DO U KNOW ' TOFU '? & The Jalapeno is ..

DO U KNOW ' TOFU '?
Discovered over 2000 years ago by the Chinese, tofu is sometimes called "the cheese of Asia," because of its physical resemblance to a block of farmer's cheese. Tofu is a highly nutritious, protein-rich food that is made from the curds of soybean milk. Off-white in color, it is usually sold in rectangular blocks. Tofu is a staple in the cuisines
of many Asian countries.
Tofu is its Japanese name, while in China it is known as doufu. 
Why eat tofu..
Tofu is a very good source of protein, specifically soy protein.
Tofu is a very good source of iron.
Tofu is one of the most versatile foods, serving a host of different purposes ranging from salad dressing to dessert to entrée and more.
A SERVING TIP..
A Few Quick Serving Ideas..
Blend together soft tofu, olive oil, garlic and lemon juice to make a tofu dip.

The Jalapeno is a medium-sized chili pepper. A mature jalapeño fruit is 2–3½ inches (5–9 cm) long and is commonly picked and consumed while still green. Jalapeños are
a pod type of Capsicum.
Compared to other chilies, the jalapeño has a heat level that varies from mild to hot depending on cultivation and preparation.

What is Cantonese Cuisine?

What is Cantonese Cuisine?
Cantonese cuisine comes from Guangdong province and is one of the Eight Culinary Traditions of Chinese cuisine.
Cantonese chefs are highly sought after throughout China.
Guangdong has long been a trading port and many imported foods and ingredients are used in Cantonese cuisine. Besides pork, beef and chicken, Cantonese cuisine incorporates almost all edible meats, including offal, chicken feet, duck's tongue, snakes, and snails. However, lamb and goat are rarely eaten.
For many traditional Cantonese cooks, the flavors of a finished dish should be well balanced n not oily.
Steaming and boiling are used more often than frying to prepare food. Vegetables are cooked in the shortest time in order to retain the natural crispness and flavor.
In Cantonese cuisine, a number of ingredients such as spring onion, sugar, salt, soy sauce, rice wine, cornstarch, vinegar, scallion oil, and sesame oil are used to enhance flavor, although garlic is heavily used in some dishes, also ginger, chili peppers, five-spice powder, powdered black pepper, star anise and a few other spices are also used often.
Dim sum, literally "touch your heart", is a Cantonese term for small hearty dishes.
These bite-sized portions are prepared using traditional cooking methods such as frying, steaming, stewing and baking.
It is designed so that one person may taste a variety of different dishes. Dim sum refers to a style of Chinese food prepared as small bite-sized or individual portions of food traditionally served
in small steamer baskets or on small plates. Dim sum is also well known for the unique way it is served in some restaurants.
A Spring roll is a roll consisting of various types of vegetables like sliced carrot, cabbage, mushroom and wood ear fungus and sometimes meat are rolled inside a thin flour skin and deep fried.A wonton is a type of dumpling commonly found in a number of Chinese cuisines.
In Cantonese cuisine, shrimp filled wonton within minced pork is most commonly served with thin noodles to make wonton noodles.
The drinking of tea is as important to dim sum as the food.
' The ritual of bowing to someone in appreciation '...
It is customary to pour tea for others during dim sum before filling one's own cup.
A custom unique to the Cantonese is to thank the person pouring the tea by tapping the bent index finger if you are single, or by tapping both the index and middle finger if you are married, which symbolizes 'bowing' to them.
Cantonese style cuisine makes an emphasis in the freshness of the ingredients and the contrast of flavors and textures.

DID U KNOW? What is Nankhatai?

DID U KNOW?
What is Nankhatai?
Nankhatai is a shortbread cookie from India.
The Hindi word Nankhatai originated in Surat, a large port city in Gujarat.
The story started in the end of 16th century when Dutch explorers Van Houtman and Van Neck trading posts in India for trade in spices. The Dutch set up a bakery in Surat to produce bread for their on consumption.
When the Dutch left India, they handed over the bakery to one of the their trusted employees named Dotivala. He was to continue baking bread for the Dutch being left behind. The bakery became 'Dotivala Bakery'.
As more and more Dutch left India. Dotivala had created a business with a line of biscuits that suited the Indian taste.
Nankhatai had six ingredients like Flour, Ghee, Sugar, Palm toddy, Eggs, and Almonds.
Some historians assert that the name Nankhatai reflects the recipe where Nan stands for bread, and Khat meaning six refers to the six ingredients.
http://www.indiacurry.com/desserts/nankhataioldfashioned.htm
http://www.indiacurry.com/desserts/nankhatai.htm

Do u know what ' Dhansak is' ...

Do u know what ' Dhansak is' ...
What is Dhansak? Dhansak is an Indian meat and lentil curry.
Dhansak is a Parsi dish. Dhansak are two words: Dhan and Sak.
Dhan means split beans like Chickpeas, Pigeon peas, Moong, Urad, Masoor, dried green and yellow peas.
The dish may contain one or more of these Dal. Most common beans used are Lentils (Masoor) and Pigeon-peas (Toor).
Sak refers to vegetables. Both green and starchy vegetables are used. In addition to beans and vegetables, chicken or mutton may be added.
Dhansak is a popular Indian dish, especially popular among the Parsi Zoroastrian community. It combines elements of Persian and Gujarati cuisine.
In Parsi homes, dhansak is traditionally made on Sundays owing to the long preparation time.
Dhansak consists of lentils, vegetables, spices, cumin seeds, ginger, and garlic together with meat and either gourd or pumpkin. Within the Parsi community, dhansak usually contains goat meat or mutton; it is rarely made with other meats, or without meat.
Outside of India, some variants of dhansak use pineapple chunks for sweetness, however the traditional recipes never contain fruit, instead favoring the subtle sweetness of pumpkin, squash or gourd.
A paste typically is made from garlic, ginger, cumin seeds, coriander seeds and cinnamon sticks. Also includes fenugreek seeds, black mustard seeds, black peppercorns, fennel seeds and red chili powder. Some variations also contain star anise and nutmeg. Other ingredients characteristic of dhansak include garam masala, cardamom, cloves, chilies and tumeric. The sour element of this curry is provided by tamarind paste, and the sweetness is provided by sugar or jaggery. Serve with steamed basmati rice or chapatis.
http://books.google.co.in/books?id=9A4-9bdkuD0C&pg=PA73&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false

What is Al Dente? & What is a Cold Water Bath?

1 What is Al Dente?
In cooking, al dente describes pasta and (less commonly) rice or beans that have
been cooked so as to be firm but not hard.
"Al dente" also describes vegetables that are cooked to the "tender crisp" phase.
The term is also occasionally used in cooking vegetables, such as green beans or brussels sprouts.
The term "al dente" comes from Italian and means "to the tooth"
or "to the bite", referring to the need to chew the pasta due to its firmness.
Al dente refers to the desired texture of cooked pasta in Italian cooking. It literally means "to the tooth". When the pasta is cooked al dente, there should be a slight resistance in the center when the pasta is chewed.
Learning to cook to the al dente stage needs practice.
The difference between under cooked or over cooked and al dente is a matter of seconds which requires keeping a close watch on them.
A USEFUL TIP...
When having drained the pasta in a colander and wish to prevent them from sticking, toss it with a tablespoon of oil.

2 What is a Cold Water Bath?
A cold water bath is a cooking technique that immediately arrests the process of whatever you are cooking by directly immersing it in cold or even ice water. 
The simplest cold water bath is to pour cold water on foods like pasta while it still sits in the colander.
This can help keep your pasta al dente for recipes like pasta salad. Placing food in cold water is also common when you’re blanching, or lightly cooking, vegetables for use as 
a side and in salads.
The reason chefs employ a cold water bath is because food that is heated will continue to cook slightly, even after it is removed from the heat.

Century egg or pidan also known as ...

Century egg or pidan also known as preserved egg, hundred-year egg, thousand-year egg, thousand-year-old egg, and millennium egg, is a Chinese cuisine ingredient made by preserving duck, chicken or quail eggs in a mixture of clay, ash, salt, quicklime, and rice hulls for several weeks to several months, depending on the method of processing.
Through the process, the yolk becomes a dark green to grey color, with a creamy consistency and an odor of sulphur and ammonia, while the white becomes a dark brown, translucent jelly with little flavor.
Century eggs can be eaten without further preparation, on their own or as a side dish. In hors d'œuvre a Cantonese wrap where chunks of this egg with slices of pickled ginger root is sometimes sold on a stick as street food.
Few food facts..
1 Iron eggs is a speciality egg-based dish from Taiwan.
2 Tea egg is a typical Asian savory food commonly sold as a snack. It is also known as marble egg because cracks in the egg shell create darkened lines with marble-like patterns. Commonly sold by street vendors or in night markets in most Chinese communities throughout the world.
3 A soy egg is a type of Chinese egg cooked in soy sauce, sugar, water, as well as other optional herbs and spices.
4 Chinese red eggs are bright pink colored cooked chicken eggs. The eggs are first hard boiled and then with a wet red calligraphy paper which is smeared all over the eggs to create a pink coloring.
In Chinese culture, it is common to find at the baby´s first birthday a bowl of brightly colored cooked chicken eggs on the guests´buffet or serving tables.
When we hear of "thousand year old egg" what comes to our mind is fossil or a recent scientific discovery.
But those who are familiar with Chinese cuisine know it's a type of food.
The thousand year old egg, also known as the century egg or the hundred year old egg, is actually more like the hundred day old egg, since it only takes that amount of time to make.
How is it done?
It is a regular egg (which could be from a chicken, duck, or goose) is covered with a coating of lime, ashes, and salt and then buried in a shallow hole for roughly 100 days. 
When the egg is uncovered and cleaned, it could keep fresh at room temperature for up to 2 weeks or a full month refrigerated.

"Misal" literally means a mixture....

"Misal" literally means a mixture....
Misal pav a spicy curry with bread known as "pav" is a traditional Indian dish.
The spicy gravy part is also called "Tarri" in Maharashtra. Another one is the milder Poona Misal or Puneri Misal. 
It consists of spicy curry usually made of sprouts, mutter, chick peas and chilly powder gravy.
The final dish is topped with Punjabi mix, Farsan or Sev (Indian noodles).
Misal from Kolhapur, a place in South-West India, is very famous for its high spice content and is particularly known
as Kolhapuri misal.
It is made of a particular variety of sprouted lentil called "Matki" which has a sweet aroma.
Misal in its original form is prepared using onion, ginger,
garlic and other spices.
It has two parts, a thick curry of matki called "Usal" which
has less water content and a watery and spicy "cut" or "bite". Usually people mix these two according to their taste and requirement.
In most restaurants which serve misal-pav, usal and cut are served together.
Misal pav is common street food in Mumbai and it is served with a farsan as Misal is usually quite spicy so to balance the taste servedwith farsan.
So Misal Pav becomes a great one meal food.
The ingredients that are used in making Usal are matki/moth beans, Tarri or Katt the spicy curry and the garnished with sev, chiwda, farsan, cut onions, fresh coriander and served with a wedge of lemon.