Divine combinations I : Ladies finger and Rasam

There are several combinations when it comes to Indian food. We never cook just one dish alone. Every thing we cook needs to be accompanied by yet another and hence the terms, main dish and side dish. A "thali" consists of several items which are served together and usually they are good combinations. But one cannot have the luxury of cooking or eating the several items served in the thali, unless one wants to eat everyday at the restaurant! So, everyone finds their own divine combinations. Some are complex and some are simple and many are just out of the ordinary (trust me, there are combinations unbelievable!!). Here I present to you one of the most beloved combinations and voted favorite by so many of my friends, Ladies Finger (Okra) fry and Rasam. And the magic lies in keeping the dish as simple as possible to attain the closest mother made taste.

Lets start with the Rasam. Take a vessel and add 2-3 cups of water. Into this, drop some chopped tomatoes, crushed garlic (optional), a pinch of turmeric powder and hing, 2 table spoons of Rasam powder, salt to taste, curry leaves and chopped coriander. If using tamarind paste, then dissolve into this mixture little tamarind paste (depending on taste levels, optimum would be half of as much that goes on a toothbrush :P ), else extract the first juice from grape sized ball of fresh tamarind and add it to the vessel. Finally switch on the heat and let it boil for 5-6 minutes until all the mixture boils. It is essential that the tamarind loses its rawness. Some people would like to add a little cooked lentils into this mixture. Do so at this point, else just remove it from the heat and temper it with mustard and cumin seeds popped in hot melted butter or ghee. 

For the Ladies finger (Okra) fry, chop the okra after removing its crown, into half centimeter pieces or more finely if you prefer. Heat oil in a frying pan and pop some mustard seeds, cumin seeds and broken dry red chillies. Add some broken urad dhal, a pinch of turmeric and some hing. Do not let the red chillies or the urad dhal burn. So, immediately add the cut ladies finger (Okra), sprinkle the necessary salt and allow it to get cooked. If you close the pan, then you end up with cooked Okra. But then, keep if open and reduce the flame heat to medium and keep stirring carefully (from time to time) to obtain nicely fried vegetables.

Pour some hot Rasam over cooked white rice and serve with the fried ladies finger!

Heinemann, even betrayal is just !

I was contemplating where to post this one, here or in my experience blogs and finally decided that, its food and it belongs here! I would have never know about Heinemann. Even after 3 years in dear old Mülheim and weekends after weekends in romantic old Düsseldorf, I could have never discovered this gateway to bliss. Thanks to Tez and his policy on the "local" brands. Heinemann is a konditorei (cake shop) in the ever effervescent Alt Stadt, just opposite to the Shadow Arkaden. My first visit there was on a Saturday afternoon and thankfully on an empty stomach. I have never smelled divinity before and now I know I can, but only in Heinemann. The entire place is like a freshly baked cake. Did I say cake?! Well, its the basic lingo everyone knows. But its just not a cake, but pastries, souffles, tortes, truffles, ruffles and many unheard but worth dying for items. I tasted the champagne torte. The softest cake, with the softest cream, with the softest layer of chocolate and lased with strong champagne. I could not pick and hold the cake without crumpling it. Fingers just slide into it and it melts in the mouth and before you realize, you are either holding the second piece or left yearning for more. Why to people refer to food as finger smacking or lip smacking? one would realise it just after you have had a mouthful. I could not stop talking about this marvel for days and weeks.

I was traveling back with Paprika from Aachen. He had to receive his friends from the Düsseldorf airport at 1.45 PM. The train was nearing Benrath, 10 minutes away from Düsseldorf when I chose to tell him about Heinemann. Paprika stopped me just after the description and told me that I have to take him there now. His train to the airport was at 2.07PM, we were scheduled to reach Düsseldorf at 1.28 PM and the flight lands at 1.45PM. It was the first time for his friends to Germany and it was essential that he was there to receive them. I told him that it would take at least 10 minutes with the metro to get to the cake shop and he would for sure miss the train and keep his friends waiting. Your description has already made me crave for the cake and I am ready to make my friends wait in an unknown country for an unknown period of time for an unknown taste. So, just take me there!  I reasoned with him and promised him that I would get the cake for him the next time. He agreed but was unhappy.

When the train pulled into the station, I make a quick move and dragged him out to the metro. Well, the truth is that I couldn't resist the thought of not going to Heinemann and it was anyway his friends. Luckily the metro came in the next minute and we reached the stop in 3 minutes and ran to the shop and made the purchase and ran back to the metro and back to the main station already at 1.52 PM. He had to catch his train in the next few minutes and mine was in the next 5 minutes. All the rush lay forgotten when I bit into the pastry. Time didn't exist at all. Every swallow down was taking place at its own pace and it pacing up just to catch the next train seemed unimportant. We didn't realise that the entire population in the station was staring at us, two Indian guys relishing a piece of heaven with their faces covered in cream! Who cares, its Heinemann! Fortunately we made it to our respective trains.

The flight was nearly an hour late and my train started 30 minutes later. It was like Heinemann wanted us to relish the cake more peacefully! But every sweat and every rush we had was totally worth it!

And dear Iyengar bakery, you will always be my favourite :-)