Last week, I took an overnight train with a few friends to Udaipur, also known as the “Venice of the East,” in southern Rajasthan. First off, the trains were nothing like the Darjeeling Limited, with those private AC compartments—instead, we were in the crammed sleeper car section which fit eight bunks in a compartment with open windows and zero blankets. The night was cold.

The Venetian canals evoked by the city’s nickname are in reality two lakes that are surrounded by ghats: temples and steps to the holy water in which people bravely bathe to gain spiritual purity. The city, topped with the City Palace, winds up a few hills around the lakes with narrow lanes and brightly painted buildings that wouldn’t seem out of place on a Grecian island. Despite the small-town, touristy vibe, Udaipur is beyond a doubt an Indian city, replete with rickshaws dodging cows on the street, tons of staring men, and the smell of street food samosas.

At the beginning of the semester, I used to ask my host mom for her recipes, but she always just laughed hysterically and told me to just watch her cook. The first problem was that she cooked in the morning while I’m at school, and the second problem is that she never can tell me exactly what she is doing. So when we were in Udaipur, we decided that it would be fun to take a cooking class in order to to recreate what we were eating when we got back home.

I’m so used to Indian food and the amount of spices they use at this point that I’m actually quite frightened that, when I go home, I’ll find American food simply bland. That’s not to say that I haven’t jumped at the limited chances to eat Pizza Hut, but overall, Indian food has continued to amaze and impress me. I have yet to come across something that I disliked (although the curry with fried hard-boiled egg came close) and I’m super stoked for the start of mango season, which everyone keeps saying is next week. Mango lassis. Yum. Crazy side note: Indians don’t have ovens!! They don’t bake food! It is all made on the stove! I guess it only seems crazy in comparison to how much food in the U.S. is baked in the oven. The one time I baked challah for my host family, they didn’t know how to eat it because they couldn’t use it like a spoon to eat their dal.

Anyway, our cooking teacher was named Shakti and ran the Spice Box Cooking Classes in Udaipur, which were held in a small room above his home. We learned, cooked, and then ate a multi-course Indian meal—I thought that I would share the fruits of our labor with you, since this is the first time I’ve actually been able to get a hold of measurements (although some are pretty vague). And remember, as Shakti continually said, “Body needs greasing. Oil is good for health!” Enjoy!

 

Khadai Paneer

Khadai is the name for the Indian wok used for cooking vegetables. This recipe can also be used to make a basic Indian curry.

Directions:

– Heat oil in pan and add diced onions.

– When onions start to brown, add all of the whole spices. When onions are brown, add powder spices, garlic/onion paste and ¼ cup of water.

– Simmer on low heat for 3-4 minutes until water has blended in and mixture is thick. The oil will separate and run on top of the mixture.

 

Stop here and this is the basic curry recipe to which you can add different vegetables.

 

– Add tomato paste and cook again until mixture thickens and the oil separates on top.

– Add green peppers and onions (and any other vegetables that you want) and mix on heat for 2 minutes. Add paneer and mix for one minute.

– Remove from heat and sprinkle a little garam masala on top.

Ingredients

2 tbsp oil

1 small onion, finely chopped

Whole spices

5 black peppercorns

2 cloves

1 black cardamom

2 small pieces of cinnamon stick

½ tsp brown cumin seed

Powder spices (these all come from the spice box which all Indians keep right next to the stove)

1 tbsp coriander

½ tsp turmeric

½ tsp chili powder

salt to taste

2 tbsp paste (this part is a little tricky, but important for making the sauce stick together. It can be made in advance and refrigerated for up to 15 days)

1 onion, 2 cloves of garlic, 2 inches of ginger mixed together in a mixer with a little water to form a paste

2 small tomatoes crushed with a little water, or canned tomatoes

2 small green peppers sliced

1 small onion peeled and quartered

1 small cup of paneer (or tofu)