Sauteed Cauliflower and Green Peas
In all cauliflower dishes, the quality of the vegetable is paramount. Look for crisp, tightly packed white flowerets and bright green leaves. It is important to cut the flowerets into uniform pieces, but the success of the dish really lies in slow, gentle braising; the cauliflower cooks in its own juice and seasonings until the flowerets are butter-soft and the stems tender-crisp. Garden-fresh peas are in a class of their own,...
Green beans with Water Chestnuts
The water chestnut is a floating water plant growing in lakes and ponds on several continents. The fruits are angular, with brown skins and a white, floury nut inside –refreshingly crisp and delicious. There are several kinds. Singhara nuts, grown in the lakes of Kashmir, are eaten as snacks or blanched, sliced, dried and ground into flour. Chinese water chestnuts, or pi-tsi, are not really nuts, but tubers, deriving...
Pishima’s Stuffed Okra
This is my favorite stuffed okra recipe, and I have stuck as close as possible to the original version I learned from my well-wishing Vaishnava teacher and cooking inspiration, Pishima. Preparation time (after assembling ingredients): 30 minutes Cooking time: 20-30 minutes Ingredients • Tender okra, preferably 4-inch (10 cm) pods, washed and thoroughly dried – 1 ½ pounds (685 g) •...
Deep-Fried Stuffed Hot Green Chilies
Fresh hot green jalapenos, averaging 2 ½ inches (6.5 cm) long and 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide, are available in most areas. If their skin has begun to turn red but is still shiny and firm, they are still quite usable. Smaller chilies are inevitably the hottest, especially serranos, and they are next to impossible to seed and stuff. Use jalapenos or the conical fresnos (usually limited to California markets). Srila Prabhupada...
Deep-Fried Julienne Potatoes and Carrots
This is an easy dish for the kitchen with a good mandoline or a food processor. The peeled vegetables can be hand-cut across the julienne blade to yield perfectly uniform straws. Cuisinart has a blade that makes reasonably fine julienne vegetables in seconds. With out a julienne blade, use a standard 3-4 mm slicing disk. Pre-cut the carrots and potatoes to fit horizontally into the feeding tube. Slice, then remove the slices...
Deep-Fried Batter-Coated Mixed Nuts
Use large plump nuts-cashews, almonds and Brazils for ease in handling. The chickpea flour rice flour batter puts a crisp crust on the nuts. Preparation and cooking time: about 40 minutes Ingredients • Sifted chickpea flour (Sifted before measuring) – 3 table spoons (45 ml) • Rice flour – 1 tablespoon (15 ml) • Turmeric – ¼ teaspoon (1...