03 June, 2008

Baby Corn & Green Peas Curry & Some Random Thoughts

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Baby Corn and Green Peas Curry

Conversation with my boss:
Good morning. Lovely weather isn’t it? I hope it stays like this till this weekend.

Conversation with my friend on phone:
Oh!!! You know what? It’s supposed to be summer here but I can’t see even one single ray of sunshine!!!

Conversation with hubby:
I don’t feel like going out in this dreadful weather!!! Let’s just sit back and watch some movies. If the weather gets better we can always do bit of gardening and BBQ.

Conversation with a perfect stranger:
Nice weather isn’t it?
Ever since I came to England all I have been talking is about the weather. I read it somewhere that more than 90% of people in UK talk about the weather, as “whether the weather will improve!!!” The best way to start conversation with any perfect stranger here is, yes you guessed it, the weather! I guess it is because the weather is so uncertain here and that itself makes it quite interesting topic of conversation. Sometime when you are in jolly good mood you tend to find it quite amusing and start laughing out loud when it starts to pour just when the weather reporter on news channel is dancing around the screen saying how bright and sunny day it’s going to be! One thing I learnt through hard lesson is you must never contradict anybody when discussing the weather, as this is considered to be very bad etiquette. Even if it is snowing outside and someone says, “Nice weather, isn’t it?” you must reply, “Yes, it is!”

Is the weather a topic of discussion a global thing? I mean, is it only here that we talk about the weather or is it the same all around the world? I don’t remember weather being a topic for conversation back in India, well not to this extent! With the continuing rise in global warming and its impact on the weather pattern, we have become more aware of the change in weather condition and it has never been so important. Talking about it can not be considered as just a way of passing the time of the day anymore.

The weather to some extent controls our moods and activities (at least in my case). And for me it is very evident when it comes to food! Well, it’s not some kind of story I am cooking up. Many a times I have noticed that the weather influences my cooking. When it’s dark, gloomy and cloudy, I take out the bright coloured vegetables and fruits with colourful lentils to cook with. When it’s sunny and bright, I go for fresh and crisp vegetables and fruits with very little spices to jazz it up. May be I am crazy to some extent (oh crap, don’t tell me I am one gone case ;). While writing this, I just peepd out of the window and unfortunately its one of that gloomy weather here. May be I need some coloured peppers to jazz up tonight’s dinner and my mood ;)

Well, on rare summery days of my part of the world I cooked this delicious pot of Baby Corn and Green Peas Curry. Unlike my previous Creamy Baby Corn & Baby Carrot Masala, this one is bit dry and goes well with any Roti or Poori or Chapatti or as a side dish to any rice items. If you like crispiness of baby corns and sweetness of fresh green peas, then this is a curry for you. Crisp and crunchy baby corn and sweet peas are cooked with very little spice blend to retain its own taste. Addition of tomatoes gives it mild note of tanginess and onions give it sweet touch. This dish goes to Maninas who is guest hosting this week's WHB that is initiated by dear Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen fame.


Baby Corn & Green Peas Masala
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 20 mins
Serves: 4-5

Ingredients:
15-20 Baby Corns, cut vertically and chopped to 1 inch pieces
1 cup Green Peas, fresh/frozen
1 medium Onion, very finely chopped
2 large Tomatoes, finely chopped
2 Green Chillies, slit
1 tsp Ginger-Garlic Paste
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1-2 tsp Sugar (Adjust acc to taste)
1 tsp Garam Masala
½ tsp Kitchen King Masala (Optional)
½ tsp Turmeric Powder
½ tsp Aamchur/Dry Mango Powder
1 tsp Kasuri Methi/Dried Fenugreek Leaves
1 tbsp Fresh Lime Juice
1-2 tbsp Coriander Leaves, finely chopped
1 tbsp Oil
Salt to taste
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Baby Corn and Green Peas Curry

Method:
Cook baby corns in enough water with turmeric and salt to taste for about 7-10 mins. Baby corns should be fork tender and still retain their crunch. Drain and keep them aside. Save 1 cup of water in which baby corn is used for later.
Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds. When it starts to sizzle add finely chopped onions.
Sauté the onions till it turns translucent, about 1-2 mins, on a medium flame. Now add slit green chilli, ginger-garlic paste and sauté it for another minute or so till the raw smell of ginger-garlic paste disappears.
Add garam masala, kasuri methi, kitchen king masala and sauté it over a low flame for about 30 secs to 1 min till the raw smell of spices disappears. Now add finely chopped tomatoes and cook till they become pulpy. Add sugar, amchur powder and mix well.
Mix in cooked baby corn, green peas, ½ cup of water saved from cooked baby corn and mix well. Cover and cook for another 5-10 mins till all the flavours blend well. Add little water in between making sure that curry doesn’t stick to pan.
Squeeze in fresh lime juice, chopped coriander leaves and mix well and serve hot with any roti or rice of your choice.

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Baby Corn and Green Peas Curry


Note:
Other Baby Corn Recipes blogged so far


Reminder:
MBP-Street Food ends on 24th of June, 2008. Start patrolling the blogs and cook your favourite Street Food that your tummy begs and heart desires and spread link love.

Deadline: 24th June, 2008

Please go through the guidelines and include all the required information in your post and mail when sending me your entry. Don't forget to add Your Name, Your Blog Name, Name of the Dish you cooked, Perm Link of the entry, Perm Link of original recipe along with the gorgeous Photo of final dish.

Click Here or on the logo to find out more information on this event.

40 comments :

  1. Eeek, cloudy and gloomy good old England,I remember. We ran after 5yrs as fast as we could from there!:D
    It was 88F y'day and today too here, all the gourd seeds have sprouted, happy dance!:)
    Enjoy the dish, looks good as always.

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  2. We talk a LOT about the weather here in the US too! Like you said, it's the perfect small conversation topic. I remember back in college a friend saying "oh, he(the date) was so boring we spoke about the weather!" like that says it all! :)
    The baby corn & peas sabzi look really colorful & yum!

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  3. Before anything else, I have to tell you that the colours of the baby corn and peas are so eye-catching.
    You'd be surprised, the weather has become the focal point in a lot of our conversations here recently. Its so HOT (ISH), I'm tired or ISH I can' be bothered to cook, ISH I haven't slept the whole night, etc.
    And then, I wish the rains would arrive.
    And now I'm saying, "Guess what, its been raining since last night".:D

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  4. In UK they talk of wine, women and weather , ain't it? :) I can send you some sunshine.... we have plenty here that we don;t need!

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  5. Yeah I know what you mean.Here too the main topic for everybody is hiw is the weather.
    It is bad, it is cold, it is too hot.
    I have to admit i am also like that. When it is bad weather i tell to my hubby i don't even want to go out.

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  6. That looks delicious Sia...& of course, my fascination with the stack of parathas in the background grows each passing day! Hopefully I'll make something for MBP!

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  7. I had no idea that we shouldn't contradict what someone feels about the weather... but that is a good icebreaker / conversation starter.
    Baby corn and peas masala looks great.. like all your curries.. :)

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  8. the curry looks great, sia... i think everyone in chennai is talking about the weather all the time... but it's amazing that people aren't bored of saying "isn't it really too too hot?". i say it atleast once everyday to someone or the other.

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  9. Hehehehe..exact same thoughts again Sia. When we came to US 2 years ago, we did not understand why people talk so much abt weather. Now we do understand bcos weather is the most unpredictable thing here :(.
    I HATE you sia...you make that wonderful looking babycorn dish and show here, make me drool...we don't even get frozen babycorn here :((. I have been searching for it for last 2 years....

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  10. My gosh...that is one beautiful recipe...! what a combination, i think I'd like this.

    re; the posts on taste of India,yeah, mine aren't updating either. :(

    trupti

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  11. That's one yummy curry, perfect for EVERY kind of weather :).

    Hugs,
    musical.

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  12. Hey Sia
    Yeah the first topic to startup the conversation is
    always weather.Even when i stayed in UK initially
    even now in US we exp the same
    hahaha.....no change!!! :))
    Lovely pics ...asusual fantastic curry :)

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  13. WOW... This is one scrumptious curry. Looks so good. Great pictures. YUM!.. YUM!...

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  14. Sia, my dad still asks me that question whenever I call even though I have been away from home a long time. But I do contradict :)

    The curry looks awesome, I have never tried using baby corn in anything other than soup or noodles. Got to try this

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  15. haha..sups you will be surprised..even in here the topic is mostly about weather...I guess that acts as a perfect topic when you don't' know what else to talk about...we are obsessed with the weather..but here its always hot hot and hot..so whats there to talk abt?..just last week it showered for a while and all of us were talking abt the scanty shower for two days!...

    gravy looks yum1..including that stack of rotis behind..:)

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  16. hahaha... talk of weather.. even im donig that these days as its too good... and as usual... the veg looks too good... and its a nice idea... i will try it today...

    and u know what that day u saud u were laughing out loud that day .. reading that i was laughing out loud and garg entered that very moment.. and had that 'u have gone mad deary ' look ... :)

    ok sorry for this long comment... :) i have plan for some street food this evening..

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  17. Talk about weather and Singapore is no less in its uncertainty. We have no season here, probably because we are close to equator? umm..I am not good in geography :( The dish looks yummy.

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  18. let's not talk about the weather..istead..i'm going to talk about that delciious looking dish of food there..may I ask you something...I have alwys wondered from which angle you take your pics...

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  19. You won't believe me Sups, the only thing I have been talking about for past 10 days is this gloomy weather.
    Its so depressing!!
    Myself and Rocky have decided its time to do something about it now!!Run away from here, we really had enough u know!!

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  20. @ashakka,
    LOL... I know it can be little gloomy but its a beautiful country when sun shines:)

    @vani,
    thats really funny:)

    @aparna,
    thanks aparna:) glad u liked the curry. its pretty simple and tastes really good.
    LOL... i guess we not only complain abt weather but blame it for every possible reason;)

    @jyo,
    yes plz... and yes, 3 W's are quite famous here;)

    @happy cook,
    looks like everyone is talking abt weather these days:)

    @deeba,
    aha... this is a different paratha and may be i'll post the recipe soon. i am looking ofrward to ur entry for MBP:)

    @laavnya,
    its belived to be rude if u contracdict to someone's statement, but i do some times;)

    @arundathi,
    LOL... i dont think people will ever get bored of talking abt weather;) IMO, its a good ice breaker.

    @shilpa,
    plz dont hate me shilpa:) u just tell me and i will parcel fresh baby corns to u. have u tried canned one? i am glad thatw e dont have to cook with canned or frozen as its available through out the year here.

    @trupti,
    sailu is trying to fix the prob. sometimes my posts appear w/o any prob. i have mailed u feed to sailu. hope ur posts comes up in toi soon.

    @musie,
    thank u girl. haven't seen u posting any new recipes recently(mmmm..make it 2-3 months!!!:) where r u girl? busy kya?

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  21. @vanamala & sukanya,
    thank u dear:)

    @indo,
    lol...
    this one is bit dry. i have put a link to another gravy based babycorn curry at the bottom of the post. do chk that one too.

    @valli,
    lol... this post sure made me realise its same all over the world;)
    aha...u did spot that stack of parathas yeah? will post it for u soon:)

    @swati,
    LOL... u r not only enjoying ur award but also confusing ur HD yeah? enjoy girl... and will look forward to ur entry for MBP. i know its gonna be something special:)

    @lakshmi,
    fret not girl!!! i am weak in geography too;)

    @rachel,
    i am no expert when it comes to photography. i usually take pics from 20 to 45 degree angle from ground level. hope it helps:)

    @padmaja,
    ROFL... me and K r thinking the same;) but after seeing all the comments from all over the world i think its same every place u go;)

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  22. Lol! I can never respond that the weather is beautiful unless it really is. So I love to watch the expression on people's faces when I say,"No this weather is unbearble" Summers are hot here and immdly the next question is,"the weather is worse in India rt?"
    GRRRRRRRRR

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  23. very beautiful and mouthwatering pics....loved ur conversations too ;)

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  24. Sia,
    this pea and corn combo looks so mouth-watering Dear..
    and for weather in England , they say dont trust 3 W , women wine and weather ...HUbby dear went To England few months back and he always complained about the Rainy and gloomy days , not a single ray of sunshine ...
    Yup, My posts are not updating in Taste Of India also ...
    Hugs and smiles
    Jaya

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  25. hi sia....you so like me...the good old scottish weather used to amuse me and sometimes irritate me (specially in summers on Formula 1 days when rajesh promised me he would take me out for a drive and weather used to help him by making us stay at home)....and out came some good colorful food....:)....the peas and baby corn look amazing....in mumbai the vegetable prices are rising....so we have some pricy veggie cuts at home going on...:)

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  26. we don't get fresh baby corn year. i used to get it in england and in india, not in the u.s., not even frozen. we get the salty canned stuff. just sucks. and to think that the u.s. is one of the biggest producers of corn. heck, there's a cornfield one block from my home, but we don't get baby corn in the stores.

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  27. wowww!!babycorn dish looks really delicious..love the flavor of baby corns...tempting drooling photos...

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  28. That looks so gorgeous...love baby corn...especially R and A.

    As for the weather, Agastya went on a school trip today...at least it wasn't pouring...and yes, it always starts with the weather :-)

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  29. Lovely entry Sia, curry looks divine and great pic as well!!!

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  30. hope you get some sunny weather soon, or I can send you some from CA:) that curry looks nice, and yeah, you better start cooking for MM now!:) hope you've made up your mind by now:D

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  31. Oh, yeah. I absolutely understand what you mean abt talking about the weather. Seems almost like a prerequisite to certain conversations! Baby corn and peas curry is so colorful and yummy looking! :)

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  32. Sups u know what - this weather talk and syndrome is very common here in the US too! So much so that i hate to talk to a perfect stranger about the weather - i've started to detest makign small talk! You're right in India we just take our wonderful weather for granted -let me say Bangalore :-)
    Your baby corn and peas curry looks absolutely delicious! We love baby corn at home unfortunately we dont get fresh baby corn here - just the canned one - which i cannot stand! Seems like i dont like a lot of things! LOL!

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  33. I think it's a universal thing- talking about the weather.:D

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  34. What u said is so true Sia - we talk about 'weather' all the time..baby corn curry looks yummy..:)

    btw, I just announced a cool, summer event on Frozen 'Yogurt' - wish u cud participate in it..:D

    Siri

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  35. all your corn dishes are enough to make me feel hungry Sia. you are not just Indo-Chinese but a corn master too :D.
    Love the combo of peas with corns :). weather is really the most versatile topic here too :)) . back in dec i heard 2 ladies at super market suddenly started talking about like - " you know, its gonna snow like hell tonight .... " and so and so....
    btw, waiting for your mail. do let me know if you have anything in which I can be little help :). I would be glad to do so.

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  36. You are so right about the weather thing... We in the US talk about it a lot too!! When I had just come to the US, I used to find it so funny that people checked the weather on the internet first and then decided on what to wear that day!!! I used to be like....can't they just open the window n check it themselves!! :D But later I learned that people do it bcoz of the high fluctuations in temp.... :)
    and btw, the the babycorn curry looks yummy!!! Love the picture...

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  37. great pics, baby corn looks delicious.

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  38. Hi Sia,

    I tried this dish and i really liked it.

    -Vijaya

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  39. Its the same over here as well, but the only diff is that weather = rains over here ;)

    I am bookmarking this to try. :)

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  40. Looks delicious! We are also having very rainy weather here, and I'm hating it!

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