On a lazy sunday afternoon...

Its raining  ...correction...its pouring and it being a Sunday,I wasn't really in the mood for the traditional desi khana.Wanted to tease my palate with some unheard recipe and thus,was born the 'Awai in spicy red wine and garlic sauce'.

I wasnt sure of how it would taste since I never heard of a fish called Awai in my life but being from a coastal place,I couldn't resist the temptation to try this particular variety.Oh!I follow ...'Variety is the spice of life' ;)

But,thankfully it tasted very very good and I gave a pat to myself.So here is the recipe(fairly easy,takes about 15-20mins)

AWAI IN SPICY RED WINE AND GARLIC SAUCE:-

Ingredients :-(Serves 1)

Awai - 1 fillet

Onion medium(chopped) - 1/2

Cinnamon - 1/2 stick

Cloves - 2

Garlic(finely chopped) - 1

Red Wine(depends on which 1 you like) - White Zinfandel (1/2 cup)

Butter - 1 tbsp

Powdered Black Pepper - 1tbsp

Garlic salt - 1 tbsp

Method:-

1. Thaw the fish and marinate it with garlic salt and black pepper and keep it aside for 15 mins.(You can also use powdered garlic,regular salt and black pepper)
2. Take a shallow pan,let the butter melt...then add the cinnamon(split it to smaller pieces) and cloves(crush them roughly).When the aroma of the spices fills the air,add the chopped onions.
3. When the onions turn translucent,add the finely chopped garlic and saute for 5 mins.
4. The onion and garlic begin to turn to a slight brownish color,to this add the red wine and cover it with a lid and let the wine boil in medium flame.
5. Once the wine starts boiling,add the fish fillet(I cut the fillet into 2 pieces) and let them cook in the sauce on a low flame for atleast 10 mins.
6. Use a spatula to turn the fish and let the other side cook for sometime until you see the fish turn to a golden color.
7. Add more wine if necessary,not to worry..you wont add like a drunkard after that ;)
8. The wine would evaporate and the onions and fish will begin to fry with sauce completely soaked into them.
9. Once you are satisfied with the color,remove them to a clean plate and while hot,garnish it with freshly chopped cilantro and its ready to be devoured.

Race,Caste,Culture & Society

We call ourselves educated and sophisticated but there are many such issues where we are ignorant or rather choose to be so and CASTE is one of them.

There have been many such incidents in the past both in my personal life as well as that of my friend's where friendship and love had to be shunned,all in the name of caste.And the majority of them that spoke like this are the ones who have traveled across the globe and did their masters.So,the question is,why is it that we...who consider ourselves much more forward in our thinking when compared to our older generations fall short when it comes to caste & culture?This has been one topic I had always been wanting to pen out but it took a note from a friend on FB to pour out in writing.

It is sad that even today we believe that one's identity is determined by the caste he belongs to and not to the individual capacity a person has.It might be surprising to a few to learn that there people out there,even today to whom their caste is more important than the person itself.Its such a pity!But most of them are like this because of the so-called society and the rules & restrictions that it imposes.The same society which is willing to rub shoulders with anyone for the sake of money would never agree if someone broke their so-called rules.And I say "so-called" coz there are no rules....its just an imaginary protocol that people have been following for generations and are accustomed to doing so that they cannot imagine beyond it.Are we really that naive or plain stupid to think that caste and race give us an identity?

This is a small blog dedicated to all my friends and the brave others who have broken barriers to prove their point in this hypocritical society.Kudos to you guys and you have earned my immense respect.