Cheese and Wine

My laptop was down with flu. Now it is feeling better, so now I can update my blogs. So here we go...

The British ruled India for a very long time. We got things like railways, food, tea, coffee, fashion, education and even the legal system from the British. But there are a few things which the English never brought here. Cheese and Wine is one of them. The British never developed the skills required either for cheese or for wine. We did our share of alcohol like whiskey (malt and scotch), rum, gin, vodka (some of the fine alcohol I could think of from the top of my head) but they we never got wine.

When we think of wine, the finest wines come from France, Italy, Germany, South Africa and even Australia. There are many similarities between cheese and wine. The best cheese comes from France, Swiss and some Scandinavian countries which I cannot spell. The English have their own selection of both Cheese and Wine. The infamous blue cheese and some port wines are indigenous to the English. But for some reason, they did not develop any vineyard or dairy skills required to make cheese. And that too at a time when they came to India to trade.

There are many similarities between cheese and wine. You have cheese masters and wine masters. Both have to be prepared by a particular process, have to be matured and nurtured to develop a great taste. May be that is why cheese and wine compliment each other so well. The Europeans are experts in making both. What could be the reason that it took so long for these skills and products to reach India. The oldest vineyard here (according to Ivy Cafe @ Indage House, Worli) was established in 1980. And we still do not have any takers for the variety of cheese. Please excuse Amul and Britannia who have recently started making cheese other than process cheese. So wine making in India is still very young and by the taste of most wines, very raw. So after liberalisation and WTO, it has become easier to import wines. A visit to any big supermarket, you will find a nice collection form almost every corner of the world. There is still need to education as some salesman cannot differentiate between a Shiraz and a Cabernet. In fact in recently when I asked a salesman about wines, he promptly offered me fruit wines.

So people reading this blog, I would strongly suggest you try a nice bottle of wine along with some fine cheese. And for those who do not consume alcohol, you can try non-alcoholic version of sparkling wine popularly known as champagne. I am sure you will enjoy it.

Methi Paneer

Since I need to build some traffic for my blog, I am using one of my ace. I am posting one of my famous recipe to entice the ladies. This is also for men are not afraid to venture in the kitchen. I hope you will like it

Recipe for Methi Paneer

Ingredients:

Paneer 300 gms
One portion of fresh or handful dried Methi (Kasuri Methi)
Onion 4 medium sized
Tomatoes 3 medium sized
2 tbls spoon cooking oil (any vegetable oil or olive oil)
4-5 green chillies
2 tbls spoon cream
Pinch of turmeric powder, coriander powder and red chilly powder
salt as per taste

Cooking time - 45 mins

Finely chop the onions and green chillies. Heat the oil in a pan and add the green chillies. Then fry the onions till it is golden brown on low heat. Then chop the tomatoes. You can also use canned tomatoes or puree. If using puree, then you need about 2-3 tbls spoon. Do not add too many tomatoes or puree as we do not want to make a gravy.

Once the onion is golden brown, add tomatoes and cook for a few mins on low hear. The add the spices i.e. turmeric powder, coriander power and red chilli powder. Mash all of them togeather till you get a paste like consistency on low heat. It should take about 15 to 20 mins to reach till this stage. Now add the methi. If you are using fresh methi then it needs to be cooked for 3-5 mins. If you are using kasuri methi then you can add a little water along with it.

Now chop the paneer in cubes of about 1/2 inches. Do not fry the paneer as it will not blend with the methi. Now cook with the paneer for about 3-4 mins. Stir carefully so the paneer does not break. After the paneer takes the yellow colour, it is done cooking. Turn off the heat and add the cream immediately. Do not add the cream while the heat is on as it will change the taste. Serve hot with paratas. I would suggest laccha parath along with this dish

I hope you will give it a try and like the above. Do not forget to post your comments on this site.

My First . . .

Since this is my first post I would like to share some of my first experience. The recent my first experience has been on the much talked about Bandra-Worli sealink. We planned for a small get-together at Cafe Ivy at Indage House. It is a nice cafe, very cosy and comfortable. Since it was a dry-day and we are a dry group meeting, there was no rush. Hence we sat down to enjoy sand witches and pasta. Since my dear friend Vipul was driving, we decided to take the sea-link back home.

The first hurdle was the traffic. It was Friday night and only 2 days of free ride remaining, there was choc-a-block traffic. It took us more than 30 mins just to reach the bridge. Once we touched the bridge; all of us knew it will be a long drive not because of the distance but because of the sea of cars. My first positive experience was that of Mumbai's high rise. The recent or rather recent-past growth and prosperity has enabled Mumbai to build some beautiful high rise. The beauty was enhanced by the lights (since it was dark at that time) and the landscape was wonderful.

The next my first experience I can remember is tragic death of princess Diana. I am writing this blog on the same day when Michael Jackson's Memorial Service. MJ's death no doubt has been tragic. But for me princess Diana's death was more shocking and tragic than MJ's death. But this in no way I want to belittle Michal Jackson. He has been an icon, entertainer and a super star. My first memories of MJ was way before the information age. There was no Internet, no cable, nothing international (except for my first wrangler jeans which my dad bought on his foreign visit). Even in that age all of us, childern and adults were aware and fans of Michael Jackson. The very first coffee table book, which I received as a birthday present was that of Michael Jackson. I treasured it till 26/7 floods destroyed. I may not be a fanatic fan but I will always remember him in some corner of my heart just like princess Diana.

May God Bless Their Souls

Welcome ! ! !

Hello


I have decided to pursue one secret passion of mine i.e. writing. Since technology has grown to an extend where I can write and share at the same time. I am sure you will find some interesting insights about stuff. As the title goes, the blog is about this and that...Nothing specific.

I will write something every week and hope you will visit and view. Also please do comment and suggest topics as well. My first post will follow very soon.

Dev...