Hello fine folks and how are you all doing? Everything's alright on the home front? Sorry that I couldn't find the time to post a few entries that are as useful as Sheikhyerbooty's coz I was a wee bit busy the last week (dont mind me, I am just bragging) Some of my pals at blogger wanted me to do this meme and I thought I'd share it with you peeps too!

Ok, before I go into my top 10 fav foods, lemme just give you an insight into foods that I hate (coz it is very important for you, as important as Dubya winning the next elections;)

I loathe:
a) Pizzaz, Sizzlers, Hamburgers, Frankfurters and the like...(the number of times I have eaten them I can count on my fingers of one hand;)

b) Aerated drinks...colas etc (Not that I am diet conscious...I just hate 'em)

c) Chaat items...those bhelpuris, pani puris and stuff (dont much care for them)

d) Excessive sweet tasting curries which usually is the result of over zealous use of coconut or jaggery.

e) Sausages and thingies related to the sausage (I mostly ralph even on seeing them, especially bratwurst)

Other than the above, I can stomach pretty much anything and everything coz my "complaisant digestion" and enlightened gluttony allows me to enjoy a wide variety of food, from the showy, ingenious, liquor-lashed, cream-besotted exotic dishes flirting along with Dom Perignon to simple porridge and I for one can stomach the foods of cultural pluralism (thank God for variety!)

Somewhere in my adulthood, cooking became philosophy with me but am not that kind of religious foodie to undertake pilgrimages to the Meccas of food. I decide to devastate the kitchen myself though I pride myself on being a master chef in this era where most people do the cooking with their fingers(dial a restaurant;)!

I have a formidable collection of about 6000 recipes assorted on my puter but would love to possess that bible of foodbooks authored by Jean-Anthèlme Brillat-Savarin--La Physiologie du Goût .(I see it at book stores but cant bring myself to purchase it...dont know why;) My memory fails me as to how many recipes I have attempted in those 6000, but the very thought of possessing them gives me immense satsifaction and glee.

When kitchens are perceived as the laboratories of the laws of nutrition, it is then that cooking turns out to be a mundane chore, but when seen as an art form it is nothing short of ecstasy (like you fine folks have demonstrated in your pics:). As brilliant as a painter would use his palette to mix the colours the chef (maybe you could think of me;) artfully combines the ingredients with finesse to conjure up miracles for the tongue.

Tasty food apart from being cooked by convention also relies on the inventiveness of the chef. It is here that you can play the part of an inventor and get to mouth the words Eureka if your guests enjoy the food or you could relegate yourself to the corner and finish it off all by yourself comforting your poor soul that aleast you found out a way in which it should'nt be cooked!

Cooking for the self isnt anywhere as exciting as cooking for others. The joy of seeing my friends relish my gastronomic fare with gusto sends waves of joy in me, and I dont feel the pangs of hunger anymore--the soul being fed. (I know most of you seem to be saying Tch...tch...tch;) Ok now enough of all those crap...lets get on with the meme...

The ones given below top (you cant call that an oxymoron, can you?) my all time fav foods which I can eat at any time of the day (including night). Sometimes I get up in the night to pee at about 3 am and then creep into the kitchen and help myself to whatever is left over the previous night (sorry I dont suffer from an eating disorder). Dang myself.

The Top Ten:

a) Hyderabadi Mutton Dum Biryani:
Ooooh, how I love it. This has to be cooked by a Moslem (sorry if I sound fanatic/lunatic there) to be 249% authentic, and yea they really have a 'knack' of making tasty biryanis. Next to Moslems, my wife makes the best. (I hope she is reading this;) Whoa, I've managed to butter her;)

b) Malaysian Fried Rice:
A good mixture of all the tastes and when made well you can identify the different flavours like a well sung carnatic raga. (Again kudos to wifey....jeez, I am gonna have a great night today;)

c) Kuzhipaniyaaram
A typical South Indian dish...you need to savour it to know what the hell I am talkin about;) Best place to taste this dish: My House ;)

d) Garlic Prawn Kebabs:
Ing:
16 large green prawns
8 tsp olive oil
1/3 cup dry white wine
4 large cloves of garlic crushed
crushed chives for garnish
4 bamboo skewers

Method:
Shell and devein the prawns and leave the tail fan and last segment of the shell on. Mix olive oil oil and wine and garlic well in a medium bowl. Place the prawns in a bowl and stir until coated and marinate for an hour. Soak the bamboo skewers in water to prevent any burns while cooking and thread 4 prawns on each skewer and pre heat the grill to high or a hot BBQ and place the prawns on a foil covered grill or in a pan and brush with marnade and grill for 3 mins until they turn pink and turn once and brush with marinade while cooking and the dish is ready.

I suggest you have this with your gf/bf/spouse by your side and preferably with a glass of sparkling wine;) (the spouse by your side should add to the intoxication not the wine;)))


e) Ahad-E-Changezi

Ingredients:
1 kg leg of kid lamb
2 cups jamun vinegar
2 tab gingger-garlic paste
salt and black pepper powder
2 tab oil
1 carrot chopped
2 onions chopped
2 tsp chilli powder
chaat masala powder

Method:
Clean the lamb leg and dry well. Mix jamun vinegar, ginger-garlic paste, salt, pepper chopped onions,carrot and chilli powder. Apply to the leg and keep aside for 6 hrs so that the meat absorbs the flavour and taste of the marinade.
Put the baby lamb on a skewer and cook in a clay oven and cook for 20-25 mins or till done. Season with salt and chaat masala. Serve hot along with green chutney and onion rings along with Kingfisher beer;)

f) Paranthas
Saucy soft paranthas and mutton gravy is my idea of a perfect dinner on a lazy Sunday night.

g) Cauliflower with red wine sauce
A super duper combination for a staid chappathi ;)

h) Masala Dosai
I have the pic (the inner anatomy of the dosai) and Sailu has the recipe and some good pics. I can almost feel the crispy dosai in that pic of hers. Masala dosai is best finished with Madras decoction coffee ;)

i) Strawberry-Chocolate Bavarian Cream
Ing:
1 (10 ounce) package frozen sliced strawberries, thawed*
2 envelopes unflavored gelatine
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 1/4 cups milk, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup heavy or whipping cream
Strawberry Cream (recipe below)

Drain strawberries; reserve syrup. Add water to syrup to equal 3/4 cup. Stir gelatine into liquid; set aside.

Puree or mash berries to equal 1/2 cup. Reserve for use in Strawberry Cream.

Combine sugar, chocolate chips and 1/2 cup of the milk in a medium saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth and very hot. Add gelatine mixture, stirring until gelatine is completely dissolved. Remove from heat; add remaining 1 3/4 cups milk and the vanilla extract. Pour into bowl; chill, stirring occasionally, until mixture mounds when dropped from a spoon.

Whip cream until stiff; fold into chocolate mixture. Pour into oiled 5- or 6-cup mold; chill until firm. Unmold and garnish with Strawberry Cream.

* You may substitute 1 cup sweetened sliced fresh strawberries for the frozen.

Strawberry Cream
1 cup heavy or whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup strawberry puree (reserved from above recipe)
2 or 3 drops red food coloring

Whip cream and vanilla extract in small mixer bowl until stiff. Fold in strawberry puree and food color. Love this thing.

j) Mint, Ginger and Lemon Fizz

To be had after pigging out on Hyderabadi Dum Biryani.

Ingredients: 3 bottles soda, juice of 1 lemon, 5 cm ginger, 4 g black salt, 30 gm of sugar or sweetener, 8 mint leaves chopped fine and 8 ice cubes.

Method:
Grate the ginger and extract the lemon juice about a tbsp. Mix lemon juice, ginger juice, black salt, sugar and mint leaves in a bowl. Refrigerate the mixture. At serving time, put ice cubes in tall glasses and add enough of seasoned lemon juice and pour the soda over it. Serve immediately. This serves 4 persons.

There you are...I finally made it! Holy cow!

PS:
1) Some bits of this post are excerpted from an article entitled Cooking that I wrote long ago.

2) You could check my 100 Handy hints in the kitchen and 99 hints for housekeeping which I compiled from Tamil Mags during my college days for some useful tips.

Cheers and have fun this week!

Amen