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food and drink:
spice, dice and splash
Diwali Special the rebel chef: Hello. I am, Satwant Kaur. I’m 54-‐years old, a wife, a Mom of two always-‐hungry teenagers. Friends always ask me where I learnt to cook so well and I say that I’m self-‐taught. From a very young age, about 9 or 10 years old, my Mother u sed to get me and my older sister to help with food p reparation. We were eight members in all and it was normal for the older girls to help around the house. Well, my older sister always managed to magically disappear midway through the chores and I was Mother’s assistant almost all the time. And I actually enjoyed those moments – watching Mother prepare the ingredients, how she meticulously cooked each d ish over a charcoal stove (yes we didn’t have electricity or gas when I was growing up). Over time, I acquired the “taste” for cooking – I learnt to adjust the dishes just based on taste and not recipes, just like my Mother. There was never a weighing scale or measuring spoons in the house, she just estimated as she went along. To this day, when someone asks me for a recipe, I struggle, as we’re all so fixed on specifics and conformity. So when it comes to cooking, I’m a rebel. From cooking and baking over a charcoal stove, I moved to the gas stove and electric ovens and began experimenting with different types of cuisines. Now that’s the beauty of being born and raised in Singapore, a food paradise with Chinese, Indian, Malay and Peranakan influence and from other parts of the world. Now I not only cook, b ut I’ve also become a food photographer. As a teenager, I began cooking for the family most weekends, digging into magazines cutting out recipes and later on saved money to buy my first Kenwood Chef, which was a big deal back in the 1980s. My pride and joy. I now reside in Washington, USA for the last 15 years and together with my husband, Bir, we run an Indian Restaurant h ere in S eattle, where we serve b oth Indian and American Cuisine. There are recipes from my restaurant, my home kitchen and food cravings I have from time to time, that will b e shared each month in this column. Hope you have fun trying out the recipes like I do. Since Diwali “Festival of Lights” falls in November I h ope you will make these dishes and enjoy with your family and friends. Wishing one and all A Very Happy Diwali and Blessings!
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To enjoy more American and Indian cuisine, join Satwant and Bir at their flagship restaurant in Woodinville, the wine valley of Washington. There’s also bar music and karaoke for the music lovers. Indian Palace Restaurant 13330 NE 175th Street Woodinville, Seattle WA 98072 Tel: 425 483 6888 www.indianpalacecuisine.com