Hey..
Do you know how to cook?
Ofcourse.
I can...
boil eggs,
make chai,
cook Maggie!
So these were my recipes.
And on the other hand, there were dishes like
Shahi Paneer,
Murg Musallam,
Dum Aloo Lakhnawi!
And I was like....I cannot cook these!
So let's just....order!
Plus, I always thought that once I start earning
I will just hire a cook.
But the main reason why I did not learn cooking was
rebellion!
Because if boys don't cook, then why should I cook?
But then reality happened
and I learnt two harsh truths about life.
1. It is 'Mission Impossible' to find a good cook who is clean and hygienic.
2. Both boys and girls, should learn how to cook.
See, eating out is good. It adds variety.
But you can't do that everyday,
it will screw your body.
And all the fitness classes and nutrition certifications taught me one basic thing..
A home-cooked meal takes care of your digestive system.
A good digestive system, takes care of your health.
Good health, makes you active; that makes you productive
and productivity leads to a great career, good friends, more money
and that is how you become the Super-Hero of your story.
So if you want to become a Super-Hero, you need to learn how to cook!
Hence, proved!
So today I am going to tell you what all you need in the kitchen
to start cooking.
How I transitioned from Maggie to Palak Paneer and Biryani.
But most importantly, in the end, I'll give you a Bonus Tip
so that even if you hate cooking, you will start enjoying it.
But before that, if you like me or if you like what I am saying
then make sure you hit that big-fat 'Like' Button.
Let's begin.
So today I am going to tell you how you can learn cooking
like I did in just 5 days!
Let's start with Day 1.
Before you can even think of cooking,
you first need to organise your kitchen.
So take our your notes, because I am going to tell you
what all you need to shop for, from the Super-Market or your local Sabji-Mandi.
I have divided the kitchen supplies into 6 categories.
First is spices. Let's start with the basic ones.
Turmeric, Salt, Red Chilli Powder, Jeera, Rai, Coriander Powder, Jeera Powder and Garam Masala Powder.
That's all the spices you will ever need (as a beginner!)
The final category is Hara-Masala.
Coriander Leaves, Curry Leaves and Green Chillies.
I strongly suggest that you buy them fresh every week.
Next thing you need in your kitchen are called, 'Staple Items'.
These are the things that you must have in your kitchen.
Onions, Tomatoes, GG Paste, Atta, Rice, Bread and Oil.
Incase you want to know which oil is best for weight loss and for health
then check out this video. I have left the link in the description.
Next are, vegetables.
Basic veggies are Potatoes, Okra, Green Peas, Cauliflower and Mushrooms.
You can make like a gazillion permutations and combinations using just these.
For salad, get some Carrot, Cucumber, Raddish or Beet-Root.
Just get one of these every week.
And don't forget the lemon!
I know I missed a lot of vegetables, especially the one's that are local to your state
but it's your job to find out what they are and then tell me,
which state you are from and what is the vegetable that is local to you.
For example, I am from Hyderabad
and we have 'Ambadey ki bhaji'...and I love it!
Anyway, next is Milk Products.
Milk, Paneer and Curd.
You will use these extensively if you graduate to making Shahi dishes or even Chicken
because they make the dish Y.U.M!! (especially curd!)
The fifth category is pulses.
In daals we have Masoor Daal, Urad Daal, Moong Daal, Toor Daal and Chana Daal.
Chana Daal is like my abs fav daal!
And then come the Beans.
Rajma, Kala Chana and Kabuli Chana (which is used to make Choley, btw)
You don't have to buy all of them.
For starters, just buy one daal and one bean.
And the final category is Non-Veg.
If you are a Non-Vegetarian, then eggs is like the best go-to breakfast option!
Chicken is the easiest thing to cook if you marinate it and time it right.
Then you also have Mutton, Prawns, Fish.
It basically depends on what you like to eat.
And that's all the things you need in your pantry.
If you want me to make a separate video, a Part 2
including the utensils and the kitchen-ware you need in your kitchen
then comment and let me know.
Day 2: Breakfast
Now that my pantry is stacked, on Day 2, I start simple
by making an easy paneer sandwich for breakfast.
First, grill 2 bread slices (you can even use a normal pan).
Take a bowl. Grate Paneer.
Grate some carrot.
Add a little curd.
Salt, Pepper.
Mix it up and my stuffing is ready.
I just place it between 2 slices of bread and that's my breakfast!
After that lip-smacking breakfast, I slowly ease into Day 3.
On the third day, I made daal.
It's the easiest thing to make because now that you have your spices,
it's just a matter of adding them one after the other.
Wash and soak the daal for 30 Mins.
I usually mix 2 daals together (Masoor and Moong this time).
In a cooker, add 2 spoons of filtered oil,
add jeera, turmeric, coriander powder, ginger-garlic paste and fry them a little.
Now add a tomato. You can chop the tomato or make a paste. I like to make a paste.
Add some red-chill powder.
Finally, add the soaked daal and fry for a minute.
Add some water, salt and close the cooker lid and wait for one whistle.
In the end, add some coriander leaves and you are done.
Make some rice, roast some papad and your perfect home-cooked meal is ready.
Now let's advance from daal to vegetables!
Day 4: The procedure to cook any dry Indian curry is this..
Add oil, jeera, onion and fry till the onion turns golden brown.
Now add ginger-garlic paste, green mirch, turmeric, salt, coriander powder and fry these spices for a few seconds.
To this mixture you can add any vegetable that you want.
Potatoes or Cauliflower or Mushrooms or Green Peas.
I am making Aloo-Gobi; so I'll first add Potato and then Cauliflower.
Close the lid and cook it on low-flame.
Add a little Garam Masala on top, mix it well and we are done!
Thank God for whoever invented this procedure,
you can cook any Indian dish.
The different vegetables used and the quantity of spices is the reason why
every dish tastes different.
Day 5. Now after you have graduated from the regular dry Sabji,
it is time to up your game!
I call it, 'The YouTube Cooking!'
Suppose I want to cook something complicated like Palak Paneer...
I'll search for that dish on YouTube and watch 4-5 videos.
My aim is to find a recipe that is neither too complicated nor too simple.
This is the one I like so far.
I write down the recipe on a Post-It and hang it on my fridge,
next to the other recipes I have collected overtime.
Now it's all about following the instructions to the dot!
I first get all the ingredients ready and lined up in order
and then the cooking begins!
I am not going to lie.
It takes a little bit more effort than usual,
so I reserve this only for Sundays.
But it's all worth the effort because in the end
the dish turns out pretty great actually.
And for that I cannot thank the cooking channels enough!
Especially, 'Cook With Lubna', 'Kabita's Kitchen', 'Bong Eats' and a blog called 'Maayeka'.
But the lady that I absolutely adore is Nisha Madhulika.
She literally taught me 70% of the cooking that I know.
So if you want to learn how to cook, go to her channel and subscribe right away.
And while you are there....can you please request her to do a collab with me? :D
But all the YouTube cooking aside, the one thing that you should always
know how to cook...is your family recipe.
My mom taught me how to make dosas and
my mami taught me how to make Biryani
and these are the 2 dishes that I make the best!
Infact, I think half of my friends are friends with me because I make Biryani on Eid!
So comment and tell me what is your favorite family dish!
And while you do that, make sure you Subscribe and hit that 'Bell Icon'
because I make Health and Wealth videos every Thursday, only for you!
And finally, here is the bonus tip!
As soon as you enter the kitchen, do not expect to turn into
Tarla Dalal or Sanjeev Kapoor.
Sometimes, you will put less salt.
Sometimes, you will put more Ginger Garlic Paste.
On some days, you will burn the whole damn thing!
But...you did not give up after you fell from the bicycle for the first time, did you?
Then why quit cooking?
It takes a week or two to learn how to cook
and I promise, it gets easier by the day!
Eating a home cooked meal makes you lose weight,
gain health and you can't help but
feel great!
Sure cooking takes time
but you are worth that investment!
Don't you think?
With that thought, I promise to see you again next week, until then...
Keep fighting, The Urban Fight, to be FIT!