This week we mourn the sad passing of Ali Ahmed Aslam of Glasgow’s inimitable Shish Mahal, and founder of Britains National Dish, chicken tikka masala, so I thought it an opportune moment to share this article originally written in 2020. Two things have happened in the last couple of days to prompt this article. The…
Vindaloo,Who Knew?
This is, or should I say was, a pork vindaloo. I kind of forgot to take the before picture. It was rather tasty. Now, the mere mention of a vindaloo in the UK gives connotations of toilet rolls being placed in fridges and lager louts at the end of the Westgate run, a pub crawl…
Snapshots – Shopping in Delhi
Forget Trump, forget Brexit, forget the fact that Delhi govt purchased a snow plough, forget racism against cows – I went into a well known store in Khan Market looking for a present for my fairy godmother who likes all things “fabulous.” Spotted a fancy silver and white mug and thought it would be a…
India, An Epicurean’s Delight – mostly.
‘’You can’t eat a mango politely, not if you really want to savour it.’’ This was one of my first lessons in Indian cuisine, from my host, a culinary guru as we sat slurping and sucking as mango juice ran down our arms and landed on the table. I had arrived in India for a…
Bundi – A hidden gem of Rajasthan
The milkman, a person easily recognisable by his vibrant red turban and traditional clothing, cycled along the road with four large brass urns attached to his bike—he was impossibly well balanced as if his load was nothing more than himself. Palm trees and chattries lined his path—it was like a scene that one would imagine…
Cochin, But Not As We Know It
A barely perceptible ripple on the surface of the water alerted the beady eyes of the multi-tasking Vinod, who promptly dived into the lake, emerging seconds later, his small, wiry brown body glistening with droplets of water as he threw three live fish onto the gangway of our private Chinese Fishing Net to show them…