Before Sheetal got married, she grew
up in a nuclear family. So nuclear was the family, that anybody in the name of
a kith or a kin was taboo at their house. Her father wantedher to excel in as
many fields as was humanly possible!
Her mother,
being the traditional Indian woman, supported her father to the hilt (though it
beats every fathomable reason as to how a culture can make second-fiddles of
highly talented women, just so that they don’t outgrow or out-shoot their men)!
Post her
marriage, she found herself no different from her mother, yielding to her
husband’s wishes and demands, though she did most of it to avoid any unpleasant
situation, rather than out of conviction. Many times she would point out to the
gender bias that plagued the Indian society, whether or not her husband
supported the argument.
Though
Sheetal came across as a head-strong individual, she was family centric and if
there was one area where she listened to her gut feel, it was cooking! Her
husband was as much a foodie as she was a health watcher!
She loved
cooking and refused to compromise on nutrition to accommodate an enhanced
taste. Her husband’s side of the family would not miss an opportunity to meet
up and have food together. This culture, though alien to her, was a welcome
change!
But due to
the excessive love for food, most of them had health issues. She would try and
make different items, consciously avoiding coffee and fried papad, inclusion of
which would have fetched her the tag of ‘an awesome cook!’
During one
of the get-togethers, she decided to include white pumpkin in an unidentifiable
way, so that all and sundry were made to consume it raw! Now, most of you must
be thinking what a devil she was and by Jove, she loved being the known devil
as her husband was detected of diabetes.
I was
surprised at the conviction with which Sheetal spoke on feminism and suddenly
changed positions to care for her husband, putting behind the bitterness that
she had for men in general and the conservative ones in particular.
I realise
that women are the natural care-givers of a family and therefore, to get
themselves out of the bonds that curtail them, they have to take care of
themselves first, before they begin taking care of others! When women realise
this they can switch roles with ease.
Here is a
simple recipe of the pumpkin raita that Sheetal made for my kith and kin!
In a bowl
take curd and beat it to homogeneity.
Grind white pumpkin
(remove the thick outer skin and cut it into small cubes), 2 small pieces of
coconut, a small finger length ginger, salt. Mix the
ground paste with the beaten curds.
In a small
pan, heat one teaspoon ghee. Splutter a few mustard seeds, cumin seeds and a
pinch of asafoetida, one green (or red) chilli (slit), curry leaves and coriander leaves (the curry leaves and coriander leaves may also be ground along with other ingredients) and add to the raita.
Decorate
with mint leaves on top.
 |
| Pumpkin raita, for her kith and kin... |
The latest
news is that, not only does her family and the extended family relish the raita, her husband's sugar levels
have reached manageable levels!
