Whole Bhindi Sabji (whole Okra)

 

This is one of my favourite vegetables and my eyes light up at the sight of the bhindi sabji. It is cooked in many different ways in many countries of the world. It is also called lady’s fingers (the green seed filled pod that is edible). The variety is slightly different in Australia than in India and UK. The vegetable is thicker and bigger than what I have been used to in the past. When I first saw it here I wondered if it would be actually tender. I was pleasantly surprised that it is nice and soft but the seeds do tend to be bigger. However, I find this thicker skin variety does not suit my stomach and have had to resort to using the Indian variety as that come in frozen packs. This recipe is similar to the bharva bhindi but since I have frozen bhindi and cannot cut and stuff it, I have to crisp the bhindi with enough masala to coat the bhindi.

Ingredients

• 300 gm of whole small bhindi
• 1 large onion
• 1 inch piece of fresh ginger
• Half spoon of cumin seeds
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• Salt to taste 
• A pinch of sugar
• Half tea spoon of red chilli powder
• Half teaspoon of turmeric powder
• 2 teaspoons of coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon of cumin powder
• ½ teaspoon of garam masala
• 1 tablespoon of sattu atta or besan/gram flour
• Some lemon juice to taste
• Chopped fresh coriander to garnish

Preparation

• Chop onion – half it and then cut lengthways in about ½ to 1 cm chunks. These will cook down but still be visible and form the part of the masala around the bhindi. Chop ginger too into match sticks.
• Heat the oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds. It will heat up within a few minutes with the seeds darkening in colour. 
• Next add the chopped onion and ginger and sauté for a couple of minutes.
• Add the bhindi into the pan. Leave the lid off the pan when cooking. 
• Once the bhindi is half cooked add the salt, sugar, chilli powder, coriander and cumin powder, turmeric and the sattu atta /besan/ gram flour.
• Continue cooking with occasional stirring till the bhindi is cooked to almost crispy and spices plus the sattu atta and onions has blended to coat the bhindi.
• Add the garam masala last and cook for a minute longer.
• Add lemon juice and freshly chopped coriander to garnish.

Naan and its varieties

I love naans and often get ready made ones which just have to be warmed in the oven or under the grill. However, I am conscious that it is made with plain flour / maida and is there for less healthy than whole meal flour or roti atta. The reader is free to use which ever flour they want to use. This recipe makes 5 naans. You can make these fresh ones under the grill or on the flat gridle / tawa.

Ingredients:

• 300 gm of Plain flour / whole meal flour / roti atta
• 2 heaped tablespoons of plain yogurt at room temperature
• ½ teaspoon of salt
• ½ teaspoon of sugar
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil or any vegetable oil
• Warm water as required
• 2 teaspoons of ghee or butter

Method:

• In a shallow bowl – mix flour, salt, sugar and oil. Mix to ensure it is evenly spread.
• Add the yogurt and mix it into the flour.
• Now add small quantities of warm water to bring the dough together. The dough needs to be soft and kneaded for a few minutes. Then take a few drops of oil on the palm and gently knead the dough so it is covered in the oil. 
• Cover with a lid or cloth and leave it to prove for half an hour minimum. I have often left it for a couple of hours without any problems.
• When ready to cook give the dough a quick knead and divide into 5 equal parts. 

Tawa Cooking

• If cooking on a tawa you need to start heating it before you roll out the naan.
• Take the ball of dough and press it between your palms to flatten and then cover with flour ready to roll.
• Place on the flat surface / chakalo / patlo (dusted with flour) and roll it out with a rolling pin to a circle of 15 - 17 cm in diameter.
• (If you make with maida or plain flour and the dough is sufficiently soft you can use your fingers to shape the naan without having to toll it out.)
• Now that the tawa is hot place the rolled-out naan on to it. 
• As the surface starts to lose it raw look turn over the naan.
• In a couple of minutes check and you will see that there are darkened spots. Time to turn is back and let the other side cook. Most often you will see the naan balloon out as air fills it out.
• Remove from the tawa and place between folded layers of tea cloth to keep it warm.

Grill Cooking

• For using the grill – place a foil over the tray under the grill and start the grill to warm it up.
• When the naan is rolled out place it on the foil and return the tray back under the grill.
• Again, as you see it getting cooked and dark spots emerge remove the tray from under the grill and turn over the naan. Replace the tray back under the grill and let it cook. You should be able to see the air creating bubbles on the naan.
• Remove the naan from the tray and place between folded layers of tea cloth to keep it warm.
• Apply small amount o ghee or butter as each one is done.

Variations of the Naan

• You can sprinkle kalonji / nigella seeds on to the rolled-out naan and pat it down.
• You can sprinkle til / sesame seeds on to the rolled-out naan and pat it down.
• You can sprinkle poppy seeds on to the rolled-out naan and pat it down.
• You can sprinkle slithers of garlic on to the surface of the rolled-out naan and gently run the rolling pin to press down the garlic. Alternately you can mix the garlic into the dough just before you start rolling out.
• You can sprinkle coriander leaves on to the rolled-out naan and pat it down.
• You can also sprinkle cheese over the naan once it is cooked and melt the cheese under the grill.

Home Remedies Menopausal Issues

 Once the oestradiol cream did its work, I was told KY Jelly was my only option if my drying episodes recurred. I wondered what have women done for centuries? Suffered? Or came up with home remedies? Surely women in families have talked to their daughters and vice versa, for am sure not everyone has a lack of sexual health care within their homes. As I have said before my sex education and information about sexual health was nil until I studied as a nurse and even so there is a distinct lack of enthusiasm of this topic in cultures like that of the Indian Subcontinent. This is what got me thinking and writing in the blog.

I thought maybe I should ask my friends if they have some handy tips as they are in my age group. Surely someone has had this issue, got tips from older women in the family for self-care. Again, I was surprised to find the reluctance to talk about it. I got one who laughed and asked if I was being serious? She was done with menopause and of course, she had no problems and does not need any care.

Another asked questions which was helpful as she was asking the right things. This was more of what the problem could be but focused on problems maybe with infection of urinary tract. Another came back with the name of one commonly used cream but with a rider that she did not have personal experience but got the info from a gynaecologist.

One came spoke to me separately but the rest just ignored the message. This friend actually talked about keeping the perineum and vagina clean and using a special wash which also helped to moisturise the area. Some others I spoke to were not reluctant to talk as long as it was focused on my issues. There was not much contribution regarding remedies.

One of my friends came up with some good information and I was pleased. She stated these remedies have been used by the ladies in her family and that she tells her patients about these remedies too.

• Take a teaspoon of fenugreek seeds. Wash thoroughly and soak overnight in a small amount of water. In the morning on an empty stomach drink the water and eat the seeds.
• Take about 5 -6 almonds wash well and soak overnight.  These will have to be skinned and eaten. The water in which the almonds were soaked should be thrown away.
• Other vegetables which should be regularly consumed are fenugreek leaves, tindora (ivy gourd), moringa pods (cooked with lentils). These help in hydrating the mucous membranes. Moringa powder is also now available and a table spoon can be added to cooked food like lentils. I will have to check what other foods are useful too.
• I do know soya has a high oestrogenic effect but I am allergic to it and so have to avoid it. Soya and soya products if you can tolerate will also help during menopause.
• Apply a drop of olive oil which is thicker than coconut oil daily to the vaginal and perineum. When experiencing burning avoid using toilet paper, wash and dab dry with a small towel and apply the oil every time you pass urine.

So, I started the fenugreek seeds and almonds daily along with applying olive oil after shower and I can say it has been working well. However, a word of advice the fenugreek seeds can sometimes be hot for the body. Suggestions are to have them with some yogurt or not having it daily. I have reduced it to twice a week. Aside for the oestrogenic effect the fenugreek is good for stabilising blood sugar reducing cholesterol and blood pressure too. If a small amount helps with these other issues too then it is worth a try.

All these have been tried but one needs to remember that not every remedy will suit everyone. For example, soya is seen to be very helpful but I am allergic so unable to take it. Indeed, now a days most processed foods have some form of soya in it. So, try carefully, speak to your doctor if he /she is sympathetic and interested in holistic care.

A Tale of Dry Fanny Woes

 Connective Tissue disease throws new curve ball every so often and sometimes it is hard to discern symptoms that are from the disease or this is something totally unrelated that the body has dreamt up. This blog follows on from my Time to Talk About Menopause.  Post-menopause is a gift that keeps giving and one of them is dryness of the vagina and perineum. It makes for a painful intercourse and also if the dryness extends to the perineum it will burn and pain when urine touches it and when you wipe your self dry. Oh yes you might not notice till the dryness extends outside the vagina if you are not having sex…. For after all your libido is most likely down and you cannot be bothered to have sex. However, with connective tissues which is also another gift that happily keeps updating symptom list you can have drying of mucous membranes like eyes, mouth and of course vagina and perineum.

With is background information I tell my tale of dry fanny woes. I noticed this dryness of the perineum and wondered what happened. With some contortion and a mirror, I could see that the perineum as dry, in fact there was a white patch as it was so dry. I had been applying some tea tree cream as it is anti-inflammatory as well. It seemed to get better after a few days. This went on for a few months and then it would not help so started applying some coconut oil which again was not thick enough to last long and so continued the pain and occasional itching which also comes from drying of surrounding skin as well. Eventually gave in and went to my GP and as I described the dryness and a white patch he goes, ‘thrush.... get something off the pharmacist’ all without looking at my face let alone my fanny! Am like ‘but it is not itching or having any flaking or discharge’ and he says get stuff for thrush.

So now I am at the pharmacy asking to talk to the pharmacist and hoping to get more sense. She asks me more questions than my GP and says maybe you need something thicker than oil and why not try Sudocream and you can apply if a few times (well I could apply the oil too many times but…) So, I pay for a small tube to try out and see if it helps. So off I went and religiously applying this white paste and happy as of course now the urine does not touch the naked perineum. Oh, ladies have you ever experienced the contortions we can do when weeing to avoid the dribble of urine on to the perineum. Bending forward and raising your butt at the end is a useful way if anyone was wondering. This helped for a couple of weeks and then we were back to square one.

Return trip to the pharmacy and this time a different lady who again went through the umpteen questions by now I was getting adept at describing the symptoms. She comes up with - if it hurts have you tried something with a bit of anaesthetic? Then she picks up a tube of haemorrhoids cream. I am like, ‘are you sure one can use this for my symptoms?’ She says of course you can use it we do tell people it is safe to use. Now I was pretty desperate so I nodded and went of with yet another useless cream. A word of warning to people who are not up with their pharmaceutical knowledge the haemorrhoids cream is to reduce the size veins which are bulging and thus reduce blood flow and the anaesthetic acts on the nerve endings to reduce pain. Now these would have little effect on the dry mucous membranes whether due to lack of oestrogen or connective tissue disease. If ever any one gives you this for your fanny kindly refrain from taking it. All it caused was even worse burning on application.

By now I was dreading passing urine and upending myself to avoid the trickle of urine that I was not quick enough to catch on the tissue. Time to go to the GP again and this time go to the wife of my GP who also works there. I say to her, I need you to actually physically look as I cannot diagnose what I cannot see properly. I said her husband had just said thrush with his head down. And so did my rheumatologist for that matter. Now this usual po-faced lady is giggling. I am like sure she is going to take the piss off her husband when she gets home. She asks about why I have had no smear test and I said cannot be bothered. (But that’s another story where they are not competent and appear to dig for oil than take a smear… and I am not bothered to find someone else.)

Then comes the well know lie on the couch and spread them. She gets a speculum out and I tense as she does not have a gentle touch. Says to me all the mucous membranes are red and dry. Her diagnosis is post-menopausal dryness and treatment is oestradiol cream twice a week for 3 weeks and then review. She does not like giving HRT so I am not to expect to continue this beyond the time it clears the dryness. Funny she never asked me about how did I not realise this extreme internal dryness as intercourse would be excruciating. She is a lady doctor who I have seen providing perinatal care and the serious lack of examining the sexual health and indeed the giggling was strange. She totally discarded my suggestion that it could also be due to my autoimmune disease. Well I was happy I got some medication and that would resolve my symptom.

So, oestradiol cream was duly applied twice a week. If you have never had to apply this maybe I should explain. There is a syringe which you screw on to the opening of the cream tube. Then you squeeze the tube to fill the syringe which is a fixed amount. Then you lie back and insert the syringe into the vagina and empty it. Hope you have a helper handy to take the syringe, wash it and put away as you need to lie flat for a while. The dryness seemed to get less along with less pain and burning. During this time, I had a migraine and had ibuprofen for a couple of days. Suddenly the last remnants of the symptoms vanished. Therefore, I think it was a combination of lack of oestrogen and local inflammation that caused my symptoms.

Went back for the review and po-face was back when I said I have ibuprofen and the last of the dryness went. Instead of showing concern and acknowledging there could be a dual reason she just clamed up and lectured me about how dangerous ibuprofen was and that I should take paracetamol before I try ibuprofen (all not necessary as I have been having ibuprofen for over a decade and am well versed with its effects and side effects). Ah she does not like being proved even partly wrong this one! So, after care was less amusing to her. I could have the cream for another week or so and then I should keep KY Jelly handy.

How very helpful and caring this whole experience has been … NOT. My problem though hard for me was actually not that serious and that as a nurse I had such a poor experience what happens to others?  I think we ladies should stop being shy and demand that we get support, care and treatment as required for our whole body and not just with bits that people are comfortable with. This lack of care from health staff leads to women being ashamed to talk about real and very traumatic reproductive organs diseases.

Time to Talk About Menopause

 

A few days ago, I was randomly turning channels on TV and came up on a programme talking about Menopause. Yes, I did use a capital for that word as we seem to hide this just as much as Periods and anything to do with female reproductive organs and physiology. The panel was made up of ladies only both young and older, health professionals and counsellors with a female host too. It was refreshing to see this openness and identify how we ladies too contribute to the hiding and shaming of our body parts and its normal functions. Fortunately, the subject of periods is getting frequent outings but that’s is the tip of the iceberg as other normal and abnormal physiology is yet to be even mentioned even thought hey can cause havoc in all aspects of a woman’s life such as polycystic ovarian syndrome and endometriosis. But today I am going to tell you about my journey through menopause.

When I got ill with pain and swelling of my hands which subsequently spread to all over the body, I had a battery of blood tests. At that time, it was discovered that I was perimenopausal – that changes in hormone levels have been detected and that my menopausal journey is on. This news was provided to me in the passing by my rheumatologist. Since I was in a lot of pain it did not register strongly on my radar. Nothing further was said by the rheumatologist nor my GP as indeed he had the results of the investigations too. What was the discussion you ask about how to handle the symptoms that come from this journey? The plan of action? Support and guidance to deal with this major change?  Ways to deal with changing libido and its impact on my relationship with my husband? Well? Hear that deafening silence? Well yes pretty much the same amount of help guidance and information I got at puberty. The passing reference by the rheumatologist was actually related to maybe some of these symptoms are part of the hormonal changes. Oh, and what you going to do about it? Nothing as this is normal physiology…. Oh wow!

I was having hot flushes and excessive sweating with nightmares and there was a shrug from the healers. I was having primrose oil capsules from years for reducing the impact of premenstrual syndrome and I found that the herbalists actually prescribe that as a help for menopausal symptoms.  While I have polycystic ovaries and have accepted that I do not produce ova, it still takes some adjusting to the fact that at 45 my body was failing yet again as this was an early menopause onset. Well at least I think it is early for as you might have guessed the women in my family were not talkative about such issues.

So, I kept my own counsel and muddled my way through till the actual event at the age of 51. Thus, 6 years of misery along with undifferentiated connective tissue disease.  Fortunately, I continued the primrose oil capsules all the way through till couple of years after menopause too. Ladies, we need to talk about this as well, for all have varying symptoms of varying intensity. There is so much that happens physically, mentally and socially and yet we sweep it under the carpet, speak in whispers or indeed with that silly nasal voice, where we can pretend, we are talking about something else or indeed giggle and pretend we have come through it unscathed with our confidence, dignity and relationships intact.  

Why do the health care staff, both doctors and nurses, do not talk to their female patients? The whole area of sexual health or women is totally ignored and mostly likely only ever gets any mention when a woman is pregnant and that too most likely by the midwife. Why do we woman allow this health care neglect? It is time to open more conversations about overall women’s health and not for just parts of us.  We do not have to go through the change alone. We should support each other in keeping our self-worth and confidence. We need to be able to verbalise our issues within safe friendly environment where there is understanding and not ridicule for the anxieties raised by changing bodies and their impact on relationships. If you are with me on this maybe you can leave comments.

Onion Sambhar

 

Sambhar is one of my favourite dal. This is a South Indian preparation with as many variations as households.  There variations in the spices and ingredients and it always tantalises the palate. It is eaten with rice, dosa, idli or mendu vada.  Till now I used to use the ready-made sambhar powder and very much in the way I prepare most lentils that is boil them make the masala or add onions garlic ginger chillies tomatoes once the lentils have boiled and then temper it with different ingredients. For sambhar that generally mean tempering with mustard seeds, pinch of asafoetida, a teaspoon of urad dal (black gram lentil), a teaspoon of channa dal (split chickpea) and a few curry leaves. It was good sambhar and have enjoyed it for years but recently I got some instructions from a friend about how to make sambhar and the use of freshly ground spices as taught to her by her mother in law. Now this is the kind of recipe that’s valuable and is passed down the generations.

Ingredients

• 150 grams of tuvar dal (split pigeon pea lentils) alternately you can also use masoor dal (red lentils)
• 15 – 20 baby onions (if you do not have these tiny onions you can use 1 large onion cut into chunks. I used frozen baby onions as that is what I had) You can add more onions if you wish.
• 1 table spoon of tamarind paste
• ½ teaspoon of turmeric powder
• Salt to taste
• 1 table spoon of olive oil or any vegetable oil
• ¾ teaspoon of mustard seeds
• ¼ teaspoon of asafoetida
• 10 – 12 curry leaves

For sambhar powder –

• 1 teaspoon channa dal (split chickpeas)
• 1 teaspoon urad dal (black gram lentil)
• 8  small red chillies or 4 large ones
• 2 teaspoon coriander seeds
• ¼ teaspoon methi (fenugreek seeds)
• 1 pinch of asafoetida

 

Method

• Wash and clean the lentils. Put in a pan cover them with an inch of water and boil. You can also cook it in a pressure cooker. Once cooked put them aside.
• Put all the sambhar powder ingredients in a frying pan and roast the spices over a hot flame. Stir to ensure it does not burn. In a couple of minutes, you will smell the aroma of the roasted spices. Remove from the pan into a plate so that they can cool down.
• Add the oil and mustard seeds in a saucepan and heat till the mustard seeds start to crackle. Add the asafoetida and curry leaves.
• Then add the onions to the pan. Sauté it for a couple of minutes and add a cup of water, tamarind paste, salt and turmeric powder. Stir and leave it to cook for till the onion softens which should be within 2 – 3 minutes.
• While the onion is cooking take the cooled roasted spices and grind them in a spice or coffee grinder. It does not have to be finely powdered. Some coarse bits are good as they thicken the sambhar nicely. You will get around 2 table spoons of powder.
• Once the onions are cooked add the cooked lentils and the sambhar powder.  Add another cup of water and stir well. Bring to a boil and simmer for a couple of minutes.
• Serve straight away or you can reheat and serve later so this can be prepared in advance.

Tips

1. As suggested in the ingredients you can use red lentils as well which is useful as they cook a lot faster than tuvar dal. I do not use a pressure cooker and find that it is easier to cook tuvar dal by soaking it in hot water. Leave for an hour or so. The check the water level and reheat the pan and bring the lentils to a boil. Again, leave it to cool while the lentil actually gets slow cooked. The third time I just cook it on a medium to low flame or 1 -3 on an electric hob till it is cooked. It takes about 30 – 40 minutes.
2. Also if you do not get baby onions you can use shallots or red onion as they taste sweeter than white onions.
3. I have it on good authority that you can make mixed veg – onions, beans, drumstick, aubergine, potato, gourd, muli (white raddish) or even pumpkin sambhar. The trick is to cook the vegetables before adding the cooked lentils and sambhar powder.
4. You can use fresh tamarind where you soak a handful and then squeeze the pulp for use or indeed use lemon juice. The sourness of the sambhar can be adjusted to your taste. Similarly, the heat in the sambhar powder can be adjusted to your tasted by increasing or decreasing the red chillies.
5. You can add coriander leaves as garnish on top.

Rava Handvo

Rava Handvo

I have always loved this typical Gujarati dish handvo, but have not made as it has been an elaborate recipe and required a specific utensil, the handvo cooker. We had one of these when I was growing up. My mother used to soak the lentils and rice overnight and, in the morning, it was ground in a stone motor pestle. Then the cooker was readied. In the picture you will see the small pan which is filled with sand and placed on the gas hob. The large pan which is shaped like a ring mould is placed on top and tempering prepared. Once the mustard crackles the handvo mixture which is fairly thick is poured in. The lid placed and this delicious mixture bakes slowly. Also, to make it soft my mother used to add some grated bottle gourd / doodhi.

Handvo Cooker

Now you can get a ready mixed flour where you add the water and any vegetables you want and place it in an oven dish and bake it. I have tried this once but was never convinced about it as there are many additives. So, when I saw a recipe where I can cook it on the hob in a frying pan and I did not have to soak and grind ingredients as well as without overnight prepping I was sold.

Ingredients

For Dough Mix

• 1 cup rava /semolina (I have used coarse as that’s what I had but you can use fine one too)
• ½ cup yogurt
• 1 cup water
• ½ teaspoon Eno fruit salt or baking soda
• 1 large courgette/zucchini grated using large grater
• 1 inch of finely chopped ginger
• 2 green chillies finely chopped (adjust according to taste or even leave it out)
• Handful of coriander finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• Salt to taste

For Tempering

• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 teaspoon of mustard seeds
• 10 – 15 curry leaves
• A big pinch of asafoetida
• 1 – 1 ½ teaspoon of white sesame seeds

Method

• In a clean large bowl put the rava and yogurt. Start mixing with a spoon. Add water slowly and till you get a good thick batter.
• Set it aside for 10 – 15 mins as the water will get absorbed and further thicken the batter. Add a little more water to loosen the batter so that it can just be poured into the frying pan.
• While the batter is resting grate the courgette, chop the ginger, chillies and coriander.
• Once prepared add the vegetables and herbs to the batter. Stir well and add a tablespoon of oil plus the Eno fruit salt and table salt to taste.
• Heat the oil for tempering in the frying pan with mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds begin to crackle add asafoetida and curry leaves. As the leaves begin to fry add the sesame seeds. Swirl the oil around so sesame seeds get coated.
• Pour the batter into the frying pan and shake it to ensure it is evenly spread. Turn the hob to low gas flame or minimum on the electric hob. Put a lid on the frying pan so the handvo cooks in the steam that is generated.
• This slow cooking for about 20 minute allows the bottom to crisp up and the edges to come away from the side. The top is also set but not completely.
• Slide the handvo on to a plate and then flip it back into the frying pan so that the other side can be cooked.
• Cover the frying pan with the lid again and leave to crisp up for another 10 – 15 minutes.
• Slide it into a plate (tempered side up) and cut into slices like a pizza.

Tips

• Serve it with some coriander and chilli chutney or ketchup or any other condiment that takes your fancy.
• The texture of the inside of the handvo was pretty soft as the courgette had melted totally. This makes me think addition of slightly firmer vegetables will give a crunch as well as thickness to the handva.
• If the yogurt s slightly sour it gives a nice tang to the final dish.
• You can use vegetable to peanut oil instead of olive oil. You can omit the tablespoon of oil that goes into the mixing of the batter to reduce the fat content.
• After this success I will try adding other vegetables too. Grated carrot, finely sliced or shredded runner beans, finely chopped onions, cabbage, maybe peas, capsicum can be tried. Some suggest even adding garlic but personally am not sure it will make a good match but feel free to try.
• This picture of the prepared handvo is what you get for the ingredient quantities stated and serves 2.

2 portions as a meal or 4 as a snack or starter