"masala" poems
Ang amung kahayag sa balay
punu ug pangaliya ug pagmahal.
Siya ang naghatag ug kahayag sa amung dalan nga gitungha arun dili masala-ag.
Iyang kahayag mihatag ug kainit nga punu sa gugma.
Apan, wa damha
Na upus na ang iyang kahayag
Ug usa nalamang ka asu nga hinay-hinayng
Nahanaw.
Napawng.
ubanan sa Kangit-ngit.
Apr 9, 2015
Apr 9, 2015 at 3:35 AM UTC
Brown sugar sapotas
Blending with custard alfonso mangos
And bold sweet lime juice
Georgette saris
Pairing with uncut diamond necklaces
Mixed with peals and rubies
Gently sloping palm trees
Swaying in balmy sultry air
And hazy golden sunsets
Frenetic yellow autos
Competing with dusty zipping mopeds
Mixed with ambulating pedestrians
Aromas of cumin
Blending with the sewage
Other times with incense
Glows of brass oil lamps
Singing in hums of prayer
Added with turmeric's incantations
Brightly-patterned salwars
Accentuating gemstone bindis
Comfy fitted leggings
Savory masala dosas
Coupling coconut chutney
Meter-high filter coffee
Apr 23, 2012
Apr 23, 2012 at 8:17 AM UTC
I hear
Hindi
In the hallway—
Suddenly
My American
Lips
Can taste
The masala
In your kiss;
I smile
And let the memory
Travel
Across the sea
Where it belongs
Jan 10, 2019
Jan 10, 2019 at 1:17 PM UTC
Mrs Sharma is looking busy
Walking back from her yoga class
In Her right hand a bag full of potatoes
In her left hand, 2 kilos of onions
Its a freaking hot day in Delhi,
She stopped a taxi and hurried home
Aloo paratha her family's menu for today.
At home she went straight to her kitchen
Peeled and boiled the Potatoes
finely chopped Onion, coriander, ginger and chillies
Now where is the garam masala?
Here you are Mrs Sharma,
Salt Red Chili powder, Garam masala and some butter
Aloo Paratha with lots of butter,YUM YUM
Lunching at Sharma's home is Splendid
better than Mahesh Lunch Home in Juhu, Andheri.
Let's get started says Mrs Sharma
Let's make the dough
Make two chapati
add the filling to one chapati
and cover it with the second one.
Now Mrs Sharma rolls it slightly and heats it in the oven...
Let's ask Mrs Sharma,
Is food the elixir of life?
Yes very much she said
She feels like she is living for it.
As she spreads butter over the paratha
She says her mantra twice,
Eat healthy but don’t over eat.
She serves aloo paratha hot to her smiling kids
adds yoghurt to Mr Sharma's plate
she is so proud when she says to her family
Eat in moderation and eat healthy..
Smile and let's eat Aloo paratha Mrs Sharma's way...
May 18, 2013
May 18, 2013 at 1:46 PM UTC
There’s a lot to be said for this place.
A near-perfect pitch for diversity,
Diversity: a neurolinguistic term;
A quaint way to say: miscegenation.
No, just kidding; I meant the melting ***
A fine blend of Anglo, Hispanic & Indian blood—
That’s Pueblo & Plains Indian blood--
Not that **** masala, chapati & dal Indian blood.
My apologies to "Who's the White Guy?" Bobby Jindal.
New Mexico: “The Land of Enchantment.”
Where 310 sunny days per annum,
Are like money in the bank, earning
Double-plus compound interest for those
Suffering with seasonal affective disorders.
A land of sunshine without the orange juice,
But substitute chili, red or green?
An equitable offset to be sure.
310 days of sunshine:
Even the white people are brown here.
Which does a lot for my self-esteem.
Back east—New York, Chicago & Philadelphia e.g.—
People that look like me, i.e.,
People with dark brown hair, eyes and skin,
Get stopped/ass-cheek spread/& frisked, routinely.
Stop & Frisk: NYPD’s spectator sport for decades.
Stop & Frisk: Mayor Bloomberg-defended
Crime-stopping Godsend,
Getting guns off the streets.
Getting homicides down.
Everything’s cool until some slick race baiter,
Starts yelling: RACIAL PROFILING.
Forget for a moment that people that look like me,
People like me with dark hair, eyes & skin,
Commit 78% of the crime in most cities.
“It’s not racially driven profiling,”
Said Newark’s police director recently
Referring to stops carried out by his officers.
“IT’S CRIME-DRIVEN PROFILING!”
But, again, political-correctness trumps common sense:
August 2013: Judge Rules NYPD
Stop-and-Frisk Unconstitutional.
Well I’ll be a monkey’s *** ******
I moved to New Mexico to blend in.
My complexion a shoe-in for
The Witness Protection Program or
Any other public or private,
Domestic or international rendition site.
But I digress.
New Mexico: no passport necessary, Babaloo!
New Mexico: be you white or black, Hispanic or Indian,
Or even Roswell extraterrestrial,
The cops here will beat the **** out of you.
Or shoot you dead, Kemosabe.
Feb 7, 2015
Feb 7, 2015 at 1:44 PM UTC
I promised my PATI.. a chapati for breakfast
A plain chapati I passionately learnt to make
Oh.. What an impression I will make...
A marvelous chapati and a glass of milk
I will prepare with all my heart..
A SUPERB Chapati from a BIWI to her PATI..
I am a BAHU.... an obedient BAHU...to my SASU MAA..
Ohh and she will brag ... I am the best BAHU...
The best in India if not in the world...
I am so proud... What a chapati maker I am..
A super BIWI.. an obedient BAHU...
I will make superbb.... chapati...
The whole India will dance with me...
Dance in my kitchen with me....
But my SASUR requested for a Masala Chapati
And he wanted it for lunch... today
for dinner tonight and for breakfast tomorrow..
An obedient Bahu... I am.... A super Biwi I am..
Ohhh ...I am no MASALA CHAPATI maker...
Plain chapati... plain chapati thats what i learnt...
I searched for a recipe... MASALA CHAPATi...
Butter,Chilli and coriander powder..
I cook them all together...
Cumin seeds, vegetablas and GARAM MASALA..
Ohh la la la.... here goes the chapati masala...
Oppss... when everything is set..
My SALI comes to check....
AMMI JI.... AMMI JI... she called..
My MASALA CHAPATI is about to ready...
My pati.. my sasu maa... my sasur and my Sali
We all sit together..
My cooking smells good..
When MASALA CHAPATI is served....
They all smile and look at me...
WHAT?? IS THIS MASALA CHAPATI????
And we all dance on the kitchen floor....
May 15, 2013
May 15, 2013 at 12:21 PM UTC
PWEDING MALA SUTLA O MAGASPANG NA TELA,
GANYAN ANG MGA ALA-ALA,
MINSAN MALALA MINSAN NAWAWALA.
MGA PAGTITIWALA AT PANINIWALA,
LAHAT AY DAPAT NA MASALA,
GANITO HINAHABI ANG HIBLA NG MGA ALA-ALA,
PARA MERON KANG MAPALA.
NAGBABAG ANG DALAWANG KUMAG,
MGA KUTONG LUPA NA PURO HAMPAS LUPA.
HAMBUGAN ANG DAHILAN NG UMBAGAN,
PAREHONG DUGUAN MATAPOS ANG BUGBUGAN,
ITO ANG HIBLA NG KABATAAN.
SA ESKUWELA KAILANGAN MO RIN MAGING MAKUWELA,
KUNG AYAW **** MAGMUKHANG GUMAMELA.
HINDI LAHAT NG MATALINO AY PINO,
MERON DIN MAASIM NA PARANG PIPINO,
AT HINDI PORKE BOBO AY PARA NG LOBO,
GANITO ANG BUHAY ESTUDYANTE.
UMIIBIG HABANG UMIIGIB?
PWEDE NAMAN SABAY,
DEPENDE SA ARTE,
KAILANGAN LANG NG DISKARTE.
WALA PANG INTERNET SA TINDAHAN NI ALING NANNETH,
WALANG CELLPHONE PERO MAY MEGAPHONE,
PWEDE **** ISIGAW NA MAHAL MO S’YA.
KUNG MALUPIT KA EDI LUMAPIT KA,
KUNG TORPE KA EDI SUMULAT KA.
GANITO ANG LABANAN NOONG WALA PANG FB AT CP,
HIBLA NG KASIBULAN.
GRADUATE NA,
KAYA TRABAHO NA,
APLAY DITO APLAY DOON,
WALANG HUMPAY ANG PAGSISIKAP.
HAPAY-KAWAYAN,
KAHIT SAAN SUMASAMPAY.
HIBLA NG BUHAY EMPLEYADO.
TILA ITLOG NA ESTRALYADO NANG MAGING PAMILYADO.
PAKIRAMDAM KO BUO NA AKO,
SINTAMIS NG KAHEL ANG DULOT NG DALAWANG ANGHEL,
ITO HIBLA NG KASALUKUYAN.
Nov 3, 2017
Nov 3, 2017 at 4:57 AM UTC
The first enchilada was created in the summer of 1968
In a small house near Seal Beach
In Southern California.
The house was owned by a friend of my dad's
Or my mom's
And we had gone over for dinner
I was eight
I would like to say that it was a cool beach pad
With wood paneling, all the rage back then
And an Eames recliner in the corner of the living room
I only remember the paneling
but since I am writing this
The Eames piece stays
We had gone for dinner
And the owner of the house had made enchiladas
Beef ones as I recall with sauce from a series of Old El Paso cans
I can still smell and taste them
They were the first world food I had ever had
Besides canned Chinese food from the supermarket which doesn't count
And because I loved them with their ground beef and sauce
Their hot oil softened corn tortillas, sour cream, cheese and green onion
And little tiny bits of black olive
They became the prison guards
Throwing open the gates of my suburban Connecticut upbringing
Letting me leave the confines and walk freely in the sunshine for the first time
They were followed by many other firsts
Sushi, Crepes, haggis, tiki masala and sea urchin to name a few
All of which owe their very existence in my life
To that first enchilada.
Aug 7, 2012
Aug 7, 2012 at 7:29 AM UTC
Swinging higher rising from green to a cloudy sky.
She would give up her feet in exchange for flight.
The day closes up shop, the doors locked, she finger paints
rain clouds in the windows, the light of midnight traffic slipping
by glimpses of golden and marmalade light. In a slow blink she sips
black masala tea with cream and sugar with a flicker of melancholy she imagines
the milky light polluted sky and the few stars stubbornly shimmering.
The palms of her hands burning the back of her eyes sweating
strained visions of flowering deserts of hungry sunflowers and parched succulents
she feels the edges of depression creep around her waiting for the last sigh of joy.
Aug 23, 2012
Aug 23, 2012 at 8:47 AM UTC
Did you know the East Indian Bottle Masala includes as many as 27 spices, or that an oil-free pickle served at their weddings is actually known as Wedding Pickle?
These and many such authentic East Indian masalas and pickles are available at East Indian Cozinha (Portuguese for kitchen), a food store started by Christina Kinny at Kolovery Village in Kalina, Santacruz. "I started East Indian Cozinha with an attempt to preserve and highlight our cuisine and culture," says the 24-year old, who has studied Masters in Social Work and currently, works with an enterprise that helps tribal farmers.
What’s in store?
Going back 500 years, the East Indian cuisine enjoys influences from Portuguese, British and Maharashtrian fare. The staples include rice, coconut, tamarind, fish and meats, with spices forming an integral part of the cuisine. For instance, Prawn Atola is a dry dish comprising prawns coated only with Vindaloo Masala featuring Kashmiri chilli, cumin and turmeric. "Most people from our community were farmers and would be out on field all day. So, the masalas and lemon would help preserve their food for a longer time," reasons Kinny.
At present, the store stocks six varieties of masala in 100g bottles (R150 onwards). These include Khuddi or Bottle Masala, Chinchoni (fish) Masala, Vindaloo Masala, Roast Rub, Kujit Masala and Tem Che Rose. She also offers Wedding Pickle, an oil-free variety prepared with raw papaya, carrots and dry dates. "All the recipes have been passed on from generations and are homemade," she informs.
However, making the masalas is no cakewalk. "It takes three days to dry spices under the sun. Then, we hand pound them and pack them tightly in bottles with wider openings," says Kinny. She recalls that in her grandmother’s time, the masalas were tightly stuffed in beer bottles. The bottles were darker, and hence, helped preserve the masala for at least a year, at room temperature.
Lugra love
East Indian Cozinha also stocks traditional 10-yard saris known as lugras. These are hand embroidered by Kinny’s mother, Carol. Previously made only from cotton with authentic gold borders, now, lugras are embroidered with sequins and threads. "She has been in the garment industry for the last 30 years. She also makes traditional accessories like kapotas (earrings), karis (hair pins), anklets, etc," informs Kinny.
read more:www.marieaustralia.com/formal-dresses
www.marieaustralia.com/short-formal-dresses
Dec 8, 2015
Dec 8, 2015 at 1:52 AM UTC
CHAI GARAM CHAI
Millions of cups of TEA/CHAI each day, we Indians happily consume
It is almost a must every morning, evening and before we work resume
Lures us its aroma at home or when we pass by a tea-stall, tempting are its fumes
One of the most consumed drinks in India is definitely chai, anyone can this presume
Huge varieties there are, count one cannot; but the most famous I guess is Masala chai
Most Indians, specially Gujjus, this thoroughly enjoy; even foreigners must definitely it try.
Every morning a fresh cup of boiling chai makes your day; ah! that cup of "garma-garam chai"
My most favorites are the aadu-ilaichi (ginger cardamom) n Bawaji special, the fudhina-leeli-chai
Once you sip it, along with Bun-Muska, almost addicted you are, you get a "Chaska" true.
There is an art in concocting a good cup of chai; one must know how to it properly brew
Sadly I wasn't allowed to taste coffee or tea/chai when young, I tasted it, only when I grew
Tea here, is a drink old, but the Brits loved it n made it famous; so, chai is old tea is new
Armin Dutia Motashaw
Apr 24, 2022
Apr 24, 2022 at 4:59 AM UTC
i love the fact that most people
rather enter the concept
of karma rather dialectics
to argue their point - makes
emily austen seem like a nutcracker
of ideas to come from
ikea as the self-assembled semi-detached
heights, otherwise known as wuthering, heights
or the disco-ball done in mahoganny eyed splinter
shine - sheens the spot!
it's just so ****** blocked nose rotten,
the opposite of polite society,
a bit like the middle-ages... reigning
paranoia imported from a lost colony,
library cards of blue indian peasants
turned into pheasants that did the cancan dance
all of a sudden... miracles christ couldn't even forsee!
i'm free every saturday if you're hashtag up-for-it...
never mind... i'll leave my quote and oil my phone-number
for a missing mobile telepathic nuance on
when differentiating blue indians with garam masala
and red indians with mohawks - easiest game of all:
snakes & ladders, noughts & crosses... garam masala & mohawks.
Dec 5, 2015
Dec 5, 2015 at 8:26 PM UTC
Early June in Calcutta
means packed streets
of decaying carcasses
and forlorn bodies
pulling rich people in carts.
Record-breaking heat
amplifies the smell
of curbs doubling
as urinals,
and pungent sweat
soaks our shirts
before we even leave
the rickety roof
we called home.
But when I think Calcutta
I picture sunshine
and warm masala chai,
Suporna's smile as she chews
a mashed banana treat
and Rosie's tiny hand
twisting the gold band
on my middle finger.
I remember thank you songs
and walking songs
that we sang at bus stops
and busy streets,
where the glisten
on our skin
was only outshined
by the sparkle in our eyes.
Feb 21, 2016
Feb 21, 2016 at 1:22 PM UTC
or like today, almost any other day like today,
but today i matched up two analogies
with cooking;
i once only stated that doing organic chemistry experiments
were like cooking,
broths of sweets and sours (esters and ammonia compounds
respectively) -
they did seem so at the time and still are,
while smashing vegetables dipped in liquid nitrogen against
the laboratory floor,
but today, almost like any other day like today
i started cooking a chicken makhani (indian butter chicken),
past the stage of frying onions, garlic-ginger paste,
past adding the spices: garam masala ground cumin chilli powder
cayenne pepper salt & pepper,
past the stage of adding butter, milk and crème fraîche,
and chopped tomatoes,
past the stage of then dipping the chicken in to let it poach for
more tenderness than if fried prior (as the recipe suggested),
then... when i noticed the spice colours diluted by the dairy ingredients
i peered into the culinary warlock’s cauldron and uttered
what fiction critics would have said of a bestseller spy novel...
‘mmm... the plot thickens.’
side dish? lemon rice.
Oct 14, 2015
Oct 14, 2015 at 10:20 AM UTC
I love you, dear brother
And for you, will I always be there
Always, have we been close
Right from our school days
Playing a lot of street cricket
Having loads of entertainment
In the form of masala movies
Listening to AR Rahman classics
Debating on Harry Potter-related topics
Playing carrom and chess
The list used to be endless!
I love you, dear brother
So much fun, have we had together
As children, teenagers, adults
Indeed, have we had many a memorable moment
Playing cricket inside the house
And creating a fair amount of chaos
Racking up highly unrealistic totals in book cricket
Going up to the terrace in the evening
And in the process, watching bats
A fair amount of travelling
Especially when it came to trains
Playing the game "20 Questions"
In regards to both cricket and Harry Potter
Going on talking and talking till the wee hours
On a variety of topics
Seriously, were those days epic!!
I love you, dear brother
For me, have you always been there
Advising me from time to time
Always managing to stay calm
Whenever have I gone on ranting and ranting
Taking time out for me while working
Being a shoulder to cry on
Checking on me often
Bringing out the best in me
Not to mention, I'm sure you will agree
It was thanks to you
That I became such an ardent fan of Harris Jayaraj!!
I love you, dear brother
You are going to have an exciting future
So happy am I, for you
Now, is a treat due
Soon, will we meet
Wish you all the very best
And may God bless you
With a truckload of love, happiness, peace and prosperity!!
May 29, 2024
May 29, 2024 at 8:17 AM UTC
One for the proactive, that never look back,
On the ticking time bomb that remains in their past.
If you join me on a brisk walk down memory lane,
Be expecting a sprint with hurdles and pain.
Life’s a masala, like a bowl of *** pourri,
Do you have Bernard’s watch, or a cup of tea you can pour me?
The bittersweet taste makes everything better..
Watch me paint my face - the ultimate trendsetter,
While I dance around the truth and shake around the fear,
That’s been shadowing me now for a good 20 years.
It started with a breath and ended with a scream,
As many lives unravelled in silence and bad dreams.
So many scenes forgotten, rejected and deleted,
As my young mind drowned but refused to be defeated.
Defaced and defiled, no attempt to be reconciled,
No retribution resonates with the word **********
One person to blame, one person Scot free,
One person rewarded immunity.
But would the penultimate moment when intervention intervenes,
Cause combustible chaos awaiting to be seen?
So read my tangle of nonsense words scribbled in scratchy black pen,
As I’ll never be able to colour out of the lines again.
Every ounce of innocence and youth has already been depleted,
Let us mourn a life-post, never to be repeated...
Feb 21, 2019
Feb 21, 2019 at 4:36 PM UTC
#*The morning sun plays hide and seek between the hills
Miles and miles of strawberry fields
The little green plants wear winter smiles
and baby strawberries unripe
The innocent clouds in a clear sky
Hold a dialogue in patterns pristine
Missed by their cousins in the city skies
Bougainvillea adorned villas
And Cozy homes
Warli paintings on the walls
Red soil and dusty country roads
Tablelands and Parsi point
Scenic hills and the Sahyadri valley view
Mapro garden a place to go
For sandwiches and strawberry cream
The river stream gleams under the setting sun
A perfect cup of masala chai
An evening well spent*#
Jan 24, 2019
Jan 24, 2019 at 12:28 PM UTC
Not doing a whole helluva a lot
Waiting for something that never comes
Bored. Tired. Angry.
Wishing we could talk
Brown Buddha statue
Kamakura snow
O we O we O
53 and falling
Mind on the month of May
54 and forming
Quiet green couch
Long live Lina and Doon!
Death comes for the Archbishop
Si San Salvador
Cam plays indoor soccer
Only silence. Lamplight rain.
Beltane?
Apr 23, 2023
Apr 23, 2023 at 12:11 AM UTC
I took this girl on a date to the Purple Pakora,
Lil did I know how much this girl would order,
I met her on tinder-loo, she orderd a vinderloo madras and a korma
What the actual tandoori duck ?? how many animals does this ***** wanna slaughter?
I'm already thinking **** how much they gonna charge me,
When she puts an order in for another 12 oinion bhaji
I could stop what was going on,
Next thing I know she wants a side order of poppadom with extra ******* yogurt on
Then she looks me in the eye an says " shall we get a starter coz I absolutely love a chiken tika masala
Holy **** **** god dam!!!
Now to wants to try each different flavor of naan
10 cocktails that didn't even touch the ******* coaster,
Then she goes " I'm on a diet. So I'll just have 1 vegetable samosa
Burn a hole in my pocket the size of the equator,
And she didn't forget to tell me to tip the ****** waiter
After we left this girl wants to party
She goes I'll come with you if you get some charlie
All I got to eat was her sunbed barbecued punnani, and that ******* tasted like a gone off seafood biriani,,
BEWARE!!!!
Feb 8, 2021
Feb 8, 2021 at 10:04 AM UTC
Sweet and savoury,
Smothered in rich tomato sauce,
Adding a pinch of spices like cumin, pepper and garam masala ;
Brings in a great combination of flavour and aroma,
Making baked beans smell so wonderful.
Healthy and super delicious,
Utterly addictive and irresistible,
Quick and easy breakfast,
Love to have it with Dejeunette Viennoise and Croissant along with a bite of cutlet,
One of my favourite morning delights on the dining table.
May 26, 2020
May 26, 2020 at 7:27 AM UTC
I remember that film,
'Mississippi Masala'
Uganda
Kampala,
watching was a
difficulty that
catapulted me
out of my comfort zone
but I suppose one had to be there
to feel the real pain.
Mar 31, 2017
Mar 31, 2017 at 1:54 PM UTC