Culinary Narcissism

Image courtesy : http://ericscalessketchbook.blogspot.com/2010/12/turtle-soup.html

The whistle goes off for the 4th time and I patiently take note, waiting for the count to go all the way to 6. Cholle are to be prepared tonight, a culinary delight you say, well just another night's dinner!!! In the 22 months I have spent in the US, I think my culinary skills have come a long way. Gone are the days when I used to brag about 'boiled eggs' being my speciality. Right from taking lessons about how exactly onions are to be cut so as to save effort including the tricks such that you dont end up with watering eyes, I think I have come to love cooking - I mean the way I do it. I am after all a narcissist.  

There is a certain kind of simplicity to it all. The one basic principle being - leave the shit on the gas  long enough for it to cook. Well experts would say that there is little more to cooking than that, but for now I that is my one guiding principle. 

It is an act of creation, out of sheer approximation, where the law of diminishing averages does not apply. I graduated from the boiled eggs to the batata bhaji, moving on to cholle, chavli and finally relishing the occasional sadha varan bhat. Have recently indulged in sabudana khichadi, which sans the ground peanuts is not that palatable.

Next up is 3 weeks of downtime, as I visit India and give my culinary pursuits a break. I am sure however much I brag, my mom isn't going to give me control of her kitchen, lest I desecrate the holy place. I do think I will get them around to taste atleast one meal made by yours truly!!! 

Post that I might just get on with tweaking recipes like my good friend trumspringa does. Did anybody mention how I wish I could get around making my own chapatis, maybe the trip back home would help me get that sorted out one way or the other!!! ;)