When I am a little stressed and lost, I go grocery shopping to Nature's Basket. I love that place. Just browsing through all those shelves of organic pastas and bottles of 'Bourbon Vanilla Essences' and clouds of buffalo cheeses at their fresh cheese counter...feels so good!
Since I am trying not to buy any more clothes, etc. for myself this year, I thought I would buy groceries this weekend.
This is what I made for Papa and me - a broth with wheat Soba noodles.
Here's what I did.
Took a large pan of water and kept it to boil. Added some ground pepper and crushed ginger to it. (Doing this releases the nutrients in pepper and ginger that acts as anti-inflammatory for the gut to prevent bloating.) When the water came to a rolling boil, I added a bunch of vegetables - diced carrots, onions, peas, chopped baby corn, corn kernels, purple cabbage, cherry tomatoes, and a handful of micro-greens. Next I seasoned this broth with a heaped spoon of garlic powder, rock salt, oregano, and a generous sprinkling of mixed herbs (rosemary, thyme, etc.)
I put a lid on the pan, set the induction cooker to simmer, and let all the flavors meld. In the meantime, I read a couple of articles in Vogue and GQ.
It was such a beautiful happy smell by the time I had read 5 articles. (I don't cook very often. So I don't usually watch time. I generally pace myself based on how much I can comfortably read or sketch. And usually I am quite right about this estimation if I am mindful and don't get distracted.)
When I lifted the lid, the broth was such a happy, harmonious liquid. All the veggies were nice and soft (I don't keep it al-dente because Papa can't chew) and the mixed herbs from Nature's Basket was heady and robust. This is when I added two handfuls of the wheat Soba noodles to the soup and let it boil. This takes a little more time than the regular maida noodles. But the wheat ones add a certain earthy heartiness to a soup that doesn't quite come with the refined version.
The final bit was my favorite - in my book, this is the thing that adds flourish and joy and taste and health to anything. Crushed kafir lime leaves. I absolutely love them. I know most people use this for Thai dishes but this simple bunch of leaves can really elevate even dal-rice or upma or something like that. A shopkeeper in Defence Colony had told me that these must be added after crushing them with the palms of the hands. It's a great tip.
So that's how I finished the soup.
I toasted the wheat pavs that my dad likes and we had that for lunch. Papa really enjoyed it. Sometimes if I cook something and he likes it, he is surprised and asks me for the recipe. That's when I know the dish is a success. (Otherwise he will not say anything directly but will talk about the Bengal Famine and how we should be grateful for what we get served on the plate.)
It was a nice afternoon.
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