The warm oil I have been having gently swished across my forehead each afternoon (as part of an auyvedic treatment program) has now been changed to cold buttermilk. When told I would be having this treatment I was less than enthusiastic about the concept but it is actually very relaxing.

Remember Little (choti)  Miss (memsahib) Muffet^ on her tuffet (whatever that is) eating her curds and whey? Well buttermilk is whey or what is left after the solids have been removed from milk to make butter. Buttermilk has a pleasant slightly sour taste, similar to that that of yogurt, and it is commonly used in Indian cookery; for example it might be used as the liquid in a wet dish much as western cooking uses stock. It is also popular as a chilled drink, either plain or infused with cumin seeds or black mustard seeds, curry leaves and a little salt: in this incarnation it is called chaas in northern India.

Buttermilk is not used all that often in western cookery; when it is it is usually added to pancake batters or other baked items such as muffins to which it imparts a lighter texture than if regular milk was used (try it sometime). As it has had all the solids removed it is low in kilojoules/calories (but please its taste recommends it more than this quality, I just mentioned it – the ‘energy count’ – as a matter of interest).

You can buy buttermilk in the supermarket – look for it on the higher shelves of the dairy case as it is not amongst the items that enjoy the glory of eye level shelving.  I hope this recipe for a lovely buttermilk soup might inspire you to give it a try. When I serve this I inevitably see wariness in people’s eyes, which quickly changes to surprise and delight when it hits their taste buds. You can serve it as hot/warm soup but I think it is much better as a summer soup that is served chilled.

Buttermilk soup

Serves 4 -6

Ingredients

1 tsp rice

1 tsp fried mong dal*

t tsp ginger paste

4 green chilies

750 ml buttermilk

salt

1 tbsp oil

½ tsp black mustard seeds

1 tsp skinned urad dal *

1 dried red chili (optional if you prefer)

¼ cup finely chopped fresh coriander

Method

Soak the rice and fried mong dal for one hour.

Drain and grind to a paste, with the ginger and green chilies, in a mortar or pestle; electric spice grinder (that does a wet grind) or a blender (you may need to add a little water to achieve this).

Blend this paste with a little of the buttermilk to make a smooth paste. Mix this into the remaining  buttermilk along with 250 ml of water and salt to taste.

Heat the buttermilk over a medium high heat, stirring until it thickens slightly. Remove from the heat.

In a heavy based fry-pan heat the oil over a high heat. When hot drop in the mustard seeds and urad dal. When the mustard seeds ‘pop ‘drop the dried red chili (if using) into the pan. Stir until the chili changes colour. Empty the contents of the pan into buttermilk blending well along with the chopped coriander.

This can be served hot or cold. If serving hot gently reheat; do not boil it as it may curdle. If serving the soup cold place in the refrigerator and chill until ready to use.

^ It is possible that I have used the male gendered Hindi word for ‘little’ (choti). If you know better please excuse me if I have created Master Muffet!.

* These are both varieties of lentils/legumes that you will be able to procure from an Indian/Asian grocery store.

This morning I was  vigourously rubbed with besan (chickpea flour) for an hour; later on the day I had oil gently brushed across my forehead for another 45 minutes: I felt like a human pakora. 

I also felt very relaxed and well after receiving the treatments described above as they have been carried out on me in an idyllic ‘auyvedic palace’ in Kerala called Kalari Kovilakom. I will write more about this in future blogs as I have eaten some great food here but in the meantime take a look at the website www.cghearth.com.

The pakora analogy really took shape for me when I stepped in the shower to wash off the oil and discovered that the potion I was given to scrub myself was made from green split peas. I often make fish pakoras and serve them with a green pea dip/relish… I can feel a recipe coming on….

To make good pakoras don’t be stingy with the oil when cooking them. These are deep fried so if you are going to make them just accept it. Actually if you deep fry properly the food doesn’t absorb very much oil and the fish is steamed within its casing.

To give these pakoras a fighting chance:

1. have enough oil to cover the food you are frying 

2. have the oil at the right temperature – test by dropping a small amount of batter into the oil, if it sizzles and browns and crisps up quickly then it is ready to go. Unless you have a deep fryer with a thermometer you will to adjust the heat if the oil gets too hot or looses heat.

3. Don’t put too many pieces into the oil at once. This will lower the temperature of the oil. 

Fish pakoras with green pea dip 

500g flathead fillets or other firm fish

Batter

2 tbsp besan (chickpea flour)

1 tbsp cornflour

½ tsp salt

1 tsp red chili powder or to taste

½ tsp ajwain seeds*

juice of one lemon

½ cup water

Oil for deep frying 

Method

Mix all the ingredients for the batter together until smooth and thick. Leave the batter to sit for 30 minutes (in the meantime make the green pea dip – see recipe below).

Cut the fish into 10 cm pieces. Pat dry with paper towel.

Heat some oil in a deep fryer, wok or large, deep saucepan.

Dip the fish into the batter and fry for about 4-5 minutes until golden and crisp. Drain on paper towel. Serve hot with the green pea dip. 

Green pea dip 

1 tsp cumin seeds

2 tsp coriander seeds

 2 tsp mustard oil or other vegetable oil such as sunflower or peanut  (preferably not olive oil) 

1 -2 tsp freshly grated ginger 

1 cup chicken or vegetable stock

1/4 tsp brown sugar 

salt 

1/2 tsp paprika

250 gms peas (fresh or frozen)

squeeze of lemon or lime juice

Method 

 Dry roast the cumin and coriander seeds and grind in a mortar & pestle or spice grinder.

Heat the oil in a karhai, work or saucepan over a medium high heat. When the oil is hot add the ginger and stir for 3o seconds. Pour in a little of the stock (this will spit a little) and cook the ginger for another 30 seconds. Add salt to taste, sugar, the paprika and stir. Add a little more stock and allow to cook out until you have a loose paste. Stir in the ground spices and the paprika and then the peas. Mix the peas in and make sure they are well coated with the spices mix and then pour in the stock.

Allow the peas to cook in the stock at a reasonably rapid simmer until they are tender. Don’t cover the pot as you want to stock to reduce somewhat but not to dry out. 

When the peas are cooked remove the pot from the stove, decant the mix into a bowl and allow to cool slightly. Blend the spiced peas to a rough paste with a bamix or in food processor or blender. Adjust the flavour with the lemon/lime juice and serve with the pakoras.