Events

The Day of the Grill

By Ria / Beef, Desserts, Events, Poultry, Salad / 3 Comments / July 7, 2014

July 4^th… if you grill one day in the year, this will be that day! It has become so much a part of the tradition. The weather, the food, the whole atmosphere calls for it. And that is exactly what we did for our dinner on July 4^th.

The menu was quite simple. To start with, the basic of basics, grilled chicken. A simple marinade of sour cream and tandoori spice mix. Marinated in the fridge for two hours and straight to the grill. As simple as that.

The next item was a bit more complex. Spicy kababs! Cilantro and mint leaves, garlic and onion, and jalapenos, to add that requisite heat.

Mince all of them finely and add to the chopped meat. However, there is a secret ingredient that gels it all together and makes the meat hold together… baking soda! But you have to be very careful not to overdo it. Just ½ tsp will do for two pounds of chopped meat. Knead the soda well into the meat along with the minced spices. Form into kabab shapes, with or without a skewer, and lay on the grill. Not too much work, but awesome results.

What is a summer grill without a potato salad! But this potato salad has something special about it… it is made with grilled potatoes! Boil the potatoes till they are just about done, and then lay them on the grill.

They should get a nice char and good grill marks.

Mince some red onion. In a bowl, mix together mayonnaise, minced onions, and a spoon of madras curry powder, available in any Indian grocery.

Cut the grilled potatoes into bite size pieces and add to the mayo mix. Mix thoroughly and delicious potato salad is ready!

Something green… no dinner is complete without something green. Tender cucumbers cut into small pieces and dressed with sesame oil and mirin (available in Asian groceries) was the perfect accompaniment to the spicy meats.

Grilled sweet corn and rolls rounded up the food part. A fresh crisp white wine with a hint of fruit made it all come together excellently.

And dessert… we decided against a heavy baked item instead opting for a light fruit salad with ice cream. Especially as this was a dinner being enjoyed outside. Boy, did it look pretty!

Mangoes and strawberries cut into pieces, with a splash of lemon juice… and a sprinkling of brown sugar. Do not stir; just keep it in the refrigerator till time to serve. To serve, mix together gently and top with vanilla ice cream in individual dishes.

If you would like detailed instructions for making the items in this meal, including a shopping list for ingredients, do write to ria (at) pepperroute (dot) com.

Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

~Ria

Taste of Times Square

By Ria / Events / Leave a Comment / June 2, 2014

Taste of Times Square is an annual food and music festival held, of course in Times Square, at the beginning of summer. Around 50 restaurants serving food from all over the world, put up stalls along two blocks of 46th Street between Broadway and 9th Avenue. Held by the Times Square Alliance, this year marks the 20th Taste of times Square event.

Times Square area is home to 300+ restaurants, 30 new ones opening just within the last year. The best part of it is that whatever kind of food you are looking for to fit whatever budget, you will find it here. If Restaurant Row, 46th St between 8th and 9th Avenues, is the place to go for restaurants run by celebrity chefs, along Broadway you will find food carts peddling their specialities for as little as five dollars! In short, you can have a satisfying meal in Times square regardless of your tastes or the heft of your wallet!

This year, 42 restaurants participated in the event. Tickets are sold ahead of the event and at a number of ticket booths at the event itself. Each ticket costs a dollar, and you pay anywhere from one to four tickets for each item. The name Taste of Times Square is meaningful in that one gets to taste a lot of stuff.

A wide variety of cuisines were represented among the stalls. And of course, some of them were more popular than others, evidenced by the long lines of prospective customers. There were lots of stuff to drink as well. However, alcoholic drinks are not sold at the event.

The stalls vie with each other in the stall decorations, even though the space is pretty much limited. From craved watermelons to skulls, the decorations were eye catching.

Restaurant stalls owned by chefs with name recognition, also display books, CDs, and other merchandise. As many of the stalls are right in front of their restaurants, you can go in and buy the merchandise if you are so inclined.

And bands and individual players entertained the crowds with different types of music. People stopped and listened, munching their food.

Most impressive was the Cross Roads drum circle, with participating drums from all over the world. Anyone interested could go and take a seat and pick up the drums. There were many young children who seemed rather skilled. It was hard to tell who were more enthusiastic… the drum master or the participants!

As the salt mines I work at is located right in the middle of Times Square, my friend and I made it a point to be present before the opening time of 5 pm. That gave us a chance to reconnoitre the stalls and decide on what we wanted to try before the crowds descended. And it was a wise decision too. The place was like an ocean of humanity in no time!

We tried jambalaya, empanadas, bread pudding, kobe sliders, layered chocolate cake (remembered from last year’s event), quesadillas, and flans. Believe me, there were a few more items I wanted to try, but this was all I could do. And though there were many salad options going – a roasted beet salad and a chick pea salad really looked interesting – but on this occasion I totally decided to look away from them.

By the time we had our fill and were leaving, the crowds were still arriving. We were talking how it rained and poured during last year’s event. This year, it was sunny and bright with the temp in mid-eighties. How is it going to be next year? Who knows… but Times Square, it’s a date!

~Ria

Log In