my article in WE

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My publication,WE

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Yammi ……….Roties

this article was published in WE

Food  is the art of many cultures.So if globalization of food causes to losing the authenticity of food than will my generation next ever get to taste the actual food of their own land? What bothers me is from Mc Donald’s to subway to dinner every alternate days and no knowledge about what cooking was prevailed in our own land  “mere khet  ki maati ke anaaz ki roti”?Rotti is the staff of life-who knows it better than the people of our country? Every region in India has its own rendition of the roti. It evolved with the geographic location…..the change is usually dependent upon the type of crops grown locally. Let’s take a look at the various types of Indian roties; let’s talk about their taste and their nutritive values!

Talking of diets one day, a friend said she could give up anything but roti. I said, No, the other stuff was more fun. But she said Think about it: would you enjoy alu gosht without it? Or gobi matar? Or dal? And she was right: there are days when I try to cut down the number of rotis in my lunch and the meal becomes boring. However delicious the daal sabzi, they're incomplete. How does one describe the taste of a roti? It's not salty or sweet or anything; it's a wrapper, a foil, a base for other tastes. The roties described here surely sandwiched the smell of their own just make and enjoy!

When I guess back on your cereals and grains….what is the one grain that sticks out? If I guessed wheat or rice, then you love me and that means I am a loyal person for you. But in all seriousness, yes you people eat the same types of cereals/grains, roti/rice everyday. And this may be very neurotic but I make sure to eat rotties of different grains with at least lunch or dinner (or both!) each day….why you may ask? Well I hope this isn’t too difficult, and you will see, it gets things moving. Whenever any of my close one complain to me about their health or……any food related issues, I always say, eat roties of different grains each day. I kid you not, it works. And when one of the customers for wheat flour at our local grain shop wonders why I buy 7 sac packages of different grains at a time and asks how many milch cattle’s have you?  I just smile and let him think that

yes, we are five family members that is why I just bought out  whole stock of grains in the shop, and to save him from knowing my trick of healthy grains.

Lets talk about Some less popular and cotemporary(multigrain) ROTI WITH some of the  grain separately then celebrate the fare……

When I was a child bajra was a staple. And grown organically in our rain fed farm. They used to make sour rabri for breakfast, and often took the lead in a meal. My bagri  grandma knew a bajra trick or two. But it wasn’t until I was in my thirties that I got perfection in making bajra roties.

For bajra roti hot water is used to knead flour using press and fold method.

Bajra roti contains iron, phytochemicals that lower cholestoral falate, magnesium copper, zinc, and vitamins E and B complex.it packs an additional punch since it contains all 13 essential aminoacids. Bajra is good for bones and has higher energy content then other flours. It is rich in calcium and unsaturated fats which are good for the body. It’s good to eat bajra roti in the winter. .Bajra is good for bones and has higher energy content than other flours. It is also rich in calcium and unsaturated fats which are good for the body. Bajra roties are ideal for Anaemics.

SORGHUM ROTI

Sorghum is rich in potassium and phosphorus and also has good amount of calcium with small amounts of iron and sodium. It maintains the health of heart, controls arthritis and body weight..

Sorgham roti   is somewhat difficult to role, instead of rolling pin, hands are used to shape the sorghum dough into a round, flat, thin circle. Because sorghum flour is gluten-free flour, it’s very tough to spread the dough without breaking the shape, and one really needs hands-on experience and many failed attempts to get the skill.

Making a prefect sorghum roti is a skill that I wanted to master with all my heart. For me, it is not just a recipe, but an Indian tradition that I wished to be a part of. The process is difficult to explain in written words and pretty much useless. Again this is one of those recipes, where one must be in the kitchen next to the cook, to know what they are talking about. One really needs a visual experience to understand the recipe..

Prepare dough by gradually adding and mixing hot water. After a rest period of 10 to 15 minutes, the dough is kneaded using press and fold method and divided into lemon sized balls. Then, using palm of the right hand, on a flat board, the dough is spread into flat, thin round. The method description sounded very  easy, but…………don’t know why?

I have never been successful with sorghum roties though. For all other roties , yes, but sorghum roties  always come out  cracked and fringed edges. I have never known  what that might be, but this time decided to be especially careful when kneading dough for these sorghum roties (see the picture). I love kneading, it makes me feel authentic and strong, and that moment when you feel the dough turn very smooth and know it’s done, it rocks. Whether it was that extra care or just the benefit of experience I don’t know but I’m glad to say  these roties were perfectly round and smooth on edges. Here a shot of these yammy roties.

The shape is a bit peculiar, but it had a good crisp crust about which I am particularly pleased.

THE BEST ROTI OF ALL

THE rule of the thumb to get the healthiest roti is combining the flours. roti’s are one of the best ways of adding in different grains. It's ideal to mix various flours with wheat to get the best of all. Eating only a particular kind of flour can cause deficiencies of specific nutrients. Don't ignore wheat if you are not allergic to it because it is high in folic acid and is also easier to digest than other flours. Refining of the whole wheat grain drains out most of the nutrients and hence mixing other flours can make it more wholesome.

Not to say about roti’s with different grains each day, roti with mix of several grain flour is fairly standard fare in my household.  I always mix flour of different  grains to prepare it to make roti, usually I prefer  a grain a day for each day of a week.  This particular roti was so yum that I have to share.  The combination of flours sort of elevates it beyond ordinary.  If you've never had a multigrain roti at your house you're really missing out.  These roties are delicious and are, apparently, scandalously healthy.

Use your excretion to choose your roti and inculcate your own palate  from above roties only then you will feel that Indian food is really Naturopathic and so good for you.

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I am in WE

 When I guess back on your cereals and grains….what is the one grain that sticks out? If I guessed wheat or rice, then you love me and that means I am a loyal person for you. But in all seriousness, yes you people eat the same types of cereals/grains, roti/rice everyday. And this may be very neurotic but I make sure to eat rotties of different grains with at least lunch or dinner (or both!) each day….why you may ask? Well I hope this isn’t too difficult, and you will see, it gets things moving. Whenever any of my close one complain to me about their health or……any food related issues, I always say, eat roties of different grains each day. I kid you not, it works. And when one of the customers for wheat flour at our local grain shop wonders why I buy 7 sac..read the whole article here and HERE
My another post on roties is HERE

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My next featured article
Being daughter of an air force officer, I travelled throughout the country yes ! to all far flung places my father would get posted to.Again life in the defence forces is bereft of caste, religion and creed. One is just a human being! Not so in Our University…ie in My Alma-Ata ….. It was initially extremely difficult and claustrophobic to adjust to such an environment, having been brought up so liberally. But I learnt the ropes with time and tried my best to remain unaffected……..anyhow as I travelled a lot , so my knowledge of various cultures is pretty good. This helps me in my writing work for different magazines.
First thing first ……my love for traveling was developed very early because of our nomadic life….and I love to travel a lot………and wrote this experience based article for ERA…………….HERE IT IS……..

Double click to read
you can read the article HERE

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I am featured in

My article "DEEPAWALI CLEANING BONANZA –DO IT YOURSELF” has been published in Woman’s Era magazine (Delhi Press) you can read the article here.

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 Happy reading!