A vegetarian’s handbook

CHENNAI: In Madras of a pre-independent India, every household in south India was familiar with the customs of their neighbouring states. This included the food culture, too. That’s probably why we see a bit of Kerala, Andhra, and Karnataka influence in Tamil cuisine.

The late cookbook author Prema Srininvasan too grew up in such a household, albeit a vegetarian one, in Mylapore, Madras. Here, she fell in love with food which was furthered when she got married into a house that welcomed all communities. Here, she learnt aspects of cooking from her mother-in-law, sister-in-law, and aunt-in-law — and later some delicious recipes from across the country from her friends too.



In her silver years, she brought out a book collating recipes of temple prasadams. Her new book, , is a “natural extension” she writes. In this edition, she categorises foods from a Tamil vegetarian household, while also giving readers a glimpse of vegetarian recipes from different parts of India, the commonly-used vessels, some cooking tips, and gratitude to people who have shared their recipes with her.

Here are four recipes from the book published by HarperCollins that you can try out at home. Rose petals: 50 g Milk: 2 l Sugar: 250 g Cardamoms: 6-8, powdered Pluck rose petals and chop them finely, reserving a few petals whole for decoration. Boil milk in a large pan over high heat.

Lower heat to medium and simmer, stirring periodically, till it is reduced to a third of its original volume. Add sugar, powdered cardamoms and rose petals. Simmer over medium heat, till mixture thickens further.

Remove from heat, cool and refrigerate. Serve cold, sprinkled with reserved rose petals. Chickpeas, soaked for 10-12 hours: 100 g Full fat curd (not too sour): 1 kg Cloves: 4 Fenugreek/methi seeds: 1⁄2 tsp Jeera/cumin seeds: 1⁄2 tsp Asafoetida: 2 pinches Coriander powder: 1 tsp Red chilli powder: 1⁄2 tsp Cardamoms: 2, crushed Turmeric powder: 1⁄4 tsp Saffron: 2 big pinches Salt: 1 tsp Boiling water: 1 cup Sugar: 1 tsp Beat the curd until it’s smooth.

Keep it aside. Soak cloves, fenugreek seeds, cumin seeds and asafoetida in 2 tbsp water for 1 hour. Drain the soaked chickpeas and cook till soft.

Place a heavy bottom vessel on fire. Add ghee. When melted, add the asafoetida water with its contents — cloves, fenugreek seeds, and cumin seeds.

Fry for a minute. Add the beaten curd and 1 tsp salt. Keep stirring constantly on a low to medium heat till the curd becomes grainy.

Add all the powders, crushed cardamom, and some of the saffron. When the curd reduces to half, add 1 cup boiling water and the sugar. Switch off the flame.

Do not let it to boil. Add the remaining saffron. Note: Gucci (morel) can be used instead of chickpeas in the above recipe, otherwise preparation is the same.

It can be served with rice. Long, thin brinjals: 500 g Salt: 1⁄2 tsp Gram flour/besan: 1 tbsp Ghee for frying: 21⁄2 tbsp Ginger: 1 1⁄2-inch piece, chopped Cloves: 1-inch stick, powdered Big black cardamom: 1, powdered Whole black pepper from 15 corns Red chilli powder: 1 tsp Salt: 1⁄2 tsp Divide the above powder into two portions Cloves: 4 Salt: 1⁄4 tsp Sugar: 2 tbsp Lime juice: 2 tbsp Slit the brinjals into quarters, halfway through — rub salt and keep for half an hour. Chop the ginger finely.

Mix the powder of cloves, black cardamom, black pepper and red chilli powder and divide into two portions. Toast the besan. Heat 1/2 tbsp of ghee in a wok in low-medium flame, add ginger, salt, and besan and mix well.

Stuff the brinjals with half the spice mix. Close well. Heat 1 1⁄2 tbsp ghee and season with 3 cloves to dark brown.

Add brinjals and salt and place them evenly on wok, cook on low fire. When cooked, mix sugar and lime juice, cover and cook on low heat till juice dries up. Open the lid, add remaining half of spice powder and stir gently.

Remove. Basumati, the rice that stands for fragrance most completely, more than any other rice, has become the king of rice internationally. We can trace the origin of the name to vasu or the richness of the earth, hence vasumati, carrying the rich fragrance of the earth, and then to basumati, the name that the whole word applauds now.

(An excerpt from ‘Pure Vegetarian’) Basumati rice/long-grained rice: 1 cup Curd, whisked smooth: 1 tsp Water (boiling): 3⁄4 cup Ghee: 2 tbsp + 1 tbsp Tomatoes (medium): 2, chopped Jeera/cumin seeds: 1⁄2 tsp Cardamom: 2 Cloves: 4 Bay leaf: 1, halved Asafoetida powder: 1 tsp Whole green chillies slit at the tip: 2 Ginger: 1⁄2-inch piece, cut in fine juliennes Chopped fenugreek leaves: 1⁄2 cup Chopped coriander leaves: 1⁄4 cup Dolichos lablab beans (peeled): 1⁄2 cup Turmeric powder: 1⁄4 tsp Red chilli powder: 1⁄2 tsp Salt: 1 tsp Soak rice for half an hour. Heat 2 tbsp of ghee in vanali/wok. Sauté tomatoes over medium heat till ghee separates.

Set aside. Heat 1 tbsp ghee in a vessel, add cumin seeds, cardamom, cloves, bay leaf and asafoetida powder and sauté over medium heat for a few seconds. Add green chillies, ginger, fenugreek leaves and coriander leaves and sauté, till raw smell of greens disappear.

Stir in dolichos beans, turmeric powder, and chilli powder and sauté for about a minute. Mix in cooked tomatoes, add drained rice, salt, and curd. Transfer to a vessel (which fits into a steamer) and steam for 15-20 minutes.

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