Freshers - for how long ?

What I thought, would be an answer, turned into a bewilderment . Yes, the second cooking session with the freshers was very hard to comprehend. Contemplating for more than twelve hours, I ended up without any answer.

Is that the, freshers new environment? the new face? or their first step in foraging? I didn't knew what made them so awkward in the second cooking session. If only ,I had know the real reason, a perfect planning would have been carried out before the second cooking session. But, as I mentioned earlier the First cooking session was overwhelming. Sometimes you won't know the structure and shape of deception.

The second menu was quite simple, with requires a little fundamentals, not necessary to be a catering science student. I see the money spent by students on mobile phone top ups and Frankenstein gadgets,I do not understand the hesitation they show on spending ten rupee for a duster cloth. After all its their utensils which they clean before and after cooking.

I ask for two dusters and what the fresher does is, tear one duster into two, Is he the clever or am I the fool. The attitude of the fellows when they arrive ten minutes late for the cooking session without proper kitchen kit, untrimmed hair, and incomplete recipes in their journals is deplorable.

The menu for the day was Stuffed parathas with curd, Chenna Pulao, Dum Aloo, Mutton fry and Gulab Jamun. Out of twenty students hardly four to five knew what the menu was. I am not complaining or Squabbling here, I talk the basic impression the freshers create " A kind of first impression". they simple forget how significant the impression is.

back to the culinary part, after forty five minutes of silence , bloomed an excuse from the first student, which continued with multiple excuse and a bunch of promises for perfection in the next cooking session. With agony in my heart . Me briefing all the recipes and after twenty minutes ,the cooking session started.

With an array of expectation in my mind, I look forward for the next fist day order, which is when the next cooking session for the freshers will be.I end up now with my post ,wondering how long should I call them FRESHERS.

The King and the Queen"

so many days I have crossed Burliyar, a place between Mettupalyam and Coonoor,on no occasion I witnessed, what I saw last week."The Array of Fruits" These fruits are green spiny outside, like a miniature jack fruit.and few with spiny plums and a black hard tomato. I remembered that days afternoon class on Thai cuisine, where Tropical fruits were discussed. Only to witness it in my own place, in between the hills. We people from Nilgiris often stop at Burliyar for a tea break, when we take that route. The same thing happened last week, in my case I stopped for a cup of Coffee.After munching two mirchi pakoras and one aloo vada , my hungry palate turned toward the fruit on the racks.


The first one is Rambutan , small red fruit resembling plums,exept for the red spines outside, The name rambutan is from the Malay word rambutan, which literally means hairy caused by the 'hair' that covers this fruit, and is in general use in Malay, Indonesian and Filipino cuisine, which make it the origin.The outer skin is peeled exposing the milky, fleshy fruit inside which is then eaten. It is sweet, sour and slightly grape like and gummy to the taste.One can keep munching it for hours.


Next to it was the humble , Mangosteen,a tropical evergreen tree believed to have originated in the Sunda Islands and the Moluccas of Indonesia. The rind of the fruit, which is not edible, is a deep reddish purple when ripe. The fragrant edible flesh that surrounds each seed is sweet and tangy, juicy, and somewhat fibrous.with so much of nutrients in it, and with its delicious taste, no wonder in calling it the "Queen of fruits"




Next comes the King of all tropical fruit, The Durian, known for its stinky smell, despite its popularity the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia. I knew the reason why its prohibited, the smell is Shit.Exactly the fruit Smells like hell, and taste like Heaven. The segments inside is a rich custard .The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and it is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked, and there are even durian ice creams. Es durian (durian ice cream) is a popular dessert in Indonesia, sold at street side stall in Indonesian cities, especially in Java.Durian fruit contains a high amount of sugar,vitamin C, potassium, and the serotonergic amino acid tryptophan, and is a good source of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is recommended as a good source of raw fats by several raw food advocates.With all theses medicinal and nutritive values these fruits are available only during these months from June to October, hurry, a small stop on the way to the Nilgiris at Burliyar, "The King and The Queen" is waiting for you.

From the Freshers

It a day for the freshers and the menu had all Indian in it, starting with roti, a masala dal to accompany ,with aloo methi and tomato chicken , a tint of sweet carrot kheer to finish the course. I precisely said them what not to do and what to do, and not a big surprise , seeing many without a knife and duster cloths. Is that mean, that they hate cleanliness? There is always an excuse. That they are freshers, where they are entering a world which is something new and accustoming takes time.But then ,to me Patience is what all i learned

Not bad , what I witnessed, a perfect start, which I didn't expect with all thirty five in one culinary class. Tough it was a kind of gaming with new ingredients , I couldn't see any one trying an extra mile to go on with the cooking. It was three in a batch, cooking all five dishes . Starting with the dough for roti followed by boiling the dal,everyone mastered their own way. I didn't find any difficulty in shouting the recipe, except the last night drink which kept hanging in my mind.

Jumping over a square shaped roti, and one colorless tomato chicken all other table had a perfect blend of everything , the taste, the texture and the consistency . All together i'll put in a single word "Awesome"

I remembered the last year burnt dal, uncooked roti and curdled carrot kheer, and wondered what is unique with the freshers this year, with three hours of browsing my brain I was left without an answer. With confidant compilation of the second menu, I am sure I'll have the answer in the next cooking session.

HAPPY COOKING!

"House of the Acolhua people" - Kahlúa

Almost a year, its first of July and the year old Kahlua landed in my book shelf. Thanks to dushy, who successfully fished his masters in Swiss , only to end up working in Bangalore, India. I questioned why not Europe? or else where , after a year of studies and thirty odd lacks in to it.The answer was "contacts" he made friend from around the globe, good isn't it. Horse meat eating friend from Greece to eat what not friends from China. Tough he couldn't smuggle a Absinthe for me from Swiss, I am very much happy with the Kahlua which he brought.

Kahlúa a Mexican coffee-flavored liqueur is dense and sweet,almost syrupy, created a nostalgia of having cough syrup during my eighth grade. with the distinct taste of coffee, from which it is made it also contains sugar, corn syrup and vanilla bean.The alcohol content of Kahlúa is 20.0%. But the Kahlúa Especial, the higher grade has an alcohol content of 36% and has a lower viscosity and is less sweet than the regular version.

The kahlua which I had was twenty percent and its really good. The patience died as the time went with kahlua in my hand, the fist sip went neat and the second one with Vodka. Its used for making many cocktails and as toppings for desserts. Kahlúa with Irish Cream and an orange cognac give B52.two parts Kahlua and three parts vodka give Black Russian.Mud slide is vodka, Irish cream and Kahlua. ans when you top it with baileys Irish cream its baby Guiness.

After the drink its the movie part, with san and friends, watching Transformers - part three. With mind full of Cybertronian, Megatron, Shock wave and optimus prime, deep inside my mind Black Russian kept blinking. I know it'll be past midnight to reach home. I do not mind the time when it comes to Alcohol.

HAPPY Kahlua.......