FRIENDS AND LUNCHES

It is a nice way of catching up, spending time at a table under a tree, sometimes with mister fans putting a hair strand into your eye and sometimes just waiting for the breeze so that a bougainvillage flower might waft your way. By the way the bougainvillae is known as kagaz ke phool in Hindi. Those bright coloured flowers which will probably never wilt and which truly stand up to the blazing sun, showing a in-your-face attitude. It is nice to have this flower come down in a gentle breeze. Most of the outdoor cafes in the Jubilee Hills, Banjara Hills area have these much welcome open spaces. And a lot of money is spent to give that we-are-here-for-your-comfort-so-spend-as-much-time-and -money-as-you-please- look. Some of those chairs, made to look weathered are a tad uncomfortable if you are like me, where I want to put elbow on table and keep picking on whatever is on the plates on the table. And I can pick through the mustard and sesame seeds if all is vegetarian. And if you give me a plate of murmura or puffed rice, you have got me for a lifetime. A little rum on the side would definitely help.

Though I talk quite a bit about food, I am hugely limited because I am a vegetarian (I don't think like that at all, but the entire world and its cousin brother thinks so). I am also a tad overwhelmed by the cost of the food. While I should stop comparing costs of a totally soul-satisfying meal on the street to this food served in stone-ware on a hand-crafted table, with the unpolished look, I do. Because the kagaz ke phool falling on you is priceless and of course the sharing of some thoughts or laughing at a joke with a bunch of friends 

I watch a lot of food shows, which are curated so well, they are overwhelmingly colourful and they use pine nuts and walnuts like they are the most common nuts to use. They cook artichokes, only to remove most of the inedible part of it to reach the heart and they use so much of olive oil, the liver naturally reacts.

Every single chef insists on repeating the dialogue "these are all locally grown vegetables. The market here keeps the freshest of vegetables." A totally unnecessary remark. Every market keeps the freshest of vegetables and it also stores some not-so-easily-available vegetable like a vazha poo (banana flower) or a vazha thandu (banana stem) or a ratalu (purple yam), apart from being a store house of stories and recipes. Just yesterday, at the lunch with the sun beating down on us, Saraswati, a young friend told us that she likes to go to such markets and have a chat with those selling the vegetables. 

Since we were at the Feu (I had never been there and I had not seen the place, though I take this road several times over). Sneha, she of the younger generation, which was continuously pointed out to us, ordered for us for she is quick with these things, as the young ones are. The familiarity with the new fangled food, the comfort with ordering, the ability to try anything new still has me in a tizzy.

Her mother Nirmala, an unassuming but totally clued on is the kind of person you would go to in case of issues.

We ordered dishes which we would not cook at home. Like fried lotus stem in a sweet and spicy sauce. With memories of sake and Japan still in my mind I ordered spicy edamame (good old soya bean and time enough we started getting it in the market). Steamed, it was then pan fried in a chilly sauce, but I could not eat skin and all because I smelt fish oil. And so I peeled them and ate the soya beans. Just like eating boiled phalli or boiled kandi (pigeon pea in its skin) or some averekalu (broad beans). All these are available only during season and it is a messy affair eating them, but oh, so soul satisfying.

A Mediterranean platter got us some not so tasty falafel, hummus, quinoa and just-sauted coloured zucchinis. Very colourful and the rest. But I wonder why can't a chef use a sponge gourd (spongy potlakaya) or a ridge gourd (beerekai) or a gourd (sorekai) in a dish and give it an exotic name. We need to promote our own vegetables and put them on the table and not just for your family, but serve it to your guests. Use oregano if you have to but eat local stuff.

Now it is considered very passe to talk about capsicum, which for me is only the green one. Unless you buy and use the ridiculously expensive red or yellow or orange pepper as they call them, you have missed the bus. And where is all this attitude coming from? There was a time when cauliflower was considered as an English vegetable and would be available only in winters and we would look forward to a cauliflower-pea curry or large chunks of cauliflower with equally big pieces of potatoes and have this with garam phulke.

Now cauliflower rice has become de rigeur among the rich and famous, oh because rice is not good for health and they cannot eat wheat flour because it has gluten. Seriously?  And people readily eat the ridiculously priced quinoa . 

By the way Saraswati also bakes perfect cakes and brought a very tasty focaccia bread for me, berating herself about the flatness of the said bread. Since it is a rare treat for me, I was just thrilled that I got a tasty home-baked bread. A little toasting and it is going to be a merry time eating that puppy. 

I also realise that if I continue in this trend of thought process, invitations for lunch or any other meal is going to be rare, but all I want to say is eat food which is locally grown and be proud of it. Here is to more sorekai in our lives.