Chicken Tortilla soup

A delicious soup to welcome the cool nights of fall, this Mexican soup is similar to our so-called "curry".

The stew in the movie "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly"



This scene from one of my favorite Clint Eastwood movies is a very sad one. It upsets me to see this dangerous intrusion. But for a while now, I've been focused on the food on that table. Now, whenever I see this scene I get real hungry. At such times, anything won't do. I want that same stew in those same bowls, on that rugged table, with the same chunks of rustic bread. I had to make that stew.

Off I went to googleland and of course there is a page where people discuss this. The movie was made in Spain, the director was Italian. A writer on that page points out that the director kept yelling to Lee Van Cleef to "eat the minestrone", so it could be minestrone. I learn from a Spanish person on that site that the stew would definitely be Andalucian -- specifically of the Almeria and Granada provinces, where the movie was made.  The food must have been catered from local sources.

According to the Andalucian recipe  the main ingredient would usually be rabbit or chicken, with some veggies including potatoes, broad beans, leeks, and cabbage, and also dried beans. He also suggests  that the stew would have turmeric, cumin, and crushed black  pepper. There is a recipe there too, which is very similar to some of the stews and soups (so-called curries) that we make back home, the only difference being in the use of stock. We mostly use coconut milk, water or lentils cooked to a paste and diluted. Then I read more about the cuisine of the Andalucian regions. Apparently it had a rich Arabian flavor -- so saffron was used too.

After incorporating all these details, I had to make something that I know the folks around here will eat. So I chose beef as the meat. I couldn't get any broad bean/ fava bean -- so I used lima beans. And of course I made it hot. With the rustic bread I made, the stew was a success. I am glad to say that it was devoured as hungrily and enjoyed as deliciously, as by some of the characters in the movie.

rustic Spanish stew from the movie "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly"

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

beef for stew -- 2 lb
black pepper, ground -- 1 tsp
paprika - 1/2 tsp
onions, chopped -- 1/2 cup
garlic, 6 cloves, crushed
leeks, 2 stems chopped
green onion, cut at an angle, in 1'' pieces
green chili pepper -- 4 (optional)
crushed red pepper flakes - 1-2 tsp ( as per your preference)
turmeric - 1 tsp
saffron - a pinch or two
cumin - 1 tsp
Yukon gold potatoes, peeled whole - 4
half a napa cabbage, shredded roughly
1- 2 cups lima beans, cooked ( I used a packet of frozen lima)
beef stock -- 3 cups ( I use knorr's)
Olive oil
salt, as needed

Method:

Clean meat. Add the black pepper and paprika to the meat and mix well.
Heat some olive oil -- 1 or 2 tbsps -- in a cast iron pot or any other stew pot, and brown the meat. This step is optional.
Remove the meat from the pot. Add a tablespoon ( or as needed) of olive oil.
Saute the onions, garlic, green chili, and leeks in the oil, till they wilt. Medium heat. Add the turmeric, cumin and crushed red pepper flakes to this. Stir well. Now add the meat. Pour in the stock. Bring it to a boil.
Add the potatoes. Reduce heat. . Let it simmer. Add the saffron. Cover and cook for 20 to 30 minutes. Check the potatoes with a fork. Now add the green onions, and the cooked lima beans. Add the roughly shredded napa cabbage. Give the stew a good stir. With a fork, split the potatoes, for that rustic look. Add more water, and bring to boil, in order to get the consistency you prefer.

Serve with rustic bread.

Carrot- Coriander soup

This soup is mentioned in a Betty Neels novel. The recipe I have used here, is by Jamie Oliver. A good Fall soup. It tastes like a simple, Indian soup or "curry", btw.





carrot-coriander soup

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 onion, chopped

1 lb. carrots, sliced

1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp ground coriander
2 pints vegetable stock
3 tbsps chopped fresh coriander ( cilantro)
a squeeze of lemon juice
freshly grated nutmeg to taste

salt, pepper

single cream (use whipping cream) for garnish

1/2 tsp mustard or cumin seeds (optional) -- Pls. see my Note.

Heat oil --> onions, carrots, garlic = soft. <---+ coriander powder+ salt+ pepper. <--- stock = boil.
Cover & simmer - 20 minutes. <--- fresh cilantro. ---> all in blender = smooth.
+ lemon juice + nutmeg. Reheat until warm.
garnish with cream-swirl.

Note: Popping some mustard or cumin seeds in the heated oil, before adding the onions would give it another dimension tastewise, and visually.
PS: If annoyed by the way I've written out the method, it's just because I am too lazy some days. and testing out a different way. anyway, for the recipe in real words, you may go to jamieoliver.com.

Actually I would prefer  soups a little less processed, and the vegetables not cooked to death. I like some bite in them -- but that is my preference. Some like the velvety smoothness of the pureed version. Of course the blended version is always better if one is in convalescence or there is something wrong with the teeth, like if there is none left.

I got a beef with "curry"! -- the curry story

kariveppu/curry leaf plant

I believe that the all encompassing term "curry" was just an easy and simple way of naming Indian cuisine, on the part of the British. Another side of the imperialist ethic. Needless to say, it is an example of serious reductionism and oversimplification of matters that are complex and nuanced. What if you named the whole of Italian cuisine "marinara" ? ?
Or the whole of French cuisine, "bechamel" ? No, actually, I should call them "sauce" to be perfectly fair.  well, pretty stupid, I should say!
I won't go into the political and historical motives or situations behind such things, deliberate or otherwise. I have read many versions of how the word came to be used. But I have formed my own theory.

Curry, for us, is any dish which is rather "saucy". By that I mean a dish which has a sauce, sometimes real watery, at other times, rather thick, and at some other times, in between. Curry is not a spice. Nor is curry and turmeric interchangeable. Turmeric is a spice. The curry powder that I see at the supermarket here, is really sambar powder. Sambar, being a South Indian vegetarian soup or stew, and sambar powder, being a mix of various spices, including turmeric, used in that dish. For cooking meat dishes, we have a completely different basic spice mix. As for fish. And the mix varies for different dishes in the same group, and it varies by region too, needless to say. So if you are using the so-called curry powder for everything, and then calling it Indian food, then, you are missing out on the real thing.

I imagine that "curry" for the British, came from "curry leaves", we call it kariveppila, (as opposed to "aryaveppila" which is the leaf of the neem tree). Kariveppila  is a herb that we use profusely in our cooking. (By the way, it has medicinal properties like many other herbs. Kariveppila grows on  "Kariveppu" , the tree. Back home, in Kerala, kariveppu grows lush and tall.. I still remember the trees in my grandmother's yard. I have been trying to grow one here, indoors. Still a baby -- looks like it will stay that way forever. forever young!

And what do we call "curry" ? In Malayalam, "koottaan" is the term we use. Literally it means 'to add". Something that we add and mix with rice. But then we also say "curry" when we mean a  dish that is not dry, but has some sauce or gravy -- not pertaining to any spice, like I mentioned before.

curry leaf tree back home

Yellow split pea curry -- parippukoottaan

One of my favorite dishes is parippu curry, a lentil soup, actually. Each state in India has its own versions of daal. Each home has its own favorite version. Some add cumin, others mustard, yet others cilantro, or all of those.
This, here, is my favorite.




parippu

 Ingredients:

yellow split pea/ toor daal -- 1 cup
onion, sliced - 1 cup
garlic, crushed -- 4 cloves
4 green chillies, split
turmeric powder -- 1/2 tsp
crushed red pepper -- 4 tsp
tomatoes, diced -- 1/2 cup (optional)
curry leaves
Oil - 3- 4 tbsp
Salt

Cook the lentils with a pinch of turmeric powder.
Heat oil. Saute onion, garlic, green chillies, curry leaves, till onions are soft and the garlic gives out its aroma.
Add the turmeric, crushed red pepper. Fry for a minute. Add the tomatoes. Saute for a couple of minutes, till they wilt. Add the cooked parippu with enough water to get to your preferred consistency.  Stir well. Bring to a boil. Add salt to taste.

Note: If you like, you may add a couple of pearl onions, a crushed clove of garlic, and a couple of green chillies to the lentils, when you cook it. I soak the parippu overnight in water,(kind of an overkill) and use a pressure cooker to cook it.Instaed of oil, you could use ghee, which is heavenly, but not as healthy. :)

red chori(dried red beans) or payaru -- top left/ parippu or yellow split pea--bottom right

The same recipe can be used to make other lentil curries/soups, like payarucurry, which is a variety of tiny dried red beans, called red chori in Hindi. And this one takes a lot of soaking.

payarucurry



Very good with rice, and Kerala fried fish, and mango pickle.

parippu curry, kerala fried tilapia, dried shrimp fry



Buttermilk curry or Morozhichukoottaan or morucurry





Now to the buttermilk curry! As usual, the recipe has many variations, depending on the occasion, and taste preference. For instance, if it is for medicinal purpose, as in for indigestion, the buttermilk curry will not have onion or coconut. And also, it will be totally fatfree.

moru = buttermilk. koottaan = to add/side dish/accompaniment/add-on. so, meenkoottaan is fish curry.

ozhichu= to pour. thus, morozhichukoottaan is a dish made of buttermilk, that is poured on rice, which is our main food.

Ingredients:

Buttermilk - 1/2 gallon
Oil - 2 tbsp
Onion, chopped -- 1/2 cup
Ginger, crushed -- 1 tbsp
Garlic, crushed -- 1 tbsp
5 green chillies, slit
turmeric powder - 1 tsp
red chilli powder -- 1/2 tsp
fenugreek/ methi powder - 1/4 tsp
cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
black pepper powder - 1 tsp
Coconut, grated, fresh or dried coconut powder -- 1/2 cup
mustard seeds, black - 1 tsp
dried red chillies - 3
curry leaves -- 1 sprig
Salt, as needed

Heat oil. Add mustard seeds. Let'em pop. Reduce heat, we do not want it burned. Add the onion, ginger, garlic, green chillies. Saute for a minute or two, till soft and you get the aromas. Add the dried red chillies, each broken in three pieces ,and the curry leaves.
Now add the spice powders. stir and fry for a minute. Add the coconut.
stir and fry for amother minute or two.
Pour in the buttermilk. Keep stirring. Low to medium heat. Add enough salt. Do not let it come to boil. Should be just warmed enough.

Note: You may make this as thick or thin as you like. Add boiled and cooled water.

If you are in a really nutritious mood, you may add some veggies -- say, zucchini, cucumber etc. cubed and cooked. Or you can add them right before pouring in the buttermilk, cook, and then finish off.

I ran out of curry leaves, so you don't see any curry leaves. :(

rice withbuttermilk curry, nazrani beef fry, baby mango pickle (hot)

Serve with rice, pickles and Nazrani style mutton or beef fry, or Malayali "thorans" and "mezhukkupurattis" -- vegetable stirfry, or spicy lentils.

meen vattichathum kappayum -- fish in hot sauce and tapioca

One of our rustic, comfort foods back home is yuca/tapioca -- kappa/kolli and fish in a very hot and sour sauce, or salted, dried fish fried, and sauteed in onion and spices. Another side dish for tapioca is  a chutney/chammanthi made of crushed shallots, fresh green chillies, and mixed with coconut oil.
Of course, back home, fresh sardines--mathi/chaala, and fresh tapioca are used. The fish is cooked in earthenware vessels. Over here, I make this with canned sardines, and we get frozen tapioca. Fresh tapioca is available, but are usually stale.

Here's the recipe for kappa and  meen vattichathu/pattichathu


kappayum meen vattichathum

Ingredients:

1 fifteen-oz.can or 4  three-oz cans sardines in oil or water or tomato sauce
1 small onion or 1/2 cup onion, chopped
2 tbsp fresh ginger, crushed
7 hot green chilli peppers, slit lengthwise
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
3 tsp hot red chili powder
2 1/2 tsp coriander powder
2-3 medium sized pieces of Kodumpuli or Malabar tamarind ( dried)
2 tbsp oil
1 - 1 1/2 cups water
 a sprig of curry leaves
Salt

Method

Heat oil. Saute onion, green chillies, and ginger till onions become translucent.
Add the spice powders now. Do not let it burn. Stir well, for about a minute.
Add the curry leaves. One more stir.
Then add the  water. Give another whisk.
Add the rinsed kodumpuli.
Cover and bring it to a boil. Reduce heat, and let it simmer for a few minutes, say 3mts.
Now, open the can of sardines, and transfer the fish into our simmering sauce.
Let it simmer for a minute.
Be careful when you give it another stir. You do not want the sardines to fall to pieces.
Remember, it's canned.
Add enough salt to taste.

Your pardesi meen vattichathu is done.
Goes well with rice, and tapioca, which, by the way, is boiled like potatoes. If fresh, peel, clean and boil.
I have heard that tapioca has to be boiled in a lot of water, and that the water should be drained away.
That you shouldn't let the tapioca absorb the water in which it was cooked.
We make chips and stews with tapioca -- that is , it is used just like potatoes, otherwise.

This dish is very hot. I have given the recipe for the hot version. If you would prefer it milder, reduce the number of green chillies to 1. You may remove the seeds, if you like. And make the amount of red chilli powder, 1/4 to 1/2 tsp.

About the canned sardines in tomato sauce -- you do not really need the sauce, because you have your own "puli" = tartness going on with the tamarind. It's up to you -- doesn't make much difference in taste, either way. There might be a slight effect on the thickness of the sauce. But you also do not want the tomato taste to overpower the dish, as then, it would be a different one. So I would suggest -- use in moderation! But then sardines have a strong flavor of their own, so we do not need to worry too much  :)

The names for the fish and the sauce, and for tapioca are varied according to the specific regions in Kerala.


About Kodumpuli/Malabar tamarind:

The scientific name for Malabar tamarind/kodumpuli is Garcinia Cambogia. Traditionally, this was used in sauces for sea fish. Most homes had this in the backyard. I remember my grandmother's trees. Picking and drying these were part of the seasonal chores. It atarts out as a fruit, when it is a ripe yellow, it is picked. Cleaned, dried, and if I remember tight, a littl e bit of oil and salt is added to preserve it.To give tartness to sauces for river fishes, green mangoes were used. But now we use either in both, and of course ,there are a whole lot of other varieties of tamarinds, and then there's the newcomer tomato.

the black curled item is kodumpuli/malabar tamarind

beef vindaloo

This dish said to be brought to Goa by the Portuguese, -- vin =wine, ahlo = garlic-- is now thoroughly Indian. It is at once a stew, and a pickle. The wine-garlic connection reminds me of all the other red wine - garlic - bouquet garni soups/stews of Europe. Here, the spices are Indian.  Usually made with pork, it works well with a variety of meats, and fish, and every cook seems to have his/her own mix of spices, and ways in which they are dealt with - some are ground from whole form, some are used in powder form etc. The idea is to get the spices as fresh as possible. I am not averse to using powders, (as long as they are not from Jambavan's time) esp when there is a time constraint.
This recipe is adapted from a  recipe by  Mrs K. M.Mathew,  the original Malayali Julia Child from Kottayam.  And this is quite hot.



beef vindaloo



Ingredients:

2 lbs beef, cubed

1st set:

20 Kashmiri chillies

1'' piece ginger, cut in small pieces

4 flakes of garlic, slightly crushed -- just hit it with the tenderizer once and the skin comes off too

1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp fenugreek (methi) seeds
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
1tsp peppercorn
1/2 cup water

2nd set :

1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
2 cups onion, sliced thin
2 medium size tomatoes, chopped

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

2 tsp garlic flakes, sliced
1 tsp ginger, sliced thin

2 tbsp vinegar, regular white, mixed with
1/4 tsp sugar or another 2 tbsp red wine vinegar

1/2 cup oil
salt


Clean and drain the cubed meat.

Soak the spices in the 1st set in water for half an hour. Grind them all together. You may soak this paste in the vinegar, if you like. And then marinate the beef in this mixture overnight or for a few hours. Or you could just leave it alone, and add the vinegar later. I did not do the whole marination thing, btw.

Heat oil. Add the mustard seeds from the second set. Reduce the heat, if it's smoking. We don't want them burned. Let'em pop. Add onions and saute till light brown. At this point, some cooks remove the onion and puree it.
Others puree onions first and then saute it till brown. Again, I chose the easier way -- the one with sliced onions. Didn't have the heart to overkill. :)

Okay, where were we? The onions are almost brown. Add the turmeric now. Stir once or twice. Add the chopped, red tomatoes. Now, here's another chance to wait around scratchin' your head, metaphorically. I microwave the tomatoes for 1 to 2 minutes, till they are soft, then add it to the onion. This will reduce the frying time of tomatoes. Because, one secret to a great tasting dish is properly cooked tomatoes. Now keep stirring, till the oil separates, and the tomato -- onion mix is a dark red.

Add the ground paste -- the first set -- now. Saute.

Add the meat. Again, some prefer to brown the meat with a little marinade.  The meat is then removed and set aside, while the onion is pureed. Needless to say, I browned the meat in the onion and ground masala mix. No removings and setting asides. Stir well. Pour in the red wine vinegar, that we had decided to leave alone. Stir again. May add salt at this point. Add enough water to cover the meat , Cover and let it come to a boil. Now reduce heat and  cook on medium-low heat till the meat is done. Could take around 2 hours. I should say it is getting marinated slow and nice on the stove. ;) Stir it around once in a while, we do not want a burnt stew.  Once the meat is cooked, raise the heat and let the sauce reduce to your desired consistency. Meanwhile, add the last set of ginger-garlic slices, and  pour in the last of the vinegar. Let it simmer some more. Adjust salt.



braided mini breads

 Serve hot with rice, bread, or Indian rotis.

This version is quite hot. Also, instead of the 20 whole chillies, we may use 4 tsp kashmiri chilli powder or 2 tsp kashmiri and 2 tsp regular red chilli powders. For those who want it milder, use 1/2 tsp kashmiri chilli powder or 2-3 whole ones. And, if you do not feel like soaking and grinding the masalas, use  powders.
And in spite of all the shortcuts, the dish turned out delicious, and will be even more, the next day.

i will post the recipe for the bread soon. :)

love
asha