I just dont understand... why it is such a huge deal about marriage... especially in India.... first few questions that come out of a person when u meet them is an enquiry on your marital status which people just dont find rude, feels like it is a pretty regular question which everyone has got to keep facing at all times from absolutely random strangers.... which is... plain weird....
There are people who tell others on hearing news of an impending marriage " Oh! you are getting married! I'm proud of you" What is to be proud of someone getting married i say... is it that it is an arranged marriage where you end up choosing your partner for life within 15 minutes at the most a week of chatting online or on the phone with parental supervision? Do u exclaim that way for you know what a huge decision has been taken in the span of 15 minutes and are proud that your friend has stuck to the decision even though he or she isnt sure of it.....
After the hulla boo of getting married and regretting the decision that was taken in the span of 15 minutes to a max of two weeks... the friend comes upto you and exclaims disappointment and complains about incompatability... thats where you should say i am proud of you for sticking his head in unknowingly and staying within the illusion of a happily married life knowing fully well that his happily married is just an illusion and the poor fart comes home and with a decidedly single track mind tries to convince your resigned parents to get you a partner for life and everything will fall in place... and always finishes with a respectful ' Auntiji' in the end which turns the tables for your poor mother, the fact that your friend Raaju has started addressing everyone with more respect shows how marriage has sobered down and ' Matured' a ruffian like him it would work wonders for you....
i mean like really?!!!?
After just having convinced your parents and brought them after much thawing from a 'perfect arranged marriage' to same community to the same religion and then finally just anyone as long as you get marrieed.... the friend manages to ride the ghost back up onto the famous banyan tree....
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Friday, September 7, 2012
What is a word.....
Now when one says you have my word.... what does it mean??? like does one really mean it? if they do then what does a word mean? isnt it what we make of them?
for instance i know someone who continously promises things and says this time you have my word on it... it will definitely happen i will make sure you will not get disappointed and whilst initially i used to plan around the fact that this person has given me his word and therefore it will happen and make my time and planned my day accordingly.... Eventually i started realising that a word is just that a word, even if it means so much to you it is just language.
Who started defining ' trust' with what we have learnt the word to signify? who designated the meaning for each word. who defined integrity? who defined disappointment?
When someone says something it need not necessarily mean what they say, they may say it just to say it and get it over with... It takes people time to judge others and realise if they are people who will follow through with what they have said or if not...
The thing is what triggered all this was just a simple promise of spending time and prolly a holiday when it most mattered to me... on my birthday.... and i blindly believed though the fact were before me that it wont be possible with the work schedules and the money in question...i chose to say his word was what mattered and that if once the word is given then it cant or rather wont be broken. A matter of simple Trust.... and then i woke up from my idealistic world and saw the facts in front of me and saw the patterns that were formed with the previous promises and then decided not to hold him to it... it released me... made me free... made me not depend on someone else to make me happy... its not important what someone says. i realised it was what someone did...
And as for my birthday... it is all about me... and how i plan to take it... :)
so my plans are awaited... :)
for instance i know someone who continously promises things and says this time you have my word on it... it will definitely happen i will make sure you will not get disappointed and whilst initially i used to plan around the fact that this person has given me his word and therefore it will happen and make my time and planned my day accordingly.... Eventually i started realising that a word is just that a word, even if it means so much to you it is just language.
Who started defining ' trust' with what we have learnt the word to signify? who designated the meaning for each word. who defined integrity? who defined disappointment?
When someone says something it need not necessarily mean what they say, they may say it just to say it and get it over with... It takes people time to judge others and realise if they are people who will follow through with what they have said or if not...
The thing is what triggered all this was just a simple promise of spending time and prolly a holiday when it most mattered to me... on my birthday.... and i blindly believed though the fact were before me that it wont be possible with the work schedules and the money in question...i chose to say his word was what mattered and that if once the word is given then it cant or rather wont be broken. A matter of simple Trust.... and then i woke up from my idealistic world and saw the facts in front of me and saw the patterns that were formed with the previous promises and then decided not to hold him to it... it released me... made me free... made me not depend on someone else to make me happy... its not important what someone says. i realised it was what someone did...
And as for my birthday... it is all about me... and how i plan to take it... :)
so my plans are awaited... :)
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
idli molaga podi
I miss Grand sweets.... im at a place in india where i dont even get a packet of aachi molaga podi... so imagine my horror of eating idli and dosai without any podi.....
so decided to make it myself, with a lot of help from dad anad a lil pilfering from a lot of internet articles, tried it and tweaked it a bit to suit the typical idli molaga podi.
Quantity outcome : 100 gm
Difficulty : Easy
Red Chillies : 20
Ulluthanparuppu : 1/2 a cup
Gram Dhal : 1 tsp
Coriander seeds : 1 tsp
Tamarind : goose berry sized.
1 tsp of salt.
Oil - 1 tsp.
STEP 1:
Heat oil. Add red chillies.
STEP 2:
Add Gram dhal, Ulluthamparuppu, fry.
STEP 3:
Add Coriander seeds.
Step 4 :
Add Tamarind fry for 2-3 minutes.
waita till everything is golden yellow. dont let it turn brown.
Step 5:
grind coarsely. add salt and give it a good round in the mixie.
and your molaga podi is ready :D
dont forget to store it in a dry container. **Cheers**
so decided to make it myself, with a lot of help from dad anad a lil pilfering from a lot of internet articles, tried it and tweaked it a bit to suit the typical idli molaga podi.
Quantity outcome : 100 gm
Difficulty : Easy
Red Chillies : 20
Ulluthanparuppu : 1/2 a cup
Gram Dhal : 1 tsp
Coriander seeds : 1 tsp
Tamarind : goose berry sized.
1 tsp of salt.
Oil - 1 tsp.
STEP 1:
Heat oil. Add red chillies.
STEP 2:
Add Gram dhal, Ulluthamparuppu, fry.
STEP 3:
Add Coriander seeds.
Step 4 :
Add Tamarind fry for 2-3 minutes.
waita till everything is golden yellow. dont let it turn brown.
Step 5:
grind coarsely. add salt and give it a good round in the mixie.
and your molaga podi is ready :D
dont forget to store it in a dry container. **Cheers**
Monday, August 27, 2012
More kozhambu :)
I am becoming this person who writes aqll about the tam brahm to die for food... prolly because i am married to a person who cant live without his amma saapadu... only because she can make to die for more kozhambu and avial and araichu vitta saambaar.... like really?!!!? if you keep running back home to eat ammas perfect cooking then when will i ever get a guinea pig to try my recipes on i say!!! so i asked him what it would take for himn to stay here for lunch and he says amazing more kozhambu anad seipankazhangu curry... i said fine and readied myself for my personal battle with the kitchen and cooking thats been happening ever since i got married... and i started off making more kozhambu....
btw, being a healthy foodie i try not using too much coconut or oil in anything i make so, i learnt after some thought and trial the second time i made it and tried without coconut at all and he didnt know the difference.... so try it.
Preparation time : 5 minutes.
okra - 250 gm (cut one inch length.)
turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
oil - 2 tsp
Red Chillies - 2
mustard seeds -1 tsp
jeera - 1 tsp
curry leaves - 1 sprig
thick curd - 2 cups mix well and make into a smooth flowing paste.
coconut ( grated ) - 1/2 cup. (Optional)
STEP 1:
Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan. add okra and shallow fry it for 1 minute until the skins a little crispy. Add salt. I usually add 1/2 tsp salt. mix it up and heap it in the corner of the pan
STEP 2:
Add the remaining oil temper the mustards the red chillies jeera and curry leaves. Add turmeric powder. Mix the okra and the tempered chilly, jeera and mustard.
This is where u add the grated coconut if u want to. It can be done without also. take it off the flame.
STEP 3:
Add curd. mix well.
P.S: If you dont add coconut the curd should be reasonably thick, The purpose of the coconut is to help in bringing the density in consistency which can be brought by using thick curd instead.
btw, being a healthy foodie i try not using too much coconut or oil in anything i make so, i learnt after some thought and trial the second time i made it and tried without coconut at all and he didnt know the difference.... so try it.
Preparation time : 5 minutes.
okra - 250 gm (cut one inch length.)
turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
oil - 2 tsp
Red Chillies - 2
mustard seeds -1 tsp
jeera - 1 tsp
curry leaves - 1 sprig
thick curd - 2 cups mix well and make into a smooth flowing paste.
coconut ( grated ) - 1/2 cup. (Optional)
STEP 1:
Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan. add okra and shallow fry it for 1 minute until the skins a little crispy. Add salt. I usually add 1/2 tsp salt. mix it up and heap it in the corner of the pan
STEP 2:
Add the remaining oil temper the mustards the red chillies jeera and curry leaves. Add turmeric powder. Mix the okra and the tempered chilly, jeera and mustard.
This is where u add the grated coconut if u want to. It can be done without also. take it off the flame.
STEP 3:
Add curd. mix well.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Making avial at home....
I assumed it was a super complicated dish... because i hadnt seen my mom make it in front of me... i love it... so when ever i say i want to have avial tomo... all i remember are my mothers expression when she thought of the amount of veggies that needed to be cut and cleaned :P and i used to tell her ill help and every time i used to cut myself by experimenting with a new way to cut vegetables fasaater :P.... my antics as a child were too many to number... but they come back whenever i think of my mom trying to cater to what my mom calls tanjore tongue... :D and the previous night the vegetables would be cut and i would get woken up by this yummy smell only to be greeted by the sight of avial on the table :D
so, when i wanted to take on an assignment five months into my marriage with nothing much to do because husband dearest leaves by 9 and is back after 16 hours leaving me to fend for myself...i thought it wwould take all morning to make... and had planned to make it on one of my home alone sundays... bcoz on sundays he would come back home for lunch.... got up early morning to start the process... cut the veggies and cleaned them... once that was done it was a matter of fifteen minutes!!!!! really!! unbelievable... started and by the time my rice was ready the avial was happily simmering away with the glorious smell that only avial can have!!!!
so, lets get started....
Total time : 17 minutes
Serves : 2
we need five different types of vegetables. ( All medium sized)
Potato - 4
Plantain - 2 (Vazhakaai)
Carrot - 2
Brinjal - 2 ( Egg Plant)
Snake Gourd - 1
Cucumber - 1 (Must)
Coconut - Grated - 1/2 cup
Jeera / Cumin - 2 tsp
Green Chilly - 3
coconut oil - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - one sprig
STEP 1:
Try to cut each vegetable uniformly in size, it helps to cook them faster. start with the potato and work your way down. easier way to save time is to cut and boil simultaneously... so cube up the potatoes, put them in a container add salt and put them on medium heat and start the process of boiling. Meanwhile, cut the plantain. watch for a change of color with the potato... the color turns two shades lighter than the shade it started with. At this point you add the plantain, then the carrots, the brinjal, wait for the change in skin color. Do NOT wait for it to turn soft, proceed with adding the snake gourd. Add the cucumber. Mix. (takes around 10 minute tops)
Turn off the heat.
Drain the water from the boiled vegetables.
STEP 2:
Add water 3/4th the quantity of the vegetables in the container add salt, start boiling it on medium heat.
Meanwhile:
Grind the coconut, jeera and green chillies into a coarse paste.... add it to the container of boiling vegetables...
STEP 3:
mix, its done.
Keep it on low heat until you serve it or minimum of 5 minutes.
When u take it off the heat add curry leaves and 2 tsp of coconut oil mix and serve.
P.S: The vegetables can be varied. alternatives that u can use are : Ash gourd, Beans, Yam, Drum stick.
Point of note is : the cucumber gives a good dense consistency and mushyness. so other than the cucumber everything else can be changed.
so, when i wanted to take on an assignment five months into my marriage with nothing much to do because husband dearest leaves by 9 and is back after 16 hours leaving me to fend for myself...i thought it wwould take all morning to make... and had planned to make it on one of my home alone sundays... bcoz on sundays he would come back home for lunch.... got up early morning to start the process... cut the veggies and cleaned them... once that was done it was a matter of fifteen minutes!!!!! really!! unbelievable... started and by the time my rice was ready the avial was happily simmering away with the glorious smell that only avial can have!!!!
so, lets get started....
Total time : 17 minutes
Serves : 2
we need five different types of vegetables. ( All medium sized)
Potato - 4
Plantain - 2 (Vazhakaai)
Carrot - 2
Brinjal - 2 ( Egg Plant)
Snake Gourd - 1
Cucumber - 1 (Must)
Coconut - Grated - 1/2 cup
Jeera / Cumin - 2 tsp
Green Chilly - 3
coconut oil - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - one sprig
STEP 1:
Try to cut each vegetable uniformly in size, it helps to cook them faster. start with the potato and work your way down. easier way to save time is to cut and boil simultaneously... so cube up the potatoes, put them in a container add salt and put them on medium heat and start the process of boiling. Meanwhile, cut the plantain. watch for a change of color with the potato... the color turns two shades lighter than the shade it started with. At this point you add the plantain, then the carrots, the brinjal, wait for the change in skin color. Do NOT wait for it to turn soft, proceed with adding the snake gourd. Add the cucumber. Mix. (takes around 10 minute tops)
Turn off the heat.
Drain the water from the boiled vegetables.
STEP 2:
Add water 3/4th the quantity of the vegetables in the container add salt, start boiling it on medium heat.
Meanwhile:
Grind the coconut, jeera and green chillies into a coarse paste.... add it to the container of boiling vegetables...
STEP 3:
mix, its done.
Keep it on low heat until you serve it or minimum of 5 minutes.
When u take it off the heat add curry leaves and 2 tsp of coconut oil mix and serve.
P.S: The vegetables can be varied. alternatives that u can use are : Ash gourd, Beans, Yam, Drum stick.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
poondu oorgai... the recipe.. :D
poondu orrgai.
ingredients in the order of requirement.
1 cup of white poondu - chopped. do not dice the taste is not the same.
2 cups of nallennai/sesame seed oil.
2 tsp turmeri powderc.
4 tsp fenugreek/ vendeiyuam.
4 tsp cumin / jeeragam
2 tsp perungaayam
2 tsp chilli powder / increase if you want it spicy 2 tsp is enough to make it appropriately bland for children and people who dont like the spice.
3 tsp salt.
1/2 cup of lime juice.
optional : 2tsp jaggery in powder form.
step 1: heat kadai with one cup of nallaennai. add garlic pieces to oil. add turmeeric. keep heating for 4 min.
step 2: meanwhile take a thalikara karandi and fry induvidually with one spoon oil each. by adding to much oil for frying it becomes difficult to powder.. vendayem. jeeragam. let them dry out. grind them with chilli poder and perungayam powder.
step 3. toss the mixture into the wok with the galic.add salt. mix for 2 minutes. add the jaggery now if you want.
step 4: add the lime juice. let it thicken and add the remaining oil slowly and allow to cook for 5 minutes.
switch off
and u know the rest abt being ready 48hrs later after it oorafies a bit :)
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
The wedding.....
the run up to the wedding was chaotic... too many things to do... too little time to do it.... end of the day missed out inviting my best friend and her family.... feeling miserable about it though.... cant do anything about it because i know how hurt one would feel for being left out...
finally married.... three months into the journey is when i have the time to take out and jot down what is going on and how it actually is....
yes well, married life is over hyped....it is just living under the same roof... and a lot of things hit you about the person you thought you know like the back of your hand....after the wedding well that person becomes all the family you ever have... no turning back.... give it your all to make it work... ups and downs... all a part of the road....
i wish things were the way they were before the wedding.... but at times i just wish they are the way they are now.... don't know still being the confused spoilt child that i always was....
finally married.... three months into the journey is when i have the time to take out and jot down what is going on and how it actually is....
yes well, married life is over hyped....it is just living under the same roof... and a lot of things hit you about the person you thought you know like the back of your hand....after the wedding well that person becomes all the family you ever have... no turning back.... give it your all to make it work... ups and downs... all a part of the road....
i wish things were the way they were before the wedding.... but at times i just wish they are the way they are now.... don't know still being the confused spoilt child that i always was....
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