The Steaming Pot - Easy vegetarian recipes from India

Potato and pesto sandwiches for a tasty, leisurely breakfast with a steaming cup of masala chai. Life doesn’t get better than this :-) I had these sandwiches this morning and loved them, they’re a sure addition to my pesto recipe ideas. (more…)

Creamy mushroom soup made at home – this is so much tastier, so much healthier than canned stuff. Simple ingredients, no fuss, very easy to make.

(more…)

15th August is just round the corner. To celebrate India’s Independence day, let the tricolor inspire our food. Here’s an idea in saffron, white and green – a patriotic raita.

(more…)

Tinda gets its English name from its visual similarity to green apples. A member of the gourd family, tinda has a mild flavor, high water content and lots of vitamins/minerals. The vegetable is ubiquitous in Delhi – at arm’s reach in the local market, cooked every other day in office cafetarias. Not so in Bangalore. Here this gourd graces only in the bigger stores, cellophaned and stocked with imported veggies like yellow peppers and Chinese cabbage.

I didn’t know I’d crave for tinda till it became scarce. As with parval (pointed gourd), my love for this vegetable has been a recent change of heart. Whoever said that absence makes the heart grow fonder knew what he was talking about. 

(more…)

Today’s post is about a much-loved breakfast dish in India – besan cheela. For the uninitiated, besan is flour made from Bengal gram (chana dal), used in Indian cuisine in a variety of dishes such as kadhi, jhunka and pakoras.

In cheela, batter is made out of besan and other ingredients, shallow-fried like pancakes on an skillet/tava and served hot.

(more…)

Fenugreek leaves and chickpea gravy – did that make you frown? Methi chhole isn’t the most fashionable way of having chickpeas in India [channa masala takes the crown for popularity], but if you’re one of those who want to do something offbeat, ‘hatke’ – you must try this recipe.

In methi chhole, fresh fenugreek and chickpeas come together like soulmates – the bitter notes of methi are tamed by the rich nuttiness of chickpeas and the interesting spice blend in the  gravy.

(more…)

It is only on a trip to Namdhari’s that I get to pick up stuff like parsley. The herb isn’t too easily accessible where I live in India, nor is it integral to Indian cooking. And so when I’m using it, I’m a little outside my comfort zone.

It gives a special high when we get things right outside our comfort zones, doesn’t it?

(more…)