Jai Shree Krishna! Welcome to Gujarat

Kesar ( saffron) Mango of Gujarat

Gujarat is a state in the North- West coast of India; it has a population of 60 million. It is known as the Jewel of the West. Today, it is one of the most industrialized states in India, and has a GDP over the national average. Also, it has a very large production of Cotton, high-value foods such as Livestock, Vegetables and Fruits. It also produces Mango, Sugar Cane, Rice, Maize, Wheat, Mustard Seeds, Sesame, Lime, Banana, Guava, Tomato, Onion and Garlic. Gujarat has seen a high annual growth of 9% in the agriculture sector in the last 5 years. Furthermore, Gujarat is the home Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel they are the worldwide figure for peaceful struggle against the British in 17^th century. Also, Gujarati food is primarily vegetarian, and it is believed to be one of the healthiest cuisines in India. A typical Gujarati thali (plate) would consist of Dal (curry), rice, Roti, Sabzi (vegetable curry) and achar (Indian pickle). Gujaratis typically are very warm and welcoming, if you go to some Gujarati’s house you will not be send back without having tea or snacks!

A Traditional Kutch Design For Lehengas (Skirt)

Did you know? Well you do know!!!

Interesting Facts About Gujarat 

Ø  Gandhinagar is the Greenest Capital City in  whole Asia

Gandhinagar

Ø  Gujarat has the lowest crime rate against women among all Indian states

Ø  Surat is the third cleanest city in India after Chandigarh and Mysore

Ø  100% of  Gujarat’s 18000 villages have electricity connection

Ø  Gujarat is the largest producer of milk in India

Ø  The father of the Indian Nation Mahatma Gandhi was Gujarati

Ø  The world’s third largest denim manufacturer is Ahmedabad’s ( city in Gujarat) Arvind Mills

Ø  The state registered 12.8% agriculture growth in the last five years against the national average of 2%

Ø  The first All- VEG PIZZA HUT was opened in Ahmedabad

Mahatma Gandhi The Father Of India Was Born In Gujarat

Ø  If Gujarat was a nation it would have been 67^th richest nation in the whole world above many European and Asian economies like China and Ukraine 

Tourist Attaraction

Navratri Puja

Gujarat is a very colorful place, there are so many festivals celebrated in Gujarat. The two biggest festivals Navratri, and Uttarayan really caught my attention. First of all Navratri is celebrated for nine nights, and it usually comes in September or October. It is one the most popular and widely celebrated in India and it is perhaps the longest lasting festival in the world. Each night the village or urban neighborhood gather together to perform puja to one of the nine forms of goddess. Then for all the nine nights’ people gather in open spaces to celebrate feminine divinity and dance, the dance form is known as Raas Garba. Usually on the nine days of Navratri it is a tradition to make sabudana vada and sabudana khichadi (Pearl tapioca), you also have to make kheer (rice pudding) and halwa for dessert. During these days you are strictly not allowed to eat non- vegetarian food, and onion garlic. After navratri come Uttarayan, it is the festival of kites it is celebrated on January 14^th, it marks the end of winter and beginning of summer in India. Every shop is shut down that day because everyone is spending time with their family. From 9 in the morning there are all kinds of various sizes and shapes of kites flying. The main competition is to battle nearby kite flyers to cut their strings and bring down their kites, the preparation to make kites start from November. The atmosphere is so welcoming and festive, that the day of Uttarayan particularly the whole family gathers on the rooftop to socialize and have a mouth devouring lunch with the neighbors and family members. On that day you have a very delicious meal, moms start cooking early in the morning and make undhiyu (type of vegetable curry), rice, and ladoos made of jaggery. You also make til papdi ( roasted sesame seeds in jaggery), then you also make murmura lodoo's( puffed rice).  It is probably the best and colorful day ever in the whole world, you just become fascinated by looking at the sky  and the four years I've celebrated this festival, and I had the best time of my life. The best place to stay during both the festivals would be in the lemon tree hotel Ahmedabad, it is a very luxurious hotel. The prices vary if you buy a standard room (2 king beds, 2 twin beds) or you buy an executive bedroom which is costlier. The price for standard bedroom is $69 per day, and for executive $119 per day. It is a good hotel to stay in because it is very close to the navratri ground, and the uttarayan ground where you fly kites. It is located on 434/1, Mithakali Six Cross Roads, Ahmedabad.
http://www.expedia.ca/Ahmedabad-Hotels-Lemon-Tree-Hotel.h2192253.Hotel-Information?&chkin=11/01/2014&chkout=16/01/2014&rm1=a2&icmcid=TRIPA.Expedia_CA-DM_B28.10568.B&icm check link for more information

Uttarayan Kites

Mouth Watering Gujarati Recipes!!!

 Undhiyu 
Yield 4-5, Prep time- 40 minutes, Cooking time- 30 minutes

Ingredients

Vegetables

Surti Undhiyu ( green Vegetable Curry)

·         Beans - 200 gms

·         Small Brinjal ( baby eggplant’s) - 5(100 gms)

·         Small potato - 8(250 gms)

·         Raw banana - 1(150gms)

·         Sweet potato - 1(150gms)

·         Yam - 100gms

Spices

·         Oil - 4-5 tbsp

·         Heeng (asafetida) - 2 pinch

·         Ajwain (Carom seeds) - 1/2 tsp

·         Salt - add to taste (1 tsp)

·         Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

·         Red chili powder - 1/4-1/2 tsp

·         Coriander powder - 2 tsp

·         Aamchur (Dried mango powder) - 1/2 tsp

·         Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp

·         Powdered Sugar - 1/2 tsp

·         Sesame Seeds - 2 tbsp

·         Peanuts - 2 tbsp

·         Cashew Nuts - 2 tbsp

·         Ginger(grated) - 2 inch long strip

·         Green Chili(chopped) - 2-3

·         Coriander(fine chopped) - 1 cup

·         Lemon - 1

For preparing Muthiya (Chunks)

·         Gram flour- 1/3 cup

·         Wheat flour - 1/3 cup

·         Salt - add to taste(1/6 tsp)

·         Dhania (Coriander powder) - 1/2 tsp

·         Red chilli powder - less than 1/4 tsp

·         Turmeric powder - less than 1/4 tsp

·         Methi (Fenugreek leaves) - 1/2 cup(finely chopped)

·         Oil - to fry Muthiya

Ingredients Needed for Undhiyu

Steps to prepare the Muthiya (chunks)

Mix all the spices and gram flour together and pour 3 tsp oil to it.

With the help of little water knead dough of this mixture and it should be a bit hard.

Cover the dough and leave it aside for 10 minutes.

Then, Make small pieces from the dough made for Muthiya and roll them into 10-11 rolls of 2 inches in length.

Pour oil in a pan and heat. Put the Muthiya into hot oil and fry.

When these turn brown and crispy take out from pan. Muthiya's are ready.

Steps to prepare Undhiyu:

Grind roasted sesame seeds, peanuts and cashew nuts into a coarse powder.

Grate ginger, chop green chilies and coriander (keep some of the chopped coriander aside) then mix all of these in a plate.

Add salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder, Dhania (powder coriander), dried mango powder, Garam Masala, lemon juice and mix well. The spices required for Undhiyu are now ready.

Cut banana into 1/2 cm round pieces without peeling the banana.

Remove the edges from the beans. Cut them into 1 inch long pieces and split them into halves.

Cut the brinjals (baby eggplant’s) cap and make 2 long cuts in such a way that it is not separated from the base.

Peel potatoes and make 2 cuts in a way that it is joined on one side.

Fill potatoes and brinjals (baby eggplant’s) well with the spices and mix the remaining spices with the already cut banana, yam, sweet potatoes and beans.

Pour 4 tbsp oil into the cooker and heat.

Add Hing, Ajwain (carom seeds) and 1/4 tsp turmeric powder.

On roasting ajwain (carom seeds) add beans, pieces of banana, less than 1 cup water

vegetables filled with spices and vegetables mixed with spices also into the pressure cooker.

 Close the lid and allow Undhiyu to get cooked on a low flame for 15 minutes (Don't let much pressure to be created in the cooker and let the vegetables cook slowly from the steam.)

Turn off the gas. Let the pressure escape from the cooker.

Then, open the lid and add the fried yam, sweet potatoes and Muthiya without stirring the vegetables. Close the lid and cook vegetables for another 5 minutes.

Open the lid and garnish it with coriander leaves.

 Undhiyu is prepared. Pour steaming hot Undhiyu into bowls and serve with hot puri, paratha or roti.

If you need to see the video click on this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mvwFcfCAyQ#t=732

Basundi
Yield 2-3

 Prep time: 20 minutes

Basundi

Ingredients:

3 cups milk or half & half
3/4 cup sugar(approx)
3-4 saffron strands
1/4 tea spn cardamom powder
2-3 tbl spn heavy whipping cream
1 tea spn sliced almonds

·         Sugar needs to be adjusted according to individual taste!

Steps to make Basundi (think sweetened milk)

Heat milk in a pan

 Keep the heat on medium and cook till the milk reduces to half.

Add the sugar and cook till the sugar is dissolved.

 Now add saffron strands diluted in little warm milk (You can directly added saffron to the cooking mixture).

Add whipping cream and mix well. The consistency of the milk should be very thick.

Take out from heat, add cardamom and almonds. Serve hot or cold.

What Time Is It Mr. Food? Its Time for a Restaurant Review

Butter Chicken

Naan

The restaurant we went to was called Little India, it is located on 66, Wylie Ave.  I went there with my friend Pooja and her little sister Aarti. We arrived there at 5:45pm, upon our arrival they had a table of four empty so they escorted us there. As we sat down they gave us the menu not too long after we sat down,then they arrived with papad and chutney as a complimentary from them.  For dinner we ordered Butter chicken, Vegetable korma, four Garlic Naan, and Garlic Chicken Tikka Masala. The butter chicken we had was very delicious, it was gravy of tomato and onions with bunch of spies then they add cooked chicken in it and let the chicken simmer in it so it absorbs the flavor. The curry was garnished with coriander and 2 pieces of ginger. The side we ordered called garlic chicken tikka was served in a sizzler plate, when it came out it was piping hot and smelled really appetizing, it was served with grilled vegetables such as onions, green peppers tomato, and lemon. Then after dinner I and Aarti ordered pistachio kulfi and Pooja ordered mango kulfi. The desserts were OK, my dessert was lacking taste it did not have enough sugar and also it was really frozen so it was hard to break. All the food was great and really enticing.

The atmosphere was remarkable and very cozy. The lights in the restaurant were dim and created a very relaxed atmosphere, the chairs were also very cozy and comfortable. The background Indian music playing was really quiet but it really created the vibe of India. The pictured hanged up on the wall were really beautiful, specially the Taj Mahal picture it really enhanced the atmosphere of the restaurant. There were two things I personally disliked. Firstly, after we were done our dinner we waited there 20 minutes for the waiter to take away the dinner plates and come to take our dessert order which was really poor service in my opinion. Secondly, the prices were a tad bit expensive, for example when I ordered the butter chicken it was seventeen dollars for a small amount of butter chicken. I found that a bit ridiculous for the amount of curry served

The waiter who served us was named Akash. He was a very polite and humble waiter. He was well trained towards the menu. When we asked the waiter “the chicken you use does it come prepackaged or is it bought locally?” He said “the chicken we use is gain fed in our local farm”. This shows that the waiter knows about where their food comes from and is it local or packaged. The second question we asked was “Do you like your job as a server?” he said “yes, I do because I like interacting with new people, but sometimes  the customers are very rude and treat us badly”. Overall we had loads of fun; there were 2 things the restaurant could improve on. Firstly, their seating arrangement can be fixed, because each table was close to another table so many people could hear our conversations. Lastly, the desserts they gave us could definitely be fixed, by adding more sugar and not keeping it frozen when giving it to us as it is really hard to break.

Pistachio Kulfi

Tandoori Chicken

An Exclusive Human Interest Story!!!

A typical Gujarati Thali (plate) we have usually!

As a lady living in a little village named Satamba in Gujarat, my grandma always has to cook in season because you cannot get every vegetable in each season. So recently, my grandma is over from India for 6 months. During the Christmas break she made a lot of Indian food, and I helped her mostly for everything. My grandma loves cooking and her passion for cooking really shows when she taught me to cook. She spends her whole day cooking, in breakfast she makes poha (flattened rice with spices and onion). For lunch and dinner she would make a typical Gujarati Thali (plate) which consists of 3 sabzi (mixed vegetables), roti (flat bread), dal or Gujarati kadhi (curry) and rice, served with pickle, salad and papad. During the day when she is free my grandma loves to makes all the spices at home such as red chili powder, turmeric powder, dhania jeera (mix of cumin and coriander seeds) and other spice… my grandma is known for her achar (pickle). She would take fruits such as mangoes, limes, and lemons also garlic and add chilies; spices and preserve them for later use. Grandma was mostly known for her garlic achar as it was a very rare kind of pickle anyone would think of to make. So, during her stay in Canada she thought me how to make palak paneer (pureed spinach and cottage cheese) as she was really good at making it, and she thought me how to keep the nutrients in the spinach and still make it flavorful with less oil. My grandmother is the best person and makes world’s best food. She follows great cooking rules such as eating in season and eating locally. My grandma is a person who I love and admire everyday for her great cooking skills, and the devotion she has for the culinary world.

My Favourite Lab Experience

SOUP CHALLENGE 

Shrimp Bisque

                                                                                    The cooking lab experience I chose would be the soup challenge. We had to make a bisque soup and a side from scratch. Bisque is a very rich and thick soup which is usually made up with seafood (lobster, shrimp, and clams) and is known as a luxury soup. The soup we made was called shrimp bisque, the soup was very challenging for our group, because it was the first time our group was using seafood. Also, we had to make our baguette from scratch which was a very difficult thing to make as it required a lot of time and preparation, and we only had 75 minutes to make the dough and clean up. As the soup challenge progressed our group made a very big mistake, by not cutting the mire poix (onions, celery and carrots) small and cooking it a day before so the vegetables get tender. Therefore, the day of the challenge our vegetables took a very long time to cook, which took away a lot of the time. Then once the vegetables were cooked we had to cook our rice and shrimp which also took up a lot of time, and our group did not even start baking the garlic bread. When presenting our soup, the 2 biggest mistakes we made was that we forgot to warm up our cooked shrimp and maybe add more flavors to it by cooking it in garlic and parsley and we did not season our soup properly which made our soup taste a bit bland. It was a very hectic day for me and my group members. The biggest thing I learned is that recipes help to start, but it is very important to use your imagination in the culinary world, you should always add a little creative twist to the recipe you make as it shows the ability to make professional judgments. This lab experience was a very positive lab experience for me as I got to learn very valuable lessons such as always use your professional judgment in cooking, don't forget to season your food as it brings out more flavor in the dish, and it is very necessary to manage your time when cooking in a time limit. Overall i had great fun doing the soup challenge and experienced valuable lessons through this challenge.