Chef Vinod

A Culinary Journey through India - les Dames d'Escoffier event at Indique Heights

WHAT : A CULINARY JOURNEY THROUGH INDIA

WHERE : INDIQUE HEIGHTS

WHEN : MONDAY MAY 21, 2012

TIME : 6.30 PM

SPEAKERS : RESTAURATEURS SURFY RAHMAN & CHEF K.N.VINOD

COST : $ 58.00 FOR MEMBERS

           $ 65.00 NON MEMBERS

TICKETS :202 973 6178 OR for more info click here

Welcome Drink:

Kokum Margarita/Tamarind Margarita/A glass of wine

MENU :

STARTERS

DHOKLA ((Gujarat)

steamed - Lentil, mustard, ginger, chili

GOBI KEMPU BEZULE (Maharashtra)

Cauliflower, chili, yogurt, curry leaves

Crab Papad Roll (Kerala)

Maryland crab, shallots,green chili, coconut

MAIN COURSE

NELLORE CHAPALA (Andra Pradesh)

Fish of the day, tamarind, fenugreek

MALABARI CHICKEN CURRY (Kerala)

Chicken, coconut, ginger, spices

BEEF VINDALOO (Goa)

Chili, vinegar, garlic & spices

BHARWAN BAINGAN (Maharashtra)

Baby egg plant, tomato, cumin, spices

KEERAI MASIAL(Tamil Nadu) 

Spinach, lentils, garlic, chili &spices

DAL BATI (Rajasthan)

Lentils, flour, & spices

DUM ALOO (Kashmir)

Stuffed baby potaotes,home made cheese 

 KASHMIRI PULAO ( KASHMIR)

Pilaf rice with dried fruits & nuts

ASSORTED INDIAN BREADS

           DESSERTS

RASMALAI (West Bengal)

Cheese patties, cardamom, pistachio, milk

GAJAR HALWA   (  New Delhi )

Carrots, Cardamom, Milk, Pistachio

Executive chefs : S.Balamurugan and Abraham Varghese.

 

Easter at the White House

I had the good fortune of visiting the White House on Easter Sunday along with my good friend and celebarated chef, Sanjeev Kapoor. My last visit to the White House kitchen was when Walter Scheib was the Executive Chef many years ago. This time around we had the pleasure of Chef Bill Yosses taking the time out to show us different areas of the White House such as the kitchen, State dining room, red room, blue room, and even Michelle Obama's kitchen garden. While at the White House, it was a great pleasure to meet Chef Anil Rohira, an internationally renowned pastry chef who was  visiting from India. This visit to the White House was extensively covered by several news outlets within India including Times of India, Hindustan Times, Financial Times, Indian Express, Deccan Herald and so on. 

Here are some pictures from the visit.  

Almost ready to go into the White House with the book for the President & the First Lady -"How to Cook Indian" By Chef Sanjeev Kapoor

Chefs Sanjeev Kapoor and Bill Yosses at the White House

Chefs K.N.Vinod and Sanjeev Kapoor at the White House

L to R : Chef Sanjeev Kapoor, Chef Bill Yosses and Chef K.N.Vinod in the state dining room. In the background is President Lincoln's portrait hung over the fire place

The picture was taken in blue room of the White House. The portrait in the background is of President James Madison

In conversation with Chef Bill Yosses at Michelle Obama's kitchen garden at the White House

L to R : Chef Sanjeev Kapoor, Chef K.N.Vinod, Chef Bill Yosses and Chef Anil Rohira

In the background is a stage where a group was practicing for the next day when the White House was expecting about 30,000 guests

L to R : Chefs Sanjeev Kapoor, Bill Yosses, K.N.Vinod and James in the White House kitchen

With internationally renowned pastry Chef Anil Rohira

Putting the finishing touches on the Annual White House Easter Roll's famous Easter egg

A close up view of the White House Easter egg

Chef Bill Yosses taking a look at "How to Cook Indian" with Chef Sanjeev Kapoor. This book was autographed and given to be presented to the President and the First Lady  

Share our Strength's - Taste of the Nation - No kid hungry (2012) - update

The event was a grand success and here are some pictures from the event :

 top row : L to R : Mixologist Gina Chersevani, Chef Scott Drewino of Source,Chef Dean Gold of Dino,     Middle row: Lto R : Chef Adam Sobel of Bourbon Steak, Chef Marc Vidal of Bouqeria,Chef Nick Steffanelli  Bottom row : Chef S.Balamurugan/Indique group, Chef Haider Karoum/Proof & Estadio, Chef Jeffrey Tunks/ Passion Hospitality.

 

Varli Food Festival 2012 - April 5th - New York

Indique /Indique Heights is proud to be participating at the Varli Food festival in NY. Varli food festival brings together Indian Chefs/Restaurateurs under one roof to promote Indian cuisine. This year's event is hosted by Emmy nominee/top chef host Padma Lakshmi and one of the most celebrated chefs, Sanjeev Kapoor. 

What : Varli Food Festival

When : April 5, 2012

Time : 5 PM to 10 PM

Where : Metropolitan Museum , 
125 West 18th Street
(between 6th and 7th Avenue)
 New York, NY 10011

Hosted by : Padma Lakshmi and Chef Sanjeev Kapoor

Participating : Over 6o restaurants/ Celebrity Chefs and Restaurateurs

For further details click here :

                                                         Chef Sanjeev Kapoor 

                                                                Padma Lakshmi

 top row - (L to R) - chef Vikas Khanna, Chef Maneet Chauhan bottom row : (Lto R) chef Jehangir Mehta   and Varli Singh

top L to R : Chef Hari Nayak, Varli Singh, Chef Walter Rozario, Bottom : Restaurateur Surfy Rahman, Chef Alia leekong, Restaurateur Rajesh Bhardwaj

 L to R : Chef Prasad Chirnomula, Yours truly, Restaurateur Surfy Rahman and Chef Hemant Mathur.

   

Superbowl 2012 - Eats at Indique

See what we are serving for the Superbowl 2012 at Indique.

                                      

                                                             KOKUM MARTINI

You may also want to check out my Chickpea hush Puppies recipe for Super Bowl watching on Washington Post site :  http://wapo.st/xS7DmV

 

CELEBRITY CHEFS CONVERGE ON CAPITAL

CELEBRITY CHEFS CONVERGE ON CAPITAL

'Sunday Night Suppers' is a $550 per head dinner organized by Chef Alice Waters, Chef Jose Andres and cookbook author Joan Nathan to benefit the DC Central Kitchen and Martha’s table. The dinners are held in groups of 20 in private homes. Each dinner is hosted by two chefs and usually about 15 - 20 dinners are held simultaneously. Chefs are invited from different parts of the country and abroad.

This year, I was honored to be invited to host  one of these dinners along with Chef Ris Lacoste of Ris Restaurant. Ris and I met a week before the event and planned a menu. Given below is the menu that we served.I thoroughly enjoyed working with Ris. My only regret is that I should have asked somebody to take some pictures of the plated food...

My thanks to executive chef S.Balamurugan and my team for all their support. I would also like to thank Alexandra Perrotti , Daniel Korn, Marianne Helms , Jeana Harbison  who took the time out from their regular jobs to volunteer for a great cause. Last but not the least, would like to thank the lovely and gracious hostess Susie Tree for her hospitality and opening her beautiful home for us.

 With acclaimed Chef/Activist - Alice Waters and award winning cookbook author & TV personality   Joan Nathan at Joan's residence 

 Left to Right :ChefJoe Palma - West End Bistro, Joan Nathan, Chef Jennifer Carroll (of Top Chef)

 

  
 L to R : Chef/owner - Ris Lacoste from Ris, Susie Tree the gracious hostess and yours truly.

 

    Chef Ris and I sat with the guests and generally had some interesting conversation about food.

      In conversation with Mr.Bill Yosses,Pastry chef of the White house and acclaimed author.

 The owners of the Jamison Farm, Sukey and John Jamison enjoying the dinner with other guests. Jamison farm lamb is all natural, raised free range in Western Pennsylvania, is antibiotic and hormone free. John tells me that their lambs are never confined and are fed striclty on grazing system.

 White house pastry chef and author Bill Yosses with my colleague executive chef S.Balamurugan at the dinner.

 With Sukey of Jamison Lamb and Chef Ris Lacoste at the dinner. A special thanks to John and Sukey for providing the incredible lamb chops  - Jamison Farm.

    With Chef Nora Pouillon - who attended the dinner.

Overall it was a great experience interacting with such knowledgeable chefs. There is a lot to learn from each one of them in terms of their technique and approach to this kind of an event. It is really wonderful to know that DC Central Kitchen and Martha's table will benefit from this charity dinner and raised about $200,000/- dollars.

 

Restaurant Week - Extended at Indique, Cleveland park.

The Restaurant Week at Indique has been extended for another week till Jan 21, 2012. Please come and check out some of the new dishes on the Menu.

 Pork Belly, Veal cheeks, Achari 'Taco', Kokum Margarita and more....

DC Restaurant Week - January 2012

Folks, this is the time of the year, when holidays are over and people are slowly getting back to work. Our bi-annual Restaurant Week begins tomorrow. At Indique, we have spruced up our menu and have many new dishes!  Come and join us  for dinner - January 9 - 15, 2012.

The Restaurant Week Menu is available at - www.indique.com

 

 

Vibrant India

Indique Heights welcomes NEST DC.

NEST DC is hosting an evening highlighting in rich local customs and artisan traditions of India. The evening will wave a combination of cultural activities such as traditional artisan demonstrations (ikat, block printing, and beading), henna station and relaxation space, welcome traditions including bindis and flower strands, sampling of Indian cuisine, dance performances and a special speech delivered by Dr.Virender K Paul, Minister of Press, Information and culture, Embassy of India.

For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit : http://www.buildanest.com/nestination

About Nest Nest is a nonprofit organization that empowers female artists and artisans around the world. Using a unique combination of interest-free microfinance loans, mentoring from established designers, as well as a market in which to sell their crafts, Nest helps its loan recipients create successful small businesses. Nest instills pride of ownership, preserves ancient artistic traditions and successfully moves women from poverty to self-sufficiency.

Curry leaf drink on NPR

 Thanks to Monica Bhide for featuring my curry leaf drink on NPR. Here is the article :

September 28, 2011

 This savory beverage is wonderfully refreshing.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

1 sprig fresh curry leaves

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1/2 ounce peeled fresh ginger (about 1/2 inch)

1/2 serrano green chili, seeded (optional)

2 cups plain low-fat yogurt

2 1/2 cups water

Salt

Ice cubes, for serving

Cut the curry leaves into fine shreds. Toast the cumin seeds in a dry skillet until fragrant. Let cool and crush to a coarse powder in a spice grinder. Cut the ginger into fine shreds. Coarsely chop the chili, if using.

Combine the curry leaves, cumin, ginger, chili (if using), yogurt and water in a blender and mix well. Blend in salt to taste. Serve with ice cubes.

Variations

For a milder-flavored drink, lightly crush the curry leaves, ginger and green chili, stir them into the yogurt and water along with the crushed cumin, and refrigerate. Strain out the solids and season with salt before serving over ice.

If you do not want your drink to be spicy hot, omit the green chili.

for more on the article and curry leaf recipes: http://goo.gl/EaQni