I learned about this tv series via this website. Saw the second instalment. Lots of new things: I didn't know that there was such a thing as black sesame seed (I tried doing a search for this here, but there were many results, so I'm not sure whether any of them had the black variety).

Nor did I know that there were Indians who ate game, such as pigeon, deer and wild boar. Since we have all of these here, I think that this might be an interesting area to explore.

I tried entering those on your search facility, but didn't find anything.

Does anyone have any suggestions? Until now, I've only done game with French recipes.

Phil

the black ones don't taste any different to the white or cream coloured ones, IMHO. Its just the colour that is useful, or not. I prefered the dish he was making when it was green, a bit more 'natural'. Not averse to black food, unless I'm eating it outdoors, and the lighting isn't up to much (been there, have casual garment!)

As Lapis says the use of different coloured sesame seeds seems to be pretty much for aesthetics. The only references to coloured sesame seeds I could see on this site were 'brown' for Tamarind Rice and 'black' for Gunpowder (Idli powder.)

Regards game, we have recently had mention of partridge or quail tandoori or curries in place of chicken:

http://www.mamtaskitchen.com/board/showthread.php?thread_id=13565

As a general rule I would have thought venison could be substituted for beef - certainly my local Bangladeshi butcher often sells it ready cubed for curries.

Thanks, both

Black is indeed rather an odd food colour.

I eat game when my wife is out of town, since she's no longer keen on it. Partridge can be like chicken if it's farmed, but it's probably gamey if not farmed. Quail works well with Indian food.

I'll try substitution for beef to see what it gives (as the French say), but I wonder whether a French/Indian idea might work (i.e. red wine sauce based on game sauce, but with Indian spices). It'll be an experiment.

Phil

Game was commonly eaten by the rich shahs/ maharajahs in India, so the richer dishes that are now commonly made with domesticated meats would likely have been made with game.

Won't be many if any recipes here on MK though as I don't think game is consumed that commonly by everyday Indians and, of course, most of mum's cooking has been here in the UK, in Luton to boot, and game really wasn't available there, unless you knew someone who had shot/ caught it!!! It's becoming trendier again now so more widely available but that's recent thing...

Black is indeed rather an odd food colour."

Indeed! But not as odd as blue - blue foods as very few and far between which is apparently why the plasters in the first aid kit in commercial kitchens are always blue as they will immediately show up if they fall in the food.

I have a book at home (won't have access to it for a week), which may have some recipes for game. As Kavita said, not many average Indians have access to it. Anyone who cooks it, please come back and tell us, with some pictures if possibles.

I have a rather gamey pheasant leg left over in the fridge. i'm going to have a go at something Indian with it tonight, while my wife is out of town (she doesn't eat gamey meat).

I imagine Indian spices will stand up to the strong taste of the meat.

My brother says that there's an Indian chef caled Atal Kulcha who does North Indian game recipes, but I can't find him on Google.

Phil

That'll be Atul Kochhar! :)

Quite well known, michelin starred restaurant, often on telly. Seems ever so nice.

Thanks, Kavite: I guess my brother confused his surname with the name of an Indian bread!

Phil

When I wrote 'Kavite', I meant 'Kavita'. Think of it as a French version of your name!

Phil

Ha haa, yes, maybe he was thinking of kulcha naan!

Though to be fair, if he's come across Atul on telly, unless one happens to see the spelling flash up on screen when he first appears, it'd be hard to know spelling just from hearing it!

Actually, the French naturally pronounce Kavita much more similarly to Indians than do the English.

'course, having grown up in Luton, I myself pronounce it the English way, Kuh-veet-uh, stress on middle syllable. My ma and pa pronounce it Kah-vi-tah, stress on first syllable (where kah and tah are like car and tar with no r at the end).

Yeah, French is a syllable-timed language, like many of the languages of India. So, in unstressed syllables, they don't do the vowels you write as 'uh' (a vowel we call schwa in phonetics). Phil

quote "The correct pronounciation is Kavita, Kav like in cove and then ita."

is this a depends where you are in the World thing (like "bath" and those that pronounce it as "barth") as I would pronounce the word "cove" sounds a little like the noise a crow makes.. "caw".. so caw've..I presumed the "Kav" part was like "cave".. more of a kay've eeta ?

?

Steve

No, it is not like cave Stev, that would make it Kae-vita. It is kav-ita, which incidentally means a ?poem?.

M

Nope, definitely not cove which has a vowel like oh!

It's the long a like in car but without the r on the end. That's the way family in India pronounce it.

Or, here in England, how I pronounce it, the first vowel is like uh or er (again with no r sound).

I'm even more confused than I was...

so its either Karvita, Kovita, Kuvita..then ...

I think it must be down to accents and how you normally speak to how you read it.. I read the word "bath" with a very hard A sound like in AT .. were others read it and speak it as Barth... even saying the word it would still sound like barth unless they put on the Northern accent for around here...I say Steve (St ee ve) but others say things like Stiv and and some almost sound like Stave (and I often say my name over the phone and people say ok "Dave" !!! so me saying Steve must sound like Stav that this miss hear as Dave ..????)

Steve, Stave, Stiv, Stove.. who knows... lol

Heh, I was going to look up the phonetic representations to make it clearer, but that'd take too much time so I was too lazy!

Oh dear! It is such a simple name to pronounce and so much trouble! You may pronounce words in different ways in different parts of the world, but the correct way is as given in dictionary. I know Hindi very well (I think) and it is said as ??Ka vi ta??, all 3 in quick succession.

mamta

Like car, not like cat.

ok, got it now ! lol... :-)

Steve