Briha

When I saw posts on Dalgona coffee all over the social media, I was not even able to pronounce it properly, I even called it dulcolax coffee. Don't laugh, ....both serve the same purpose. With nothing else to do, I did a goosearch  and got some info about the coffee and it's origin. This coffee originated in South Korea, and they wrongly say it requires only 3 ingredients. Actually it requires  five ingredients.  Instant coffee, sugar, and hot water are vigorously mixed together until the froth becomes fluffy and aerated. Then this froth is poured on top of ice and milk.  In South Korea it's called Ppopgi, and it means honey comb toffee. They used to look like lollipops those days and were available as street food, but now it's taken the form of a drink. This easy-to-make drink melts into a beautiful, white and gold ombré color and boasts a sweet coffee flavor with a pillowy texture. This coffee  has gained popularity as "Dalgona coffee" during the  ...

 My mother Vanaja Ranganathan  was a self taught cook. She married when she was 18, and had to go to Delhi after her marriage. She was the Chella kuzhandai (ladli beti) in her household, all the more  because she lost her mother as soon as she was born. She learnt to cook from her neighbours and my father also helped her. One thing she learnt the hard way was to make Kali. Kali is a sweet dish associated with a festival called Thiruvadirai, but can be made even otherwise. It is like a sweet rice Upma. If jaggery is added early,  the rice will not cook properly and if added later then it may not mix well, becomes soggy and may taste not so good.  It's a tricky dish. She took a long time to crack it. We were three siblings, year after year we saw the Kali taking shape. Different shapes. Pun unintended, she is after all my mother. 😊 The red letter day came. It was Thiruvadirai and she had made Kali. The Kali that she brought to the table was a partly cooked/ par...