My first restraunt review-Tandoor

I have been going to this place called "Tandoor" ever since i was a little kid .Tandoor as the name suggests is bangalore's answer to authentic punjabi tandoori cuisine. Being a punjabi who ha slived her life between bangalore and delhi as a child and a major part of the teenage years in bangalore, i can quite comfortably say that yes tandoor is a must visit if you love tandoori and mughlai food.unfortunately, my camera is outta charge so i will upload the pics later. The warm lighting, the see thru kitchen,the lovely inlay inspired enamels on the roof, the coper glasses all remind one of a bygone era of havelis in punjab. even the ghazal sufi music is quite pleasant to the ears. I've grown up eating non -vegetarian food altough since ive turned 20 ive eaten only seafood and vegetarian so i can quite comfortably say that the kababs and tikkas here are amongst the very best you can get in bangalore. The best being the royal afghan at the windsor manor.Their Fish Tikka , kadhain prawns, paneer lababdar is exceptinally good. The fish is quite mildly spiced and tender when compared to fish tikka ive eaten elsewhere in bangalore. I have a strong feeling that the same lababdar gravy is used for chicken and fried cubes of cottage chesse is dunked into this upon order. The kadhai prawns are also good. The Garlic Butter Naan of course has been my favourite ever since i was a kid a sper my parents i could ignore the rest of teh food and eat two garlic naans with the vinegerette onions alone. Hmm weird i suppose but when you are a four year old who has a maida high i suppose your parents can't do much?Their Murgh Badami and Malai Tikka and Peshawari kabab have been other cnstant favourites apart from the Dal Makhni and Pudina Parantha.For the desserts they have the typical kulfi,kheer, gajar ka halwa(where i feel my mum's turns out much better). The malai kulfi is the best tough. Beverages include a yummy fruit punch which, lassi, and a whole of of nouveau inspired coolersalong with alcoholic drinks and cocktails. A meal for two at tandoor would cost approx rs 1,500 with starters, 3 dishes of maincourse one being prawns and another fish,2 naans and 2 parantha's a fruit punch and 3 desserts thrown in (i cant live with out eating less than two kulfi's here).Believe me its worth every penny tough and i just cant help butgo there really often.Beware the place is uite popular amongst the expats and the northindian community in bangalore and is always packed but now that they have two places-one in oasis and the original on M.g road and a newer branch at the oasis mall in koramangala. Reservations are a must.
But its worth every

The 12 Laws Of Karma

An amazing video to understand karma. A beautiful must watch if yoou want 2 gain a deeper insight in2 what "Karma " is all about

Happy New Year

2009 just wooshed by and the last 3 months of 2009 were just too busy  for me..
Here is wishing Everyone a very rocking 2010 and a wonderful year ahead.. i just got back from delhi myself..
here is what november and december of the last year was for me: cousins wedding in phuket in november  so was holidaying in thailand for 15 days came back 2 bangalore for 3 weeks then off it was to delhi and i just got back 2 days ago so will blog about my adventures in delhi later..
Happy, Prosperous and Peaceful 2010

Just For everyone

okie off late i have not much to blog about . so here is a post  to thank everyone who has palyed a major part in my life.....
all at random tough
Mum : just the fact of ur existence i know that unconditional love and support exists for me in this world even tough it takes me a coupla days to clean my room and the such.
Dad:i love the advice you give on any and every issue . and the way u still let me mess up ur hair once u get back from work
Pranav- my baby bro. the fact that u make me realise that like isnt as perfect and idealistic as projected outside.
Dinesh Bhaiya- i really aspire to be an ocean of calmness that you are. and the the way you inspire me to carry on when a tsunami has struck me a stough nothing great has happened.
Bawa- there is no logical genetical explanation for the phenomenon i call Bau . the practical wisdom,witty humour and of course  indias finest vegan chef.
Master- thank you for always being there and being a guiding force in my life.
Ranjit anna- one of the most awesome people ever. can ask any question from music to astrology he will always have some answers.
Badeppa(paternal grandpa)-i remeber going for long endless trips to nirulas in delhi to eat at the salad bar and eat numerious scoops of hot chocolate fudge.thank you for tolerating my madness
Maternal Grandparents- the number of times i have lost my temper over stupid issues from less salt in tamatr ki kadhi to not having my clothes ironed properly-thank you for the madness again
Abhishek, Madhuri, Spandan, Sampath , Amrita, Anju, Bhairavi, Arvind,Gaurav, Vishal, Mrigank, Ritika, Shalini,MS. Anjana Mani- the fact that all of you are always just there 24/7 whenever we need you
Sheeena and Sunil- 23 years of my life and you've known me for all 23 . thank you for always being my friends and seeing me thru thick and thin all the time .
Chris,Korin, Meggan Brummer, Gayatri and atul, preet,clare,kavitha-thank you for making me feel like one of'em in aussie .
Varnit,leisha,arun,vandana,rohan,sehar, nilufer,priyanka ,neha- for seeing me thru those maddening teenage years - we were going thru the same nonsense together.

Tabouleh

Here is a basic recipe:2 bunches of fresh parsley (1 1/2 cup chopped, with stems discarded)2 tablespoons of fresh mint, chopped,1 medium onion, finely chopped,6 medium tomatoes, diced1 tablespoon salt1/2 teaspoon black pepper1/2 cup bulghur or daliya  , medium grade6 tablespoons lemon juice6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil.its an easy to make middle eastern salad or a med salad but quik to make and those are the ingredients required.
first soak the dliya in luke warm water for approx 10 mins then drain out , soak in fridge cold watre for another 5-7 mins ,drain put the daliya in a muslin cloth and squeeze out the water. next coarsely chop the mint and parsely,chop the tomatoes and the onions.
now in a plate separate the grains of daliya and  put in 2  a  serving bowl, add parsely, onions, mint tomatoes, sprinkle the olive oil(i use cold pressed extra virgin or it tastes good even with canola oil),lime juice, salt and pepper  and toss well.
Refrigerate for about 2 hours before serving . Tasted quite good. I made it on a sunny afternoon when i wasnt in the mood 2 cook much.to make the serving bowl look nice one can use lettuce leaves to line the bowl and then add the salad in.Tastes good with pitta bread(ill putup that recipe soon just ahve 2 get pics) or whole wheat bread which is slightly toasted and buttered.am sorry i  havent been able 2 upload the pics will do it once i can access my own system which has crashed.

The Festival of Lights- Diwali

It is the festive season in India and as per the Hindu Calender, Diwali or the vedic new year is just around the corner- to be celebrated on the 17th of october. Diwali has many stories and signifies different aspects in different parts of india.
As per Hindu calendar, the five day festival of Diwali is centered on the new moon day that ends the month of Ashwin and begins the month of Kartika, beginning on the 13th day of the dark half of Ashwin (Ashwin 28th) and ending on the 2nd day of the bright half of Kartika (Kartika 2nd). The main day of celebration varies regionally- in south diwali is celebrated one day earlier -this is called chotti diwali in the punjab and the rest of north india. Basically, on this day , the homecoming of Ram from exile is celebrated with great pomp and crcakers are burnt. On this day, Lakshmi and Ganesha poojan is done - to bring wealth and prosperity in to the house.
Diwali isnt only celebrated by the Hindus in Inidia but today has become a global phenomenon thanks to globalisation.
In Jainism, Diwalli marks the attainment of nirvana by Mahavira on 15 October, 527 BC.
Deepavali has been significant in Sikhism since the illumination of the town of Amritsar commemorating the return of Guru Har Gobind Ji (1595-1644), the sixth Guru of Sikhism, who was imprisoned along with 52 other Hindu kings at Fort Gwalior by Emperor Jahangir. After freeing the other prisoners, he went to the Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple) in the holy city of Amritsar, where he was welcomed happily by the people who lit candles and divas to greet the Guru. Because of this, Sikhs often refer to Diwali also as Bandi Chhorh Divas - "the day of release of detainees.
The festival is also celebrated by Buddhists in Nepal, a majority-Hindu country, particularly the Newar Buddhists.
In India and Nepal,Diwali is now considered to be a national festival, and the aesthetic aspect of the festival is enjoyed by most Indians and Nepalese regardless of faith. Kerala is the only state in India where Deepavali is not a big celeberation.
Kidha is celebrated for a differing number of days by different communities. Though the core days are common and fall on exactly the same set of days across Nepal and India, they fall in different Gregorian months depending on the version of the Hindu calendar being used in the region. The Amanta ("ending on the new-moon") version of the Hindu Calendar has been adopted as the Indian national calendar. According to this calendar, which is prevalent in southern India and Maharashtra, the 6-day celebration is spread over the last four days of the month of Ashwina and the first two days of the new month of Kartika. According to the Purnimaanta ("ending on the full-moon") version prevalent in northern India, it falls in the middle of the month of Ashwayuja/Ashvin. In the Gregorian calendar, it falls generally in the months of October or November. In Nepal, it is celebrated according to Nepalese calendar. The festival marks the last three days and the first two days of Nepalese era.
On the day of Deepavali / Deepavali, many wear new clothes and share sweets and snacks. Some North Indian business communities start their financial year on Deepavali and new account books are opened on this day.

A refreshingly refreshing Drink

okie so its the ingredients that make this drink an absolute delight- a version of the desi adrak-pudina shikanjvi but with a modern twist to it.
i will put up th epics in a few days as im having a problem with my net conection here.
so here goes:
for the ingredients:
a few leaves of fresh pudina (mint) ( i used approx 5-7 as i like it a  bit mild)
freshly grated ginger - about 1/2 to 1 tsp (depending on how strong you want the ginger flavour)
sugar or jaggery-about 2 tsps of sugar, i used fructose a healthy low cal sugar alternative ..
juice of  1/2 a lemon
a pinch of black salt( optional)
okie so now in a stone/steel mortar and pestle grindle the mint leaves into a paste- this brings out the amazing mint oil(incase you dont want to continue making the drink after this, the mint oil is an excellent remedy for joint pains when heated with olive oil or an excellent remedy for acidity-mix the mint oil and a little bit of the paste in watre and boil until warm and drink it up)
then add the freshly grated ot finely chopped ginger(for this recipe finely chopped is better)to the mint and grind some more,
then add the sugar and grind again for about 1 min approx.
Add this to a serving glass,then add the lemon juice - i love lemon juice so i used half a lemon but one can use less if preffered-the lemon basically balances out the flavours and acids when soda is used- yes the twist in the drink is soda- so after this adda pinch of black salt if desired and then add chilled soda and voila - a modern twist of the traditional desi pudina - adrak shikanjvi is ready.
the recipe takes about 5 mins approx and it actually isnt a stedious as i make it sound here but then ive even engligtened on the effects of pudina ka taila and what the use of lemon in the drink is etc, etc.
This drink is exceptional when served mid afternoon on a hot  summers day or even after a hearty meal- be it lunch or dinner- it has ingredients which aid digestion.Hope you all like this and od leave your comments.