Mamta's Kitchen - A Family Cookbook





Egg and Tamarind Curry

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On 21/07/2010 12:07am, Andrew wrote:

Hi, Mamta. I found a recipe on your site a number of months ago for an egg and tamarind curry and it was really good, but searching for it now I can't find it. I have tried all search terms but it's not showing up. I was wondering if you can point me in the right direction, thanks.

Andrew.

On 21/07/2010 06:07am, Mamta wrote:

Hello Andrew

I don't think that I have ever had tamarind egg curry recipe on this site. However, you can add a tablespoon of Tamarind paste to the one I have here, but reduce the amount of tomtoes to one. Otherwise, it willl be too tart.

The thing is that tomatoes are/were expensive in places like southern India and Rajasthan, especially during summer months. So, people there have learnt to use other souring agents like tamarind or yoghurt to their dishes. Also, tamarind grows a lot more over there. People use whatever is easily available. They have coconut a lot in their food, because it is abundant there, not in northern Indian. Tamarind is probably more commonly used in far eastern curries too.

On 21/07/2010 09:07am, Andrew wrote:

I could have sworn I found the recipe on here some time ago. Now I'm thinking that maybe I got it from watching a video on youtube. Either way, I definitely remember making egg and tamarind curry and it was really nice. LOL.

Thanks anyway.

On 21/07/2010 01:07pm, Lapis wrote:

I would think that tamarind pre-dates use of tomatoes in India, and so I think tomatoes were used to replace tamarind, not the other way around.

On 21/07/2010 09:07pm, Mamta wrote:

I didn't mean that tamarind was a replacement agent for tomatoes. It is just that Tamarind was used to give that 'sour' taste to curries in the south. In north India, often it was/is mango powder or yoghurt, Use of tomatoes has increased over the recent years, as has their availability. Even now, tomatoes are used in some ?curries? in Indian homes, but not always. Restaurants are more likely to use them.

Talking about tomatoes, many north Indian curries are made without even onions and garlic and are still delicious.

On 21/07/2010 10:07pm, Andrew wrote:

I made the egg and tamarind curry again this evening (I modified it slightly because I added some black cumin seeds, omitted the garlic and added a couple of fresh tomatoes). I also added a courgette to it, sliced into rounds. I made a really mildly spiced yellow dal to go with it and it worked well.

I could have sworn it was on here that I found the recipe.

Tomorrow I think I'll make the cauliflower curry that is on site. I've made it before and it's really good.

On 23/07/2010 12:07am, Lapis wrote:

Mamta, I was pulling your leg!

I think the non-use of onions and garlic is down to the Jains. I've seen them wear face masks so they don't inhale insects. !

On 23/07/2010 12:07am, Andrew wrote:

LMAO@wearing masks so they don't inhale insects.

Just as well I'm not a jain, I got knocked off my bike tonight by a damn jeep of all things. Ended up flying over the bonnet and landing on the road. I inhaled more insects than I care to imagine...moths and flies stuck to my teeth :-o

If you think I'm crazy, then you're probably right LOL!

On 23/07/2010 06:07am, Mamta wrote:

Oh my God Andrew! I hope you are well and no broken bones?

Lapis, I was wondering why I am half an inch taller this morning ;-)!

It is not only Jains that don't eat onions, many other orthodox Hindus don't, even now. In many, many Uttar Pradesh families, people of my grandmother's generation did not eat Onions and Garlic, partly because it was considered Tamsic food. Both my grandmothers/fathers didn't. Onions were never seen in their kitchens, let alone garlic. I remember my younger brother's wedding 37 odd years ago; the cooks added onions and garlic to the chickpea curry. My mother was very upset, because half the guests would not touch it. Most people in new generations eat both now and understand the health benefits of both.

On 23/07/2010 08:07am, Andrew wrote:

There is an Indian lady who has a channel on Youtube and it took me a while to figure it out, but she never uses onions or garlic in any of her recipes. It's not something I'd ever given any thought to, but one day (whilst I was going through some of her recipes) I noticed it...and she is a vegetarian.

Hopefully no broken bones, Mamta, although it certainly feels like it LOL! Ankle, leg, knee joint and hip are somewhat swollen and painful but I'll live.

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