November 07, 2006
It must be Election DayPolitics
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Senate candidate Jim Webb (D-Va), surrounded by macacas, makes a dosa. |
SM reader Anup tips us off to the fact that Jim Webb (who is of course running against George Allen in Virginia) tried his hand at dosa-making in an obvious move to appeal to the macaca voting bloc.
In Richmond, Webb was also subdued, campaigning with Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, a fellow Democrat, at the Festival of India.
Webb sipped drinks indigenous to India and posed for photos, stopping at one booth to help pour the batter to make a masala dosa, a spicy South Indian crepe.
“Jim just made the best dosa anybody has ever made,” Kaine told hundreds of festival visitors. Webb did not address the crowd.
Webb’s presence left the festival co-chairman, Ranjit Sen, to reflect on remarks Allen had made in August that belittled a 20-year-old Webb volunteer of Indian descent at an Allen campaign stop. [Link]
But the question is did he have have a bowl of sambar on the side? Failure to have sambar with his dosa may cost him many desi votes. It is the same way that John Kerry lost a bunch of Pennsylvania voters when he stupidly ordered Swiss cheese on his Philly cheesesteak. If I ever run for office I will never be seen eating dosas. If word got out that I don’t like sambar and that I spread equal parts ketchup, sour cream, and green chutney on my dosa I’d be finished.
abhi on November 7, 2006 12:14 PM in Photos, Politics · T·r·a·c·k·b·a·c·k address · Direct link · Email post
Do you SEE? Do you SEE why we were DOOMED? Eeeeeeyuck! Vote Sambar in '06!
That's impossible. My mom makes the best dosa.
Seconded. And while we're at it, Dosa and ketchup? Maybe Maggi brand TomPudina or SpicyTom.... but seriously, Don't hate on the Sambar.
"Drinks indigenous to India"? What would those be? Arrack, Thumbs Up!, Limca, Fruitee?
Don't hate y'all. The sweetness of ketchup, the sourness of cream, and the spicy goodness of lili chutney all combined and spread over a slightly crispy dosa is amazing. It is very similar to how Salk discovered that fungus on an orange was actually a very good thing for humanity.
The question is not whether he had a bowl of sambar on the side. It's whether he had an ample supply of Gas-X to get him through the rest of the day. The true test of his desi convictions is how he handles the gastric aftermath of desi food...esp. south indian food.
Desi, please. ALL brown food comes with a shady aftermath, not just that amazing goodness from the dirty dirty.
I can't BELIEVE I get dirty looks for bypassing the thenga chutney/sambar and dunking my mysore dosa in rasam, when Abhi eats...that. :D
indeed...I stand corrected.
How can you expect me to not hate?!?!?! This is a culinary abomination. It's like putting sugar in yogurt or Old Bay in channa (Actually tried this. Old Bay tastes good in just about everything I've put it in, but not channa).
And did the dosa induced courting of the macaca vote seem to reek of desperation to anyone else?
unknown #1: it's like this hollow dried stem with a serrated perimeter. it looks like okra but it really is a really un-juicy stick. you can barely chew on it. maybe it's like the desi Daton for cleaning teeth out.
unknown #2: this really dried thick flat leaf. cant eat it. if you do, it'll stick in the throat. (i know)
unknown #3: this large black pod that if you bite into just spreads this really bitter taste in the mouth.
i suppose the genius of the cooks is that put it all together and brew this in a large vat - and the sambhar is delicious, but individually - these things can poke an eye out or tear a hole in oesophagus.
I beg to differ. Sugar is good in just about anything. I will admit that I have also put homemade coconut chutney on ice-cream (ok, coconut sorbet). It was durn good ;)
NO! THERE MUST NEVER BE SUGAR IN THE YOGURT! *weeps*
true desperation would have been if he showed up wearing a dhoti. ;)
Has anyone tried to have bread dunked in sambar? It amazing...
unknown #1: drumstick- muringaka. my favorite. you have to eat it like an artichoke leaf, i.e. pull it through your teeth.
unknown #2: curry leaves- karriapila. i'm not sure if this is what you're referring to, since it doesn't get stuck in my throat...then again, i masticate. ;)
unknown #3: asafoetida- khayyam. never, ever eat this. it's very necessary for proper sambar awesomeness, however, so i respect its right to residence in the cooking pot. :)
Don't you like tasting a little sugar in your yogurt, Anna ?
*smirks lasciviously*
you rock...puliogre happy.
There are 178,000 Asians in Northern Virgina (some 8% of the state's population -- link to university study), including a large number of Indians. Northern Virgina tends to vote Democratic. Webb needs all the help he can get.
NO! I like very sour yogurt, which is why I hate most versions of kachiya moru I taste.
*whistles innocently*
gasp!! what about honey? brown sugar? vanilla extract? fruit? marshmallow fluff? not even for breakfast?
I agree-no sugar in the yogurt-sour yogurt is great esp when you make kadhi/karhi and majjige-huli/moru-kozhambu. but lil' sweetness tastes just fine in boondi-raita/dahi-vada :). there are plenty many people (like my dear bro) who have yogurt with sugar.
and i know just as many people who have dosai with ketchup, jam, peanut butter etc :( so Abhi, you have company.
enough thread-jacking.....
but i hope you see why a man should approach sambhar with a healthy amount of respect. poseurs shall get burnt or have their throats ripped out.
any kannada peeps in the house will know we like our dose (yeah that's right, we call it dose) with some serious alugade-iruli palya inside doused with any variety of extremely caara chutney, then served with even more chutney on the side. i prefer thenginkayi chutney (coconut)...but to each her/his own. mmmmm south indian goodness...
my ajji makes the best dose in the world, and any mutineer is welcome to sample.
don't you think there should be a "throw down with bobby flay" involving dose making?? it would be so awesome.
vote for regime change!!
hey - did anyone else notice the mami has an apron with the indian flag on top. had they made vebb vear vun ov these, that'd have put paid to his election hopes.
FYI- Sriram is referring to a very tragic situation in the history of the mutiny, which took place during the last NYC meetup, in Central Park. Everyone was so kind; they offered to bring wayyy too much food, including chicken and other non-veg dishes. Anticipating this omnivorous picnic, before heading to the checkout line, I whimsically decided to try out the Indian food bar at Whole Foods Columbus Circle, which is where I had gone pre-meetup for fresh fruit, hummus and other provisions. I was ready to buy mass quantities of everything, but something wise within stopped me and told me to try before I buy in bulk. I chose a few curries, got some rice and drenched the whole mess in moru/raita, b/c I didn't have high hopes for the curries or the rice. I LOVE thair/dahi. I can eat nearly inedible Indian food if there's enough thair on it.
THERE WAS SUGAR IN THE THAIR.
I'm so glad I didn't serve that mess to the rest of the mutineers that day. I took one for the team and ever since, people who witnessed that take-out travesty memorialize my pain by saying things like, "Allen taking Virginia? That's as wrong as sugar in the thair."
The best thing with Dosa is my mom's thenga chamandi...
and you thought I was Guju
Panjasara in the Thair - only Gujaratis do that.
I like Sambar, but not with dosa. It's all about the fresh green coconut chutney y'all. Abhi, I will give your concoction a trial, but I'm not so keen on ketchup itself (Pace, Mrs. Kerry)---some tomatillo or mango salsa, however, might do nicely. . .
unknown #1: drumstick- muringaka. my favorite. you have to eat it like an artichoke leaf, i.e. pull it through your teeth.
Ah ha! The sabji made of sticks!
"Drinks indigenous to India"? What would those be? Arrack, Thumbs Up!, Limca, Fruitee?
I wonder if they had Jeera Pani. That would be awesome.
nd did the dosa induced courting of the macaca vote seem to reek of desperation to anyone else?
Maybe he was just hungry. Dosas are an excellent breakfast food.
As a second-order representative of the land of Mishti Dhoy, I gotta represent for the sugar in the yogurt.
It is very similar to how Salk discovered that fungus on an orange was actually a very good thing for humanity.
Very funny, Mr. Biologist. You almost got me for a second.:-)
Clearly spoken by a Gujju ;)
my appa used to put sacre (sugar) in his mosru (yogurt) when he was little-- i don't think that's reserved for any one part of the subcontinent since we are super-kannada and appa grew up in ajhmer, rajasthan, and bombay.
i'm not saying i like it-- but i do like sweeter mosru over sour mosru.
hey-- when is the next SF Bay meet-up??
dude, sugar is TOTALLY a guju/bong thing. and i'm saying that as someone who puts five in my kappi.
Interesting...we are super kannada, and my dad grew up in ajmer as well...interesting...
Plenty many Punjus have their yogurt with sakkar or just plain white sugar :).
and then there is Shrikhand which is also sweetened yogurt.
Saheli, thanks for mentioning mishti-doi.
Actually, half Telugu on my Dad's side (born in Andhra but spent alot of his childhood in Matunga). I just have a mighty sweety-tooth ;)
coconut chutney with dosa, sambar to soak your idli in. mmmm damn i'm getting hungry and craving saravana bhavan back in india...
Sarvana Bhavan and Kadambam (in Bangalore).....Vaishnavi, i miss them too :)
Girlfriend, then you MUST try mishti dohi (sweet yogurt) from Calcutta. I was a believer when I visited Bengal. The best mishti dohi I had was in the Rajdhani train from Calcutta to Delhi...it was toooo good!
Does anyone like bread dipped in warm milk and then sprinkled in sugar? Yummy!
Let's be a bit more clear here-- I'm talking about sugar in RAITA, to go atop rice and savory curries. BLECH. I like sugary breakfasts and desserts. I love fruity yogurt for either occasion. I do NOT want sugar in my dinner.
ahh..i get it. I thought you were talking about suger in thiyr.
sugar in raita gets no love from me... my family always pours chili powder into everything, not sugar, so i expect my indian food to have that spicy bite to it, and sugar just messes all that up for me.
i prefer raita without sugar, when it accompanies other goodies. but there are times when i have boondi-raita or dahi-vada by itself for dinner and i enjoy a bit of saunth (a hot n' sweet chutney with ginger) and green chillies. with any other form of raita (tomato-onion-cucumber, grated carrots, aloo and my favorite lauki/doodhi raita), sugar simply would ruin the flavor.
i recall tiffs between the tamil and kannadiga girls in my lab back home who would contest whether Tamil style or Udipi style sambhar is better. the latter has just a pinch of sugar/jaggery added and one senior guy from Gokarna told me that it apparently means to balance the "kara".
ultimately its everyone's personal taste and what we have grown up eating, so peace :)
They've opened up a Sarvana Bhavan in Edison, NJ - it was :: eh :: decent. Definitely not the best sambar I've had, and I've had a *lot* of sambar in my life.
And dahi with sugar is gross. I prefer my yogurt to taste salty or savory. The *only* sweet yogurt I've ever been able to get down is Yoplait Whips - the chocolate mousse flavor.
have you ever had the mallu dish of (rice, yogurt, smashed banana, & sugar)? they usually have it at weddings ... kind of like a second course of rice (after you've had rice & curries) ...
i don't like it now ... but i used to love it as a child ...
hmm... i am not sure what this is ... but i don't think its khayam ... or at least shouldn't be ... a chunk of khayam is put in sambar, but it will melt down to nothing once the sambar is done
man i'm drooling for a gunpowder dosa with sambar right now ....
ketchup & sour cream !!! eeek what will they do next ... mayo & fries ;)
Oohhh gunpowder dosa? Elaborate please. :)
Rani - are you telegu/telugu? that's my reference ot 'gunpowder'. I didnt know there was a telegu version to the dosa. pls do elaborate.
hmmm.. since the sambhar thickens on those unknown exotic palate dancers .. i did some digging.
(btw - i love old sambhar when it congeals and you can scoop it on toast).
this is unknown #3 a.k.a. black cardamom.
and this is unknown #2 a.k.a. the laurel leaf
or at least that's what they look like to me.
Kadambam is anyday better that Sarvana Bhavan
and many people like their dosai with chutney pudi/ molagha pudi
you guys are making me hungry!!!!
gunpowder on idlis.... and warm sambar... and i can't get any :(
i haven't been to saravana bhavan stateside, only in india, so i can't compare. but the best dosa/chutney/sambar/idli/vada is usually found at the nameless roadside stalls along the highway. it's wayyy better than any "fast food" we get here in america...
to tell you the truth - this is taking me back to joshi auntie's cooking who is maharashtrian but would make these crazy dishes from all around india ... and the last time i visited she made this dhokla and i stuffed myself and she just sat around watching me chow down .. it was a very emotional moment :,)
i love my aunties.
"Gunpowder Dosa (Spicy Milagai podi dosa with masala)"
I got that from a menu ... i don't know if the 'gunpowder' is just milagai podi or if what exactly consists of 'milagai podi' differs depending on whom you talk to ....
there's the milagai podi that i'm used that people mix with oil/ghee and have with their dosa ... this stuff isn't that spicy ... gunpowder is a mix of that, red chili powder, and ??? (i'm not sure what else) ... but it definitely makes you sweat ....
hairy_d,
nope... total mallu over here ... (hence my question if anyone's eaten the rice-banana-yogurt-sugar concoction)
i've been told that "gunpowder dosa" is an invention for the west ... basically a really spicy dosa that you wouldn't get in an authentic south indian place in india ... i'm not sure how true/false that is ...
as far as your unknowns go,
#3 is definitely - karatha eleckha - or as you said black cardamom - i think there is another word for it in malayalam but i'm not sure what it is ...
#2 is a question b/c the picture you linked ... makes me think it is a bay leaf but i don't know anyone that puts bay leaf in sambar ... it always kariapela (its smaller and more dark green), i can't find a picture :(
We have a family recipe for a tomato chutney that is super hot, and I've also encountered one that incorporates carrots, which I ended up really liking.
well coconut chutney is can be red or green
somebodaay kill me now - all i got to eat in the fridge is some bagels and a dried piece of gouda. ggaaah
what, no leftover halloween candy?
p.s. gouda's good but chedder's better ;)
my ajji makes a fierce yam chutney...it's intense
sometimes dose comes with chutney puddi-- it's reddish and cara and incredible.
i'm really, really hungry now.
hairy_d: you live in the city dude, go to uddupi or saravana bhava!
i grew up with a lot of people from hyderabad... they all use gun powder.... usually with idlis and wadas, or mix it with rice with a drizzle of ghee... i have not eaten it on dosa but why limit urself.... whatever pleases the palate!
i think that what they use is called milagai podi ... hence, why my friends tell me that gunpowder is an invention
Yeah, my first reaction was that you were Guju. What are you thinking man? Yo, I have an insatiable sweet-tooth too (I demand that my jelabies be dipped in teen tar chashni), but even I wouldn't put sugar in my yogurt. This don't have nuthin' to do with the sweet-tooth and everything to do with keepin' it realz. Real desi cooks MAKE their own yogurt, mayne. Yogurt in your rice is to add richness and diffuse volatile spices so that your tummy doesn't hate you. Yogurt by itself is to clear the palate and punctuate each meat/veg sampling. And if you still want sweet, put some crushed boondi ladoos in it, but NO SUGAR!
This is such an abomination you should be banned without warning. Do you even know what's in ketchup?
Gunpowder is a spice concotion that is mostly heat, but it's hella good if that's your thing.
Tomatoes that have given their lives for a noble cause.
what all this gunpowder dosa nonsense?
best way to eat dosa -
sada dosa, thenga chamandi, sambar, and a nice hot cup of kappi (with the 5 spoons of panjasara)
for breakfast, of course
Unknown # 3 could also be Maratti Moggu (Piper Cubeba). I doubt if its asafoetida (Hing).
Gunpowder is made from roasted gram, red chillies and other spices. The roasted gram makes one really flatulent and hence the name Gunpowder.
i got nothin to say
just wanted to have a hatrick kannadiga comments
pc
At a tamil friend's place , I had Thair saadam which had pomegranate in it alongside a spicy tadka .It was awesome, sweet sour and spicy in each spoonful!!!!
an ode to the dosa
yaar sumiti - downtown yes - but i lives on wesside - booyashaka - wickedwicked - high park represent.
Shruti,
I stand corrected ;) I've done the plain yogurt with dinner (to cool out my avacai) but by itself, I still like it with a leeetle bit of sugar.
Fine. At least this way Abhi will have a dining partner.
Actually no. I am a total Guju outcast. I never put a single crystal of sugar in anything I cook. I dislike all Indian sweets too which is why my mom makes me baklava.
no need to hate, there's room for everyone ... even for you plain jane sada types :P
In rural parts of Karnataka, arrack is added to the dosa batter. Yummy and intoxicating!!
stop it already...I'm staaaarving!!!!
i love it!! we talk about dose and the kannada peeps come out of the woodwork!!
puliogre in da usa-- are you my long lost cousin??
no!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! say it ain't so
say hello to my little friend(s): son papadi, mysore paah, peda, ras malai, ...
Sugar in Raita is wrong, wrong, wrong, I agree.
I was hoping that a Gunpowder Dosa was pungent and smoky, not just really thick on the chilli. Oh well. Gunpower Dosas would be a great name for a Southie band.
Well, I make one exception. :)
Gunpowder rocks! I eat it with dosa, idli, wada, rice. Mixed with ghee it tastes heavenly with everything. Only a gulti would understand. I have had so many kilos of this mix shipped to me from India that my mother thinks I don't cook veggies.
I want gunpowder dosa, right now. :(
Hey now, don't forget about us Tamil folk as well. The Dirty Dirty knows how to represent!
*Drool* Which restaurant that sells dosa will have sour cream? *Drool*
I want Idlli, sambar, Dosa, vada, with the red tomatoe chutney, and the green mint chutney, and the gree chilli chutney, and I want the rasaam, and I was rice with papadam to have with my sambar and then I was the pumpkin sabzi (made south indian style) and I want the drumstick sabzi (also south indian style) and I was payasam and I want yoghurt and then I was some pickle on the side, and i wont mind some uttapam...but only onion uttapam. and then I would like idiyampam....those are the funkiest things every..they are like vermicilli noodles put in a circles and then you have it with something sweet, or with sambar...(i really dun care if you have stopped reading, you have no idea how foodgasmic I am feeling right now...) and then I wont mind EGG DOSA. My mummy makes the best egg dosa. with only the egg white. sometimes a little of the yellow seeps into the dosa, but hmmmm hmmmmm hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm... of cos, how can i forget the batata bhaji. The onions, and tumeric and the softness of te batatas, and then we have this place in singapore, where they serve you rice like you have not eaten for a week and then they will pour ghee on your rice like they are pouring the sambar, and u get your fingers dirty and you eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and eat.
*Drooooooooooooooollllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll*
ok this thread should be closed just for the fact that it's making too many people hungry.
I realise I sound like a 7 year old slob.
Well I am when it comes to south indian food.
I want to go home!!
From Pollster.com's liveblogging of Election Night -- exit polls from
Macacalandthe Real AmericaVirginia (as edited/corrected):Well, there were the Bo Idlis in Chicago about a decade ago.
I just ate some nasty-ass pea soup and half a bag of way-too-sweet-for-this-Tamilian granola and then I read THIS thread and now I am craving some of my mom's dosa with molaga pudi and onion sambhar. Okay, how much longer until I can go home? And I'd love to come to the SF Bay Area meetup, even if I am just a lurker/recent poster. :)
Oh, yeah, coming straight at ya from a Tamilian with 'rents who both grew up in Bangalore:
Dosa with gunpowder = yes
Dosa with aloogidde iruli = hell yes
Dosa with onion sambhar = decent
Sugar in raita = hell no
Do I eat raita? Hell no (I am a vegan :( :().
Yeah man. Giving up thayyir saadam with the tadka and sour cream my paati put in there was hell. Damn it. Screw ethics.
Trader Joe's carries bottles of "sambhar" (I love how everyone here spells it like it should sound without the 'h'). Although not much like real sambar, it tastes decent (like something else) and the nutritional value is just great, if you're having difficulty finding time to cook some night... The label says that it's traditional food in the "Sambhar region of South India". Anyone been to this "Sambhar region"? Got photos?
Importat hyphen missing. It should read I love how everyone on this thread spells it like it should sound - without the 'h'
There is also a variety of appam in which toddy is mixed in the batter and is aptly called the "kallappam"
Memo to George Allen:
Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia, bitch.
LOL!
who would've known that facist words, a videocamera, you tube, bloggers, and the state of VA who woke up to smell the racism would bring a potential presidential candidate down to his knees.
gotta love it.