Egg Fried Rice in 7 Steps

A plate of food for me is more than about sustenance. It embodies the cook's identity, personality, locality, culture, heritage, and lifestyle. It represents the care the cook put into preparing the dish. 

I recently watched a TED Talk called, "Don't Ask Where I'm From, Ask Where I'm a Local" by Taiye Selasi. Selasi observed that asking someone where they are from is usually a divisive indication, with that question we are trying to identify the 'otherness' of an individual, as opposed to establishing a commonality. Conversely, it can be argued that asking someone about their origin simply represents an innocuous curiosity about the individual's background and childhood. 

But, this question is often posed to ethnic minorities. As an individual with ethnically ambiguous looks, I have been frequently at the receiving end of this question. Although, the said query pays homage to my ancestral background, it does not completely encapsulate who I am as an individual. This question makes us different from others, and on some level indicates that we are not truly from the land we live in. Instead, we have this mythical land to return to. 

Both set of my grandparents were born in British India, but they had nothing in common with other citizens of the Great British Empire. They belonged to the Muslim faith, so in circa 1947, they became part of a new nation called Pakistan. After her exodus from India, my grandmother who was used to cooking Bihari food, started incorporating local flavors of her new land into her cooking. 

My upbringing in multicultural Toronto represents what I cook at home. My travel experiences, and the ubiquity of the ethnic food aisle have made it easier for me to prepare food from places, where I am not technically from, but in some ways a part of, because of the culture I grew up in. 

So without further adieu, I present to you the recipe of Egg Fried Rice, inspired by Thai flavors. You might wonder why I am using three different types of sauces, soy, fish and oyster, when all three of them are ultimately salty in flavor. The answer, my dear reader, is that fish sauce and oyster sauce render a rich umami flavor, and add a level of complexity, to this very simple and quick rice dish. 

Egg Fried Rice
Egg Fried Rice - influenced by Thai flavors.
Posted by Cultivate Flavors on Friday, October 23, 2015

Chicken Biryani in 11 Steps

My sister gave me the first edition of Mark Twain's 'The Innocent Abroad', photographed above, as a baby shower present; to remind me the lasting impression a mother can have on an individual's life. The readers of the travel book will know that Mark Twain dedicated this travelogue to his mother. 

Although, I am not a writer, but in my own humble ways, this biryani recipe is my homage to my very own loving mother. Biryani is a staple in Pakistani households. The Pakistani diaspora is incapable of having a celebratory dinner without the grand presence of this aromatic rice dish. South Asian grocery stores are laden with Biryani spice blends. In this recipe, I am using two types of pre-boxed Biryani spice blends, Sindhi Biryani Masala for the marinade, and Bombay Biryani Masala for the curry. The Sindhi one has dried plums, and the Bombay one has nutmeg. The combination of two results in more aromatic and flavorful Biryani. So let's get cooking.

Chicken Biryani
Posted by Cultivate Flavors on Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Chicken Pilaf in 11 Steps

You say pilaf. I say pulao. 

Pilaf. Pulao.

Pilaf or Pulao, is a Middle-Eastern/South Asian rice dish, in which rice is cooked in chicken or beef broth. Chicken pilaf/pulao is a weekly staple in my house. My toddler loves it. The rice is flavorful and aromatic. Plus, it takes only 45 minutes to prepare and cook the rice. The rice gets its flavor from the broth, that is why I use a lot of whole spices to season the broth.