Kitchen antics

So the other night I decided to attempt a couple of the recipes I learnt in my cooking course in Udaipur. My logic was that I should try it at least once before cooking for others and the ultimate acid test, other Indians. So I started with a basic korma. I threw the onions and whole spices into the hot pan and looked at the recipe to see what to do next. Add the garlic, ginger and onion paste. Paste? I didn't remember making a paste at the cooking course.

And this ladies and gentlemen is why cooking courses continue to be so successful by giving people the (not necessarily true) impression that they can cook a dish when in fact they (the chefs/cooks) do a lot of the pre-preparation behind the scenes. I hurriedly did a search of the kitchen. I was in luck - there was a hand held blender in the bottom drawer. I plugged it in and plunged it into the ingredients to smoosh them into the required paste. The pieces of ginger, garlic and onion stubbornly remained in the same roughly chopped shapes in which they had entered the bowl. Oh well I reasoned, it's obviously because it is such a small amount. So I took them out and laboriously chopped them into finer pieces.

Right, next. Add the tomato and onion paste. What! Another paste! Ha ha. Well this time I will be able to use the blender because the tomato is a far more smooshable ingredient. Once again I plunge in the blender. Nothing. I add a little water to facilitate the process. Reality slowly dawns on me as I watch the water bubble. I am trying to blend food with a milk frother!!! Oh the embarrassment. Mental note: we have a milk frother for cappucinos!

Despite this my korma came out quite well and my biryani was quite delicious if I dare so myself. I still have not put them to the ultimate acid test but I think that I will leave that for another day.

PS. Last night I was looking for something in the fridge and what do you think I saw innocently sitting in the fridge door? Yip, a big jar of garlic, ginger and onion paste!