Wednesday, 22 July 2015

The Big Yellow Door A.K.A "BYD"














Sakshi Singh | Editor | Foodie | Writer


Delhi’s June summer heat is a bang on when it comes to testing patience of Indian citizens. Meanwhile what would not draw your attention when while walking on the streets of Guru Teg Bahadur Nagar lanes, you suddenly have a splash of water on your face from the big cooler outside a big yellow door in the scorching sun?




Big Yellow Door, the name I have seen a plenty of time while checking-in on my facebook friends timeline and they all being chirpy about it. Untill I paid a visit, I couldn’t really make out what the hullabaloo was all about?




It was my dear friend who was so stern about us having a lunch there that I happened to visit it. Seeing the waiting outside the narrow bylanes of GTB Market, I gave up and asked him if we could go somewhere else. We actually went somewhere else in order to avoid us a long wait until within 10 minutes the waiter called to tell us that our table was ready.


When I entered the place it was not the walls that drew my attention but the long wood bar chairs that did. The menu was a smaller version of shape of the big yellow door that actually was again made of wood. My friend is a die-hard cheese lover. So it was not very long before he uttered a white sauce pasta, big cheese nachos along with a kit-kat shake and a green-apple mojito. When the food arrived it was actually hell-dripping white sauce pasta and overwhelming cheese dipped nachos that boggled me. The sippers were equally cool as you never want to miss onto kit-kat crushers flowing into your straw and relieving you of all the silly world stress. The mint in the mojito goes a long way to rejuvenate a whole new energy to beat the challenge called  the heat.

Despite being a hard-core cheese lover, me and hogger friend could not finish the oh-so-economic- pasta and came onto the remaining bits of nachos with a tangy fresh tomato-onion dip that came along.



At most cafes that I have been to and ordered mocktails or shakes with friends, its always the case that atleast one is a spoiler and nobody wishes to have it and it is finished just because you have money flowing-out of your pocket, but BYD surprised me.

The waiter came along with our check and an empty-sticky note plus pen to have our thoughts.
I hope to see my sticky note on their massive walls with doodles someday asap.
We signed off with smiles and walked on with contentment

We are Zickpea.


Wednesday, 15 July 2015

10 FOODS WE LOVE WHEN IT RAINS!


Bhayankar heat is all that we are dealing and dwelling in now-a-days. Let’s have a look at these foods for rains to have something to look forward to-

      1.  Coffee- That time when you are drenched in rains and as soon as you come home and dry yourselves, your mother brings in a hot cuppa.


     2.  Masala Tea- If you are a tea lover, a book, a balcony, and a cup of masala tea. You are sorted.


      3Bhutta- Roasted on coal, it can be seen from a distance while you are driving and you tend to stop to grab a whole.




      4. Pakode- Any mixture of vegetables, aloo, gobhi, lauki. Men of the household are known to have the trademark dialogue- “Pakode ho jaayein?”


     5. Chaat- The whole some chaat whose spices kept you away in scorching heat, in rains, you have your intestines yearning for the local chaat.




     6. Bhelpuri- Mumbai rains and chaupati bhel. Nobody would miss it for the world. Or do you like to make your own at home with some extra imli chutney?



     7. Samosa- You agree that samosas taste a lot better in monsoons.




     8. Hot Soups- Tomato, Hot ‘n’ Sour, Peking, Chicken soups and TV for long.



     9. Baingan Bharta- rains are a perfect time to have your mum-cooked bharta and relish it on family dinners.





     10. Litti-Chokha- This Bihari dish is a national favourite now. Try it in monsoons, and you will love that litti.







Monday, 13 July 2015

6 LARGEST FOODS PREPARED ON EARTH!

HARDIK MAHI | FOODIE | BLOGGER













1. BIG CHOCOLATE

Almost everybody gets some itch everytime they hear ‘chocolate’. Well here is something for you to make to jump so high beyond the world then. A very BIG chocolate bar.
     

The largest chocolate bar weighed 5,792.50 kg and was created by Thorntons plc (UK) in Alfreton, Derbyshire, UK on 7 October 2011. The chocolate bar measured 4.0 m by 4.0 m by 0.35 m . The ingredients were sugar, dried whole milk powder, cocoa butter, cocoa mass, butter oil, emulsifier.



 2. BIG CAKE
The largest cake sculpture was achieved at Westfield .


The cake was served up in over 12,000 portions to the general public, in return for donations to the Make-A-Wish charity, which supports children with life-threatening illnesses.

3. BIG PIZZA

Pizza is always tasty,  isn’t it ? What if I tell you that your pizza is not going to finish till eternity?

No ? Well have a look to the largest pizza in the world. God bless people who made it :D


 4. BIG ICE CREAM

Heaven ! Some people just deserve a place in heaven right ?

This colorful very big ice cream has everything to make to fall in love with this world J

 5. BIG ROTI

The largest chapati is 145 kg and was made by Dagdu Seth Ganpati Sarvajanik Mahotsav (India), in Jamnagar, India. The chapati was made on a metal plate measuring 3 m by 3 m .



 6.  BIG POPCORN BALL


You can now watch hundreds of movies in a row without getting running out of pop corn. Don’t laugh. It’s not lame. K









Wednesday, 8 July 2015

9 perfect food shows to look out for



Sakshi Singh
Senior Editor| Foodie | Blogger











Culinary culture is on a sky-high in India at the moment and if you add a dash of lifestyle into it, the plate serves right. Here is a list of 9 food shows on the Indian television that are an absolute delight to watch.

1.  Highway On My Plate aka HOMP- Indian cuisine grabs my special interest be it any state, the traditional food served on highways and local delicacies as tasted and judged by Rocky and Mayur are a treat to the eyes. Don’t forget to look out for their episode ending poetry on food.


2.Eat Street- Like most Fox Traveler shows, this one is again awesome. The comic James Cunningham is letting us know the food trucks popping up in North America. Food Truck stories and their specialties, we are in for a treat.


3.Zee Khana Khazana- It is one of the oldest cookery shows on the Indian television started in 1993. Humble Sanjeev Kapoor always had amazing recipes to share which were a talk amongst the kitty aunties of the society. Prosperity and popularity boomed in and now it’s a channel! 


4.MasterChef India- Though a derived version of Masterchef Australia, the perfect judges and a whole variety of new dishes that they explore amidst the competition demands a total salute.


5.Gourmet Central- This show by host and chef Vicky Ratnani made gourmet food look so easy and within reach of people sitting at home. 


6.Food Safari- For those of you who have a knack for history and origin of food cuisines across the world, this show will serve you right. Maeve O’Meara is an inquisitive host who has explored almost all from Jewish food to Syrian, from Italian food to Indian. The Indian food safari included Palak Paneer and delectable coconut barfi.


7.Sugar Stars- With and IMDb rating of 8.2, the friends-turned-business partners, Elle, Casper and Yoganda have sure catched some eyes by designing eye-popping sweet tables and telling tales of what it takes to fulfill such big orders with a classic finish.


8.Zayka India Ka- again a humble host Vinod Dua taking his small steps to the by lanes and streets of our country sampling the delicacies and the wide spread street food it offers.


David Rocco’s Dolce India- Apart from being a renowned actor and producer, David is an Italian chef too. Or maybe, the other way round we can say. What grabbed my attention the most was his praise of Indian cooking and accepting that more techniques are involved here as compared to Italian cooking. It was a sight to watch him cook on the top of a Rajasthan fort along with a cook of the Maharajas.




Wednesday, 24 June 2015

Om ji's Chole Bhature


Isha Chaudhry
Dreamer, Foodie, Blogger







Everyone has some special childhood memories. Mine is the chole bhature Sundays.Ever since I was 7 we eat Om ji's chole bhature once every month.





Located on Desh Bandhu Gupta road in Karol Bagh, then it was just a small corner where you had to take your own utensils to take the chole home.

Years later it is more successful, larger and flourished. It is no longer just a small shop on the corner.They have renovated and expanded, but the taste has never changed.It is still the same old amazingly and adequately spicy and delicious chole along with the perfectly made bhature, rich with butter to tease your taste buds and give you a sumptuous meal on a laid back Sunday. Also now you dont have to worry about taking some utensil because now they pack the food in airtight sealed containers. So whenever we are just too tired to cook something we just drive off to get our special. My special Sundays still go on and I love it.


So what's your chole bhature story? Share with us at info.zickpea@gmail.com

We are Zickpea.

Monday, 22 June 2015

Food and Yoga




While celebrating International Yoga Day, we bring to you some habits and food that would help nurture your body along with the Yoga asanas.

1. Self-Discipline- This principle is followed in every aspect of yoga and therefore in the eating involved too. Whatever you eat must be in moderation and nor in excess as to banish all the good benefits of Yoga.

2.    Sweet Fruits- Fruits which are naturally sweet aid a lot in increasing the metabolism of your body along with Yoga. These include apples, raisins, pears, kiwis, apricots.

3. Milk Products- As “satvic” foods are recommended for people practising Yoga; these include all the milk products from paneer to yoghurt.


4. Avoid onions and garlic- Satvic foods always involve food which lead to purification of body, mind and soul. Onions and garlic are said to be dark and dull and falls under the category of Tamasic foods.

 5. Anti-oxidants- Coffee and Tea leads to insomnia, nervousness, extra calories too. Therefore, limit its intake to maximum 2 cups a day. You can also opt for Herbal tea or Green tea.

6. Spices and Alcohol- Low spice content is recommended. Alcohol is considered to be a “nutrient-thief” and also weakens an individual mentally and physically.


7.  Plant-Based Oils- this include-Olive, Safflower, Sesame, Sunflower oil.


These practices and choice of food-eating might not work overnight. However, if you follow it for a considerable period of time along with Yoga, it is sure to instil purity in your lifestyle.

How far have you gone to change your lifestyle with yoga?
Share with us your before and after story at info.zickpea@gmail.com


We are Zickpea.

Friday, 19 June 2015

10 MINUTES FOOD FOR SCHOLARS


Hardik Mahi
Writer, Foodie, Blogger







Well most of those who go through this website are students I suppose.
So here is something really helpful for those who immerse themselves in books (not because they want to but because they have to :p) and can’t spare time to cook when they really want something delicious to eat ( pizza is not good for health dude. Don’t order it :p ) and let’s not say anything about maggi
(2 minutes silence) .
You cannot understand the importance of mid-night food or can-be-cooked-in-10-minutes-still-yummy  food unless you’re a student.
Thus I would like to bring you some really easy-to-make and tasty-as-hell food to cook in less than 15 minutes.

1. BREAD VEG ROLLS

Sounds yummy ? Well it tastes yummier. It’s nothing but the bread browned to be crunchy and stuffed with vegetables and rolled and served. Any left-over vegetables your mother cooked last night and keeps on scolding for not eating it can be enjoyed with such a delightful savour.


2.   PANEER SALAD
Just some chopped pieces of paneer mixed with chopped tomatoes, peas, cabbage, mushrooms , olives, kiwi or anything you’re having in fridge. That’s it. 


3.   BHEL PURI
Put that bowl of aaloo bhujia down and add on some great spices and savours . To simple Aloo bhujia add some puffed rice( in case you don’t have that, only aloo bhujia can also help watering your mouth). Chopped veggies, coriander, and lots and lots of Chaat masala and spices (if you have a spicy craving and if you don’t, still add lots of spices, you’ll love it :D ). And you’re done.


4.   OMELETTE  TOAST
I was just cooking some omelette and my little sisy just slipped a bread slice into the pan :p . And it turned out to be the most aromatic and delicious thing ever :p


5.   NUTELLA SANDWICH
Hey sweet tooth people ! There’s something for you. T’s the easiest the tastiest and the chocoliest. Go get a nutella nad do it !!



6.   BANANA CHAAT
Chopped bananas in a bowl covered with coriander and chaat masala and lemon juice. That’s it. Ready to eat. 





share with us your 10 minute recipes at- info.zickpea@gmail.com

We are Zickpea.
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