Saturday, May 12, 2012

What’s cooking?

No, I am not going to give you the recipe of my favourite dish here. Far from it. Instead, I am going to let you in on my secret. I am here to confess my sin and that is-I HATE COOKING. Ok, I am kidding. Not about the ‘I hate cooking’ part, I really hate it. But about the sin part, I don’t consider it as a sin that I don’t like stepping inside the kitchen, except for maybe to get something to eat. Gone are the days when kitchen were considered to be a women’s den. In fact I think men make better chefs. Go to any restaurant, chances are that the chef there is a man. So why is it that, at home some (I say some because the percentage of men who don’t know cooking, is gradually decreasing) men look befuddled when asked to prepare a simple dish?
It’s not that I can’t cook, I can and I do, but without any enthusiasm and I do it because I have to. I know many women consider cooking as therapeutic, but for me it’s stressful. The funny thing is I like watching cookery shows and I love Nigella Lawson’s cooking. I enjoy watching her prepare a chocolate based recipe. She makes chocolate look more gooey and yummy. If I was a guy, I would have been in love with that lady. Even though I love watching the cookery shows, I wouldn’t try any of the recipes. In fact if left on my own I think I would survive simply on tea and Maggi noodles. It’s not that I don’t like to eat, I love to eat but only what others cook (or what a good chef cooks). If I was to cook anything I like, then I would just prepare rice, dal and a potato sabzi. Yes, basic and yummy J
Again, it’s not that I have not tried my hand at cooking elaborate dishes. Before marriage, like any good Indian girl I tried to hone my culinary skills. I copied recipes for Alu Gobi, Palak Paneer and Paneer Ghee roast from the net, got all the ingredients and during weekends prepared the dishes with great enthusiasm. My family became guinea pigs to me, but to my credit most of the dishes turned out to be OK, which probably means that I am not a bad cook. But after marriage, the enthusiasm vanished and slowly the morning breakfast menu had only one item on it-the Dosa. You see, dosa is the easiest to make, prepare the batter on weekends and it comes throughout the weekdays. And on weekends, the breakfast was usually the yummy Benne dosa. Err, from the corner “Davangere Benne Dosa” shop.  Lunch and dinner is usually Chitranna or Rice/Sambhar and when I am too lazy to prepare anything it’s just curd rice :P
I know you are wondering how come my husband has not divorced me by now. But you see in Ashok’s case, the heart is stronger than the stomach. In my defence I did learn to prepare Paranthas after marriage. But Ashok liked it so much that he demanded paranthas every weekend. So I decided that I would learn nothing new (something about apne pairon par khud hi kuladi marna).
Ok maybe I will include a recipe of my favourite Chocolate Dad to conclude, but just because it’s easy to prepare:
To prepare Chocolate Dad you need:
Tub of your favourite flavour ice cream (it’s always Vanilla for me)
Powdered Groundnut chikki (available in your local stores)
Slab of chocolate and some dry fruits
Preparation: Melt the chocolate in a pan .Roast all the dry fruits in a separate pan. Grind the chikki so that it’s coarsely powdered. Take a scoop of Vanilla ice cream in a stem glass. Sprinkle the powdered chikki, pour the melted chocolate and garnish with the roasted dry fruits.
Your Chocolate Dad is ready!!! So simple and yummy J
Chocolate Dad at Pabbas, Mangalore

P.S: Pabbas is a famous ice cream parlour in Mangalore, it’s the pride of Mangalore. If you ever visit Mangalore, make sure you don’t miss going to Pabbas.

4 comments:

  1. I hate cooking too :|
    Seriously its such a stress work

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  2. I don't hate cooking... But it is very stressful... nice post... :)

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  3. Hhahaha! Finally I meet someone who feels the same abt cooking. I can cook too (rather well actually) but only if I am forced to :P Well thank God you have a husband who understands this. Or maybe you can get a cook :D

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  4. Ritika: I completely agree with you :)

    Preethika: Thanks for dropping by my blog. BTW does Sunil know how to cook :)

    Dhanya: Yes, Thank God my husband knows to cook, but sometimes it can be irritating too, when he peeps in while I'm cooking and gives me "suggestions". Grrrr..:P

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