My culinary skills have never been put to use. Among other things I used to 'cook', the most frequent were maggie 2-minute noodles and of course, curd rice.
I started the 'real' cooking about ten days ago and I've been enjoying it since. It may be a little early to say so; but there it is! The other day, I bought an instant dosa mix hoping to make (and eat!) dosa. I followed the instructions at the back of the packet and ended up having a really aqueous solution of the mix that flowed freely when put on the tava. I added some rice flour, and more and more till I figured what the right consistency might be. But it still didnt work the way it was supposed to. I gave up on dosa and decided to make idlis out of the same batter..Out came more rice flour and lo! the batter really 'looked' idli-ish. Once the idlis were done, I realized I couldnt bite into them. They were so hard. That's when this wonderful idea struck me. I remembered seeing some mint chutney and green chilli chutney kept away in the refrigerator. I mashed up the 'idlis', added mint and green chilli chutney, added salt and I had an idli upma ready. So much for my culinary gene activation!
Most of cooking, as I've come to realize, is based on some very basic things. First, you need to have a spicy ingredient. It could be anything from green chillies to chilli powder to anything else you think is spicy. Second, you need salt. Third, you need to figure the approximate amount of oil (if needed) and the time the mixture needs to be heated. Of course,the important aspect is that you need to have a fair idea of what you want to end up with. It need not be a clear idea but something close enough. And, these factors apply only to the 'regular' Indian style of cooking.
