Musings on Food

Over a period of time when your life revolves around food, we tend to get kind of carried away - we are lead to believe that we almost know everything under the sun and get kind of judgmental on who can cook what. Recently I had been over to a family dinner, who are a fairly conservative bunch in nature and I expected the same old Rosemilk, Biryani, Chicken 65 and what not which is traditionally expected. I was in for quite a surprise on what followed. We were served Virgin Mojitos as welcome drinks which was quite refreshing on a otherwise scorching day. Followed by baked tortilla with Chicken and Cheese and a few other condiments that simply blew all the guests away. This was apparently made for all the toddlers and children in mind so they could have their fill and let the adults have their meal at peace later. It was a hit to both Adult and Children. I tried to peek inside the super busy kitchen which was dishing out many more surprises. Then we were served whole prawns wrapped and fried in pastry rolls with chilli and plum sauce - which was disappearing faster than Houdini could. Then came the perfectly de-boned chicken lollipop with quite an authentic barbecue sauce - all this done in a regular tawa. On top of the same they did also have the traditional fare which I had very little interest as the appetizers had already filled me up. We cruised to the desserts - they served a traditional Indian dessert which was a powdered cashew in condensed milk laced with cardamom and jadhikai - as many Indian dessert it was far too sweet and it was a sledgehammer to the tasting buds. What was the highlight of the day was the Ricotta Cheese Filled Crepe with Poached Apple and Apple Sauce. It was so good, I couldn't but ask for a second and third serving. I was told they couldn't find ricotta cheese so they made it at home. Finally dinner was done and we were served Suleiman Tea to aid in digestion. I thanked our host who consisted of a Mother and her two Daughter in Laws who all shared our praises for a fantastic meal equally. I understood that they have traveled a and lived abroad quite a bit which explained their wide cuisine spread. Their menu planning of mixing and matching the traditional with the exotic items is what I felt a very different meal experience. It also reaffirmed my belief from Chef Gusteau's famous motto, "Anyone can cook." - From my all time favorite food movie Ratatouille. I dedicate this to each and everyone who inspires and aspires to cook a good meal!