VALUING MYSELF (CONTD.)

Nothing much to say, after working with Action Aid in an International workshop it was great to work with Action Aid Kolkata. It was a consulting documentation project I worked on. Action Aid with the allies struggled for nearly twenty years for the recognition of the homeless poor but not much of their struggle was chronologically & systematically recorded. I personally visited the fields, read whatever was recorded, talked to their personnel, attended groups & meetings, met victims & survivors and finally prepared my report. Here is a press release I prepared to have a pulse of the entire journey. (It was later published in Development Milestone – an International journal of development leadership) with a little addition and alteration.

VOTING RIGHTS

“Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man [woman] whom you may have seen, and ask yourself, if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him [her]?” – Mahatma Gandhi   

The above quote by Mahatma Gandhi that emphasizes ‘poorest of the poor’ plays one of the key roles in formulating Management Policies in today’s Global World undoubtedly focusing on the concept of ‘inclusion’. But the irony is we find a different picture both at National and State Govt. policy making level while dealing with the ‘poorest of the poor’. Over a three million ’HOMELESS’ – a group of street dwellers & nomads are found in India who are the most neglected citizens and most of the times their existence even is denied. Citizens but not recognized as citizens. They are the liability of the civilised society and the Government - the most ignored poorest of the poor. As opposed to the above stated quote we find here a great deal of ‘exclusion’ which has been nurtured over the years.

ONE of the most important aspects of democratic elections is that the voting rights of the poorest people should be recognised and ensured. India’s Constitution clearly and strongly affirms the voting rights of all people on the basis of equality. However, to ensure that the poorest and the weakest can exercise such rights special efforts are needed.

The Representation Of The People Act 1950 clearly states:

The elections to the House of the People and to the Legislative Assembly of every State shall be on the basis of adult suffrage ;that is to say every person who is a citizen of India and who is not less than eighteen years of age on Legislature and is not otherwise disqualified under this Constitution or any law made by the appropriate Legislature on the ground of non-residence, unsoundness of mind, crime or corrupt or illegal practice shall be entitled to be registered as a voter at any such election.

Section 16 of The Representation Of The People Act 1950

 Disqualification for registration in an electoral roll-
(1) A person shall be disqualified for registration in an electoral roll if he,-

(a) is not a citizen of India; or 
(b) is of unsound mind and stands so declared by a competent Court;or
(c) is for the time being disqualified from voting under the provisions of any law relating to corrupt practices and other offences in connection with election .

It is therefore surprising why these ‘HOMELESS’ people are denied the voting rights when they are staying in a particular place for several years and are not disqualified on any of the grounds above. The entire issue has been politicised. It is pathetic that in the 21^st century a considerable number of people are still striving to establish their basic rights denial of which is compromising with the dignity as a human being everyday in every sense.

 In Kolkata, this year in 2014 after relentless struggle, hardship and fight 416 homeless people with continuous and active support from Calcutta Samaritan and Action Aid are for the first time going to exercise their Right to Vote. Though the number is negligible as there are approximately 70,000 homeless spread over Kolkata still this surely is a ray of hope and a moment of success for a few. For a long time the ‘HOMELESS’ people are struggling to get their rights and identity proof as a citizen. They tried to obtain BPL card, birth certificates, PAN card, Adhar card, Antodaya card and Voters Identity card. In the 2007-2008, approximately, 10000 people applied for Voters identity card and filled Form VI. Since they could not submit any other supporting documents all the applications were cancelled and they were tagged as “Bangladeshi”, though the majority of these HOMELESS of Kolkata are the migrants from various villages of different districts of West Bengal including 24 Parganas.They have migrated due to lack of the means of livelihood in their villages. During 2009-2011, 36 of the homeless community of Rajabazar with support of the then local Councilor applied for Voter Cards. Few received the same. With their enduring effort some people managed to get Antodaya Card, Aadhar Card, Pan Card and Health Insurance Card while some others got Antodaya and Aadhar Card, and few others have been able to get Aadhar Card, PAN Card and Councilor Certificate. Another category of people got only Antodaya Cards. On the basis of these documents, 1500 homeless people filled Form VI and submitted at their respective booths, out of which, 416 received their Voter Cards and the rest were rejected after hearing. This is merely disappointing and the grounds of rejection are not known.

Abani Patra,Secretary of Nabojagoron Moncho was born in Kolkata - the 22 years old young student of B.A 2^nd year, stays in Bagbazar, ward no.6.Even after possessing PAN card,Antodaya Annapurna Card and Birth certificate he did not get his Voters Identity Card. He went to the Jessop building and again was denied on mysterious grounds. However on the same day another employee of the same office assured him that his card would be issued. Ultimately he received his Voters Identity card on 24^th of April to exercise his right for the first time.

In this movement the leading role was taken by ‘Kolkata Nabojagoron Mancho’.Kolkata Nabojagoron Mancho was established in 2009 by the Homeless community with the support of Calcutta Samaritan and allies with the objects of sharing their views with other members, of being aware of their needs, rights and benefits - to deal with and claim them, of protesting against exploitation and using their strengths collectively in an organized way from a common platform to make their voices heard. Constant advocacy and awareness campaign by Action Aid and Calcutta Samaritan over the years made the movement possible and effective. They became aware of the processes to access the avenues hitherto unknown to them.

Sk,Azad , The President of Kolkata Nabojagoron Moncho,55 years old, born in Kolkata of 14,Canal East Street,Rajabazar,ward no.36 struggled all through his life. Now he is leading the community and majority of those who received their Voters Card are from this locality.

 

PS: I WILL COME UP WITH THE CONTINUATION OF MY PREVIOUS POST LATER

VALUING MYSELF (cont.) 

Dr.Uday Pareek, an internationally renowned HR guru - an institution by himself. He served IIM Ahmedabad over a decade, exponent & father of modern HRD. It’s always an honour for me to talk about him or make presentation on his theories. Once I had to prepare a presentation & I decided to take up his Transactional analysis theories. I talked to my mentor whether it would be wise to take it up, he discouraged me as in his opinion it’s a very complicated theory, it would not get through. May be my unyielding attraction towards the theory left me with no choice but to explore it.

The abstract of the presentation (I will upload the PPTs later)

Transactional Style Profiles of the Managers and its underlying concepts

Transaction in communication is observed as interactions between individuals. Transactional Analysis is the method for studying interactions between individuals. Managers need to play different roles in an organisation depending on the situation. In each role a person tries to influence other person with whom he interacts. One of the main functions of a manager is to influence others for the achievement of the work objectives .The role directly involves in helping others in various forms as teaching or training, consulting and counselling. The process of helping people to learn and change is essentially an influencing process – the process of making impact on the individual; his ideas, values, attitudes and behaviour. These influential roles not only impact people with their roles but also help them to become self sufficient and capable of solving problems. In this study we will learn the twelve style profiles a manger may have. The underlying concepts of the style profiles are the combination of Ego states (Parent, Adult and Child) and Life Positions (OK and Not OK)

Mentors are always mentors – my salute, one of the listeners took a genuine toll on me. She asked me how I personally experienced this theory- truly a food for thought for me – I will think twice before presenting any theory how it personally has an effect on me – as if all the theories in the world have to have some relation with my personal experiences or I won’t be allowed to present it. Nevertheless, to satisfy her needs I cited an example – a personal experience & thanks to her it opened my eyes & I came to know what a deep rooted morality this theory bears which apparently is not understood & how ethically I behaved without even knowing its ethical implication on the given situation. This is the beauty of the theory.

I was privileged to know Dr.Pareek personally & to attend his workshops. Now-a days people video play his workshops and few co-ordinators co-ordinate the group accordingly. I internalised two great learning from one of his very popular workshops -   Extension Motivation. 1) How to exercise power on a deadlock of any negotiation 2) How to handle co-dependence – it’s a situation when a participant is in continuous confrontation & contradiction with the facilitator. He handled the situation with utmost respect shown to the participant. I have doubts how many ‘Pandits’ are even able to conceive what I am saying. Might be lack of recognition and attention leads a person to behave in this manner, he even proved that he read much more books than Dr.Uday Pareek read.

Dr. Pareek once came to Kolkata for conducting an Executive mentoring workshop & invited me to observe the process at Hyatt Regency. With my surprise I found myself to be the only person from outside there – I was the observer. I don’t know how he developed such a soft corner for me I was then only on the cross-roads of my journey. He asked me to review his newly edited book (Organisation Development) published by Oxford and mentioned a journal where to send it. But unfortunately I was then going through a very rough journey & could not accomplish the task. I am deeply saddened for that. This simple attempt to bring his complicated theory back in use might be my small tribute to him. And a very interesting fact about him, many may not be knowing, he was a doctorate in Psychology but he took a break, came all over to Kolkata and done a masters degree in Philosophy from Calcutta University. And he used to attend most of the lectures in the University.

Here it is all for now. What is the deep rooted morality and theories of Ethics involved in developing these theories would be explored later when I will formally take charge of the research. 

PS: I have not been able to insert the power point presentation here,in my next blog I would post them as picture texts one after another

VALUING MYSELF

I have been writing for sometime without justifying the name of my blog. I have written on food, lifestyle, taken up reviews, for other forums etc I was wondering where is my mood then? I planned my blog to take a direction and I started writing accordingly, when it took a flight it was en-route to that direction. Today I have decided to be governed only by my mood. And it is a completely different topic, completely different field & would be a completely different approach from what I have been dealing with so far.

Philosophy being my base & mother subject I feel very strong inclination towards the subject though destiny took me somewhere else in due course as I got diverted to Training & Management. I have been planning to pursue a substantial research work on Philosophy in/of /&Management .As a ground work I thought of writing an article on Ethics in Sustainable Business Practices. The abstract has already been published in one of the journals of a leading Management Institute. I am in the process to develop it.

The abstract goes thus:

Role of ‘Ethics’ in Sustainable Business Practices and ‘Ethical Leadership’

‘Ethics’ is a Philosophical term originating from the term ‘Ethos’ meaning ‘custom’ or ‘character’. The classical term “Ethics” when applied in “business” includes not only the analysis of moral norms and values, but also attempts to apply the conclusions of the analysis to the assortment of institutions,technologies,transactions,activities and pursuits that we call business. The study would highlight a) co-relation between ethics and business b) the disparity between the mission statement and the unethical business practices of different companies c) how the unethical business practices lead to disaster d) how ethical conduct alone can resolve many problems & not laws, formulations of norms. An intelligent policy-maker or manager can think for better ethical alternatives for tackling corruption rather than to be tackled by law alone e) Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility.

 ‘Ethical Leadership’ is more than ‘Walk the Talk’. A leader who adheres to a more universal standard of moral and ethical behavior and inspires and enables people and the organizations to do the right thing is considered an ‘Ethical Leader’. The study would discuss the characteristics of an Ethical Leader, his role in fostering followers’ ethical behavior and sustenance of business.

I leave the topic here today. It is an open invitation to all my valued readers if you wish to provide any useful data,example,article or case study  on any of the points above so that the theories could be grounded I would be more than happy.

I would continue writing on the said topic may it have any direct connection with the article or not for some time now onward as demanded by my mood.

My e-mail id: arpitamukhopadhyay@live.com & arpitamukh@gmail.com

Its been a long time that it arrived and I started using White Superfresh compact – a product by Maybelline. Actually the common concept of writing a review is that it should come as soon as the product hits the market. Apologies for the delay to the company, sometimes to boost the faded energy we need to rejuvenate ourselves, similarly when the sideline subject gets an attention all in a while it all over again attracts peoples mind. No, no I am not justifying myself - can’t I claim this much space to breath? Jokes apart I was off to blog, actually after a long time I am back to writing blog.

Before I get into the formalities of a review article let me try to recollect when I first started using a compact and why. I remember since my college days I started using compacts when I desperately wanted to get rid of applying white dust - something called talcum powder. I have a comparatively oily skin and compacts act as ace for giving my skin a matty finish for a longer period of time. With time products evolved, now we get compacts that claim to give our skin a whitening super fresh feeling for twelve long hours! Amazing! This seems to be the strength of Maybelline’s White super fresh compact.
May be because of my background I cannot pen down any write up without having a fair knowledge about the company of the respective product.So, to put it in perspective this is how it goes : “From a small, family-owned business to the number one cosmetics company in America, Maybelline New York takes trends from the catwalk to the sidewalk, empowering women to make a statement, explore new looks, and flaunt their own creativity and individuality. Inspired by confident, accomplished women, Maybelline gives you scientifically-advanced formulas, revolutionary textures and up-to-the-minute, trendsetting shades effortlessly, affordably, beautifully.” (http://www.maybelline.com/)
Maybe she’s born with it. Maybe it’s Maybelline.

Maybelline New York is the world’s leading cosmetics brand, available in over 100 countries. By combining technologically advanced formulations with on-trend expertise and New York City edge, Maybelline New York’s mission is to offer innovative, accessible, and effortless cosmetics for every woman.
In 1991, the company adopted its current advertising slogan, Maybe she's born with it. Maybe it's Maybelline. tagline. The company was acquired by L'Oréal in 1996. Acquiring Maybelline gave L'Oréal access to mass markets in cosmetics.

Every woman is beautiful in their own way. From ancient days women used to use external products to beautify them to their choice. Now-a-days we get highly upgraded products at door steps .It gives us convenience, comfort and more choice. NEW MAYBELLINE WHITE SUPERFRESH 12HR WHITENING compact is such a new entrant. This compact powder comes in three shades Pearl, Shell and Coral. I personally use PEARL. It is dermatologically tested perfecting compact which gives a 12 hours super fresh look and feelings which is evident from its name. It comes with an enduring packaging with a hanging hook, you can hang it wherever you feel like. The palette is classy white with silver imprints with an inbuilt mirror inside. The puff is also white. From the very beginning the entire look of the packaging brings a cool freshness in mind. The compact would be perfect for those having normal to oily skin. It wipes out excess oil and gives the skin a matte finish. The texture is smooth. In terms of coverage it provides a presentable look when applied on a base or even direct. In my views it is very useful for daily use& especially for office goers as it gives a simple undertone look with an even positive shine. It is moderately priced and handy.A must for today's women.

All good things come to an end, so it is all for today. A little suggestion to conclude – an entire group of ladies having normal to dry skin tone is deprived of this marvelous product – a food for thought for the company.

"Forget China, India and the internet: economic growth is driven by women"     The Economist

In a weighty gathering,Chairman and senior executives from some of the world’s largest companies were launching the findings of an 18month inquiry into the future of global business. The speeches by the all-male panel touched on the challenges facing the world – climate change, poverty and pandemics, economic and political upheaval, the clash of cultures – and how business could help to address them.

The inquiry’s report called on companies to “redefine success”, “embed values” and “create better regulatory frame-works” that would allow them to meet their environmental and social responsibilities while generating wealth and providing improved goods and services. Ulf Karlberg, a former senior executive at AstraZeneca, the pharmaceutical company, and founding chair of the Amnesty International Business Group in Sweden, then took the podium as a member of the inquiry team, which comprised 17 men and two women.

To general surprise, he began by asking whether the outcome would have been different if the gender balance on the team had been the other way round, with women heavily out-numbering the men. “It would perhaps have been more brave,” he suggested, “more intuitive, and more practical, with some very clear action plans.” He added later that it would also have been a smarter team, because its deliberations would have had more dimensions and “less politics”.

There are both men and women today who imagine that the world would be better run a deux, with women taking their place alongside men at every sphere, not as expectations or tokens, but as full partners with their own identifiable voices.

Here we find women considered as both “equal” and “special” by a man with due respect to their quality and talent and with proper reasons. Traditionally, gender biasness would always like to categorise women as “special” rather than “equal” Women could be mothers, sisters, caring and loving wife, fun loving girl friend, strict and disciplined teachers but not as equal as man in any front. So, a “special” soft corner is generously allocated for women but not “equal”.

I, as a trainer when perform workshops on ‘Women’s Empowerment’  try to understand the mind set of women at all levels. Surprisingly I have come across a fact that most of them do not like to be compared with men, so the concept “equal” is generally not liked by them. We are a different entity, we have our own identity and we would like to maintain that with dignity .We should not get exploited or disqualified or mistreated because of our gender. And if our “Feminity” is treated as ‘Special’ it is no wonder because we are special as we are different from men.

I am not getting into the theoretical controversy from Human rights commissions point of view or  a Value conflict, instead trying to take up some incidents that shook the world.

In the legalistic framework, women have been depicted primarily as victims, men as oppressors, and companies as the scene of the crime. It began with pretty basic human rights. In one of the earliest sex discrimination cases, taken by Ida Philips against Martin Marietta Corporation, the US Supreme Court ruled in 1971 that an employer could not refuse to hire women with pre-school children while hiring men with pre-school children. In the UK in 1977, Belinda Price won the first indirect sex discrimination case, against the civil service. Since those days, the discrimination and harassment lawsuits have kept coming. In 1992, State Farm Insurance Company in Illinois settled a sex discrimination class action for $157m.

Lawsuits on Wall Street have attracted huge publicity. The women claimed they were denied equal pay and opportunities for promotion.

One of the obstacles to this coming age is the tension between gender and diversity which involves a wide array of complex differences: ethnic minorities, sexual orientations, religious beliefs, cultural diversity and gender. One can’t help wondering if the unquestioned inclusion of ‘Women’s issues’ under the diversity umbrella is not simply a tidy (and effective) way of ensuring that women are still treated as a minority. It boils down to a numbers game. To manage a minority companies take the view that it is important to hear their views, adapt a bit, and welcome them in a comfortable environment.

It is interesting to find out that women were seen to outperform men on seven out of 10 leadership competencies. This research was taken by Herminia Ibarra and Otilia Obodaru from INSEAD. They are :

•           Enegisizing
•          Designing and aligning
•          Rewarding and feedback
•          Team building
•          Outside orientation
•          Tenacity
•          Emotional Intelligence
• 
  

On this issue obviously women are not equal but no doubt ‘Special’.                          

We have so far discussed about the so called educated society and about women at workplace. But down the level at villages or the lower middle class group is still far from even give it a thought.

I have said earlier that men like to consider women as a soft ‘Speciality’. I would now like to pose two examples to conclude this article with a difference.

Niall FitzGerald, the Irish born chairman of Reuters and former head of Unilever, said in a Financial Times interview that his attitudes to the gender issue had been heavily influenced by his daughters: the first, a ‘feisty’ journalist, a young professional woman who successfully challenged his views, the second, still a pre-schooler, with whom he wanted to share precious time in the mornings and in the evenings (Maitland 2003)

Next is Eric Daniels, chief executive of Lloyeds TSB, the UK banking group.He has made a point of recruiting women into senior management.When discussing the importance of having a good balance of men and women at all levels,he often refers to his sister Diana, who was one of the first three women to get into Harvard Law School.

• The blog post should contain the mandatory code “I’m blogging for the India Today Woman Summit 2015 #WomenPower activity at BlogAdda.”

ref : Why Women Mean Business from Times Business Series

                                                                       FISH GALOUTI KABAB

Spring has grandeur, winter energising and depressing, summer boring without sea side, monsoon to me is always classical and traditional. Monsoon stays with us for over two months, so we enjoy innumerable type of snacks trough out this season. But while writing about monsoon snacks I cannot stop myself from choosing something traditional and classical. So, today I will focus on the culture of our country. From childhood we write essays on ‘India is unity in diversity’. Since I did not have much knowledge about food then, I could not write about intricacies of Indian snacks menu card, given a chance now, I would definitely write two paragraphs on how diverse the snacks of India is. Food in India is so diverse that a common Indian cooking recipe in one area may be completely alien to the people living from another region.

There are two things that make Indian cuisine so rich and so diverse. One is India's history. Over the years, many foreign invaders have crossed and stayed in India and in the process have left behind a mark on Indian cooking. To name a few, Portuguese, British, Aryan, Persian and Arab who have influenced country's history and cuisine. Second is how India values cooking. Here, Indian food is serious business. Cooking is not just an activity we do in the kitchen. Indian cuisine is special because cooking is considered as an art in India. Indian cooking recipes serves as heritage - something of value that can be passed on from generations to generations.

The Indian snacks are usually delicious and mouth watering preparations. Savouries like "Samosa", "Aloo Tikki" and "Vada Pav" are easily prepared and are commonly served Indian snacks. The popularity of Indian snacks grew because of its easy process of preparation and that they can be prepared at any time. The crispness and tempting tastes of Indian snacks is liked by young and old alike. Snacks vary from region to region in India. Some of the popular Indian snacks are "Achappam", different types of "Papad", "Murukku", "Banana Chips", "Bhelpuri", "Bhujia", "Bonda", "Bread Pakora", "Dahi Vada", "Dadpe Pohe", "Fafda", "Ghewar", "Gathiya", different types of "Halwa", "Jalebi", "Kachori", "Kuzhalappam", different types of "Vada", "Mysore Pak", "Namkeen", "Pakkavad", "Panipuri", "Pav Bhaji", "Potato Chips" and many more to be mentioned.

Today my mood goes with ‘Lakhnow-gharana’ Galauti Kabab.Galauti Kabab is a ‘meat ‘preparation, but I sometimes mix fish with minced meat .So, I have given the name Fish Galauti Kabab. I made it quite a number of times, but when decided to write on it, I started some reading on Kabab. Interestingly came across a Travellers diary which goes like this :
'Sometimes, one does not know when one is about to embark on a long journey to unknown lands in search of hidden secrets and treasures. This happened with me a few years ago. It was in 2010 and I was teaching at the Le Cordon Bleu in Paris when a Bosnian student mentioned the Bosnian kebab called Cevapi in class.A kebab made with three meats (pork, beef and lamb) with subtle spices and grilled to perfection. This prompted me to think about the different types of kebabs in the world we were oblivious to. Hence, started my long kebab trail. In my travels, I have hunted for the most unusual recipes and their histories and traditions to find the hidden treasures of kebabs.

The origin of Kebab may lie in the short supply of cooking fuel in the Near East, which made the cooking of large foods difficult while urban economies made it easy to obtain small cuts of meat at a butcher's shop. According to Ibn Battuta, a Moroccan traveler, in India, Kebab was served in the royal houses during the Delhi Sultanate period(1206-1526 AD), and even commoners would enjoy it for breakfast with naan. The dish has been native to the Near East and ancient Greece since antiquity. Even it is heard that when Alexander met King Porus, he offered him some Indian delicacies similar to Kebab. But officially Kebabs came to India in Mughal era and then slowly the same was Indianized.Kebabs are said to have originated and been popularised in Turkey. Soldiers grilled or smoked chunks of freshly hunted animals skewed on swords on open field fires. So, my trail began from Turkey leading me to many countries in Central Asia, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and even Germany, Russia and Hawaii.

The Turkish trail led me to Istanbul'. And she travelled all around the world in search of the source of Kabab and to taste them first hand.Some opines Kabab is originally a variety of Irani meat.As time passed Kebab got a dignified space in the cuisines of Middle East, Turkey, South Asia and presently Worldwide. In English Kebab generally refers to the “Shish Kebab” served on the skewer. In the Middle East, however, Kebab refers to meat that is cooked over or next to flames; large or small cuts of meat, or even ground meat; it may be served on plates, in sandwiches, or in bowls. The traditional meat for Kebab is lamb, but depending on local tastes and taboos, it may now be beef, goat, chicken, pork; fish and seafood; or even vegetarian foods like falafel or tofu. Like other ethnic foods brought by travelers, the Kebab has become part of everyday cuisine in many countries around the globe.

The phrase “Kebab” is Persian in origin and Arabic tradition has it that the dish was invented by medieval Persian soldiers who used their swords to grill meat over open field fires. Later on Swords were replaced by skewers.

Chelow Kabab,Kakkori Kabab,Tunde ki Kabab,Sish Kabab,Boti Kabab,Fish Tikka Kabab,Shammi Kabab,Hara Bhara Kabab,Galauti Kabab are some of the popular Kababs to name.
Galouti Kabab                                                                                         

Galouti Kebab was created for an aging Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Lucknow who lost his teeth, but not his passion for meat dishes. ‘Galouti’ or ‘Galawati’ means “melt in your mouth”. Traditionally, green papaya is used to make it tender. After being mixed with a few select herbs and spices the very finely ground meat is shaped into patties and fried in pure ghee until they are browned. The original recipe is supposed to have more than 100 aromatic spices.

Now my way of Fish Galouti Kabab

To Prepare Ingredients :
Fish - 1 cup boiled or fried ( deboned and shredded)
Minced meat – 1 cup boiled Chana Dal - 2 medium size spoon full paste Onion - 1 small finely chopped
Green Chilli - 1 finely chopped
Green Papya 2 table spoon full paste Oil - 1 tsp + for frying Coriander leaves / Cilantro - 1/2 cup chopped finely Chilli powder - 1 tsp Shahi Garam Masala powder - 1 tsp Salt to taste

Method :Method is very simple.Mix everything together. Give round shape. In a tawa fry on low flame for around eight minutes.Give it a standing time.

Serve with green salad.It goes well with paratha,roti and rice.

ref:
http://www.waaahkebabs.com/
http://food.ndtv.com/
http://www.indianetzone.com/food/
http://www.foodeditorial.co/

CRISPY CASHEW –CHEESE PAKORA

  

It was a heavy rainy day while I was going through my Twitter account and came to know about the latest update of Archana’s Kitchen. While my eyes could not make through the dense rain outside I was lost otherwise in the irresistible smells of the monsoon snacks.In the process of thinking of what I can make today and write about I felt an urge to read about the history of Indian snacks. Actually the romantic aura could not let me immediately jump into cooking but to go through some haunting snack food stories.

One particular story,while going through various stories simply left me dumbfounded. Let me share it with you. 

‘When the British armies set foot in India, their cooks were dazzled by the sheer number of variations of the same dish. One legend stands out of the crowd from the history of Indian food, British cook William Harold. William was quite an experienced chef, working for a rather successful restaurant in central London, when he was sent to India to help the war effort with his meals. Because his dishes were so delightfully well done, he was promoted to be the personal cook of a high ranking officer in the British Empire's Army. One day, the officer ordered William to get the recipe for a local dish he ate and thoroughly enjoyed that day, named by the locals Bhel Puri, in order to mass-cook it for the troops. 

Because there were very few written recipes in India back then (locals were passing on their cuisine with each generation, usually orally) William started walking from home to home, knocking from door to door, in order to find the recipe for the Bhel Puri, which, even today, is quite a complicated appetizer. With every house he went to, he got another recipe, another kind of spice to put on top of the potatoes and rice (seemingly the only ingredients that remained constant in the dish) and another kind of oil to use. 
                                                 
After a long day of inquiries in which the poor cook was unable to find a stable recipe for the wonderful snack, he returned to the barracks, beaten and amazed by the variety of semi-recipes he managed to pile up. Seeing that he is back, the officer asked if he could serve the first portion of Bhel Puri that night, but William told him he couldn't get any real recipe in his hands and ironically stated that "we'll have to stick to French fries again tonight, Sir!". Legend says that the officer, berserk with fury, took out his handgun and shot the cook dead, causing a mutiny amongst the barrack's soldiers, who were both fed up with the officer's cruel and disrespectful ways and in love with William's heavenly cooking. 
                                                     
That's how a small bowl of Bhel Puri (or should I say the lack of it) shook an entire British barracks and caused a long night in the Court Martial offices.’

The power of the snack though worked negatively here, the power cannot be denied. Actually in the monsoon season I am generally get inclined to Indian snacks or more to a fusion rather than a purely foreign recipe. Today I am going to make Europe influenced Indian snack that my family is very fond of.

         To make Crispy Cashew-Cheese Pakora we need: 

Ingredients

• 15 salted big sized Cashew nut
• 7 cheese cubes or 250 grams cheese slab
• 1 cup white Flour 
• 2 tsp Oil
• 1 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1/2 tsp Red chili powder
• 1/2 cup Water
• ½ cup milk                                 
• 3 table spoon chickpea (besan)
• ½ cup bread crumbs

Method

•   Beat the chickpea flour with some water to make a thin batter.
•   Let the batter rest 1/2 hour in a warm place
•    Heat the cheese or put in the oven for a minute or so to melt it a little
•    Mix the flour, milk, salt, chilli powder with it and make a smooth dough. Use hands first then beat with a beater until smooth
•    Cover the cashew nut with the dough to give it a shape of a cashew
•     Dip it in chickpea batter and roll on the bread crumbs
•    Deep fry in oil until crispy brown
•   Drain on paper towels and serve immediately.
•    Serve the cashew-cheese  pakora with green salad or coriander/mint chutney

Serves: 4 persons

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 5 minutes

Level of cooking: Easy

Imagine it's raining heavily outside and a plate of cashew-cheese pakora with a cup of hot coffee with your favorite magazine or book or music/poetry or with a TV show with friends,family or even alone.Even a snack can open a door to heaven,what else is more important on earth then ?

ref: http://ponniyinselvan.in/forum/

This recipe is an entry to Monsoon Snack Challenge for The Hub @ Archana’s Kitchen challenges.