On Christmas, my brother and his girlfriend gave me a very special gift...Chicken Curry, made by them. With their own special label. They specialize in this particular repast, and tonight, it's what I had for dinner.
A week ago, I fortitiously found naan (Indian Bread) in the local grocery store and picked it up, having no idea what was coming my way. So today I picked up more to have with dinner.
What I learned is this: I can't cook rice properly. It's edible, but mushy, no fluff to it. It can't even properly be called "sticky rice".
But my lack of rice-cooking did not affect the immense satisfaction obtained from my brother's chicken curry. And the naan...incredible with it. My only regret is that I don't have a CASE of the curry! Seriously, they could market this stuff, easily.
Now I'm beginning to wonder...perhaps my brother, his girlfriend, and I should go into business together? My brother can't make soup to save his life, but boy howdy, can he make chicken curry! And he cooks a good ham, too, and mashed potatoes are his specialty...outside of curry, that is.
But I'm great with soup, sandwiches, some pastas and a few other random things. I'm not sure what his girlfriend is good at...the curry credit goes to her, too, so she could be the REAL talent there. But I also happen to know she's got a head for numbers, and any business needs someone who can do the figures. I am automatically eliminated from that particular job...believe me!
So...I have to give my brother's and his girlfriend's curry my highest food rating; Food I Would Serve Jesus. Please click on the tag under this post for other foods I would serve Jesus for more information. I believe I also have a tag for foods I would NOT serve Jesus, just for contrast. For example, I would not actually serve Jesus any rice I cooked unless He was THAT desperate. Again it's edible...just not...uh...properly done. The good news is that it wasn't burned, so the Lord likely wouldn't have too much trouble with it.
But I still say that if we are going to be offering our best to someone, well, it had better be our BEST and we shouldn't be satisfied with mediocrity. That's what happened to Cain and why he went down the wrong road. Really. It's all there in Genesis. That spiritual lesson is for another post, though.
Anyway...now I MUST go about seeking Indian food again. The last time I ate curry was several years ago at a restaurant named "Caravan Serai". It was actually an Afghanistani restaurant complete with a belly dancer, a tent-like decor, and a local writeup on the place detailed even the history of the family that owned it. I'd been there only twice until one day I went by planning to order my dinner for takeout, only to see that it was closed. What disappointment!
So...now I need some good Indian/Afghanistani food...when I can afford it....mmmmm
10 comments:
Sounds good!
My secret to good rice: don't follow the instructions on the bag. It always calls for too much water.
Use 1 1/2 times the water to rice. (ie. 1 1/2 cups of water to 1 cup of rice.) Make sure your pot has a tight lid. Bring water and rice to boil, stir once, then cover and cook on low for 20 minutes. It's never failed me.
Did your brother give you the recipe for the curry? There are a couple of Indian guys at work, in the I.T. department; and one of them brought curry to a pot-luck. It was so hot (from some kind of peppers) that I couldn't tast anything else. I think if I was making it I would turn down the heat several notches!
There's a good Indian buffet in a strip mall in Eden Prairie near a Rainbow Foods. The actual name of the place escapes me now. Actually, my brain is dead right now. Not enough coffee and I'm running late for Mass. I now of some Afghan and Indian places around.
If you are serious about opening a restaurant you should take some classes on it. I believe the Chamber of Commerce and some of the community colleges have brief one day courses on what to consider when opening a small business.
I like your tag: Food I would Serve Jesus. But, then you are leaving yourself wide open for guilt if the food does not turn out right! LOL!
You do make a good soup too.
MJP ~ It was REALLY good!
melanie b. ~ thanks for the tip...I'll try that next time!
melody ~ No, he didn't give me the recipe, just the frozen jar of his own offering. I suspect he'll hide the recipe for awhile! And he used "medium spice" although I thought it was quite mild.
Cathy ~ I'm extremely NOT serious about starting a business. That was just a joke.
There is an Indian restaurant in Golden Valley next to one of my fav Chinese restaruants...it's called Taste of India, and i believe there's another one on Highway 36 in Oakdale near 1st ave.
The type of rice you use has a lot to do with how it is cooked. Different rice has different amounts of starch. I flunked rice, too --- but now I use a unglazed clay rice "brick" (pot). The pot is soaked in water for about 15 minutes and then it goes into a cold oven with the rice and water. Perfect every time!
I get my rice perfect every time. I pull out my rice cooker, plop 3 of the serving cups of rice (measuring cup came with the machine) into it, fill until the water is at the level 3 line, and hit cook.
I then forget about it for a half hour or so...basically until it pops at me to let me know it's done.
Well, I don't get it right every time, on a couple of occasions the rice cooker couldn't be found. I wouldn't have served that rice to Jesus ;)
And so what do I end up making for dinner tonight?? Chicken curry!
It's what my hubby asked for:)
Sooo...Adrienne...will YOU share your recipe since I don't have my brother's? :-)
Drat, my suggestion for the best rice might be too late!
But here it is and it's even easier than the one above!
In a saucepan, put a little drop of olive oil in the bottom on place on low heat.
Tip the rice in (for one cup of rice, use two cups of cold water - more than that and it's too stodgy)
Stir the rice around so it's coated with the oil and do this until the rice is hot.
Tip in the water, stir.
Plonk the lid on, turn down the heat. After about 8 minutes, stir again. Turn off the heat and leave the pan with the lid and let it steam.
Done.
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