Radhi's diary

My recipes

2008-06-12T08:39:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone..

I have to say sorry.... I just read my first recipe post and realized that I havent written the recipes completely and I have also used many Indian words, which many might not follow.. I will redo my recipe post next time..

Ciao for now
Radhika.

Indian Recipes

2008-05-18T08:39:00.000-07:00

Green Curry
• Cut a big onion and fry till golden brown
• Fry jeera(cumin), green chillies, ginger and dalia (I think it's split chana ) in oil, Add little panipuri masala (buy from store) and grind all these ingredients (including onion and all the spices) till paste
• Cut potatoes, beans, carrots and peas and any other vegetable and add the ground paste
• Mix and cook till done.

Capsicum Curry
• Add oil in a pan, fry cumin, onions, green chillies, peanuts, coconut, dhania powder, garam masala, ginger garlic paste
• Grind and put tamarind paste to grind instead of plain water , make it into a liquid paste.
• Cut capsicum and fry for 5 minutes in little oil and then add the paste and salt and a spoon of sugar
• Cook for another 5-10 minutes till done.

Spinach Rice
• Ingredients: Spinach, onion, ginger, garlic, green chillies, jeera (cumin seeds
• Fry all the above ingredients, grind it into a fine paste.
• Cook the paste for 2-5 min with salt.
• Mix it with cooked rice or cook the paste with rice.

Okra Raita – Orissa dish
• Cut okra/ ladies finger about 250gm ,
• Cut green chillies and season with mustard seeds, urad dal (1 tsp), 1 red chilli, 1 tsp chana dal, and 2-3 pinches hing (asafoetida)
• Fry okra in oil and add salt
• Add salt according to taste
• In a separate vessel take about 1- 1 ½ cup of yogurt or curd and serve cold at room temperature.
• This dish goes well with

Bagara Baingan
• Add oil in a pan, season with Jeera, dhania powder, methi seeds (10-12 seeds), peanuts, til (sesame seeds)
• Fry onions, ginger garlic paste, salt, chillli and turmeric powder
• Grind with tamarind paste and water, make it liquidly
• Take 8 – 10 brinjal and slit them into 4, but do not open them fully and do not cut them into 4 pieces.
• Add the ground masala and add tamarind paste
• And serve with coriander leaves.

Masala Baath
Ingredients
Onions-2, tomatoes-2, bay leaves, carrots and peas, beans, potatoes, (frozen vegetables- asian style is also good)
• In a vessel, add oil, fry onions, add vegetables and then add tomatoes at the end.
• Add a table spoon of Mild curry paste (company name- Patak), salt and ½ a spoon sugar and mix well
• Then add 2 cups washed basmati rice, mix well for 1-2 mts
• Add required amount of water , usual proportion 1 cup basmati rice: 2cups water
• Close the lid of the vessel and cook on medium high for 15 mts and reduce the flame for the last 5 mts
• Serve hot with Raita

Hummus

Ingredients:
1 TIN chickpeas/ Garbanzo beans
1/4th cup tahini (mix well before use), Tahini is available in all big retail stores
1/4th cup sourcream/yogurt
1 lemon juice
2 cloves garlic- crush and add some (1/2 tsp) salt on it, and it helps mash them up

• Add all the above ingredients, mix for 2 mts in a grinder and don’t add too much water as you want it to be thick
• Transfer the contents into a wide container (which has a tight lid for storage)
• Add some chilli powder (cayenne pepper is better than paprika) and some mint and 2 tbsp of chopped parsely leaves, and you can also add radish, olives etc etc
• Add 2 tsp of extra virgin olive oil and spread it around.
• Hummus can be stored in the fridge (40C) or for one month in the freezer.

Interesting Facts about Electricity

2008-05-16T09:14:00.000-07:00

Imagine a life withought electricity!!!!! Well it's hard....Our everyday life depends and relies on electricity. The great scientist who invented electricity (light bulb) was Thomas Alva Edison. But not many people know about Nikola Tesla. Tesla is the reason we have electricity in each and every household. The main difference between Edison and Tesla was the mode of electrical transmission. In simple terms, Edison's DC (Direct current) required a large power plant every square mile while transmitting electricity through very thick cables whereas AC which is Alternating current, a better system devised by Tesla, had many advantages. The AC voltages could be stepped up and transmitted over long distances through thin wires. Tesla's AC current is what we have in our homes today. Tesla made life simple and cheap at those times so that everyone could afford electricity.

Tesla was a genius who invented other cool things like fluorescent bulb, Neon lights, Speedometer, automobile ignition system, radar, electron microscope, microwave oven etc etc. He was way ahead of his time and he imagined and wrote about his inventions even before anyone could ever think or understand. Many people do not know him because Edison tried really hard to crush him and of course Tesla had his share of problems. I think he had some kind of psycological disorder. He used to think really crazy stuff.. I guess many intelligent people have a different level of thinking, it's outside the norm and most of them do not have good personal lives.

Tesla's statue (Tesla Monument) is at the Goat Island and Queen Victoria Park at Niagara Falls, NY, USA and July 10th is Nikola Tesla Day.. It's a shame that I went there last year and did not pay attention to the monument. I dont remeber seeing it. I learnt about Nikola Tesla in Modern Marvels, History Channel and I read about him. I think I am feeling ashamed that being a scientist myself, I did not pay attention to great scientists like Tesla and others...

Radhika.

Clean Planet - Clean India

2008-05-10T10:23:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone,

I chose this title for my first blog because I got inspired from Dr.Jane Goodall's talk which I went to last week. I think she is an amazing person and she has contributed immensely to this world. There is so much to learn from her. She talked about her childhood, her upbringing, chimps ofcourse and her encouraging mother. She said that everyone on this earth is becoming more meat hungry and we are all killing animals one way or the other. I am a vegetarian but I think I am equally responsible, bec 2 weeks back I bought this cute little leather bag and shoes. But I didn't even think for a minute as to where it is coming from and how it was made.... Dr.Jane Goodall said that each of us should think about each and every product we buy in the market and when everyone is conscious and careful the world will become such a better place.

There is something very interesting I learnt in her talk. I never knew that a plastic bottle consumes about 2 times more water it can hold than to make one bottle. I think it will be a great idea to buy a glass bottle and reuse it.
For more information, pls read
http://www.ucsusa.org/publications/greentips/is-bottled-water-better.html

Apart from the plastic bottles we also use plastic bags which take about 1000 years to naturally degrade. There are researcher's and scientists who are trying to come up with better ways of using the plastic as gasoline etc etc.

There is another reason why I chose the title as "Clean India", because I am Indian living in the US and I work for the best univ trying to do some exciting research. India and China have the world's largest population and we are increasingly consuming more gasoline and animal products. The Indian middle class is earning a lot of money and we are not contributing anything to the world and in fact we are the reason why there is so much pollution. Being an Indian I want to start a clean India program. I will make it a point to clean my surroundings and India.

I think that's quite a lot of information for my first blog. Pls do respond.

Best
Radhika.

Next time I'll try to talk about a book I recently read and some interesting recipes and of course music, concerts etc etc.