FAQ for uk.food+drink.indian Newsgroup
Faq Index	Appetisers and Starters	Topics Index

The Questions

• Kebabs

  1. Seekh Kebabs are different in different restaurants - so what does the Seekh bit mean?

• Poppadums

  1. Until the mid 1980s, Indian restaurants in UK served them and the tray of chutneys as accompaniments to the main course. Now they are treated as a separate course.
     The Nepalese people I know like to have them with their main course, but they scrunch them up and sprinkle them over the meal like a layer of fine croutons.
     In India, we weren't offered poppadoms anywhere, except that one very posh place served a lamb curry up in a basket made from a huge one.
     So can anybody tell me how they are actually used in India? Is it something with regional variations? Are they normally eaten as snacks rather than at mealtimes? I know this is the case with a lot of the things we think of as "starters" in Indian restaurants.
  2. Can anyone suggest me how do I make Papadams at home? I don't think it's an easy task. my grand mother used to spend days and days in making those kind of stuff! I know how to make them in indian way but it involves lot of effort and lengthy too. I want to do in a shorter way.
  3. Cooking ready made poppadums
     1. We used to microwave them all the time but when we bought a Bosch microwave/oven combination they come out undercooked no matter how long we gave them :-(
        I don't know why. Any way round this?
     2. Are poppadums better fried or microwaved?

• Pakora

  1. When I make pakoras I can get them cripsy using baking soda...but I cant get a good puffyness. They always end up thin coating, heavy.
     I have beaten the batter with electric mix, to ensure lots of air, am I just not beating enough, is it an oil thing, or mixture proportions thing??

• Samosa

  1. Anyone know how I can ensure samosas stay firm and crunchy several hours after they have been cooked? I use plain flour/ghee/salt/water to make the pastry and cook in vegetable oil.

The Answers

• Kebabs

  1. The Seekh is the skewer on which the preformed kebabs are cooked.

• Poppadums

  1. 1. I eat pappadums with my main dish. I crush it a bit. I like it best with Rassam, more liquid gravys. Not with the dry ones. We also crush it in payasam which is a dessert made of sago and stuff.
     2. Sounds plausible. I think poppadoms are good as a starter simply because they can be provided very quickly, so you've got something to eat whilst you wait for the main course to arrive - or even whilst you are still studying the menu. In fact a lot of people - me included - effectively have them as a "pre-starter" whilst waiting for the starter proper.
     3. Yes you are quite right. In Indian culture, there isn't the concept of the formal Starters, Main dish and the Afters. It is very much an individual decision. In fact starters are frowned upon as it will interfere with the appitite and may make your main dish less enjoyable. But afters are usually unofficially practised in the form of a sweet or a cup of tea.
  2. I honestly don't think it's very practical to make papadums in this country. Don't you need lots of sun?
  3. Cooking
     1. Got a long-slot toaster? Rotate them in the slot ... (with the power on of course :-) )
        Helps if you have armoured fingers ... and no fear!
     2. Yes, deep fry them, of course! De-lish!
     3. You can also just throw them on the burner of the stove. Works on gas and electric stoves.
     4. It was more common in my home (in India) to roast them over a gas stove (electric works, but not as well) - personally, I prefered them deep fried !
     5. I always deep fry them. To dry them, line your oven floor with kitchen roll and place the oven shelf on its lowest position. Stand the popadoms vertically in the slats (it works like a giant toast rack) and set the oven on very low. Takes about 30 min.
     6. If I microwave them I usually spray them lightly first with a non-stick spray.

  top

• Pakora

  1. Pakora Batter

     1. One trick is to use self-raising flour. I've substituted self-raising flour with regular flour and used baking soda and didn't seem to make up the missing ingredient of self-raising flour. Try this recipe, I love the consistency of the finished product. I prefer to use whole vegetables.
        (on the other hand - no raising agent at all!)
     2. The key to Pakoda batter is that its made of 'Besan' (pronounced Bay-Sun). Besan is Split Gram flour.... gram is a kind of lentil. Its really not worth trying to make besan at home, I'm not even sure what kind of gram its made of. But go to your local Indian grocery store, and you're sure to find some there.
        
     The recipes for both these methods

  top

• Samosa

  1. I dont think its possible, is it? Unless you use a different type of pastry/dough. I dont know of any way to keep anything deep fried firm and crunchy for hours.
  2. Why don't you deep fry them again later on to heat them up - assuming you eat them hot.
  3. I think the ones I get from my takeaway are deep fried and so if left too long before buying them they tend to be soggy with oil, icky! I much prefer the idea of cooking fresh as requested than keeping them warm for long periods.

Faq Index	Search Facility	Topics Index