No onion, no garlic recipes (Swaminarayan and sattvic)

by KrazyBadal 0 views

KneippbrødWholemeal loaf

Open almost any Norwegian matpakke (the packed lunch wrapped in paper) and you will find slices of kneippbrød, a soft, lightly sweet loaf of sammalt hvete (wholemeal wheat) baked in a tin. Its fine crumb slices thin without crumbling, perfect for brown cheese, jam or cucumber at the school desk. The common mistake is adding too much flour while kneading because wholemeal dough feels sticky; the loaf then bakes dense and dry. Chef's tip: let the dough rest for 20 minutes after mixing, before kneading, so the bran softens and the dough turns smooth on its own.

70 minScandinavian Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

BotaMaize porridge with peanut butter

Before school buses leave Bulawayo and Gweru, pots of bota are already ticking on the stove: a thin, pourable porridge of white maize meal, much looser than the stiff sadza eaten later in the day. A good spoonful of peanut butter turns it pale gold and gives it a toasty, slightly savoury richness, and a little sugar makes it a favourite with children. Some families stir in lacto, the Zimbabwean sour milk, or squeeze in lemon for tang; this version keeps it plant-based. Lumps are the classic fault, and they come from tipping dry meal into boiling water. Chef's tip: always whisk the maize meal into cold water first, then heat it, and the porridge stays velvet-smooth.

20 minSouthern African Breakfast & Brunch

by KrazyBadal 0 views

ChigumuBanana maize cake

Chigumu is village baking from the Shire Highlands and the lakeshore near Mangochi: a thick batter of maize flour, overripe bananas and sugar poured into a greased pot, set on embers with more coals heaped on the lid, and left to bake slowly. The result is a dense, moist, golden loaf with a slightly gritty, cornbread-like crumb and a deep banana sweetness, cut into wedges for children after school or carried on journeys. An oven and a loaf tin give the same result at home. The usual mistake is using under-ripe bananas, which leave the cake dry and bland. Chef's tip: pick bananas with skins more black than yellow, and mash them to a liquid before adding the maize flour.

75 minSouthern African Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

MutakuraBeans, cowpeas and maize

Mutakura is old Zimbabwean country food, cooked in rural Mashonaland after harvest from the store of dried beans, cowpeas, groundnuts and maize kernels, and eaten as a filling lunch or snack, often at gatherings and ceremonies. Everything is soaked, boiled for hours until tender, then simply seasoned with salt, so the beans are creamy, the maize chewy and the groundnuts soft and rich. Suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 340 kcal and 45 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is cooking everything together from the start: the maize needs a long head start, and the dried red beans must be boiled hard for 10 minutes to be safe. A pressure cooker cuts the maize time to about 40 minutes. Chef's tip: soak everything overnight in separate bowls; the maize and groundnuts need it most.

160 minSouthern African Vegetarian

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Neem begunNeem leaves with aubergine

Neem begun opens a traditional Bengali lunch in spring, especially around Poila Baisakh, when the neem trees of West Bengal put out soft new leaves. A few tender leaves are fried crisp in mustard oil, then tossed with small cubes of fried aubergine so the bitterness is softened by the creamy brinjal. Eat a spoonful or two with the first mouthfuls of rice, before the dal. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet and is meant to be eaten in small amounts, as Bengali cooks always have. About 110 kcal and 7 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is frying the neem too long, which turns it black and acrid; it needs only seconds. Chef's tip: dry the leaves completely on a cloth before they go into the oil, or they spit and steam instead of crisping.

20 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Jhinge postoRidge gourd with poppy seeds

Jhinge posto is a summer staple of West Bengal and especially the Bankura and Birbhum districts, where poppy seed (posto) goes into almost every everyday lunch. Ridge gourd is cooked in its own juices with nigella seeds and green chilli, then coated in a creamy paste of ground white poppy seeds, giving a mild, nutty, slightly sweet dish. Serve it with rice and dal, or with a millet roti for a lower-GI plate. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 150 kcal and 9 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is adding water: the gourd releases plenty, and extra water makes the posto runny. Chef's tip: soak the poppy seeds in hot water for 20 minutes before grinding so the paste is smooth, not gritty.

40 min

Indian Vegetarian

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Gogji razmaKidney beans with turnips

In the Kashmir valley, gogji razma is a winter comfort dish, made in heavy pots when turnips are sweet after the first snow and dried beans from Bhaderwah fill the store. Red kidney beans and turnip chunks simmer in a thin, red gravy flavoured with mustard oil, ground fennel, dried ginger and Kashmiri chilli, without any onion or tomato. Serve with a modest bowl of rice or a millet roti and a green salad. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 300 kcal and 38 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is slow-cooking dried kidney beans without boiling them hard first; raw kidney beans are unsafe, so soak them overnight and boil hard for 10 minutes before simmering. Chef's tip: add the turnips only when the beans are almost soft, so they keep their shape and sweetness.

90 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Conservas de cocoSpiced coconut bars

Along the roads of Zulia and down the Caribbean coast, sellers wrap conservas de coco in squares of paper: dense, chewy bars of grated coconut cooked in dark panela syrup with cinnamon and clove. Children buy them with their change after school. The mistake most people make is taking the pan off too early; the mixture never sets and stays sticky. Chef's tip: keep stirring until the mass pulls away in one lump and a spoon dragged across the base leaves a clean line.

50 min

Venezuelan Desserts

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Jalea de mangoGreen mango paste

When the mango trees of Oriente are heavy in Lent, families in Sucre and Anzoátegui cook the hard green fruit with sugar and spice into jalea de mango, a thick tart-sweet paste set in a dish and cut into squares. It's eaten during Holy Week, often on a piece of crisp cassava bread. The mistake to avoid is skipping the sieve, which leaves stringy fibres. Chef's tip: use a long wooden spoon and keep your arm covered: the thick paste spits as it bubbles.

75 min

Venezuelan Desserts

by KrazyBadal 0 views

GüirilaSweet corn tortilla with curd cheese

On the winding road north from Managua to Matagalpa and Jinotega, smoke from roadside griddles means güirilas: thick, sweet tortillas of freshly ground young corn, folded around a slab of salty cuajada and a spoonful of cream. The outside is lightly charred and the middle soft and custardy, a little like a corn pancake. Cuajada is a fresh cheese usually set with animal rennet; a vegetarian halloumi or fresh vegetarian cheese is a good swap. The most common mistake is a batter so runny that it spreads thin and tears when you flip it. Chef's tip: grind the corn in a blender in short bursts so a little texture remains, then stir in masa harina a spoonful at a time until the batter just holds a soft mound.

40 minCentral American Snacks & Starters

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Jaulo for babiesRice porridge for babies

Jaulo is the soft rice and lentil porridge Nepali families in Kathmandu and the hills turn to for anyone small, tired or getting over a cold. After a baby's pasni, the rice-feeding ceremony held at five or six months, it soon becomes a regular lunch, and from about nine months it is mashed lumpy rather than smooth. This version keeps the ghee, cumin and turmeric for gentle flavour but leaves out the usual salt, garlic and ginger. It is warm, buttery and comforting. It contains milk (ghee) and is free of gluten, egg, nuts, soya and sesame. Chef's tip: fry the cumin only until it smells toasty and is a shade darker; burnt cumin turns the whole pot bitter.

35 min

Nepali Rice & Grains

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Lemon sevai (lemon rice noodles)

Sevai is pressed rice-flour vermicelli, and in Tamil Nadu and the Mysuru region the lemon version is a lighter alternative to lemon rice for a school lunch box. Today most homes use dried rice sevai, softened in hot water and steamed, then tossed with a turmeric tempering of mustard, dal, peanuts and green chilli and plenty of lemon. The common mistake is soaking the dry sevai too long, so it breaks into short mushy bits; it should be just pliable before it goes into the steamer. Chef's tip: toss with a fork, not a spoon, and lift rather than stir so the strands stay long.

22 min

Indian Pasta & Noodles

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Metkut bhaatRice with lentil powder and ghee

Ask anyone who grew up in Pune or Mumbai's Dadar about their first proper meal and many will say metkut bhaat: soft hot rice, a spoon of melted ghee and a sprinkle of metkut, a roasted powder of chana dal, urad dal and rice with turmeric and cumin. It is the bowl grandmothers make on lazy evenings and for toddlers from 12 months, nutty, savoury and gentle without any chilli. Shop metkut usually contains salt and asafoetida (which often has wheat), so this recipe roasts a small salt-free batch at home. It contains milk (ghee); the home-made powder has no gluten, egg, nuts or soya. Chef's tip: roast the dals slowly until they smell like popcorn; pale dal gives a raw, floury powder.

25 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Dalimbi usalSprouted field bean curry

In Konkan and Pune homes, dalimbi usal is a festival dish, cooked for Ganesh Chaturthi, weddings and thread ceremonies and served on the thali beside puran poli and rice. Dalimbi are dried field beans (val) that are soaked, sprouted and peeled; the work takes two days but turns them creamy and sweet. They are simmered gently with fresh coconut, goda masala, kokum and a little jaggery, without onion or garlic. Field beans must always be cooked until fully soft; never eat them raw or half-cooked. The usual mistake is boiling them hard, which bursts the soft peeled beans into mash; keep the simmer gentle. Chef's tip: soak the sprouted beans in warm water for 30 minutes before peeling, and the skins slip off with a pinch.

60 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Val valMixed vegetables in coconut gravy

Val val is a gentle Goan Saraswat stew of mixed vegetables in coconut milk, cooked for festive meals at Ganesh Chaturthi, weddings and temple feasts in Ponda and Margao, where it balances hot curries and fried fish-free starters on the plate. Drumsticks, pumpkin, green beans and potato cook in thin coconut milk with green chilli and cumin, then thick coconut milk is stirred in at the end for a creamy, pale, mildly sweet sauce. Eat it with rice, or with puris for a feast. The usual mistake is boiling it after the thick coconut milk goes in, which splits it into oily curds. Chef's tip: grind the cumin with the green chillies and a spoon of coconut milk; it gives a fresh warmth without colouring the white sauce.

40 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Khatta magGreen moong in sour yogurt

Khatta mag is weekday comfort across Gujarat, from Ahmedabad flats to Saurashtra farmhouses: whole green moong cooked soft and simmered in a tangy, kadhi-like gravy of yoghurt and gram flour with ginger, green chilli and a clove-and-cinnamon tempering. It is ladled over rice or eaten with bajra rotla, and many families cook it on Wednesdays, the day for moong. A little jaggery is optional. The usual mistake is pouring cold yoghurt into the hot pot without whisking it with gram flour first, which makes it split into curds. Slow-cooker: cook the soaked moong with 600 ml water on low for 5 hours, then stir in the yoghurt mix and cook on high for 30 minutes. Chef's tip: slightly sour, day-old yoghurt gives the best khatta flavour.

55 min

Indian Breakfast & Brunch

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Aval kanji for babiesRice flake porridge for babies

In Tamil homes from Madurai to Chennai, aval (flattened rice, the same poha sold in every kirana shop) is one of the first grains a grandmother reaches for when a baby turns six months. The flakes are dry-roasted until they smell like puffed rice, ground to a fine powder and simmered with water into a thin, pale porridge with a gentle toasted flavour, usually given as a mid-morning feed. For babies it is made with no salt, sugar, jaggery or honey. It is free of the major allergens: no milk, egg, gluten, nuts, soya, sesame or fish. Chef's tip: roast a whole cup of aval at once, grind it and keep the powder in a dry jar for up to two weeks, so each feed takes five minutes.

15 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Tortilla changaThick corn griddle cake with cheese

In the Azuero Peninsula and the farming towns of Los Santos and Herrera, changa is the breakfast of corn season: young sweet corn ground with a little sugar and butter and cooked on a griddle into a thick, sweet, soft-centred cake, eaten hot with a slab of salty queso blanco on top. It is simpler and wetter than an arepa, closer to a corn pancake. The common mistake is using a hot pan, which burns the sugary outside before the middle sets. Panamanian white cheese is usually made with animal rennet; a vegetarian paneer-style or halloumi-style cheese works well. Chef's tip: grate or blend the kernels with some texture left in; perfectly smooth batter spreads too thin.

30 minCentral American Breakfast & Brunch

by KrazyBadal 0 views

MosbolletjiesAniseed grape buns

Each harvest, wine farms around Paarl and the Boland once used foaming fresh grape must to raise these sweet, tear-apart buns, and some families still bake them every January and dry what is left into rusks for coffee dunking. This home method replaces the must with a starter of pure grape juice, raisins and a little yeast, bubbled overnight; the tiny trace of alcohol the fermentation makes bakes off in the oven. The buns are soft and feathery, gently sweet, scented with aniseed and glazed with a sticky sugar wash. Rushing is the mistake: this dough rises slowly overnight and needs to double properly at each stage, or the buns turn out dense. Chef's tip: use juice with no added preservatives, which stop the starter from fermenting.

105 min

South African Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

KabalagalaBanana and cassava pancakes

Street sellers in Kampala pile these small, dense golden rounds into plastic tubs and sell them warm by the handful, and a whole lively neighbourhood of the city shares their name. Over-ripe sweet bananas are mashed into cassava flour, scented with cardamom and a pinch of chilli, then fried until crisp outside and soft and chewy within, a little like a doughnut that forgot to rise. Children eat them after school, adults dunk them in milky spiced tea at breakfast. The usual mistake is adding too much flour: the dough should be soft and just stop sticking to your hands, or the pancakes turn heavy and dry. Chef's tip: use bananas with black-speckled skins; the riper they are, the less sugar you need and the better they brown.

35 minEast African Snacks & Starters

by KrazyBadal 0 views

SoetpatatsGlazed sweet potatoes

Sunday lunch in an Afrikaans home means a table crowded with sweet and savoury sides around the roast, and soetpatats is always one of them, sitting next to the yellow rice, the green beans and the pumpkin. Thick rounds of sweet potato are cooked slowly in a covered pan with butter, brown sugar, a cinnamon stick and a strip of orange peel until they are soft right through and lacquered in a sticky, toffee-like glaze. Every family has a view on how sweet they should be; this version is rich but not cloying, with a pinch of salt and a squeeze of orange to keep it lively. They go well with a nut roast, pap tert or a lentil bobotie for a vegetarian table. Stirring too much is the trap: the rounds break up into mash, so shake the pan instead. Chef's tip: leave the lid off for the last ten minutes and the syrup reduces into a proper glaze.

45 min

South African Sides

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pan amasadoHand-kneaded country rolls

Pan amasado means simply 'kneaded bread', and in the countryside of the Central Valley and the south it is still made at home, in big batches, often baked in a mud-brick wood oven and sold by the side of the road in a basket under a cloth. The rolls are round, slightly flattened and pricked, with a thin crust and a dense, tender crumb, best warm with butter and jam or with pebre. Traditionally they are made with lard; this vegetarian version uses butter or vegetable shortening. Under-kneading is the usual mistake: the crumb stays heavy. Chef's tip: knead for a full 15 minutes, the way the name says, until the dough is smooth and springs back when poked.

152 min

Chilean Breads & Parathas

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Lolo bunsCoconut cream baked buns

Lolo buns are the Sunday treat of Fijian kitchens, made for church lunches and family get-togethers in Lautoka and Suva: soft yeast buns packed into a tin and baked in a bath of sweetened coconut cream (lolo), which soaks into the bottoms and bakes into a sticky, caramel-edged sauce. Everyone pulls one out warm from the tin. A common mistake is pouring the coconut cream on too early; add it just before baking so the buns have risen fully. Chef's tip: use thick, full-fat coconut cream for a rich glaze.

65 minPacific Islander Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

TojoríPurple corn porridge

Before dawn in Potosí and Sucre, vendors ladle steaming tojorí from big pots into glasses for miners, students and market workers. It is a pourable porridge of ground corn cooked with cinnamon, cloves and sugar; the purple-corn version is mildly fruity and turns a deep violet. It is drunk with buñuelos or a bread roll. Don't stop stirring in the first ten minutes, which is when it sticks and scorches. Chef's tip: toast the corn flour in a dry pan for a couple of minutes before you start; it brings out a roasted, nutty taste.

40 minAndean Breakfast & Brunch

by KrazyBadal 0 views

BabakauFried dough balls

Babakau are the fluffy fried dough balls sold at Fijian market stalls and village canteens at breakfast time, eaten with a mug of milky tea or hot koko before school or work in Suva and Nadi. The dough is lightly sweet and the balls puff up as they fry, golden outside and soft as a bun inside. A common mistake is oil that's too hot, which leaves raw centres; 170 °C is right. Chef's tip: wet your fingers to drop spoonfuls of dough into the oil so it slips off cleanly.

35 minPacific Islander Breakfast & Brunch

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Koko alaisaCocoa coconut rice

Koko alaisa is a Samoan breakfast and Sunday to'ona'i (after-church lunch) favourite, rice simmered in koko Samoa, the island's own roasted cocoa paste, with coconut cream, sugar and sometimes orange leaves for perfume. It is rich, chocolatey and comforting, like a warm chocolate rice pudding, and is often eaten alongside savoury food. If you can't find koko Samoa in a Pacific shop, use unsweetened 100% cocoa chocolate. A common mistake is letting it catch on the bottom; stir often in the last 15 minutes. Chef's tip: a strip of orange peel simmered with the rice gives the true island aroma.

40 minPacific Islander Breakfast & Brunch

by KrazyBadal 0 views

GodrogodroCoconut rice flour sweet

Along the northern coast around Antsiranana, and down to Mahajanga, godrogodro is a festival and family-celebration sweet, cut into diamonds and passed round at weddings, circumcision ceremonies and the New Year. Coconut milk, rice flour and dark sugar are stirred for the best part of an hour until the mixture thickens, darkens and pulls away from the pan, then it sets into a dense, sliceable fudge-like block, fragrant with vanilla and cardamom. It is rich, so small squares with a cup of tea are plenty. Stopping too early is the mistake to avoid: undercooked godrogodro stays sticky and pale and will not hold a clean edge. Chef's tip: use a heavy, non-stick pan and a flat wooden spatula that scrapes the whole base, and keep stirring as it thickens, as the bottom scorches easily.

70 min

Malagasy Desserts

by KrazyBadal 0 views

OmajowaButter-fried mushrooms

For a few weeks after good summer rains, people sell enormous omajowa caps by the roadside between Okahandja and Otjiwarongo, each one pushed up through the side of a termite mound, and families fry them that evening in butter with nothing more than salt and pepper. They are meaty and firm with a nutty, almost chicken-like richness. Never forage for them or any wild mushroom: here we use shop-bought king oyster and portobello mushrooms, which take the same treatment very well. Pile them onto toast, serve beside pap or eat them straight from the pan. The classic error is crowding the pan, which stews the mushrooms in their own water instead of browning them. Butter is used here, so it is vegetarian but not vegan. Chef's tip: press the slices down with a spatula for the first minute so they sear golden before you season them.

20 minSouthern African Vegetarian

by KrazyBadal 0 views

ChapalelePotato dumplings

Chapalele is milcao's softer island cousin: mashed potato kneaded with wheat flour, shaped into flat discs and boiled, so the outside is smooth and slightly chewy and the inside soft. On Chiloé they come out of the curanto, sit next to a stew, or are eaten warm as a pudding with sugar syrup. The classic mistake is adding too much flour to a sticky dough, which makes them heavy and stodgy; dust your hands instead. Chef's tip: use dry, floury potatoes and mash them while hot, and the dough needs far less flour. For a sweet afternoon plate, drizzle them with dark cane-sugar syrup (chancaca) or honey if you eat it.

55 min

Chilean Sides

by KrazyBadal 0 views

MaputiPopped maize

Sold by the cupful from enamel basins at Mbare bus terminus and passed around at rural beer-hall gatherings and funerals alike, maputi is maize popped in a dry, lidded pot until the kernels split into white, crunchy clouds. It tastes plainer and more of corn than cinema popcorn, with just salt and sometimes a few roasted peanuts tossed through. Children carry pockets of it to school; adults eat it with a mug of sweet tea in the afternoon. Abroad, popping corn gives the most reliable result; dried field maize from African grocers pops less, with more half-open kernels, which some people prefer. The mistake to avoid is lifting the lid while the kernels are still popping, which lets the heat escape and leaves a pot of hard duds. Chef's tip: shake the pot constantly over the flame so no kernel sits on the hot base long enough to burn.

12 minSouthern African Snacks & Starters

by KrazyBadal 0 views

HallullaFlat round bread

If marraqueta is Santiago's crusty roll, hallulla is its soft, flat partner: a pale round about the size of a saucer, enriched with a little fat and pricked all over, with a fine, tight crumb that is perfect split and toasted with butter or filled with cheese and avocado at once. Bakeries traditionally use lard; this vegetarian version uses vegetable shortening or butter. Many home bakers let the rounds over-prove and get puffy buns; give them a short rise only. Chef's tip: fold and roll the dough several times before cutting, as bakery rollers do, to get the fine, layered crumb.

138 min

Chilean Breads & Parathas

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Dal dhokli for toddlersWheat dumplings in dal for toddlers

In Ahmedabad pols and Surat kitchens dal dhokli is the Sunday one-pot lunch: diamonds of spiced wheat dough cooked straight in tangy toor dal. This toddler version, for children from 12 months, keeps the soft pasta-like pieces small, leaves out the chilli, peanuts and cloves, and uses only a pinch of jaggery so the dal stays sweet-sour the way Gujarati families like it. It is cooked in oil, so it is dairy free and vegan. It contains wheat (gluten); there is no milk, egg, nuts or soya. Chef's tip: roll the dough thin, about 2 mm; thick dhokli stay chewy in the middle.

45 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Jicai doufu gengShepherd's purse and tofu soup

In Shanghai and Jiangsu, shepherd's purse (jicai) is picked from field edges in early spring, and this gentle, lightly thickened soup is one of the first dishes of the season at home and in Shanghainese restaurants. Finely chopped greens and small cubes of soft tofu are simmered in vegetable stock with a few shiitake, then thickened just enough to coat a spoon, giving a soothing, savoury soup with a fresh, grassy taste. Serve it as a starter or with a small bowl of rice. It is suitable as part of a balanced diet. About 110 kcal and 7 g carbohydrate per portion. The usual mistake is adding too much starch, which makes it gluey; it should flow off the spoon. Spinach works if you can't find jicai. Chef's tip: blanch and squeeze the greens before chopping, which keeps the soup bright green instead of murky.

25 min

Chinese Soups

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Matar paratha (green pea paratha)

In Delhi and Punjab, matar paratha is the winter tiffin made when the first sweet peas arrive: the peas are boiled, mashed coarse and spiced with ginger, green chilli, cumin and amchur, then sealed inside wholewheat dough and roasted on the tawa with a little ghee. Rolled up in foil with a spoon of pickle, they are still soft at lunch. The mistake is a wet filling, which bursts through the dough; cook the mashed peas in a pan until dry and cool them before stuffing. Chef's tip: make the filling slightly saltier than tastes right, because the dough around it is unsalted and mutes it.

45 min

Indian Breads & Parathas

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Aloo seddho bhaat for toddlersRice and potato mash for toddlers

In Kolkata homes, from north Kolkata's old paras to the flats of Salt Lake, aloo seddho bhaat is what you cook when someone is tired, ill or very small: a potato boiled right in the rice pot, mashed with hot rice. Grown-ups add raw mustard oil, green chilli and onion; for toddlers from 12 months it is mashed instead with a spoon of ghee, so it's soft, buttery and mild. Gobindobhog rice gives it a lovely fragrance. It contains milk (ghee); there is no gluten, egg, nuts or soya. Chef's tip: mash the potato and rice with a fork or your fingers, never a blender, or it turns gluey.

25 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Makhaniya lassiSaffron lassi with butter

Around the clock tower and old city of Jodhpur, lassi shops churn this rich drink all day in summer: chilled set curd whisked with sugar, saffron and cardamom, poured into tall glasses and crowned with a spoon of fresh white butter (makhan) and a layer of malai. You drink the cool lassi and eat the butter and cream with a spoon. It is a meal in itself. The common mistake is thinning it with too much water or ice, which loses the thick, almost spoonable texture that makes it Jodhpuri. Chef's tip: use curd set from full-fat milk the night before and whisk it by hand or with a few pulses only.

10 min

Indian Drinks

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Dousha bao (red bean buns)

All over China, from Beijing breakfast stalls to Shanghai school bags, dousha bao are the sweet buns people grab in the morning and tuck into a lunch box for later: fluffy white yeasted dough wrapped around smooth red bean paste and steamed until springy. They freeze beautifully, so families make a big batch on Sunday. The mistake is opening the steamer lid as soon as the timer goes; the sudden cold makes the buns wrinkle and collapse. Turn off the heat and wait five minutes before lifting the lid. Chef's tip: chill the bean paste and roll it into balls before wrapping; a firm filling is much easier to seal neatly.

55 min

Chinese Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pineapple gojjuSweet and sour pineapple gravy

Pineapple gojju turns up on banana leaves at Kannada weddings, housewarmings and Ugadi feasts, where its bright sweet-sour-hot taste cuts through the rice, saaru and payasa. Ripe pineapple is simmered with tamarind and jaggery, then thickened with a roasted paste of sesame, coconut, chilli and lentils until glossy. It is eaten in small spoonfuls with rice or chapati, or as a relish on the side. The usual mistake is adding the jaggery too early and boiling it hard, which makes it sticky and dull; let the pineapple soften first. It keeps for 4 days in the fridge. Chef's tip: toast the sesame seeds separately and add them last, so they stay nutty and you can hear them crackle.

40 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Moong thalMoong dal flour fudge

Moong thal is a Diwali tray sweet of Bikaner and Marwari homes, made by roasting coarsely ground moong dal in a generous amount of ghee, then setting it with sugar syrup and mawa and topping with nuts. It is richer and grainier than besan barfi, with a deep, toasty flavour. Marwari families in Kolkata and Mumbai still make it for Diwali boxes. The common mistake is under-roasting the moong, which leaves a raw, beany taste. Chef's tip: roast until the mixture turns light and frothy and the ghee releases from it; that is your sign it is cooked through.

60 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Gobi matar (cauliflower and peas)

In Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, winter means cauliflower and fresh peas, and gobi matar is what fills countless school and office dabbas between November and February. It is cooked dry, so the florets brown a little at the edges, sweetened by the peas and sharpened by plenty of ginger. The mistake is cooking the cauliflower covered with water until it is soft and smells of cabbage; steam it briefly in its own moisture, then fry it uncovered. Chef's tip: cut the florets so they have one flat side; that face sits on the pan and browns while the rest steams tender.

30 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

OgokbapFive-grain rice

Ogokbap is cooked across Korea for Jeongwol Daeboreum, the first full moon of the lunar year, when families share five-grain rice with nine kinds of dried namul and crack nuts to wish for good health. Sticky rice, millet, sorghum, black soybeans and adzuki beans cook together into a chewy, purple-tinged rice with a nutty, gently sweet flavour. It is good any time of year beside soup and banchan. The usual mistake is putting the adzuki beans in raw with the rice: they stay hard while the rice turns soft, so parboil them first. Chef's tip: keep a little of the adzuki cooking water for the rice, as it gives ogokbap its lovely rosy colour.

70 min

Korean Rice & Grains

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Urulaikizhangu roast (Tamil potato roast)

In Tamil lunch boxes, curd rice almost always comes with this: small cubes of boiled potato roasted slowly in a cast-iron pan with sambar powder, chilli and curry leaves until they are dark, crusty and chewy at the edges. It is a dry side, so it does not leak into the rice, and it tastes as good cold as hot. The mistake is stirring all the time; the potatoes need to sit undisturbed against the hot pan for a few minutes at a time to build the crust. Chef's tip: a teaspoon of rice flour scattered over in the last few minutes makes the coating even crisper.

35 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Vazhakkai podimas (raw banana podimas)

Podimas comes from Tamil Brahmin kitchens in Thanjavur and Chennai, where green plantain is boiled whole, grated into soft crumbs and tossed with a tempering of mustard, dal, ginger, green chilli and coconut, then sharpened with lemon. It is light and fluffy, and it sits happily next to sambar rice or rasam rice in a tiffin. The mistake is overboiling the plantain: it turns sticky and will not grate into crumbs. Pull it out as soon as a knife slides in with a little resistance. Chef's tip: grate it on the large holes of a box grater while still warm, then let it cool before tossing, so the shreds stay separate.

28 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Sem ki sabzi (flat beans with potato)

When flat green sem pods fill the sabzi carts in Lucknow and Jaipur in winter, they go into this dry stir-fry with potato and a crackle of ajwain, the classic partner for paratha in an office dabba. The beans stay a little firm and sweet, the potato soaks up the spices, and nothing drips into the roti. The mistake is leaving the stringy edges on the pods; they never soften. Snap the tip and pull the string down each side before chopping. Chef's tip: cook covered for the first half to steam the beans tender, then uncover and turn up the heat so the potatoes catch and brown.

32 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Rajgira no sheeroAmaranth flour pudding

On Ekadashi, Navratri and other fast days, Gujarati homes make this quick sheero from rajgira (amaranth) flour, which is allowed when grains are not. It is roasted in ghee until nutty, then cooked with milk and sugar into a soft, spoonable pudding with cardamom and a few nuts. It is ready in 20 minutes and is often offered to the Mataji before the family eats. The common mistake is adding cold milk to the roasted flour, which seizes into lumps. Chef's tip: heat the milk and sugar together first and pour it in slowly while you whisk.

20 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Kadle manoliBlack chickpea and coconut curry

Kadle manoli is a Konkani dish from Mangaluru and Udupi, cooked for festive meals, Saturday temple days and family gatherings, where it sits beside rice, dalitoy and papad. Black chickpeas and quartered ivy gourd are cooked together, then tossed in a coarse, roasted masala of coconut, byadgi chillies and coriander, a little tamarind and a coconut-oil tempering. It is dry-ish, coating each piece rather than swimming in gravy. The usual mistake is cutting the ivy gourd into rounds; slice it lengthwise into quarters so it stays crunchy-tender. Slow-cooker: cook the soaked chana and gourd with 500 ml water on low for 7 hours, then stir in the masala and heat through. Chef's tip: grind the masala coarse, with very little water, so it clings to the chickpeas and stays fragrant.

70 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Karuveppilai sadam (curry leaf rice)

Around Madurai and Tiruchirappalli this dark, peppery rice comes out when there is a big handful of curry leaves and very little else in the kitchen, and it keeps so well that it goes into lunch boxes and onto long bus journeys. The leaves are roasted until crisp with chana and urad dal, black pepper, cumin and red chilli, then ground into a fragrant podi. The common mistake is roasting wet leaves: they steam instead of crisp, and the powder clumps. Dry them well on a towel first. Chef's tip: grind a double batch of the podi and store it airtight; it keeps for two weeks and makes lunch in five minutes.

23 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Mangai sadam (raw mango rice)

When hard green mangoes pile up at the markets of Tamil Nadu in April and May, school lunch boxes fill with mangai sadam, sour and fresh like lemon rice but with a fruitier bite. Grated raw mango is cooked only briefly in a mustard, chana dal and curry leaf tempering so it softens but keeps its tang. The mistake is overcooking the mango into mush, which makes the rice sticky; two or three minutes is enough. Chef's tip: taste the mango first. A very sour one needs a pinch of sugar, and a half-ripe one needs a squeeze of lemon at the end.

22 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Verkadalai sadam (peanut rice)

Peanut rice is the filling variety rice that Tamil and Kannada parents send when the school day ends with games: roasted peanuts, dry coconut, sesame and red chillies are ground into a coarse powder and tossed through rice in a curry leaf tempering. It tastes a little like a savoury peanut brittle, and it stays good at room temperature for hours. The mistake is grinding the peanuts too long; they turn into peanut butter and the rice clumps. Pulse in short bursts and stop while it is still sandy. Chef's tip: keep a few whole roasted peanuts aside and add them at the end for crunch.

23 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Ellu sadam (sesame rice)

In Tamil homes ellu sadam is cooked on Saturdays and temple days, and it is one of the variety rices that keeps best in a school lunch box, because the dry sesame powder soaks up the oil and does not spoil the way coconut rice can. The powder is roasted from black sesame, urad dal and dried red chillies, ground coarse and tossed through plain rice with a nutty gingelly oil tempering. The usual mistake is roasting the sesame too hard: it turns bitter within seconds, so take it off as soon as it starts to pop and smell toasty. Chef's tip: pound the powder rather than blitzing it to dust, so you keep a little crunch from the dal.

20 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

NeureosCoconut and jaggery pastries

No Goan Catholic kuswar, the tray of Christmas sweets sent to neighbours, is complete without neureos, little crimped half-moons of crisp pastry stuffed with fresh coconut cooked down with jaggery, cardamom and a few raisins or cashews. Families gather in the week before Christmas to roll, fill and pinch them by the hundred, and they keep well in a tin until New Year. The common mistake is a wet filling: if the coconut mix is still moist when sealed the pastries burst in the oil, so cook it until it leaves the pan and cool it fully. Chef's tip: use a fluted pastry wheel to trim the edge after crimping, which gives the classic frilly finish and a tighter seal.

75 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Kothamalli sadam (coriander rice)

Chennai mothers turn a big bunch of coriander into this bright green rice when they want a lunch box that looks fresh and smells of the market. The leaves and stems are ground with green chilli, coconut, ginger and a little tamarind, then fried in oil until the raw grassy smell goes and the paste turns a deeper green. The mistake is adding the paste and the rice together: the paste stays raw and the rice goes dull and sour. Cook the paste first until it leaves the sides of the pan. Chef's tip: keep the coriander stems; they carry more flavour than the leaves and grind into a smoother paste.

25 min

Senegalese Snacks & Starters

by KrazyBadal 0 views

ThiafCaramelised peanuts

In Dakar, thiaf sellers sit beside big blackened pans of hot sand outside Sandaga market, near Place de l'Indépendance and on the quay for the Gorée ferry, stirring peanuts through the sand until they roast evenly. Some are sold plain and salted; the sweet ones, thiaf sucré, are tumbled in boiling sugar until they wear a crunchy, glassy shell. This home version dry-roasts the nuts in a heavy pan instead of sand, then caramelises them with a pinch of salt. It is an afternoon snack bought in a twist of paper and nibbled on the walk home. It contains peanuts, and whole nuts are a choking risk for children under five. Chef's tip: keep stirring after the sugar turns sandy; a few minutes more melts it into glossy amber patches.

20 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Puri bhajiPuffed bread with potato curry

In Mumbai, Pune and across Gujarat, puri bhaji is what goes into the steel dabba on exam days and into the bag for a long train ride: small puffed puris and a dry, sunny-yellow potato bhaji spiked with mustard seeds, green chilli and curry leaves. Because the bhaji is dry, it never soaks the puris, and both taste good at room temperature by lunchtime. The common mistake is a soft dough, which drinks oil and gives flat, greasy puris; knead it stiff, like a firm chapati dough. Chef's tip: mash only a third of the potatoes and leave the rest in rough chunks, so the bhaji clings together in the box without turning to paste.

45 min

Indian Vegetarian

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Kesar pendaSaffron milk pendas

In Ahmedabad, any good news, from exam results to a new home or a newborn, means a box of kesar penda passed around the office and the street. These are soft, creamy pendas of fresh mawa cooked briefly with sugar and plenty of saffron, so they stay pale gold and fudgy, quite unlike the browned pedas of Mathura or Dharwad. The common mistake is overcooking the mawa once the sugar goes in, which turns the pendas dry and cracked at the edges. Chef's tip: stop cooking as soon as a small piece rolls into a smooth ball between your palms; they firm up as they cool.

30 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Capsicum rice (capsicum bath)

Every Bengaluru darshini has its own capsicum bath, and at home it is a favourite for office lunch boxes because the peppers stay crunchy until noon. Green peppers are sautéed just until glossy, then tossed with rice and a freshly roasted powder of coriander seeds, chana dal, dry coconut and red chillies. The mistake is cooking the peppers until soft; they release water and the rice turns soggy, so keep them bright and crisp. Chef's tip: add the powder to the hot oil off the heat for a few seconds before the rice goes in; it blooms the spices without burning the coconut.

35 min

Italian Breads & Parathas

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pane toscanoUnsalted Tuscan bread

Pane toscano, called pane sciocco ('foolish' or 'bland' bread) in Florence and Siena, is the saltless loaf that Tuscans have eaten for centuries; legend blames a medieval salt tax. It has a thick, crackly crust and an open, chewy crumb, and it is made to be eaten with salty prosciutto, pecorino and ribollita, or soaked in panzanella and pappa al pomodoro. There is no salt in the dough: about 0.0 g salt per slice. The usual mistake is under-proving: without salt the dough rises fast, and with too little rest it tastes floury; a starter and a slow rise give it flavour. Chef's tip: bake with steam (a tray of boiling water in the oven) for the first 15 minutes, which is what gives the crust its proper Tuscan crunch.

70 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Cơm nắm muối vừngRice blocks with sesame salt

Before trains, buses and school trips, families in northern Vietnam press warm rice into firm, dense blocks and wrap them in banana leaf or paper with a twist of muối vừng, toasted sesame and peanut salt, for dipping. It is humble, filling and keeps its shape for a whole day's journey. Peanuts and sesame are both allergens. The common mistake is using cold or loose rice, which will not stick; it must be pressed hot. Chef's tip: mix a handful of sticky rice into ordinary jasmine rice before cooking, and the blocks hold together firmly without being gluey.

40 min

Vietnamese Rice & Grains

by KrazyBadal 0 views

DashmiMilk and jaggery flatbread

Dashmi is the bread Maharashtrian mothers make for pilgrimages, school trips and the first days of a long journey: wholewheat dough kneaded with warm milk instead of water and sweetened with jaggery, cooked on a tawa until soft and spotted. Milk and ghee keep it tender for two or three days without a fridge in cool weather, and children eat it plain or with pickle. The common mistake is rolling it too thin and cooking it on a fierce tawa, which makes it crisp like a khakhra; it should stay soft and pliable. Chef's tip: stack the dashmis in a cloth as they come off the tawa, so the trapped steam softens them further.

40 min

Indian Breads & Parathas

by KrazyBadal 0 views

ShibazukeRed shiso aubergine pickle

Shibazuke comes from Ohara, in the hills north of Kyoto, where summer aubergines, cucumbers and myoga ginger are pressed with salt and red shiso leaves until everything turns a vivid purple and pleasantly sour. A few slivers sit beside the rice in Kyoto bento boxes. This home version is lightly fermented for a day under a weight. The common mistake is too little weight: the vegetables must sit under their own brine or they spoil instead of souring. Chef's tip: rub the shiso with salt and squeeze out its first dark, bitter juice before it ever touches the vegetables.

30 min

Japanese Sides

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Wakame gohanWakame rice

Wakame gohan is the green-flecked rice that turns up in Japanese school lunches and convenience-store onigiri: plain rice mixed with salted, toasted wakame flakes and sesame. At home you make your own seasoning in five minutes from a pack of dried cut wakame. The common mistake is soaking the wakame first, which gives slimy rice; it should go in dry and crisp so it softens only with the rice's steam. Chef's tip: shape onigiri with wet, salted hands while the rice is hot, then cool them fast on a plate before wrapping for the lunchbox.

10 min

Japanese Rice & Grains

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Satsumaimo gohanSweet potato rice

When the first purple-skinned satsumaimo arrive in Japanese shops in October, families cook them right into the rice pot: the cubes turn soft and honeyed, and a sprinkle of black sesame and salt makes it taste like autumn. It is a favourite in children's bento boxes and needs nothing but a pickle on the side. The common mistake is skipping the soak for the sweet potato, so it bleeds starch and turns the rice grey and gummy. Chef's tip: leave the skin on; it holds each cube together and gives the rice its purple-and-gold look.

60 min

Japanese Rice & Grains

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Goan pezRice porridge with pickle and papad

Pez is the plainest food in a Goan kitchen and one of the most loved: red parboiled rice simmered in plenty of water until the grains burst and the liquid turns milky. Fishermen and farmers ate it before a day's work, mothers serve it to anyone who feels unwell, and on heavy monsoon evenings it comes with a spoon of mango or lime pickle, a roasted papad and sometimes a dry fish or vegetable on the side. The mistake is cooking it in too little water so it becomes a sticky porridge; good pez has whole soft grains floating in thin, starchy broth. Chef's tip: stir in a little salt only at the end and let everyone add buttermilk or coconut milk to their own bowl.

45 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Kyuchan cucumber pickle

Kyuchan is the sweet-salty soy pickle that Japanese mothers tuck into the corner of a bento: thin coins of cucumber that stay crunchy for days thanks to an old trick of pouring hot pickling liquid over them several times. It brightens plain rice and cuts the richness of fried karaage-style dishes. The common mistake is simmering the cucumbers in the sauce, which makes them soft and grey; they should only ever sit in hot liquid off the heat. Chef's tip: squeeze the salted cucumbers really hard in a cloth, because every drop of water you remove is crunch you keep.

45 min

Japanese Sides

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Yukari shiso saltRed shiso rice seasoning

Yukari is the bright purple, salty-sour shaker that Japanese parents sprinkle over plain rice so that a bento looks cheerful and tastes of something even when it has gone cold. Traditionally it is made from the red shiso leaves left after pickling umeboshi plums; this home version gets the same flavour by salting and souring fresh red shiso in early summer. The common mistake is drying the leaves too hot, which turns them brown and bitter. Chef's tip: keep the oven no hotter than 80 °C and leave the door ajar, and the colour stays a jewel-like magenta.

120 min

Japanese Basics

by KrazyBadal 0 views

DhebraPearl millet flatbreads

Gujarati families pack a stack of dhebra for every train journey, picnic and tiffin box, because the yogurt and oil in the dough keep these spicy millet and fenugreek flatbreads soft for two or three days. They are thicker than a thepla and earthy from the bajra, and they are eaten with pickle, chhundo or a cup of tea. The common mistake is adding too much water at once: the yogurt and fenugreek release moisture as you knead, and a slack dough sticks and tears. Chef's tip: pat them out on a damp cloth or between two sheets of plastic rather than rolling, the way Gujarati kitchens do, so the delicate millet dough does not crack.

40 min

Indian Breads & Parathas

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Neer mor (spiced buttermilk)

From April to June, when Chennai and Madurai bake at forty degrees, temples, shops and political parties set up 'thaneer pandhal' sheds by the roadside, offering free neer mor to every passer-by from great clay pots. At home it comes after a rice meal of sambar and rasam, or in the middle of the afternoon. The curd is churned and thinned with water until barely white, then seasoned with green chilli, ginger, curry leaves, coriander and a pinch of asafoetida, sometimes finished with a tempering of mustard seeds. It should be very thin, salty, tangy and herby, with a little chilli heat and a lingering savoury scent. The common mistake is using too little water: it then drinks like a heavy lassi rather than a thirst-quencher. Aim for about one part curd to four parts water. It is ready when the buttermilk is smooth, cold and pale green-flecked, and smells of curry leaf. It keeps a day in the fridge. Chef's tip: crush the ginger, chilli and curry leaves rather than chopping them; bruising releases far more flavour into the thin liquid.

12 min

Indian Drinks

by KrazyBadal 0 views

PappchiFried wheat and rice biscuits

Pappchi are little scalloped discs that Chhattisgarhi families fry in large batches for Teeja, Diwali and weddings, made from wheat flour and rice flour, fried slowly and then turned in sticky sugar syrup until they wear a thin white glaze. They snap cleanly and keep for weeks in a steel tin. A common mistake is taking the syrup too far, so it crystallises into lumps; you want a one-string syrup that dries to a matt coat as it cools. Chef's tip: press the edge of each disc with a thimble or bottle cap to make the frilled pattern, which also helps them fry crisp.

60 min

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Dudh pithaRice dumplings in milk

Dudh pitha is made in Jharkhand and Bihar for Makar Sankranti, Sohrai and winter evenings, when the new rice is milled: small rice-flour dumplings are stuffed with coconut and jaggery (some families use spiced chana dal instead) and simmered in milk until it thickens around them. It is eaten warm from a bowl with a spoon. The common mistake is adding jaggery straight to boiling milk, which can curdle it; sweeten the milk with sugar and keep the jaggery inside the dumplings. Chef's tip: shape the dumplings while the dough is warm and keep your palms greased, so the edges seal without cracking.

60 min