Idlis.

If you would have told me, a few months back, that soon I will be making it to the US, I would have simply laughed, treating it as a joke because I was too lazy to travel 1/2 the world across. Anyway, it is God's will that I am now in the US of A!!!.

My daughter's parents in law who have come a few months ago, were about to leave in a few week's time.

The first few days I was not allowed inside the kitchen & given concessions for 'jet lag', the cold weather, etc. After the initial pampering got over, my daughter asked me to start with some dish of my choice.

I have heard my daughter boasting her 'ma in law' to be a great cook. Here, I have to confide that I am neither a good cook nor have the enthusiasm to learn the art; so suddenly when I was exposed, I was a little tensed since this has become a "prestige" issue :)

The counselling started between myself & my daughter as to what should I make. I told her that I am good at making 'idlis' with 'sambar'.

"Oh! thats cool!. You can make them for tomorrow night dinner", told my daughter greatly relieved since she has to prove my worth to her in laws.

I asked for the ingredients like bengal gram dhal & boiled rice to make idlis. My daughter gave me bengal gram dhal which was broken.

I want full bengal gram dhal" (muzu uluttham paruppu) I told my daughter.
"I have only this ma!" was her reply. Half heartedly I agreed & asked for boiled rice. Again I was given some 'rava' like thing & when asked, my daughter replied that they use only 'idli rava' & not any rice :(.

Now the confusion has started for me for the ratio of rice to bengal gram dhal. See, the basic ingredients are different & still I have to proceed & that too when my daughter's 'parents in law' are here.

Can I change the menu to some 'more kozhambu' & beans paruppu usili? I asked my daughter, who didn't seem to change what was already decided for the menu. So, having committed, there is no escape for me now.

Half heartedly I made the 'idli' batter ready & kept it in the 'oven' so that it forms yeast. I opened the 'oven' every few hours to see if 'yeast' has formed in vain.

Came the next day, the same situation continued.

In the evening, my son-in-law went with his parents for shopping, while my daughter stayed at home, to give me some moral courage.

First, I made simla mirchi' (koda milagai) sambar which came decent & that is 50% pass; gaining some confidence, I set the idli batter in the cooker & set the timer.

Heard the whistle from the timer & just touched the idlis with the back of the spoon. To my dismay, it was just something short of round rubber balls:(.

"Ma! the calling bell rang twice & you didn't hear it? I was cleaning the mess in my closet upstairs", saying this, my daughter came down & opened the door.

Entered my 'son in law' with his parents. Some how I could not pose a welcome smile at him, since I was too tensed about the hard idlis:(.

Soon, everybody assembled at the table for dinner.

My daughter set the dinner table with 'idlis' sambar; chutney powder ( milagaai podi), coconut chutney & gingely oil, leave alone ghee & sugar.

I was waiting for the comment, with bated breath.

"The sambar is awesome aunty!" exclaimed my son in law ! (cool! i thought to my self).

'These idlis, they match with most of the thing like sambar, chutney, chutney powder or simply sugar & ghee even", my son in law's dad expressed his views on side dishes for idli.

Soon, the topic changed to a Bengali guy that my son in law's dad met, while going for a walk in the evening & how to pack the things; whether they have to make any last minute purchases etc.
Soon, the idlis vanished from the bowl & my happiness knew no bounds:).

At night, "See, i made such a nice sambar that my idlis went unnoticed" I boasted to my daughter.

"May be true, but you have to give some credit to me also, like, I set all the side dishes for idlis on the table in such a way to cover up the shortcoming"; laughed my daughter teasingly.

Somehow, I could not help bringing back a few comments I have received for making nice idlis.

"Maami, neenga idlis romba softaa pannareenga, enakkum sollikkdudunga maami, I dont know where I am making a mistake", once exclaimed my neighbour.
"Aunty you make such soft idlis & nice coffee that I will really be missing them when I go to US" said my daughter's friend.

All said & done, I never ever imagined that 'making of idlis' is going to prove this much difficult in the US of A.

P.S. Dont venture to join your son in law's mom, in cooking, especially if you know that she is a better cook!!.

Food culture

Oh!Oats again; no way; I was screaming at my daughter. "Ma! u weigh way too high & u never bothered to keep a check; its high time you try to reduce your weight"replied my daughter in a strict voice. The argument continued & finally i have to give in.

It was just a week since I came here to stay with my daughter. The 1st few days i was not facing any problem & was happy preparing uppuma; dosas & idlis for breakfast. Had white rice for lunch, (though not tasty as in Chennai) & dinner. So, today when I was given 'oats', I was totally disappointed.

Convinced my self a little, saying, for lunch, I can make up; but that was not to be. I opened the ceramic bowl & what did i see? Some brown color dish. I looked at my daughter faintly. "Ma! this is brown rice which has less calories really healthy". It may be healthy, but who will take it? i retorted back; but then, I did not have any other choice but to consume it. Sure, it neither tasted good nor had any flavour like white rice.

Evenings went with few bread slices with some sauce smeared on it. Somehow I am comfortable only with milk bread, but the dictator of the house thinks otherwise, Wheat bread is the most healthy & it is good even for a diabetic is my daughter's version. Now No white bread; nor butter, nor jam since they all add to my calories:(. Some how convinced myself since i was offered 'ginger tea' (my favourite) along with the wheat bread:).

They say 'offence is the best form of defence'. So, I gathered little courage & asked my daughter for night dinner, can I have some chapaathis atleast? With a beamimg smile my darling daughter kept a plate with a steaming dish. I gave a puzzled look at my daughter, since I almost lost confidence that it is going to be tasty. What with the oats; the wheat bread
; the brown rice, the whole lot that never inspired me. Finally, out of curiosity, I asked what the dish was. Oh! this is called lapsi & it is made of cracked wheat. With so much of hesitation i tried to taste it. No need to tell how it tasted.

Sweet memories came in to my mind. In Chennai, I was the queen with regards to cooking & eating. Come morning its hot dosa or fluffy idlis for breakfast. For lunch it is 'small onion' sambar with crispy potato curry; rasam; curd rice with lemon pickles. Evenings, I will prepare some poori potato or maggie noodles with lots of vegetables & masala. Night dinner channa patora or raajma masala with chappathis or pav bhaaji & the like:(.

Coming back to reality, I do miss all that I enjoyed with regard to food; but as my daughter firmly believes 'invest in your health first' any other priorities take a back seat; including the 'urge' to eat whatever I wish :).