Out of India

Travelers love to find familiar sights in exotic places. India rates high on both counts. The backwaters of Kerala are reminiscent of Venice up to the ferries’ presence. The tandoori is a kind of pizza oven, where the dough is cooked hanging on one side of the wall. And to play further on the similarities, I modified the recipes kindly provided by Subin Michael, the Executive Chef of the Kumarakom Lake resort to take on a milder fusion taste.
Kerala cuisine uses spices Europe and the countries around the Mediterranean Sea have known since the middle ages such as turmeric, chilies, mustard seeds and ginger. Other native ingredients are not as frequently used outside of Asia. Tamarind paste is traditionally added to preserve the curry preparations (any spicy stew with curry leaves) without the help of refrigeration. Curry leaves or, to use the botanical name: Murraya Koenigii, are valued in Ayruvedic medicine, a unique science native to Kerala, for their anti-diabetic, and antioxidant properties. To offset the slightly bitter taste of tamarind, coconut, which grows profusely on the rich land of Kerala, is added at the end of the preparation.
All the recipes serve four

Indian Pizza: Basic recipe for Bhatura or Nan or Chappati) (Easy, Preparation time: 20 minutes, Resting Time: 3 hours, Cheap)

Ingredients:
21/3 cups (550 g) pastry flour
2/3 cup (152 g) semolina flour
½ teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (170 ml) warm water
¼ teaspoon sugar
1 package yeast
1/3 cup (76 ml) milk
1 egg
2 tablespoons (28 ml) Kefir or yoghurt
2 tablespoons (28 ml) olive oil
½ cup (113 ml) vegetal oil for frying

Material:
Food Processor with pastry blade attachment
Salad bowl
Kitchen towel
Wok

Pour all the dry ingredients in the bowl of the food processor.
Pour the sugar and yeast into the warm water and let it proof for five minutes or until bubbles form on the surface.
Beat the egg in a bowl. Add the milk, kefir and olive oil. Pour into the dry ingredients. Add the yeast/water/sugar proof. Mix until a ball forms in the food processor. If the content is too liquid, add a little flour, if too solid, a little water until the ball shapes.
Place the ball in the salad bowl. Cover with a linen and let it raised for at least two hours. It should double in volume.
After two hours, you should form 8 to 9 little balls and either use them immediately or freeze them for up to three months.
After flattening the dough with a rolling pin to a ½ inch (1.5 cm) thickness, you can either bake the nan or chappati in as hot a oven temperature as possible and will obtain a pizza like bread, or fry it in a pan for 5 minutes on each side. The result is called a Bhatura. It is a lovely slightly soufflé concoction, which needs to be eaten immediately accompanied by curried lentils or chickpeas.

Indian Crêpe: Appam (Easy, Preparation Time: 20 minutes, resting Time: 9 hours)

Ingredients:
½ cup (113 g) raw Basmati rice
½ cup (113 g) cooked Basmati rice
1 package yeast
1 package sugar
1 teaspoon of salt
1 (237 ml) cup coconut milk
1½ cup (350 ml) warm water

Material:
Food processor
Nonstick pan

Wash the rice and soak it for 3 hours. Proof the yeast in warm water sweetened with the sugar package for at least five minutes or until bubbles appear at the surface.
Drain the soaked rice, add the cooked rice, the coconut milk, the salt and the water, yeast and sugar mixture. Blend in the Food processor until smooth and let it rest for 6 hours. The consistence of the batter should be as liquid as a crêpe batter. If it is not, add some water.
Place the nonstick pan on the stove at medium temperature. Pour about ¼ cup of batter in the hot pan, swishing it around until you obtain a small plate size crêpe. When the bubbles subside and the crêpe slides easily on the pan, flip it over and cook it until it slides easily onto a plate. Repeat the process another 8 times.

Chickpea curry (Easy, Preparation time: 10 minutes, cooking time: 8 hours unattended, Cheap)

Ingredients:
8 oz (237g) dried chickpeas or garbanzo bean
8 oz (237g) cabbage sliced finely
1cup (237) basic tomato sauce homemade or store bought
1 tablespoon (14g) of olive oil
1 lemongrass stalk, outer leaves removed finely sliced
1 onion peeled and chopped
1 inch fresh ginger peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic peeled and chopped
1/3cup (76g) tamarind paste mixed with 1/3cup (76ml) warm water
1teaspoon ground cumin
1teaspoon ground coriander
1teaspoon ground turmeric
Cayenne Pepper to taste
1 cinnamon stick
1teaspoon sugar
Salt

Material:
Food processor
Slow cooker or heavy bottom 4-quart pan
Frying pan

Soak the garbanzo bean overnight, or put the garbanzo bean in a pan. Cover with cold water. Bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and let soak for an hour. In both cases, drain and rinse before putting in the slow cooker or in the 4-quart pan.

Over the gas stove set on low, stir-fry in the olive oil the ginger, lemon stalk, hot peppers, onion and garlic. Add the spices, and the tamarind. Pour the content of the stir-fry into the bowl of the food processor and pulse until blended. Pour the content of the blender over the garbanzo bean and the cabbage. Sprinkle the sugar on top. Add the tomato sauce. Cook on the low setting for 8 hours. Alternately cook over the gas of the stovetop set on low for 2 hours.
Serve a bathura on the side for a light meal.

Indian crêpe Florentine (originally prawn mappas) (Easy, Preparation and cooking time: 30 minutes, Reasonable)

Ingredients:
1 lbs (474g) spinach leaves
1lbs (474 g) shrimp
1/3 (76g) cup grated coconut
1/3 cup (76g) raw mango
1 cup (237ml) peeled, sliced and seeded tomatoes
Cayenne pepper to taste
I inch ginger root peeled and sliced
2 garlic cloves peeled and sliced
1teaspoon fennel seeds
1teaspoon mustard seeds
2 shallots sliced
4 curry leaves
1 teaspoon Tamarind paste mixed with 1/3 (76ml) cup of water
1tablespoon (14g) vegetal oil
Salt

Material:
Frying pan
Pan
Salad spinner
Food processor
Salad bowl

In the salad bowl, mix together the mango, grated coconut and tomatoes and season with cayenne pepper.
Boil the spinach leaves for 2 minutes. Drain the leaves and purée them in the food processor.
Pour the vegetal oil in the frying pan. Place over the high range of the gas stove. Add the fennel and mustard seeds and the curry leaves. When they sizzle, add the sliced ginger, garlic, and shallots. When they turn gold add the content of the salad bowl. Add the tamarind juice. Finally cook the shrimps for 5 minutes in the sauce. Taste and add salt and cayenne pepper if needed.
To assemble the crêpe, place an appam on a plate. Spoon the shrimp mappa on half of the crêpe, top with spinach. Spoon a little more sauce and fold the appam empty half over the filling.
Serve two filled crêpes per person.