Dear readers,
My teenagers still have X-mas holiday. Being in India, that means pool and sunbed, Xbox (well, not only here) relax and enjoy. I though it would be an excellent idea to explore the culture and history with them. So, with great enthusiasm I asked: So, where shall we go? Gateway of India? They looked at me: Been there, mum.
Hm. I know, but still? Ok, how about I show you The Former Prince of Wales' museum (remember that one?) or .. or we can walk in Gandhis footsteps and have a touch of his spirit by visiting his home! I giggled over my own amazing ideas. They looked at eachother: Or maybe we could go to Starbucks?
Well, dear readers, we do as Winnie the Poo did and go for all the options, so a lot of exploring these days. Don't worry - I will take you along with us. But, trust me - I actually also wanted Starbucks. And for all you outside India: before you judge: you will not believe the wave of jubileus mood that flows around in this city when something new comes to town. When Starbucks opened their 3 Mumbai shops last autumn it was a total chaos. I tell you. People drove for hours to get there and waited in line even longer for their coffee. And yes, you feel yourself just being dragged along into that joyful scent of anticipation - you do want to hop up and down, clap you hands, do the wave and cheer with the crowd: Yeah!! Starbucks is in town!
So, while we are out exploring, maybe you want to try out some Indian food while you wait? I think you might enjoy the recipe of Dal, which has become a favorite dish. As many Indian dishes it contains a flow of spices and smells divine. It takes some time to boil the dal, but otherwise it doesn't take too long to cook. And so healthy too! This is how we did it:
DAL
You need:
300 g dal red small lentils
1 onion, peeled and chopped
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1 green chili, chopped ( we used one from own crop:-)
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp tamarind powder
2 tomatoes, chopped
Some curry leaves
Some fresh coriander
Some fresh parsley
Oil
You do:
In a pan, boil the dal in 1-2 l water until they are almost like mashed. Put aside.
In another pan put some oil and fry the onion, garlic, chili, mustard seeds, cumin seeds until light brown.
Add chopped tomatoes, tamarind, ginger paste and let boil for 5 minutes.
Add the dal and water (add water according to how thick/thin you prefer your dish).
Let boil for 5 more minutes
Towards the end, add fresh parsley and coriander, and decorate with fresh coriander
You dig in!
We eat dal with shapati-bread. Really yoummie.
Bon apetit!
UPDATE: 16.1 Starbucks opened their 4th Mumbai cafe. It is here in Powai, very close to where we live!
My teenagers still have X-mas holiday. Being in India, that means pool and sunbed, Xbox (well, not only here) relax and enjoy. I though it would be an excellent idea to explore the culture and history with them. So, with great enthusiasm I asked: So, where shall we go? Gateway of India? They looked at me: Been there, mum.
Hm. I know, but still? Ok, how about I show you The Former Prince of Wales' museum (remember that one?) or .. or we can walk in Gandhis footsteps and have a touch of his spirit by visiting his home! I giggled over my own amazing ideas. They looked at eachother: Or maybe we could go to Starbucks?
Well, dear readers, we do as Winnie the Poo did and go for all the options, so a lot of exploring these days. Don't worry - I will take you along with us. But, trust me - I actually also wanted Starbucks. And for all you outside India: before you judge: you will not believe the wave of jubileus mood that flows around in this city when something new comes to town. When Starbucks opened their 3 Mumbai shops last autumn it was a total chaos. I tell you. People drove for hours to get there and waited in line even longer for their coffee. And yes, you feel yourself just being dragged along into that joyful scent of anticipation - you do want to hop up and down, clap you hands, do the wave and cheer with the crowd: Yeah!! Starbucks is in town!
 |
| Starbucks in Mumbai! Yeeei! |
DAL
You need:
300 g dal red small lentils
1 onion, peeled and chopped
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1 green chili, chopped ( we used one from own crop:-)
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp tamarind powder
2 tomatoes, chopped
Some curry leaves
Some fresh coriander
Some fresh parsley
Oil
 |
| Green chili from our own crop:-) Ready to be dal-ified. |
You do:
In a pan, boil the dal in 1-2 l water until they are almost like mashed. Put aside.
In another pan put some oil and fry the onion, garlic, chili, mustard seeds, cumin seeds until light brown.
Add chopped tomatoes, tamarind, ginger paste and let boil for 5 minutes.
Add the dal and water (add water according to how thick/thin you prefer your dish).
Let boil for 5 more minutes
Towards the end, add fresh parsley and coriander, and decorate with fresh coriander
You dig in!
We eat dal with shapati-bread. Really yoummie.
Bon apetit!
UPDATE: 16.1 Starbucks opened their 4th Mumbai cafe. It is here in Powai, very close to where we live!
Next time you dont have to go South for a Starbucks Eli ....they are opening a new shop in Powai shortly :-)
ReplyDeleteYeah? Nice!! Where and when- do you know? We can be there on their opening day- doing the wave:-)
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