Why this Blog…? Why now…? Spent (almost) a couple of years pondering over it …and decided finally…Why not…? 😉

Going back a little, let me shed a little light on it.

I started cooking (some) by the time I was just about 15. And, during those days…and I am talking of over 4 decades back… the presence of rowdy, hyperactive, hungry teenage boys in the kitchen was strictly frowned upon. And in a busy, bustling Punjabi Kitchen (where the only omnipresent query was… What to cook next?) & Where the moms called the shots… boys were a strict no no … But I found ways & means to find my way in. …And learnt the ropes pretty fast.

Back from the college, having spent more time exploring the culinary treasures offered by famous narrow lanes of Old Delhi, (than actually studying for my degree), I had probably just one mission in life. Explore food. All kinds of foods.

Learn-Cook-Eat-Share-Improvise-Reinvent-ENJOY…!!!!

I never realised I was so seriously involved with everything that was food, till I accompanied my 4-year-old sweetheart for her Kindergarten school admission. The principal & the teachers on the board asked her… “Beta…what does your Mom do?” “She is a doctor”, the Princess coyly replied… “She treats patients” … “Wow… And what does your dad do?” they asked… “He cooks food” … There were peals of laughter in the room. She was selected, of course. And I was the most sought-after dad in the Parents Teacher Meets, thereafter 😊

On a more serious note, those culinary expedition kindled a peculiar spirit of enquiry in my foody soul. The whys & wheres & hows of the various regional food skills & etiquettes started ruling my thought processes, along with the all important Why-nots & ifs…… the two very important queries every cook should treasure.

Have lived with these codes for life. And enjoyed every cooking moment of it. My advice to all the budding cooks… Don’t be tied down by the written words. Feel free to explore all options that come to your mind. There will be heart breaks, no doubt. Welcome them with open arms, learn from those mistakes & reach newer frontiers. Don’t try to replicate/reproduce tastes (you’ll never succeed. Even the most established cooks cannot replicate their own recipes. They’ll always be a little different.) Cook for the joy of it. And you’ll love it.

Coming back to where we began … Why this Blog…? Why now…?

My kids & my wife made me see the light. I was only thinking in terms of penning down the recipes, hitherto in my memory bank, in form of a diary. To be used by the children when they move out of the nest, and when the craving for the good old home food hits them. My extended family members…siblings, cousins, niece & nephews would have been welcome to get that manuscript photocopied for their own use.

It was impressed upon me that why keep those traditional as well as developed recipes just to this small group? … why not share them with anyone who is interested? Also, they convinced me, that as my recipe exploration is an ongoing, continuous process, a photocopied book or a diary will soon be outdated and updating them will be a tedious process.

Agreed 😊

Also, there is only one thing this blog can really promise its followers. It is not going to be just about cooking and the recipes (and even there, it’s going to more about every day table dishes, than just about celebration & festivity meals. I want the joy of eating back on the dining table).

This blog also provides me with an opportunity to share with you all, my other passions in life.

Gardening. That is, Kitchen Gardening. Basically, I am a full-time farmer, by occupation. But a productive terrace Kitchen Garden, using recycled kitchen water, recycled kitchen waste compost, totally organic method of vegetable production is an occupation dear to heart.

Vermicomposting is yet another one. Way back in the early nineties, I was amongst the first ones to bring back the high-volume-composting earth-worms, Pheretima Elongata, followed by Eisenia fetidia & eudrilius euginae, to the composting fraternity of my city. Even today, not a scrap of bio-degradable, compostable waste scrap from my kitchen & household, adds to the city garbage dump. Everything gets vermi-compsted and goes back to nourish the kitchen garden.

“Re-use. Re-cycle. Reduce.” These have been my guiding stars for over four decades now. Please brace yourself to hear a lot about these also in my future posts.

Giving back to the community, as a concept, is something very sacred to my wife & I. As a doctor of over thirty years experience, for over two decades, she spent virtually every Sunday holding Medical Camps in the hinterlands of the district, spending time, money and endless hours of work to bring medical treatment to the very door of the most deprived of the Indian Populace…the rural women..!!

I did, whatever possible, through my social contacts, to bring hitherto alien sounding facilities to the rural households. One of the most satisfying projects amongst many, was distribution of over 1,000 PC sets in rural areas. As the cyber world progressed, cyber junk multiplied. Most offices upgraded to sleek laptops for their staff. There being no takers for the old PC junks, they were thrown away in dark office attics. Using all contacts, I collected over 1200 such pcs, contracted PC technicians to lend (mostly) charitable efforts in refurbishing these PC sets, usually through cannibalising other sets…and were able to deliver over 1000 sets to rural areas, where volunteer teachers & city educated rural youth undertook the task of spreading computer literacy amongst the children living in far flung, deprived area. Most heartening & satisfying.

I may continue to share such stories as well. 😊 😊😊

That, in short, is also the story of my life. I just refuse to be categorised. 😊