Good food + Good company = Cookology

A representative scene

If you are interested in learning to cook, but have limited experience and worry that time spent gaining the necessary culinary skills is time away from your loved one, Cookology might be the place to start.

Cookology is a culinary recreational school in Northern Virginia. The instructor provides a menu for the night as well as all the ncessary ingredients. Step-by-step instructions on everything from how to hold the knife to how one should marinate meats are provided. In addition to getting exposed to ethnic cuisines such as Indian, French, Ethiopian, or Japanese, Cookology also allows participants to engage in other culinary activities such as baking, knife skills for sushi, or making your own sauces.

I went for a cook-out session on a Saturday night. The theme was Asian fusion. The instructor was not only knowledgeable but also friendly. He instructed a group of 16 people, most of whom came as a part of a couple.

We cooked three dishes: a salad, beef tacos, and chicken quesadillas. The mexican specialties dominated by adobo and chilli sauces and blended with Asian spices and sauces specifically soya sauce, and sesame oil. The instructor was kind enough to substitute beef with chicken at my request.

The session lasted for two hours: the first hour was devoted to preparing all the ingredients, marinating the meats while the remaining time was used to cook and enjoy the resulting meal. The meats were marinated with the sauces, a lot of lime, garlic, ginger powder, sesame oil, honey and green onions. The participants along with the instructor grilled their meat. Once the meat was ready, the quesadillas were layered with cooked diced chicken, and shredded cheese. They were folded to be baked in the oven until the cheese melted. It went well with the veggies.

The mixture prepared for the chicken (or beef) tacos was comprised of similar ingredients. Diced pears were added to the taco. However, although the strong taste of raw adobo sauce dominated, on the whole the dish worked. The meal paired with a glass of wine of the participant's choice.

I initially thought a meal for one at $65 dollars was a bit pricey given that you can obtain most recipes on the Internet. But the experience of cooking with people gave the class added value. I would definitely recommend it to more social foodies.

Gharer Khabar on a lazy Sunday afternoon

Gharer Khabar, Bengali

5151, Lee Highway, 

Arlington, VA

One of the disadvantages of living away from home is the nostalgia for childhood festivals. It is not just the rituals and the food, but the spirit of celebrating the occasion amidst a community that is not defined by the patrons of a temple site. I feel extremely home-sick during the Ganapathi festival and would imagine that someone who grew up in the eastern part of India would feel somewhat like that during the time of Durga pujo.

Bengali comfort food

I briefly experienced the Durga pujo festivities during my stay in Pune, which has a fairly large Bengali diaspora. So I am grateful that I had an opportunity to re-live my Pune days when I visited Gharer Khabar (translated to home-made food) with my Bengali friend Debasree.

Gharer Khabar is a small family-run Bangla restaurant that serves food that is very similar to what your Bengali friend might make for you at home. Seating is limited, but the quality of the food along with the modest price compensates for the lack of ambience. The take out service is highly recommended if you wish to enjoy the tastes of Bengal in the comfort of your own home.

We tried several appetizers, including some freshly fried samosas with peas, cauliflower and potatoes. These paired very well with the tea.  We had a number of entrees, including goat curry, fried fish, fish do pyaza (fish cooked with onions), dal and chicken biryani. The dishes were a bit oily for home made food, but this did not compromise the taste. 

Bengalis are fresh-water fish eaters unlike the Goans who prefer salt-water fish. The fish do pyaza comprised of fried fish cooked in caramelized onions and was nicely seasoned. The yellow lentils were paired to good effect with the goat curry. The latter was a bit oily, but perfectly cooked. They say it is hard to go wrong with meat, but I believe it is hard to cook meat well. If you have a tolerance for Indian spice levels, this was indeed one of those goat curries that I would fondly remember – spicy yet delicious. It paired well with the chicken biryani, which was surprisingly mild.

Now this is the club you want to belong to!

A platter of vegetarian dishes

It is the Bombay Club, located at 815, Connecticut Avenue, NW in Washington DC.

At, $20.95 per person, the Sunday buffet-brunch is priced a tad higher than the lunch buffet available at other Indian restaurants in the D.C. region. The buffet was adequate, although not very diverse. But the quality certainly compensated for the quantity. The ambience helped by the presence of a pianist, also added value to the experience.

Every dish brought out the subtle flavors of the spices, unlike some places that simply throw spices into every dish with little consideration for whether it accentuates or detracts from the natural flavors of the vegetables or protein.

One of the traditional brunch options was scrambled egg, cooked with cilantro, tomato and onions. If you are a vegetarian, there were several options including paneer rasala (cottage cheese gravy), dal kabila (lentils), spinach aloo (potato cooked in spinach), mixed vegetables, along with bhel puri, aloo tikki (potato patty), greens and pickles as appetisers, and jeera rice (cumin rice).
The paneer (cottage cheese) cooked in a cashew gravy with a savory hint of cardamom was subtle and interestingly mild. The spinach potato was delicious and seasoned with cumin, ginger and garam masala (blend of spices). Dal kabila (lentils) was the spiciest of the lot and perfectly complemented the other, less spicy dishes.

I personally loved their chicken served with a coconut gravy. It was cooked in freshly ground spices. The chicken was perfectly marinated and went well with naan (bread). If you are a seafood lover, there were fillets of fish cooked in a gravy. The chicken and the fish paired flawlessly with the jeera rice. The meal ended with gulab jamuns and some Darjeeling tea. 

I have also tried their ala carte options. One of my favorites is their thali - a platter of vegetarian and seafood/meat dishes.

My friend Debasree contributed to this post. 

Salmon quiche

Cuisine: French/Southern American

My ex-roommate from Roanoake instilled in me an appreciation for Southern cooking. She introduced me to quiche, that can be quite expensive if you choose to have it in a cafe, but surprisingly easy to make it at home, if you have all the ingredients.

I modified it a bit to suit my taste....and made a salmon quiche. If you are vegetarian, you can make a vegetarian quiche without salmon.

Basic Ingredients (2-4 servings)
4 eggs
1/4 pound wild caught salmon cut into small cubes
Ready-made Pie crust
1/2 cup mozarella cheese (you can also add cheddar cheese instead of mozarella)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 cups half and half milk
2 cods of crushed garlic
Finely chopped 1/2 cup spinach
1/4d piece of finely chopped onion
1/4 piece of finely chopped tomato
1 teaspoon salt (alter to your taste)
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Optional Ingredients (2-4 servings)
Oregano, basil to taste
1/4 cup chopped mushrooms
1/2 cup Goat cheese

Step 1
Break the eggs into a large bowl and add the three types of cheese and milk.
Step 2
Add the remaining ingredients including salmon, veggies, salt, pepper, oregano and basil. Mix them well and set aside.


Step 3
After allowing the frozen pie-crust to thaw for an hour and a half, set it in a baking dish, greased with butter.

Step 4 
Pour the mixture into the pan, as shown below.

Step 5
Preheat the oven at 350 degrees F ( C) and bake it for 40-45 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve them.

Mediterranee - in Great Falls but not that great!

Mediterranee, 
10123 Colvin Run Road, Great Falls, VA. 

Pan fried flounder

If you like to try out small, family-run restaurants, Groupon is a good place to start your search. Last weekend, I used a groupon deal for Mediterranee, a small restaurant that specializes in American Meditteranean cuisine. 

The meal started on a positive note - complimentary bread which tasted like it might have been baked in-house. It was served with olive oil for dipping.  I had the opportunity to sample their three-course meal that was comprised of an appetizer, an entrée and a dessert. Among the appetizers, my friend and I tried a soup and a pork pate. The soup, a vegetable puree made from greens, was adequate. The pate was chunky and cold - came with a smidge of mustard, and a salad on the side. Neither the pate nor the soup was served with any crackers or garlic bread, which is a shame, as I think it would have helped neutralize the blandness of the pork.

Flambe with rum and vanilla ice cream

The entrees, a grilled salmon and pan fried flounder, were both well-cooked. They were flavored with herbs and capers and came with a side of blanched greens and some pickled onions. The entrees as served were simply too rich. Going easy on the butter would have helped bring out the natural flavors of fish, with a little more herbs for flavor.

Finally, we had two desserts: a banana, mango, berry flambé with rum and vanilla ice cream, and a bread pudding with caramel sauce. The bread pudding with strawberries on the top was moderately sweet, which suited me. The taste of rum was too obvious in the flambé, masking the natural sweetness of the mango and banana. 

The Vegetarian Edition

Saravana Palace, South Indian

11725 Lee Hwy  Fairfax, VA 22030

Aloo Tikki Chaat

If you are a vegetarian, and in the mood for some Indian food, there aren’t many options in the Washington DC region. Among the limited choices, Saravana Palace is one of the few that exclusively serves Indian vegetarian food.

What’s unique about this place is its wide-ranging menu of vegetarian dishes, especially the “fast foods” from India. While they certainly cater to those craving Chole Bhatura, bhel puri, uttapam, masala dosa, idli wada, pao bhaji, I am afraid it may not meet your expectations if you have ever had the chance to sample such food in India.

Chole Bhatura

I tried several dishes during my visit to Saravana Palace. The aloo tikki chaat - comprised of small potato cutlets served on a bed of chick peas mixed in yoghurt, and a tangy tamarind date sauce, garnished with cilantro and onions. 

Though I didn't try it myself, according to my friend Debasree, the tikkis were a little too dense and dry, and the sauces didn’t help in masking the dryness .Their popular dish, Chole Bhatura - fried bread served with spicy chick peas was edible but not especially memorable. 

There were also several Indo-Chinese dishes on the menu that are not commonly served in many Indian restaurants. The Gobi Manchurian - crispy cauliflower cooked in a spicy Chinese sauce although somewhat chunky, was the best of the three entrees I tried. 

Guacamole

Cuisine: Mexican
A simple and tasty dip thats perfect with sandwiches, fried fish, or chips!

Ingredients

1 avocado

¼ onion

¼ tomatoes

2 teaspoons of lemon juice

1 clove of crushed garlic

Chinese parsley (cilantro)

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Step 1: Mash the avocado into a thin paste. Add finely chopped onion, tomato, lemon juice, chinese parsely (cilantro) and garlic.

Step 2: Add salt and pepper to taste.

Step 3: Refrigerate the guacamole for about 30 minutes before serving it.