Culinary Delights Up North!

In December last year, Neeti and I travelled to Delhi and there we got a chance to partake some very interesting food.

My parents who had just returned from China brought along with them a big jar of a Chinese namkeen - peanuts and fiery hot Sichuan peppers stuffed with sesame seeds. While everyone found the stuff, I enjoyed every little bite of it. The peppers were crisp and hot, and the sesame and peanuts gave it an interesting crunch! Luckily I got to carry some of this back to Mumbai with me.

Yum isn't it?

Now this was interesting!

My Mom made some pan fried spinach fritters for lunch, alongwith grilled tomatoes!

We picked up a pack of fresh pesto sauce from the gourmet food store next door and tossed some very fresh mushrooms in it and cooked them for 5 minutes...

They were yum....

The next, at Neeti's place, was grilled pesto mushroom open sandwich with gooey cheese - we had these for tea!!!
A yummy treat!

Of Technology & Toothbrushes....

Today, on my way to work, as always, I was listening to RJ Hrishi Kay's morning show on 94.3 Radio One. Today's guest was Jagdish Mahapatra, McAfee's MD for India and SAARC and the topic of the day was internet security...

Jagdish started off the talk with an interesting observation - that there are only 2 billion toothbrushes in the world as compared to 5 billion smartphones...

Well... I found that a bit intriguing and it took me a while to rationalise these statistics. As of the last count, the world's population is a tad higher than 7 billion. So despite toothbrushes having been in use since the 1700s when William Addis of England is believed to have pioneered the first mass-produced toothbrush, it had taken over 200 years for this low tech, mass-produced "device" to reach a penetration of just about 2 billion.

Why?

Perhaps, the reason is that most of use only brush at a time, at least I would think its heresy to use more than one brush at a time. Also a lot of cultures, including our own, have their ingenious and traditional ways of maintaining oral hygiene. We have the datun in India, the Arabs have miswak. The ancient Romans and Greeks used toothpicks. The Chinese used horse-tail hair attached to an ox-bone handle. Africans used soot from the fire that was used to cook their meals. A lot of these cultures still maintain these traditions.

So while, we only have 2 billion toothbrushes, oral hygiene need not be all that abysmal.

On the contrary, technology has been a disruptive and an epochal event in human history. The first mobile phone was made in 1973 and in just about 40 years, this technology has literally flooded the world. The need to connect, this primal instinct, has probably been the reason for the explosive growth.

Also once we get hooked on to these devices, we end up with more than one - a basic phone would lead to a smart phone, which may later co-exist with, say, a tablet....

I have seen that happen around me, in my family.... the convenience of accessing the Net on a mobile device has made my family shift from using a PC to a mobile device! That, I suppose, would be a common trend across the world....

So, I concluded, 5 billion isn't too high afterall...

And then this interesting observation made for an animated lunchtime discussion at office....

The Glutton's Treat!

Well, this post is quite delayed...

In November last year, we headed to Delhi, to celebrate Diwali. After Diwali festivities were over, we planned a rather small but interesting breakfast outing with Neeti's cousins.

I must admit, it was a big pain in the ass to get ready early in the morning and be at the All American Diner by 9AM.

But I was already fantasising about crispy bacon and sausages that gave me the courage to venture out of my quilt. I had perhaps been dreaming about all stuff porky through the night....!

India Habitat Centre was basking in the glow of the winter sun...

This place will always be special - Neeti and I had gotten engaged here a few years back....

We finally reached the Diner...

Despite the bright sun, dining alfresco was ruled out... the breeze was ... brrr.... cold!

The warmth of the interior was inviting....

Well, today the All American Diner is not all American.... they serve idli dosa also...

When the five hungry gluttons landed up here, it had to be all you can eat....

And it had to be with a large plate of crispy bacon on the side... on this, I was supported wholeheartedly by my willing partners-in-crime - Neeti's cousins!

After all the gluttony that we had indulged in, it was time to relax a bit...

We became as slothful as pythons do after a large meal.... I hate to admit, but our tummies did swell up a bit too... *embarrassed*

Finally, we did muster some strength to roam around the complex....

And we admired the architecture, the works of art, the greenery around and the lovely winter Sun...

Good things come to an end.... Soon it was time to rush and pack up to head back to Mumbai!

The Zero Oil Challenge....

The zero oil challenge is on.... and today was a test for that.

We made baked eggs - with lots of onions, diced chicken salami, chopped peppers, grilled mushrooms and basil, and yes, not to forget loads of coarsely cracked pepper...

We baked the beaten eggs with the add-ons for about 10 minutes and had it with sautéed vegetables and toast... It was yum!

A healthy beginning to a new week begins with the zero oil challenge...

Comme Il Faut....

A chance trip, today afternoon, to Lower Parel brought me to the Palladium, Lower Parel. While Neeti was busy gallivanting around, I went back to my favourite pastime, food and drink at the Foodhall.

The display of all kinds of exotic food - cheeses, cold cuts and pastas made me crazy... all for the love of food, just as it should be.... comme il faut!

The Taste Of Kenya, In My Cup...

A lot can happen over a cup of tea.... That's exactly what happened sometime back...

My parents were recently in Mumbai to spend the New Year holidays with us and they brought along a treasure of great food - a good mix of gourmet stuff from a food store close to their home and a lot of homemade goodies. That treasure trove included a few tea bags of Kericho tea - a tea that comes from the Kenyan county of Kericho.

Kericho is located  on the highlands west of the Kenyan Rift Valley - an area well known for its marathon runners. The climate and altitude of 6500 feet makes it ideal for tea cultivation. Kericho is said to be the tea capital of Kenya and Kericho tea known for its brightness, attractive colour, brisk flavour and fragrance. Such is the popularity of tea here that the central square of Kericho town is known as Chai Square!

Now these tea bags traveled from Kenya to Beijing - gifted to my sister by her friend... She shared them with my parents who were in Beijing last year...

And from Beijing the tea travelled to Delhi and then to Mumbai....

And then the taste of Kericho comes into my cup...

The taste was crisp and flavourful....

With each sip, I was in sense teleported back to 1980-1981, when as a kid, I travelled with my parents across Uganda and Kenya in our beautiful blue Fiat 127, passing by the lush green tea gardens of the Rift Vally in Kenya...

Till now those memories were a bit faint...

But each sip of Kericho tea made me relive the memorable roadtrip, vividly... passing by the Equator, stopping and buying bananas, having them right on the Equator... and then sharing them with a local man who passed by with a walking stick...

I longed to get back, to jump on to the next Kenya Airways flight, that I have so often see here in Mumbai, to head back to the land of my birth, East Africa, to relive those moments all over again.....

All this happened as I enjoyed the taste of Kenya in my cup....

Plane Spotting At BOM -- Part III

I am now starting to wonder whether this should be termed as a Plane Spotting series or a spring cleaning series....

A few more pics here from a trip to Delhi in November 2013, just before Diwali.... We took a 7 AM flight from Mumbai. As we waited to board, we stopped by at the Cafe Coffee Day outlet near the boarding gates, seeing the planes against the rising sun. And that was a real visual treat...

Enjoy...

A flying sun on the tail of the Jet Airways Boeing 737 and a rising sun behind it!

As we taxiied to Runway 27-09, we passed by the international ramp...

A Kenya Airways Boeing 767 set my heart racing....

I could only hope that I travel to my motherland soon, on this magnificent bird soon, a bird that is called "The Pride of Africa"!

An Air-India Boeing 777 resting before its longhaul operation later in the day....

Plane Spotting At DEL .... Again

The spring cleaning of my cellphone is well underway and I now present another edition of Plane Spotting at Delhi - these were pictures I had taken way back in September 2013, when I went to Delhi for a weekend break. I landed into an exceptionally bright Saturday morning at Delhi.... Ahem, well, which Saturday morning doesn't appear bright?

As we headed to our bay, we passed by two Air-India Boeing 777s and an Air-India Regional's Canadair CRJ-700

They pretty much looked like a family - papa, mumma and the little one!!!

The two Boeing 777s were basking in the warmth of the sun...

The Air-India livery stands out as distinct and unique...

And another grand welcome in to Delhi's T3... 

The mudras say a lot of our rich heritage.... and Delhi Airport showcases that well....

Plane Spotting At HYD..... Again

Ahem, well, it's time to spring-clean my cellphone, and see, this is what I found.... pictures that I had clicked while waiting for my flight at Hyderabad Airport...

This was in December 2013, there was a cyclonic depression over the Bay of Bengal, which brought with it a lovely weather to Hyderabad....

And IndiGo Airbus A320 is boarding, flanked by two Boeing 737s on either side, one JetKonnect and the other Jet Airways....

I loved Hyderabad airport for the unhindered views of the airside... This is the second edition of Plane Spotting At HYD!

And as we board, a Jet Airways Boeing 737 taxis...

Time to get back home!

Waiting To Get Knotty....!!!!!

This evening, Neeti and I were driving around Juhu, when were drawn into the Satya Paul outlet by banners loudly proclaiming their ongoing sale.

As we entered the store, I was instantly drawn towards the ties on display. The wall was a riot of colour. Ties of different colours and with various motifs made it a real visual treat.

I could not help but wonder - all these ties will get knotted up in sometime. They'll end up in boardrooms, in festive occasions, they'll travel the world. Billions of dollars of deals will get signed off over them. The bubbly will be uncorked and vows of "I do" will be exchanged, these ties will witness all this.....

But it all starts here, on this wall.....

An Evening At Moshe's...

After a long time, Neeti and I spent a relaxed afternoon driving in and around Juhu. The warmth of a crisp sunny Saturday afternoon is absolutely indescribable. 

After doing some window shopping we dropped in at Moshe's Cafe to have a relaxed cup of tea alongwith a snack... As we passed by the Juhu Beach, crowds were gathering to see the sun set for the day, and yes, the birds were headed back to their nests!

Tucked away under the trees, the cafe looks cosy and inviting...

I loved the display at the counter....

As we wait for our order to come, Moshe reminds me the essence of life...

An interesting wall! Somehow I was drawn to the squashes and pumpkins...

Here comes my chicken shawrama sandwich with red cabbage...

I cannot live without a bit of mustard on the side...

And finally Assam tea with biscotti and chocolate caramel square...

Now looking forward to enjoying the rest of this weekend....