[nicneufeld]

Not sure about that first sort of dal!  The second looks like masoor dal, orangey salmon colored.

I might do a chickpea flour battered fish fry tonight, some cumin and spices mixed in, to go with finishing out the dal.

Re the music, my flesh creeps at some of the more modern stuff, or south asian pop.  I can handle the hindustani instrumental music principally...call me a hippie influenced by the Beatles, but Ravi Shankar can still groove:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzN2gUGYUGc

As an occasional jazz musician, this is much more my bag.  Not the greatest performance, Ravi's fire isn't what it was, and his daughter is good but, likewise, not like he was in his younger days, and that tabla player is fine, but no Alla Rakha.  A great tabla player is like a great jazz drummer, except he does more with less!

[capozzoli]

I think you are right about the masoor dal. We had these and another varity that was about the same color but were much smaller. I would say about half of the diameter. The little ones are great cause they cook up in about 15 mins in a regular pot.

A friend of ours mother is visiting from India and here for a while. Having spoken with her a little about cooking she is fascinated with the fact that I cook and know about Indian ingredients. There is a huge Indian party at their house in April. we are invited and mother wants me to help prepare the food. I am enormously excited. She has lots of cooking impliments that I have never seen so it should be very informative.

One thing she was showing me is here pressure cooker. It has four layered bowls in it so that you can cook several dishes in it at the same time.  Interesting.

They are vegetarians so I guess they do not have to worry about a meat coarse taking longer.

I will get some pics of this dinner party for sure. Im sure it will be something else cause thye are very well off.

[bluesman]

Re the music, my flesh creeps at some of the more modern stuff, or south asian pop.  I can handle the hindustani instrumental music principally...call me a hippie influenced by the Beatles, but Ravi Shankar can still groove:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzN2gUGYUGc

As an occasional jazz musician, this is much more my bag.  Not the greatest performance, Ravi's fire isn't what it was, and his daughter is good but, likewise, not like he was in his younger days, and that tabla player is fine, but no Alla Rakha.  A great tabla player is like a great jazz drummer, except he does more with less!

Real nice selection Nic. Love Shankar. Can you imagine tuning one of those bad boys let alone building one. The Sithar has a similiar tone to the banjo which I really enjoy. Hindustani classical is a real fine art form.

[bluesman]

OK, Capp and Nic...you guys have gotten my attention and sparked my curiosity. I think I'll start out making some Dal makhani. It is known as one of the most popular dishes in Indian cuisine. I will have to hit up my local Indian store for some of the ingredients.

Capp...have you ever made this dish. I'm almost certain you have. If so, how do you make it?

This is from Wiki...

To make dal makhani, lentils and beans are soaked overnight for at least 8 hours and then gently simmered on low heat. In a separate pan cumin seeds and whole garam massala are sauteed in ghee or oil, making a type of chaunk. Ginger and garlic paste is then added; tomato puree is also commonly added. The mixture is cooked slowly for some time. Once it comes to a boil, salt, coriander powder, chili powder, and butter are added. When the dish is done simmering (when the lentils are thoroughly soft and are starting to disintegrate into the sauce itself) dollops of fresh cream and butter are placed on top. When served, the dal makhani is garnished with finely chopped coriander leaves. This dish is a rich stew of sorts, high in both fat and protein and is a staple in the diet of Punjab and most of Northern India and Northeastern India. Similar versions are also made in Pakistan.

Does this sound about right?

[capozzoli]

Sounds like what I make. I make it several different ways but that sounds like a basic dal recipe. I have never heard of the fresh cream on top or the addition of butter. I usually use a little ghee or some coconut oil.

Never heard that name before either.

Dal is also a staple in Ethiopian cooking. After you guys have a grasp of Indian cooking lets talk Ethiopian. Very similar yet at the same time vastly different. I know how to make injeras too.

[capozzoli]

Check out my spice and dal cabinet.



Here is an image of some Ethiopian food.



The soupy mud looking substance is an Ethiopian dal dish. It is cooked till it is a puree.

[tygo]

Thanks for the rice cooking tips.  I've been working on getting mine to not be so clumpy.  I've been rinsing it but it appears that more enthusiastic rinsing is perhaps in order.

[bluesman]

Check out my spice and dal cabinet.



Here is an image of some Ethiopian food.



The soupy mud looking substance is an Ethiopian dal dish. It is cooked till it is a puree.

Man....your spice cabinet is alot neater than your shop. 

[capozzoli]

Ouch.


So, for that coconut rice dish.

Rinse the rise and soak. Then take a pot and heat it up to medium. Then put in a chopped onion, a chopped fine clove of garlic. Let this saute dry for a few mins stirring frequently. Then add some ghee. then add cumin seeds, mustard seeds, kalangi seeds (or whatever they are called) fenugreek, black pepper and salt. Then add some chopped carrots, peas and chopped cashew nuts.  When the onions start to brown and the nuts are getting toasty add the rice. Stir frequently till well coated with oil.

Now for the coconut you can use fresh grated or dessicated shredded coconut but I have found that the "creamed" coconut works the best by far. It comes in a box and looks kinda like a bar of soap. It is typically Caribbean Spanish in origin but even the Indian stores carry it.

Once the rice is opaque in color add about a quarter cup of the coconut and stir it in well. Once mixed add the water and bring to a boil. Cover and turn on low.

Very good rice dish, it has that exotic coconut flavor. MMMM

[gail]

Cap--did you do the Ethiopian bread, too?  If you did, care to share your recipe?
Gail

[bluesman]

Ouch.

At least you don't have to eat off of your welding table. 

Metal shops are naturally dirty. Comes with the territory. 

Real nice rice making process there by the way.

[capozzoli]

I did make the injeras.

It took me years literally to learn how to do it. Finally after going to a little Ethiopian restaurant as a regular I got to know the servers and cooks. They took me in the back and showed me how to do it.

There are several ways of doing it. The easy way that does not require patience and the hard way that does require some patience.

The main ingredient in injeras is teff. This is a grain that comes from Ethiopia. You will see all kinds of recipes for injeras that excludes teff but they are not the same so it is best to find the teff.

The easy way is to mix the teff flour with water till it is about the consistency of crepe batter. Then add some yeast. Bread yeast is OK. Cover this and put it in a bowl or something in case it blows over, and let it sit for a few hours. When it comes time to make them add some Aunt Jemima self rise flour. I would say about one part Aunt Jemima to two parts teff batter. Add some water as needed to get back to the crepe like consistency. Let it sit for another 15-20 mins.

Then heat up a large flat pan on med-high heat.  I use (and Im gonna get some crap for admitting this) a 16" non stick pan. Nonstick works great for injeras. I pour a little veg oil in a bowl and then dip a paper towel in it to wipe the pan with some oil. To much oil and they fall apart, to little and they stick.

One of those electric griddles on high would work great I bet. I dont have one.

Once the pan is hot, Ladle in some batter and turn the pan around to spread the batter thin. Then cover the pan with a lid. Keep an eye on it. When bubbles form and the top is dry it should pull and slide right out. If it is to thick add some more water to the batter, if it is to thin add some Aunt Jemimahs. Wrap the finished injeras in a towel to keep them warm and soft.  

The hard way is to mix the teff batter with water and leave it to spontaneously ferment to achieve the leavening. It takes a week or two. Then mix with flour or use it strait.

I get teff from a little Ethiopian grocery store, assuming there isnt one near you you can get teff from this place.

http://www.teffco.com/products.html

Here is a pro doing it.

[bluesman]

Awesome technique.

No wait a minute...Did you say that you heat them up in a non-stick pan....

Just kidding...I guess it's better than a crock...well nevermind.

Excellent work Capp!

[gail]

Thanks!  I'll be on the lookout for teff and give it a try.  Love Ethiopian food.  The actual cooking sounds like nalaszniki (spelling?) or crepes.  Glad a non-stick pan is acceptable   
Gail

[capozzoli]

Nalaznici? Is that Ukrainian?

Slovakians; of which my family unit is half,  call crepes palensinki.

But I think yes, injeras are blinis, blintzes, crepes, just the Ethiopian teff variety. I have seen sour blinis where the rye batter is left to ferment (sour) a little bit. They are very much like injeras.

There are lots of different kinds of injeras, flour, corn even sour sop but the sour "beer' tasting crepes that you are no doubt familiar with are made with teff.  

Here is a good place to order some of the rare hard to get herbs and spices that make for authentic Ethiopian food.

http://www.ethiopianspices.com/

There are only a few items that can not be found anywhere else, mainly koseret and beso bello. When cooking Ethiopian food in the American kitchen Koseret is substituted with a 50-50 mixture of basil and oregano. beso bella is not replaceable, we have nothing like it. It smells like fresh blueberries. If you dont have it you just leave it out, but it is one of those things that gives it that special little something that you will notice missing.

So Gail, do you cook Ethiopian food? Most people dont understand.

Have you ever made tej? Tella?

I havent made Tej but it is on deck. I have most of the ingredients including the gesho (woody hops) not actually hops but a bittering agent used both in tej (Ethipopian mead) and tella (ethiopian beer).

I actually have to do some bottling and drinking if I am ever going to brew or make mead or cider again. I have several batches in the basement inadvertently aging. Good for my cider but my beers are going to taste like cardboard if I dont do some bottling soon. Im just not looking forward to bending over for four hours.

Tej is next though.