a lot of things can be done with dressings. with a steamer, steamed vegetables, tofu, etc, are quick and healthy, and become exciting if a warm dressing is used as a tempering.

i’ve included here a bunch of 10 of them that i like, along with suggestions for vegetables that go with different dressings.

perfect as tadka - tempering -  to add to steamed things, a warm (or even cold, if you like) dressing for salad, or a base for a quick stir fry.

Ingredients for home-made garam masala

in general: heat oil, if it’s mustard oil then heat to smoking point; add things, fry for a few seconds, then drizzle over salad/steamed veggies or add raw things to stir fry.

any suggested oil can be substituted with something neutral like sunflower oil instead.

as i don’t have a photograph of any of these, i included a picture of the ingredients for home-made garam masala, which i made some months ago. roast, mix, grind!

1. bengali-ish
1-2 tbsp mustard oil
1 tsp panch phoran (equal parts cumin, aniseed, fenugreek seeds kalonji/onion seeds, mustard seeds)
optional green chilli / red chilli
optional chopped ginger

2. south-indian-ish
1-2 tbsp til (unroasted sesame) oil
pinch of hing/asafoetida, 1/2 tsp mustard seeds, few curry leaves
optional sliced green chilli / red chilli
optional chopped ginger
optional grated coconut
optional tsp of urad / arhar / pre-soaked chana dal
optional black whole peppercorns

3. hing-jeera
1-2 tbsp peanut oil
pinch of hing/asafoetida, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, dried whole red chilli
optional pinch of coriander powder

4. dhania-jeera
1-2 tbsp peanut oil
1/2 tsp each cumin seeds, coriander seeds, dried whole red chilli
optional chopped onions and/or tomato
optional pinch of garam masala, amchoor

5. sichuan
1-2 tbsp peanut oil
1-2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 whole red dried chillies
1/2 tsp whole sichuan peppercorns
optional splash of soy sauce

6. sweet-sour (date-tamarind)
1-2 tbsp peanut oil
pinch of fenugreek seeds, whole dried red / green chilli
1 finely chopped tomato
1/2 tsp  sugar or 2 or more chopped dates
fry till tomato is soft then add 1/3 tsp tamarind concentrate dissolved in 2 tbsp water (alternatively, juice of 1 lime)

7. garlic-spring onions
2 tbsp olive or peanut oil
1-2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 finely chopped tomato
1 bunch spring onions, green parts only, finely sliced
splash of vinegar (balsamic or other)
optional: add chopped coriander at the end, and/or leave out spring onion altogether
fry garlic with tomato for 1 min, add spring onion & mix for another 1 min, just warming through, not completely cooking. finish with vinegar.

8. aglio olio
2 tbsp olive oil
1-2 cloves finely chopped/sliced garlic
dried red chilli flakes
optional: fresh / dried basil and/or oregano and/or other herbs and/or chopped tomato

9. soy ginger
1-2 tbsp peanut oil
1 tsp finely chopped ginger
1 tbsp lime juice
splash of soy sauce, dried red chilli flakes / chopped red chilli
pinch of sugar
fry ginger for 30 secs, finish by mix in other ingredients.

10. cumin-raisin
1-2 tbsp peanut or olive oil
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp raisins
1 tbsp lime juice
chopped coriander leaves
fry cumin and raisins, mix in other ingredients
optional: pinch of coriander powder fried with raisins.

mix and match

pick one of the dressings based on the main ingredients you’re putting together.

for instance (in my opinion):

carrots go well with 2, 3 (especially if diced small - even raw), 6, 10
cucumber - cubed or finely sliced, raw or steamed - goes well with 5, 7, 9
cauliflower, broccoli, brussels sprouts etc go well with 3, 4, 10
cabbage, radish, etc go well with 2, 6, 10
aubergine, pumpkin, soft things go well with 1, 3, 6
spinach, green beans, other greens go well with 1, 4 (with tomato), 5, 8
tofu, paneer, potato would go well with 1, 2, 5, 6

the other day i took a never-used ice-cream maker out of the cupboard and made saffron-cardamom-yoghurt ice cream. with pistachios. and raw evaporated cold pressed cane sugar. tasted quite nice, but strangely things taste less sweet as they freeze. i didn’t know that.

should i post recipes? some people have told me to keep them secret. closely guarded, so they can be shared with some friends. artificially limiting demand to put up the price, as it were. funny, given that richard stallman uses the freedom with which recipes are shared to argue why software should be. at least i share software and other stuff i write.

anyway, here is a recipe. two actually. i remember they tasted quite nice, back when i actually sang “we all scream for ice cream”. they use neither a binding agent, nor churning. but i was obviously particular about measuring ingredients, when i was eight years old. i’m still particular about measuring things. i think attention to details is important.

but my handwriting is worse now.