I cooked in my Indian pressure cooker and it didn’t blow up in my face!

In defense of the Indian pressure cooker

All my life I have watched my mother use her 5ltr pressure cooker to cook dal and rice. Sometimes, she cooks some eggs or potatoes on the cover of the top separator pan, successfully cooking all three at once. She uses her pressure pan to make pulaos and her 3 ltr Prestige to make delicious rassas and boil chickpeas and black-eyed peas. She used the 5ltr, without the whistle, to steam idlis and dhoklas.

My first lesson in cooking prep was washing and soaking toor dal and rice for the daily meals. The dal needed to be soaked in water after three rinses. The rice needed to be drained of water after a couple of rinses. I still remember that rule while cooking my dal and rice, though I don’t use a 5ltr cooker.

1.5ltr Hawkins

I do have three 3ltr cookers, two Prestige (one aluminum and one stainless steel), one Hawkins, a small 1.5ltr Hawkins and a Prestige pressure pan. I use one or the other at least five to six times a week. I have used them for the last 12 years and I have had occasional problems with the gasket getting loose or the pressure valve not working properly. However, I have never had any blow up in my face. I don’t know anyone, in almost 40 years of my life, who has had a pressure cooker blow up in their face. I haven’t heard of anyone whom I know or of anyone who knew anyone I know who had a pressure cooker blow up in their face.

So, I was very surprised when a cookbook author claimed on her fb page that Indian pressure cookers were unsafe and tended to blow up in people’s faces. Not sure where she got her facts from or if she knew someone who had a pressure cooker blow up in their face. But she seemed pretty certain that it was a regular occurrence and it was best to use a “modern” (read Western) pressure cooker which went through stringent regulations, like the one she used.

Now, I fully support her choice to use a “modern” pressure cooker. But I do not endorse her view stated as fact that Indian pressure cookers are unsafe and blow up in people’s faces. That is a bit of hyperbole in my opinion. India pressure cookers go through just as rigorous testing and probably more because they are such an essential part of every Indian household. Not to mention they did use to blow up in people’s faces. But that was decades ago when people were new to cookers and sometimes did not use them the correct way or got a cheap brand. I still remember that Amin Sayani TV ad, “Jo biwi se kare pyaar, woh Prestige se kaise kare inkar” (one who loves his wife will never say no to a Prestige). You know, in case the cheaper brand blew up in her face.

So, here is your assignment for the month of January. Cook something using an Indian pressure cooker. Blog about it and preferably write about your experiences with cooking with an Indian pc for the first time or the umpteenth time. You can write a funny anecdote or a story related to the Indian pressure cooker. You can even write about your preference for the brand of pressure cooker you use.

Now, for the most important part, end your blog post with the line, “I cooked the ... (above) with my Indian pressure cooker and it didn’t blow up in my face”. Your deadline is Feb 28 or till I post the roundup. Send me a picture of the pressure cooker you used, along with your name, name of the blog and a link to your post on jayawagle (at) gmail.com. Remember to include a link to this post. Now go, get your Indian pressure cooker out of the cabinet and blow those whistles.

My resolution: less social, more blogger, better organized

I can’t believe it has already been three six days since we said good bye to 2012. Usually I don’t make resolutions at the start of the year but this time round I thought I’d give it a try. So, my goal in the New Year is to reign in my sweet tooth as best as I can, write as regularly, if not every day, as I can, get the blog on track, organize my home and limit my time on the smartphone. Hopefully, blogging about all these resolutions will take care of fulfilling them as well.

The reason I decided to start organizing my house was the recent move of our dear friends to India for two years. During their last two weeks before departure, we would pop over to their house and help them pack their belongings into a humongous shipping container. During those two weeks I realized how organized my friend had been in her house and how much stuff my house was filled with compared to hers. I shuddered at the thought of how much stuff we would have to pack up, sell or give away if we ever had to move houses. 

Since then, I have been trying to organize a little corner of the house every week. I started with the kid’s baby stuff. A lot of it I gave away to my neighbor across the street who volunteers at the battered women’s shelter. The crib and sterilizer went to a friend’s pregnant friend. The strollers and baby car seat were sold at a garage sale another neighbor was having one weekend.

The next target was the kitchen. Thankfully, there wasn’t much I needed to organize or get rid of except for an 8-place setting stoneware dinner set I had bought at a garage sale long time ago. I had it for almost four years. It sat in my cabinets, taking up precious space and collecting dust. Out it went on the dining room table to be photographed and put on one of my online community garage sales.

Yes, our community has an online fb page where you can post about stuff you want to sell or get rid of or are looking for. It is awesome and better than a physical garage sale because you don’t have to spend days corralling your unwanted items, marking prices and sitting in your driveway, haggling with strangers over a few dollar worth of stuff. The online garage sale is so much simpler. You post whatever you want to sell as you come across it and people contact you if they want it. There is minimum haggling and if I don’t sell the item in a week, I donate it.

 

The chaotic medicine cabinet/ candles and pooja stuff

Anyways, after the dinner set was got over with, the medicine cabinet, which is also in the kitchen, was dealt with. There wasn’t anything to sell this time but a lot of throwing away of expired medicine and taking an inventory of our first aid kit. This is what it looked like once it got all organized.

Bottom shelf: kid's medicine bin, OTC medicine from India, ointments

Middle shelf: Candles and pooja stuff, vitamins and bandaids and pain killers in the bin

Top shelf: Kid's nebulizer and accessories (needed once a year, if that)

 

Next up was my pantry and this took the most time. I have a decent size walk in pantry which I frequent numerous times in the day, not to mention the kid and the spouse checking in for snacks and things to munch on. I thought I had it organized well and apart from the occasional cleaning it was in pretty good shape. That was before I beheld Richa’s pantry in all its organizational glory. Now I am not the sort to give in to pantry envy but this one time I did. You s
ee, all my lentils, beans and legumes were stored in the plastic containers I had scored at the dollar store. The problem was they took up too much space on the shelves, they were plastic and worst of all they were plastic. Thinking of all that BPA leeching into my food gave me the shivers. Check out some before pictures:

I did some research, checked out pintrest, my new addiction (more on that later), and decided to invest in some awesome canning jars by Ball. Not only did they look good and come in various sizes but the canning lids were perfect to keep in the freshness and keep out the crawlies that sometimes seemed to invade my plastic containers. Here are the before and after photos of my pantry in all its organized glory.   

 



It took me better part of two days to clean, sort and transfer everything to the glass canisters including two trips to Ace Hardware. Yep, that is where I got the jars and get this; apparently they are the only store that carries the 64oz jars. I got about a dozen of those to store the 4lb packs of lentils and beans. The smaller, 2lb packets of flours, lentils and bulk spices went into the 32oz jars. Everything else including snacks, dry fruits and not so often used spices went into the pint and a half jars.

Oh, and if you are wondering how much this pantry makeover set me back, it was well under $100. Canning jars are surprisingly economical. If you would like some details, I will be happy to share with you. It has been a week since the makeover and so far the chaos seems contained. Will keep you updated if things get out of hand or if I make any more changes.

 

The sweet tooth update: Apart from munching on some candied ginger and three teaspoons of sugar in two cups of tea every day, I have managed to stay away from sugar and sugary treats. No chocolate, cookies or any other kind of sweet has been eaten. Yay! Another 51 weeks to go.

 

 

 

Writing regularly update: Well, I have been writing and rewriting this post everyday for the last five days, so I think this one should count for the week. Turns out it is very difficult to pen your thoughts if you take two month long breaks in between. So, here is to writing regularly even if I end up posting once a week.

Limit my smartphone usage update: I would like to say it has reduced to about two hours a day but I can’t be sure. The only way to limit is to keep it out of reach so I have been trying to leave it in the bedroom to charge or leave it in my closet, or other rooms in the house I don’t use all the time. The thing with smartphones is if it is in front of you, you automatically pick it up and check facebook and pintrest and online garage sales. If it is out of sight, tucked away in the laundry room, then you can’t pick it up and log on and before you know it you have been on it for an hour! So far, out of sight has helped cut down smartphone addiction to certain degree.  

Have you made any resolutions this year and how do you intend to keep them? I have joined the 52-weeks of 2013 project on fb to keep me on track. If you would like to join, just click on join group and a moderator will accept you pronto. While you are at it, check out Sra’s hilarious post on her resolutions which includes one, the exact opposite of mine, to spend more time on social media.

Wish me luck blogging in 2013.

MLLA-51 roundup, two accidents and a pumpkin story

In the past, I have promised to post event roundup on time and in most cases I have managed to do it too. So forgive me if I am a bit tardy in posting the round-up for MLLA-51. It has been a stressful month to say the least. First the kid was down with strep throat and missed four days of school. The next week I was down after catching his germs (isn’t that what moms are for?)

The week after that, the husband was in a T-bone accident. For the uninitiated, a T-bone accident is one where one car hits the other at a right angle, just like a T. So, if you are going straight on a road, minding your own business, following the speed limit and keeping a safe distance between the cars in front of you, you can still get hit from the side. It is especially brutal because you are caught off guard. If you have never been in a T-bone accident, I hope you never have to find out what it is. Fortunately, he was not hurt in any way. The impact was behind the passenger side door, right above the rear wheel.

Those white curtain are the air bags that deployed on the passenger side



As if one accident was not enough to last a lifetime, exactly eight days later, he got into another one. Yeah! What are the chances of getting hit from behind while at a red light, a week after getting T-boned? I am guessing very slim. But that is what happened to him.

At the end of it it was a seven car pile-up in two lanes all because the lady who caused it was in a hurry to be somewhere. She hit a car which hit the car in front of her which hit the truck behind the rental car he was driving. Meanwhile, the lady who hit the first car tried to veer from the accident and ended up hitting another car in the other lane which bumped into the car in front of it.  If it sounds confusing, just imagine four cars bumping into each other in one lane and two cars crashing into each other in the next lane because of a lady driving to somewhere in a hurry.

So, I am hoping you will forgive me for posting the roundup so late. There weren’t a lot of entrees this time and Susan attributed it to the long run of the event. She is thinking of retiring the event but I hope she doesn’t. I like legumes and it is good way to learn about all the diverse varieties and methods of cooking them.

For some reason, I am not able to upload the photos you sent me. I will try again in the evening adn see if they will upload. Meanwhile, let us get on with the roundup:

The first one, as always, is the prolific blogger PJ with her sprouted moong and tomato gravy.

In Toronto, Canada, Janet made a No-Bake Peanut Butter Mousse with a Chocolate Magic Shell for an outdoor picnic with her boyfriend.

Lubna made efficient use of a fresh batch of kunduri to make dal and a stir fry. Check out her favorite way of eating this delicious vegetable.

Another entry from Toronto, Canada comes from whom else but Toriew Toronto? She made use of green banana peels and made a yummy chutney.

Anshu made some finger-licking papri chaat from scratch for a chaat party organized at her home.

In Italy, Cindy made some delectable eggplant rolls with a hearty humus like stuffing made with cannellini beans.

Denise loves to cook with lentils and legumes. It is evident in the three entrees she sent this month:  

Microwaved Crunchy Moong Dal

Low fat black beanbrownies

Low fatvegetable refried beans

All the way from Lagos, Nigeria, Lata posted about her childhood memory of roasted,salted peanuts.

Lail revived a forgotten past with these red lentils cooked with green mangoes. How can anything this colorful not taste good?

Heather at GirlieChef has been cooking Madhur Jaffery’s recipes for a while and this time she made Khatte Chole from the grand dame of Indian cooking’s repertoire.

Inspired by a recipe of her friend’s mom, Bala cooked a stew of butter beans and eggs, an unusual combination packed with protein.

A cook at heart, Manasi made a savory version of puran polis by stuffing parathas withspicy lentils.

Susan, the hostess and creater of MLLA sent in these delicious pancakes made with chickpea flour and fenugreek leaves. That is a pancake worthy of breakfast, lunch or dinner.

And here is my contribution to this affair, a pumpkin sabzi made with a generous sprinkling of peanuts and sesame seeds.
 

I think I have covered everyone who sent in their entrees. If I missed you by some chance, please do let me know and I will add you accordingly.

Now for the winner of the Hurst Bean Box and the Everything Juicing Book. It is Manasi of A Cook at Heart. Congratulations lady. Susan will contact you shortly.

Here is the second part of Go Pumpkin Go. For the first part, check out the pumpkinsabzi post.

Sher Khan was startled. Usually, the humans either pleaded with him or were so scared of him they started running for their lives. But this old woman was different. He decided to be polite and replied back, “Good morning to you too old woman. I am hungry. Are you ready to be my breakfast today?”

Go pumpkin go

I know I promised in my last post I will be back with some stories from India (check the bottom of the post for one of them). There is another one I have been working on which looks very promising. It is about a queen and an architect and secret passageways. But the story will have to wait while I attend my hosting duties for Susan’s MLLA-51.

The last date for sending in the entrees was three days ago and as the host I should have posted at least one if not a couple of legume recipes. As things go, I posted none. I also missed the deadline for Anita’s Mad Tea Party. Actually, I almost made it to her tea party but the kid fell sick. A doctor’s visit and some tests later we found out he had strep throat. He had to stay home for the better part of the week and though it was nice not to wake up at 6.30 AM to take him to school, I prefer him in school on weekdays. Unlike his mother, he enjoys the routine and predictability of the weekdays when he is in school. Nothing makes him happier than knowing what is in store for him for the day.

I try to keep a similar routine at home for him but things tend to get a bit loosey-goosey once in a while. He doesn’t seem to mind and I feel it is good for him not to follow a strict regimen all the time. He is just in first grade after all.

First grade has been a big transition for him though after the fun and easy kindergarten class. Last year, he got a one page weekly homework. This time around, there are weekly reading logs, math exercises and spelling tests to keep him occupied for the week. Did I mention, he also has after school activities four days a week? I, as always, am on chauffer duty after three in the afternoon.

Between picking him up from school, driving him to his play dates and assorted activities, I make dinner, usually a quick vegetable stir fry. Yes, we are not big on elaborate meals. A sabzi, some roti and a salad suffice us on weekdays.

This quick pumpkin sabzi is a staple during fall. In India, this preparation is usually reserved for fasting days and the sabzi is eaten without any bread or rice. We prefer it with rotis or a bajra bhakri and another sabzi or some cooked dal on the side. Sometimes, a koshimbeer of tomato and onions substitutes for a salad.

Homecoming and MLLA - 51

The last time I hosted Susan’s very popular monthly event MLLA, World Cup cricket was on and I was blogging while watching the finals. India won that the world cup that day and my seat on the sofa henceforth has been reserved for all cricket finals as a good luck charm (!?). This time around, no such momentous event is on except the kid has started first grade. It is another reminder of how fast time is flying and the exponential speed with which he is growing.

This year has been an especially important year for him. Not only did he graduate KG but he got to experience India at its best for two whole months. He played and bonded with his cousins, marvelled at finding out the numerous uncles and aunts and distant relatives he has and enjoyed getting pampered by two sets of grandparents. He loved the overnight train journeys to different cities and riding by rickshaws and local buses. When on the road, he loved the freedom of not having to strap himself in a car seat and vicariously drank in the colorful street scenes from the inside of the car window. He couldn’t stop pointing out the dogs, cows, camels and bulls he could spot wherever we would go.

Not all was fun and games for him though. He did not get used to the wet bathrooms he had to use a bunch of times in the day or the humid heat of Ahmedabad or the crowds when we went exploring the market or the movies. He did pick up a smattering of Hindi though and we are trying our best to make sure he retains at least some of the language.

It has been almost a month since we came back from the two month vacation. I won’t use that excuse to justify my absence from this space. Though I must admit it is good to be back in my own kitchen, sleeping in my own bed and getting back to my normal routine. One of my goals for the rest of the year is to blog at least a couple of times a month if not more and Susan’s event could not have come at a better time, giving me the perfect reason to start penning “mundane observations” and collecting some legume recipes on the way.

So here I am announcing MLLA - 51.  If you have been blogging for a while you know what the rules are to send in your entrees. In case you don’t, here they are written down for you followed by the prizes you can win in the random drawing.

* Recipes of all courses and cultures are welcome and since this blog is not restricted to vegetarian or vegan cooking, non-vegetarian entrees are welcome as well. 

* Multiple recipes are permitted but limited to 10 per participant (although only one submission will be counted towards the random drawing/s).  I mean come on, the event is held every month. I am sure you can wait another month to post that “must-blog-legume” recipe.

* Recipes submitted to other events are also permitted, but other events might have different rules so please make sure you don’t get disqualified in your enthusiasm to send out entrees.

* Recipes from archives can be accepted ONLY if updated and reposted as current.

* Recipes from those who do not blog are accepted and make the participants eligible to win a prize.

* I do need to know the location of participants in order to know who qualifies to win both or one of the prizes (See # 3 below). (Hurst cannot ship outside the U.S.)  If you don’t want me to publish your location, I won’t. But please do let me know where you are located in order for me to slot you in the random drawing.

* Use of logo is optional but recommended.

* If you do send in photos, which I know most of you will, please try to resize it to the smallest dimension you can. It is less work for me which translates to a quicker roundup.

* Send in your entries by October 5^th to jayawagle@gmail.com with MLLA - 51 in the subject line.

* I will try to post the round-up during the first week October give or take a few days.

* Please make sure to link your entry to this post and to Susan’s host line-up page. I will personally make sure each entry has been linked properly so make sure you do not forget this important rule.  

* Now, for those of you who are still in doubt about what constitutes a legume here is a quick rundown.

Legume:  Legumes include fresh or dried beans, lentils and pulses. I will also accept entries which use the edible pods that contain these seeds as well as derivative products like tofu, soyflour or besan. For the blogger who is not aware tamarind, fenugreek, carob, peanuts, etc. are among some of the other edible plants in the legume family which ARE included in the event. 

* I would like to emphasize that a spoonful or soupcon of a legume does not usually qualify. Depending on the kind of legume you use, I can make an exception but generally try to keep legumes as the main ingredient of the dish and not an auxiliary component. 

 

Now for the prizes for writing, photographing and linking those delicious legume recipes:

1.       TheEverything Juicing Book. This prize is offered by Susan without influence at her expense, and she will also absorb worldwide shipping charges.  F.T.C. Notice: Susan does not receive any compensation from Amazon.

2.       Hurst Bean Box - A case of six bags of the winner's choice of Hurst Bean products, suitable for every diet, sponsored by Hurst Bean. (Due to shipping restrictions, this prize can only be awarded if the winner is a U.S. resident.) F.T.C. Notice: In May 2010, Susan, at her request, received two Hurst Bean complimentary products which are not available for purchase in her local markets. Susan does not generally accept free products from Hurst Bean nor is she financially compensated by them.

3.       Drawing Structure - If the winner is a U.S. resident, she/he will be the recipient of both Prizes 1 and 2 above.  In the event that an international winner is drawn, a second drawing will be conducted from the U.S. pool of entrants to ensure that the Hurst Prize is awarded every month.  In these instances, the international winner will receive the book, and the U.S. winner will receive the Hurst Prize.

So get blogging and send in those entrees and stay tuned for some stories from India.

What I really want for Mother's day

I am the last one in my house to get up in the morning and I like it that way. I wake up to the iPhone alarm trilling, which has been set on snooze twice already, and the sounds of TV in the living room.  Yes, my son is already up and is snuggled in a blanket watching Arthur and his friends dealing with another day in school.  The spouse is straining adrak wali chai and all is well with the world. 

If you are thinking this is what I want for mother’s day it is not because this is how my day starts almost every morning.  Honest! It is perfect and I feel like it is mother’s day every morning.

Yesterday morning was no different. The child gave me a beautiful book he made in school, with the help of his wonderful teacher, Ms. H, in which he wrote that his mother works on a computer,  weighs 30lbs and is a siantist (scientist).

Three years younger too!

The spouse, who has turned vegetarian since my last post, bought me my favorite kababs and biryani on the way back from the temple. Evening was a simple but delicious vegetable sandwich made with crusty bread and layered and stuffed with kale butter, guacamole, cucumbers, onions and tomatoes. I took a long shower and nobody raised an eyebrow or interrupted to ask me where the pepper mill was.  It was a blissful, relaxing day followed by another outstanding episode of Sherlock on PBS Masterpiece.

You may ask then, what more could I want for mother’s day.  And I will tell you what more I want on mother’s day or any other day of the year. The only reason I write this is because I read some posts on mother’s day which were about how grateful and thankful the moms were for their kids and husband horsing around, debating and talking loudly in the kitchen, and how that is enough for them.  Which is all fine and dandy but no mother is happy all the time with what goes on with her kids and her house.  So, just to set the record straight, I will not sugar coat what I want for mother’s day or any other day of the year. My list is not too long and I don’t think what I want is too much.  Raise your hand if you agree.

1.      For once, it would be nice if my kid cleaned up his toys and put them away before going to bed so I don’t have to stumble on them in the dark.  It would be even nicer if I didn’t have to remind him to clean up his toys for the hundredth time before he eventually “cleaned” the mess by shoving it all under the table or stuffing the whole lot in a big box and calling it “chore done”. (He did help me vacuum the carpet yesterday.)

2.      It would be nice not to have to pick up discarded T-shirts, shorts and undershirts from the living room couch, side tables and from the bottom of the bed. I don’t care if the bed is not made up perfectly, with hospital corners and such, but please can we all just pick up our discarded clothes and put them in the laundry basket.

3.      I would NOT like to be surprised on mother’s day or any other day, with flowers because the frugal desi in me balks at the exorbitant rate of flowers and how quickly they wilt and find their way to the compost bin or the trash can.  My kind of surprise would be to wake up to find a clean home, or to come home after spending two months in India to find the yard has been landscaped or the bedroom has been painted. In the interest of full disclosure, I am going to India soon and will be gone for two months.

4.      I am a sucker for meaningful gestures and every time he brings back a piece of cake, an interesting sandwich or salad from his cafeteria because he thinks I might like it, I am a happy woman. So, for mother’s day or any other day of the year, I would like for these simple gestures to continue.

5.      The last thing I want for mother’s day or any other day of the year is to not find empty milk cartons, empty berry containers and empty cereal boxes in the fridge and pantry respectively.

 UPDATE: After the kid went to bed yesterday, I cleaned up the mess of blocks, board game chips and a gazillion cars and trucks and put them away in their proper place.  I know it will all come out tomorrow and he will probably be too tired or too sleepy to clean it up once again.  I will grimace, muster up as much patience as I can and clean the mess once more.  Hopefully, when he is older and able to read this, he will make sure he cleans up his room, at least for mother’s day if not for every other day of the year. And please don’t tell me I will miss the days when the kids leave the toys strewn around, because I won’t.

Also, before you wonder, yes, I am grateful and thankful for the wonderful boy and the amazing man who enrich my life every day by acts of thoughtfulness and kindness.  But I would still want them to do one or all of the above, if not every day of the year, then at least on mother's day.

How was your mother’s day like and what would you really want on mother's day?

Of volcanos and vermicelli

It has been three weeks since my school started and I have managed to ease the class into my weekly schedule or rather into my weekend schedule.  It is only one Saturday class this semester, so the workload is much less and I have more time to blog (hence the three posts last month).
 
A friend asked me recently how I liked studying in my late 30s.  She looked surprised and a bit disappointed when I told her I actually enjoyed going to college.  Truth be told, I enjoy it more now than I did when I was younger.  I understand concepts much better, I like the open interaction with my teachers, I like that I am more informed and get to voice my opinions without fear of incurring disfavor of the teacher.  

The fact that I get to spend half a Saturday learning about plate tectonics, volcanos, rocks, minerals and fossils may sound boring to some.  But I was lucky enough to have a professor who knows all there is to know about the earth and all its layers (and still manage not to know how to text, not that that is important) and also manage to teach in a way that makes it enjoyable.

Of course, just because I enjoy sitting in class amidst igneous and metamorphic rocks, studying relative dating methods doesn’t mean I enjoy the food they dish out in the campus cafeteria.  So, I carry food with me, lots of it, to sustain me through Steno’s Laws and studying folds and faults of the Earth.  I usually eat an apple or a pear with some almonds for breakfast while jotting down lecture notes. 

During the mid-morning break, with the fruit digested and stomach rumbling, I reach for my lunch which usually consists of a couple of slices of crusty bread sandwiched with almond butter and pepper jack cheese, some potato chips and another piece of fruit.  On rare occasions, when I am better prepared, I cook quinoa or vermicelli (semolina pasta) with lots of vegetables the day before and it sustains me better than the bread and cheese sandwich.  Sometimes, I also add some peanuts to the mix, just because I like it, but it is totally upto you. 

There are no hard or fast rules for making this.  You can add just onions or add broccoli or potatoes if it suits your fancy.  It cooks in one pot and makes for a great lunch on weekdays when I don’t have any left overs from the night before.

Here’s how I make it:

Take about 2 cups of chopped veggies. I used zucchini, carrots, broccoli and onions.
Chop them into thin strands.
Set aside half a handful of frozen peas and corn, unless you have the luxury of fresh ones.

Toast 1/4 cup of semeiyan lightly and keep aside.

In a wide pan heat 1 tsp of oil.  Add a teaspoon of cumin seeds.  Wait for them to sizzle before adding the chopped vegetables.  Cook for about five minutes on medium heat adding a teaspoon of red chili powder and salt in between.

If you want to add peanuts, add them with the cumin and cook for a couple of minutes before adding the vegetables.  

Chop about 1/4 cups of tomato and add it to the veggies.  Cook till soft and pulpy before adding the vermicelli.

Gently mix with the cooking vegetables and roast for a few minutes.  Add 1/2 cup of water, adjust the salt (the water should be slightly salty), add a pinch of sugar and cook till the vermicelli gets plump and water is all used up.

Turn off the heat, garnish with chopped coriander if you wish.  I usually omit this step if pressed for time or too hungry to dig in. 

Enjoy hot off the stove or cold in your lunch box the next day.

What is your favorite lunch box preference?