mostly in the form of chips, I discovered its popularity here as an everyday vegetable. Also called cassava, it is made into chips along with bitter gourd and banana.