Missing winter, enjoy microwave cooking, members contribute recipes

Where is winter??? We are in the middle of December and no sign of the temperatures dropping! Spoke to my brother in Delhi yesterday and he was praising the good weather (as in thanda mausam!) Except for the early morning pleasantness, I did not have anything else to tell him about Mumbai?s state. All this also means that the sale of methi paak, urad paak, dink laddoos is just not happening in the mithai shops ( I was talking to one such owner yesterday).

As heat is the focus, this weekend I have been wrestling with new ideas for microwave cooking in the Indian kitchen. At least the heat of the burner can be avoided. I have got some feedback that the mw oven is mostly used for reheating food. When I was writing on first book on microwave cooking, there were a lot of apprehensions about the cooking of pulses and other rather elaborate Indian khaana. But as the recipes evolved and the book shaped up so beautifully, the fears vanished. The fact remains that mw cooking still is to pick up big time in our kitchens. It has its limitations, like it cannot fry a samosa or make a dosa. But I say, can the pressure cooker grill a luscious kabab? Or a gas stove bake bread? But a microwave can make life easier in numerous ways. You can make kothimbir wadi, tangdi kabab, chocolate cake, idlis, prawn balchao?

And do continue sending in your recipe contributions for our website. There was a technical hitch last week but it is all sorted out now! Looking forward to reading what you like to cook!

Till I write again
Sanjeev Kapoor