Samosa : The Legendary Traveler

My second post is about something that is very close to my heart and probably all our desi hearts. I’ve never met a person in my life who can resist the crispy charm of Samosa and if you are the rarest of rare, CLICK ON THE RED BUTTON ON THE TOP RIGHT IMMEDIATELY, because I refuse to to acknowledge people who can’t enjoy the delicious crisp of Samosas. I refuse to be part of a society that doesn’t give Samosa the Iconic status it deserves. SAMOSA FOR PRESIDENT! (oK yeh thoda zyaada ho gaya)

Current day Samosas

The current day samosas are small, crispy, flaky pastries that are usually deep-fried. They are stuffed with an assortment of fillings ranging from minced meat with herbs and spices to vegetables such as cauliflower and potatoes. In Bengal one finds samosas filled with sweetened reduced milk that go straight from the frying pan to a syrup wash. But whatever the filling, samosas are a treasured snack–the perfect companion to a hot cup of  Chai.

Samosa: Origins

The SAMOSA probably traveled to India along ancient trade routes from Central Asia. Small, crisp mince-filled triangles that were easy to make around the campfire during night halts, then conveniently packed into saddlebag as snacks for the next day’s journey.  The Indian samosa is the best known of an entire family of stuffed pastries or dumplings popular from Egypt and Zanzibar to Central Asia and West China. Arab cookery books of the 10th and 13th Centuries refer to the pastries as sanbusak (the pronunciation still current in Egypt, Syria, & Lebanon), sanbusaq or sanbusaj, all reflecting the early medieval form of the Persian word: sanbosag. Interestingly, there is a poem by Ishaq ibn Ibrahim-al-Mausili (9th Century) praising the sanbusaj.

By the early 14th Century, it was not only a part of Indian cuisine but also food fit for a king. Amir Khusrao, prolific poet of Delhi royalty, observed in 1300 that the royal set seemed partial to the “samosa prepared from meat, ghee, onion and so on”. In 1334, the renowned traveler Ibn Battuta wrote about the sambusak: “minced meat cooked with almonds, pistachios, onions and spices placed inside a thin envelop of wheat and deep-fried in ghee”. And the samosa obtained a royal stamp with its inclusion in the Ain-i-Akbari which declared that among dishes cooked with wheat there is the qutab, “which the people of Hind called the sanbusa“.

So Bacchon aaj kya seekha hamne? (OMG! This Blackboard theme makes feel sic). Well, i’ll tell you what I learnt; I am not the only mad person on planet earth to write poems n articles on Samosa. Now let’s wrap it up with my foodie ka funda.

Foodie ka Funda No.3:

Never order food in excess of your weight! (Don’t look at me like that, I exaggerated for effect)

Comment, Review or Follow my blog on WP and on Twitter #foodiekafunda

To make delicious Samosas click play : 

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Butter Chicken – Chicken by Chance

I am a Vegan and this ( ← ) is my favorite  post ( technically second favorite after About)  & there lies the irony of life. I may not have tasted butter chicken but I can’t deny that the beauty n smell of this dish has made sure that I will die with a regret. The story of butter chicken is the best known food story in India perhaps the intriguing story behind Butter Chicken was the thrust behind writing this blog.

What is Butter Chicken?

Lets start with, What is Butter Chicken? It is dressed chicken marinated overnight in a yogurt and spice mixture usually including  garam masala, ginger garlic paste lemon or lime, pepper , coriander and chili. The chicken is traditionally cooked in a tandoor, but can also be grilled, roasted or pan-fried. The sauce is made by heating and mixing butter ,tomato puree, khoya and various spices, often including cumin , cloves , coriander and fresh cream. Cashew paste can also be added, and will make the gravy thicker. Of all the spices added to the dish it is dried Qasuri methi leaves that makes the greatest contribution to the characteristic flavor of the dish. Once the sauce is prepared, the prepared chicken is chopped and cooked until the gravy and chicken have blended. The dish is garnished with white butter, fresh cream, sliced green chilies and Quasuri. Butter chicken is usually served with naan and rice.

Tandoori Tale!

Butter chicken (or murgh makhani) is part of Indian cuisine, popular in countries all over the world. The origins of butter chicken can be traced back to Dlwalon ki Dilli. Butter chicken is regarded to have been first introduced by a restaurant called Moti Mahal, located in Daryaganj . Butter chicken is usually served with naan, roti, parathas or steamed rice.

Before independence , India consisted of Current day India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. With division of India , in to India and Pakistan . The state of Punjab was also divided in to two pieces, North west frontier Punjab in Pakistan and Punjab in India. Now in the combined Punjab in city of Peshawar lived a guy named Kundan Lal Gujral . He used to operate a small restaurant called Moti Mahal. It is rumored that he was the one who made and perfected this dish called Butter Chicken.

After partition Kundan Lal Gujral came to India and settled in Delhi and opened his Moti Mahal restaurant in 1947. Butter chicken is not a dry dish. The chicken has a thick gravy. Usually the gravy is spicy and cooked in traditional Punjabi style.People call it Murg makhani & chooza makhani also. It should be eaten with naan. So when you enjoy this dish , forget counting your calories. Let’s end this with my foodiekafunda.

Foodie ka Funda No.5:

Tum mujhe Khoon do, Mein tumhe Butter Chicken Doonga! (Ok! Ok! I know bakwaas hai but remember, I asked for your foodie ka funda and didn’t give any. So deal with it!)

To learn how to make Butter Chicken click on play :  

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