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If you are looking for pesticide-free products, Eco Nut has them all
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TALK OF coincidences, here's a shop that I share my pet name with. It's definitely a shop that's after my heart and it's definitely a pet name that suits me — Eco Nut. While I am not going into details of how I earned this nickname, I just have to tell you how aptly named the shop is. Walk up the stairs to the first floor and into this wooden, lined with shelves, spartan store. Pause a bit and then patiently browse through the goodies. Many an exciting treasures are tucked away here. But before looking around, take a look at the large chart outlining the "Effects of chemical pesticides on human health". It is a chart approved by international medical bodies, so read it carefully. Exposure to these pesticides can lead to anything, from an anxiety attack and slow pulse to chest pain and tremors. Prolonged exposure can be really dangerous and can cause anything, from depression to brain cancer. So, Eco Nut stores everything that is pesticide-free — Ponni raw and boiled rice, all kinds of dals, mustard seeds, palm sugar, turmeric powder, unrefined, cold pressed sesame oil, groundnut oil, jams, bajra, jowar and other flours. Want ready-to-eat stuff? Go for the whole wheat bread, ragi or corn muffins. To make them yummier slather on peanut, cashew or almond butter. Eco Nut products are free of chemical additives too, be it savouries, juices and squashes. Must try the herbal teas (Camomile, mint, lemon, raspberry and Himalayan Amrit, the range of herbs, dry fruits and seeds. Aromatherapy oils are also available. There is a range of products for diabetics, BP patients and those who are dieting. Those who are allergic to wheat or are lactose intolerant can also walk in for lactose-free and wheat-free products. Sandhya and Shrikant Ram opened this shop more than a year ago, but derive 11 years of experience from a similar shop run in Kodaikanal by Shrikant's parents. In fact, some of the products come from their organic farm in Kodaikanal. That's what I call true eco nuts!
The shop is located at no. 3, First Floor, E-34 2nd Avenue, Besant Nagar, Chennai. Ph 9444046299 / 24919592.
Your calls and emails are essential to make my efforts worthwhile. Please do call with your suggestions and queries.
Readers recommend
* Rena Riyaz and Suganthi run a small scale unit in Aynavaram where they manufacture 24 varieties of north and south Indian pickles, herbal pickles, sprouted fenugreek, soya wheat flour, whole wheat flour, squashes of plantain stem, lemon barley, and ginger lemon. They market their products under the brand name Sure Twinz Foods. They also cater for south Indian food and also some north Indian preparations. Ph: 55677251 or 94440-46303.
* All you wanted to know about garlic.
Storing: Keep garlic in a cool, dry place. A covered garlic crock with holes that allows air to circulate is ideal. It can be refrigerated, but the dampness tends to encourage sprouting. To store peeled garlic for future use, keep the cloves dipped in dry white wine in a glass jar. Cover the jar tightly and refrigerate. Use this garlic as long as yeast or mould does not appear on the surface of the wine.
Cutting, chopping and crushing: when cut or crushed garlic releases the volatile oils that give it pungency. The finer it is cut, the stronger the flavour. When you want just a whiff of garlic, use a whole clove or half a clove. Garlic is delicious when slowly cooked whole in butter with spinach. Halve a clove and marinate it in a vinaigrette; sauté a halved clove in oil, then remove it before adding other ingredients; or rub a cut clove over slices of crusty bread or around your salad bowl before adding lettuce greens.
Many recipes call for chopped or minced garlic. Adding a little salt when mincing will help keep garlic from sticking to your knife and will also add additional flavour, for the salt will absorb oils that may otherwise stay on your cutting board. (To compensate for the addition of salt at this stage, simply adjust the amount later when you season the dish.) Crushing gives a strong flavour. For the best results, pound the cloves in a mortar with a pestle, using some salt to make a smooth creamy paste. If you think this time-honoured method is too laborious, compare the results with garlic that has been crushed in a garlic press. The pressed garlic tastes acrid.
Cooking: The longer the garlic cooks, the milder its flavour becomes. Conversely, the taste of raw garlic intensifies over time, and it turns bitter when exposed to air for a while. Therefore, when preparing a dish that calls for raw garlic, make it as close to serving time as possible.
Whole heads or unpeeled cloves of garlic roasted for about an hour are at once aromatic and not too pungent. In addition, as it roasts, the garlic caramelises, gaining a sweet note. Garlic poached in water for 15 to 20 minutes also has a distinct, smooth flavour. Roasted or poached garlic has a creamy texture and spreads well (delicious on toasted or grilled bread). Mashed or pureed, both can be used to thicken sauces or soups.
Minced garlic burns quickly when cooked and becomes unpleasantly harsh. According to a famous Italian Chef, "The success of one of his favourite midnight snacks — a plate of spaghettini with garlic and extra virgin olive oil — is dependent on sautéing the finely chopped garlic just enough to draw out its rich, nutty flavour but not long enough to make it bitter. Avoid burning, sauté your ingredients, and just before they are finished cooking, add the minced garlic. If garlic burns, there's no remedy; you just have to start over."
Eliminating the odour: If you can, keep a separate cutting board just for garlic and onions. If you don't, try rubbing your cutting board with salt and lemon juice, washing it with mild soap and then rinsing it thoroughly with running water to remove any odour. To eliminate the smell from a plastic container, first wash it with soap and water, then stuff it with crumpled newspaper and cover tightly. After a few days discard the newspaper, the garlic smell should be gone. When your hands reek, rub them with lemon juice and salt and wash them well with soap and water. Or try holding your hands under running water while rubbing them with a stainless steel spoon; then wash with soap and water. (Sounds strange, but food oils form a weak chemical bond with the skin, which the spoon's metal alloy breaks). Lastly, to maintain sociable relations, freshen your breath after eating garlic-laden foods by chewing a coffee bean or fresh parsley or sipping lemon or lime juice (or, preferably, eating a sorbet of these flavours).
Queries
* Geetha Vijayan (geethavijayan@gmail.com) wants to know where she can get good quality avakkai prepared in gingelly oil with garlic pieces in it.
* Vishal wants one north Indian lunch and dinner at his office at the TNPL building in Guindy on weekdays. On weekends, he wants lunch and dinner at his residence in Madipakkam.
Queries answered
* A reader had asked where she could get flax seeds. Aruna Madhavi says that it is available in Nuts & Spices at Adyar, Nugambakkam High Road and Anna Nagar.
* A.S. Krishnamoorthy from Velachery wanted to know where he could get good quality avakkai prepared in gingelly oil without garlic. G. Sowmyalakshmi has a small-scale unit in Thirunandravur where she manufactures mango, lemon and mixed vegetable pickles.
The minimum order for home delivery is one to two kilos depending on the location. Ph: 26341818.
RASHMI UDY SINGH
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