Awanthi Vardaraj
(She/Her)
Covers:
food, women's health, women's rights, social justice, memoir, travel
Doesn't Cover:
politics, tech
Absent-minded writer & editor. Cat mum. Team Cake For Breakfast. She/Her
My work: muckrack.com/awanthi
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Articles by Awanthi Vardaraj
Does Salt Expire-and How Do You Know if Your Salt Has Gone Bad?
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Does Salt Expire-and How Do You Know If Your Salt Has Gone Bad?
That shaker of salt has been in your pantry for ages-is it safe to eat, and does salt ever expire? Since time immemorial, humans have used salt as a preservative. In fact, preserving foods with salt goes back further than written records. Our ancestors salted meat, fish, vegetables and even fruits to prevent them from decaying quickly. Considering that, you've probably never stopped to wonder, Does salt expire?
Le miso, c’est quoi exactement?
ZKRUGER/GETTY IMAGES La voix excitée de mon amie au téléphone annonce sa découverte d’un nouvel ingrédient mystérieux (pour elle) dans le magasin d’alimentation internationale près de chez elle. «Le miso, c’est quoi?», me dit-elle au bout du fil. J’adore la bouffe et en parler m’enchante. Tout comme le fait d’assister à la découverte d’un nouveau produit. Je lui explique donc que le miso est une pâte (bonne pour la santé) faite de fèves de soya fermentées.
Is Cucumber a Fruit or a Vegetable?
Cucumbers have been called vegetables forever, but are they actually fruits? Fruits and vegetables mean different things to different people, but most of us classify produce based on how it tastes (fruits are sweet, and veggies are savory) and how we eat it. That doesn't stop us from wondering how certain foods are technically classified. Is cucumber a fruit? And for that matter, is tomato a fruit? Those aren't the only foods in question.
Why Is a Hamburger Called a Hamburger If There's No Ham?
The iconic hamburger has a rich international history that's still up for debate. The origin of any well-loved dish is always fascinating, but even more so when it’s as iconic as the hamburger. The Oxford English Dictionary defines the backyard barbecue staple as “a flat, round cake of minced beef, fried or grilled and typically served in a bread roll garnished with various condiments.” One thing that generally doesn’t make the ingredients list? Ham.
White privilege, white media, and Alison Roman
I run a group for food writers on Facebook; at 3600+ people, we are legion. We discussed the Alison Roman incident at length, and some of us even considered writing a response piece to The New Consumer. But pitching a piece like that, especially for us women of colour, to media that is dominated by white people, to an industry that birthed and nourishes people like Roman, is a huge ask.
Social distancing is the only thing that is going to save us
Tom Inglesby, the director of the Johns Hopkins SPH Center for Health Security that works to protect people from epidemics and disasters, had some thoughts about social distancing too.
The 10 Best Dosas (And Where to Eat Them) in Chennai
START Home > Arts & Culture • Bites PHOTO: Rajesh Narayanan/Shutterstock There’s nothing better than dunking a piece of dosa in sambhar or chutney and taking the perfect bite. Tamil Nadu is the birthplace of the dosa, the savory breakfast (although dosas are really an anytime food) crepe that southern India is famous for. Made from fermented rice and lentil-based batters, there are a variety of crepes that are served with dips like chutneys, sambhar, spiced potatoes called masala, and more.
12 Essential South Indian Savory Snacks
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M is for Money: Dear Ms. Rowling
It's later. The sheets are hanging out to dry on the line outside, little plastic clips holding them secure in the mild breeze. I am resting, sitting on the only chair I own. This chair performs stellar service in my little home. I sit on it to read, write, eat my meals, and even photograph things on for my food blog. I own a little broken desk that my friend bought me last year.
The five Indian cookbooks you need to own
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Ghee is golden: The rest of the world is now catching on to Indian staple
T he very first solid food my mother fed me as a baby in our southern India household was mashed-up rice mixed with a little ghee. This set the stage for my lifelong love affair with this nutty, rich, golden clarified butter. In recent years, ghee has become a global phenomenon, trending as a “superfood” and beloved by followers of the popular keto diet. But its history — real and legendary — is long. Ghee originated in India, where the heat was not conducive to storing butter for long periods.
Ghee has been an Indian staple for millennia. Now the rest of the world is catching on.
The very first solid food my mother fed me as a baby in our southern India household was mashed-up rice mixed with a little ghee. This set the stage for my lifelong love affair with this nutty, rich, golden clarified butter. In recent years, ghee has become a global phenomenon, trending as a “superfood” and beloved by followers of the popular Keto diet. But its history—real and legendary—is long. Ghee originated in India, where the heat was not conducive to storing butter for long periods.
Ghee has been an Indian staple for millennia. Now the rest of the world is catching on.
The very first solid food my mother fed me as a baby in our southern India household was mashed-up rice mixed with a little ghee. This set the stage for my lifelong love affair with this nutty, rich, golden clarified butter. In recent years, ghee has become a global phenomenon, trending as a “superfood” and beloved by followers of the popular Keto diet. But its history — real and legendary — is long. Ghee originated in India, where the heat was not conducive to storing butter for long periods.
Ghee has been an Indian staple for millennia. Now the rest of the world is catching on
Ghee has been a staple in Indian cooking for millennia. (Photo by Tom McCorkle for The Washington Post.) The very first solid food my mother fed me as a baby in our southern India household was mashed-up rice mixed with a little ghee. This set the stage for my lifelong love affair with this nutty, rich, golden clarified butter. In recent years, ghee has become a global phenomenon, trending as a “superfood” and beloved by followers of the popular Keto diet.
Perspective | Ghee has been an Indian staple for millennia. Now the rest of the world is catching on.
Recipes How-To Dinner in Minutes Trending Newsletter Video Voraciously Perspective Perspective Interpretation of the news based on evidence, including data, as well as anticipating how events might unfold based on past events February 6 (Tom McCorkle for The Washington Post; food styling by Amanda Soto/The Washington Post) The very first solid food my mother fed me as a baby in our southern India household was mashed-up rice mixed with a little ghee.
Going From the Best Food to the Cheapest Food
“If it’s not local, seasonal, and organic,” I grandly declared five years ago, “it’s not worth buying.” I sometimes think back to that moment, to past me who didn’t know what the future held, to past me who had been such a food snob as to look down her nose at canned things, processed food, and cake and brownie mixes that came neatly packaged in boxes. I was a fervent campaigner for what I termed as “real food,” and I rejected everything that didn’t fit into my reality. That reality was rosy.
Turkish Delight & Gilded Demonberries: on the Finest of Fictional Foods
A picture, they say, is worth a thousand words, although it’s clear that “they” haven’t read some of the words I’ve read describing food in breathtaking, drool-inducing detail. The only thing nicer than reading about food in a book is reading about food whilst snacking. As a girl I’d arrive at meals with my nose in a book, and it was often taken away from me as I was forced to interact with my family and talk about my day when I would rather be reading.
Sea Urchins in Mendocino
A Plague of Delicious Purple Urchins is Taking Over the California Coast and It's Our Duty to Eat Them What do you do when a favored delicacy becomes an unchecked epidemic? We might have some ideas...
The Best Veggie Burgers to Celebrate National Burger Day | TomatoInk Blog: Eco-Friendly Ink, Toner, Printing, and Related Topics
National Burger Day is coming up on May 28th. This year I wanted to pay homage to vegetarian and vegan burger options here on the blog. Now, before you make assumptions about how delicious veggie burgers could actually be, I suggest you take some time to make one (or more) of the recipes mentioned here. You’ll be pleasantly surprised! More and more people are turning to plant-based eating, and people who have never tried this way of eating make awful (and incorrect) judgements about their diets.
The wise words that changed my life
‘I told her how I had never felt at home anywhere, and how disconnected I had always felt from the country of my birth.’ It was one of those Dublin summer days that don't make sense; the sun was hiding behind a dark grey cloud and the air felt muggy and oppressive. I was working as a nanny, and my youngest charge was complaining about the weather and trying to get out of going to nursery.
The wise words that changed my life
It was one of those Dublin summer days that don't make sense; the sun was hiding behind a dark grey cloud and the air felt muggy and oppressive. I was working as a nanny, and my youngest charge was complaining about the weather and trying to get out of going to nursery. I was only half-present; early that morning, I had checked my email and my sister had written to tell me that our beloved grandfather had been diagnosed with cancer.
Why India Doesn’t Want Its Women Getting Off
A few months ago my friend Nancy*–who lives in Las Vegas, Nevada–decided to do something nice for me by offering to send me something I wanted (not needed). I live in India, a country where sex toys are not easily available; so I asked them to send me a vibrator. They had me pick one out on Amazon and a few days later they told me that they’d sent me the vibrator in the mail. At first I blamed it on the mail system–sometimes packages just don’t turn up–and moved on.
Stop With The Body-Shaming Already!
The words – loaded like bullets into the sentence that was being directed at me – stung deeply. I was only ten years old, and although I was likely carrying a small amount of puppy fat, being told I was fat was like the end of the world. I was fat, and the implication was that I was too large for ballet, and too large to ever even attempt to be the main ballerina in an upcoming recital.
How You Should Be Feeding Birds All Year Long | TomatoInk Blog: Eco-Friendly Ink, Toner, Printing, and Related Topics
February is National Bird Feeding Month! One of the first things I like to do when I move is set up my bird table for feeding birds. It’s nothing fancy, and I knocked it up myself. All you need are two planks of wood, and a set up resembling a T shape. I like putting out scraps and seeds for the birds on top of the plank. Sometimes when I have coconuts, I make sure to tie them to the plank and watch the birds fly around the table, pecking at the coconuts to eat the white flesh.
New Food Trends for the New Year | TomatoInk Blog: Eco-Friendly Ink, Toner, Printing, and Related Topics
It’s a brand new year, which means a number of things. New expectations, new resolutions, new color of the year, and, of course, new food trends. In 2017 we were obsessed with activated charcoal, bugs as snacks (I am so not kidding), vegan burgers (still an obsession in 2018, I’m pleased to note), local distilleries, and zero-waste cooking.
Orgasms Are Excruciating for Me - & I'm Not Alone
Share Tweet Pin Share Tumble Combined comments & shares on social media It was a feeling I'd never associated with sex; I'd just had an orgasm, and instead of being filled from top to toe with a rosy glow, I was in pain. I rolled over on my side, hands on my abdomen and winced. The pain — a painful cramping sensation that made me distressingly aware of my abdomen and my pelvis — was an entirely new one. I curled up in the fetal position and waited for it to dissipate, which it did after a while.
Orgasms Are Excruciating for Me - & I’m Not Alone
It was a feeling I’d never associated with sex; I’d just had an orgasm, and instead of being filled from top to toe with a rosy glow, I was in pain. I rolled over on my side, hands on my abdomen and winced. The pain — a painful cramping sensation that made me distressingly aware of my abdomen and my pelvis — was an entirely new one. I curled up in the fetal position and waited for it to dissipate, which it did after a while.
A Brief History: Rice Pudding
Rice pudding, whilst rejected by some for being too plain and stodgy, still remains one of my favourite comfort foods. It’s actually been around for centuries, believe it or not, and was thought to have originated in China, which has an ancient rice culture. This has been disputed by some food historians; they argue that rice pudding likely originated in India, which has an ancient rice culture as well as an ancient sugar culture.
Every Nanny Job I’ve Ever Had
Being a nanny wasn’t my wildest dream, but I found myself applying for multiple nanny jobs when I was nineteen. I was at a loose end, and it had been a perfect set of circumstances that had led me to that moment: I’d wanted to study acting in London or NYC, but I wasn’t able to. I enrolled in a literature course in a college in Chennai, but it was the wrong course, the wrong college, the wrong city. I dropped out of college in my final year and scouted around for something to do.
India’s Chikkis Are the Best Peanut Brittle You’ll Ever Eat
On a drizzly weekend afternoon, I was at the supermarket and frazzled as I shopped for the week ahead, leapfrogging over numbers, lists, and this-week-only deals, when, without warning, a woman standing behind me dropped a bag of powdered jaggery. It fell to the floor and burst open, releasing a billowing cloud of brown sugar that fluttered into my hair, my skin, down my throat.
India’s Chikkis Are the Best Peanut Brittle You’ll Ever Eat
On a drizzly weekend afternoon, I was at the supermarket and frazzled as I shopped for the week ahead, leapfrogging over numbers, lists, and this-week-only deals, when, without warning, a woman standing behind me dropped a bag of powdered jaggery. It fell to the floor and burst open, releasing a billowing cloud of brown sugar that fluttered into my hair, my skin, down my throat.
This Australian Breakfast Is "Like Sucking Mucus Out of a Corpse" AND IT'S NOT EVEN VEGEMITE - Roads & Kingdoms
I have vague memories of an ad campaign that ran during the lead-up to the Sydney Olympics. Buffed and toothy athletes in their green-and-gold tracksuits stood, backdropped by an Australian flag, talking about how many Weet-Bix they ate each morning. “Five,” bragged the sprinter. “Eleven,” growled the weightlifter. “Three,” chirped the pole vaulter. I can’t be certain whether that’s an accurate memory or not, but I know that a variation of that campaign has been running more or less ever since.
If You're Stuck With Bad Weather Might As Well Eat Something Deep Fried - Roads & Kingdoms
I only need to shut my eyes for a brief moment, and I can almost taste the hot morsel of crispy flatbread cradling the spicy, glossy gravy of chickpeas, and I am transported to the little tea house in Panjim, where I first tasted the Goan breakfast my friends had been telling me so much about. There’s no better time than during drizzling and overcast skies to indulge in deep-fried goodness of any kind. And in Goa, I was introduced to a particular type of buns.
Chicken Soup: The Cure for Traveling Man Flu? - Roads & Kingdoms
That was my question as I pried open a can of “Meine Hühner Bouillon” at 9:00 a.m. at our guesthouse in Hamburg. I’m not a huge canned soup fan; who is? There’s nothing glamorous about plopping a dented aluminum can of concentrated meat and vegetables into a saucepan and heating it, stirring occasionally as the puddles of oil concentrate on the top, reflecting the kitchen lights in all sorts of psychedelic patterns.
There is No Distance Too Far to Travel for the Perfect Lobster Roll - Roads & Kingdoms
From the moment I drive off the ferry onto Îles-de-la-Madeleine—seven small islands in the Gulf of the Saint-Lawrence in Quebec, six of which are connected by a road—my goal is to find the best lobster roll on the islands. Lobster has been an obsession of mine since I was a teenager. A treat I would enjoy once or twice each summer, when my dad received a crate of live lobsters from a customer in Prince Edward Island, resulting in an impromptu lobster feast in our backyard.
I Was Debt-Free-Until I Agreed To Pay Back Everything My Grandfather Owed
I remember climbing a tree on a sun-dappled afternoon years ago; at five years old I was an incredibly adventurous little girl who loved nothing more than to explore like the characters in the books I loved. The branch under my foot cracked as I reached for a branch above me, and I felt myself falling briefly before strong arms plucked me out of the air. I twisted around to look into my grandfather's familiar face, and his wide smile.
How to Plan a Green, Eco-Friendly Wedding
You’re getting married! Congratulations! There’s so much to think about, plan, do, and organize, and so much to stay on top of. We get that, but here’s one more thing to think about: are you planning on having a green, eco-friendly wedding? Because if you’re not, there are plenty of reasons why you should. The earth needs our help like never before. We need the earth, frankly, and a healthy hospitable earth to boot.
India's Outdated Dowry Practice is Killing Brides
I still remember vividly the day I saw, in the newspaper, a photograph of a young woman crouching in front of a fridge, a washing machine and other assorted household goods and sundries. She looked so small and so fragile sitting there, dwarfed by her dowry, with her bridal henna staining her hands and forearms. I don’t remember her name, and I’ve tried to find out, to no avail.
How Grocery Delivery Changed My Relationship with Shopping
published Mar 6, 2017 (Image credit: Maria Siriano) A few weeks ago I caught sight of my overworked, frazzled, absent-minded self in the big mirror in my local grocery store and did a double take; as unbelievable as it was, I had managed to go to the store wearing my pajamas. I honestly thought I’d remembered to change into jeans and a T-shirt.
India's Right-Wing Student Trolls are Silencing Democratic Voices - Wear Your Voice
Indian universities are becoming a battleground as a new war is being fought on campuses across the country between the radical right-wing and the liberal left. Last week, the campus of Delhi University saw violence and disruptions when the right-wing student group ABVP (Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad) protested against a seminar entitled “Cultures of Protest,” which was scheduled to take place on February 21.
Marmite Is Better than Vegemite
Marmite is a magical and delicious yeasty spread. It is not the only one — copycat versions of it exist around the world — but it is the original, and it is the best. I lived in Australia for a while, where one of its competitors thrives. You know the spread that shall not be named that I speak of. It pales in comparison! My Aussie friends tried to get me to change my mind about it by using love, persuasion, and outright threats.
How A Broken-Hearted Young Girl Found Healing In Her Grandmother's Vadais
If I close my eyes, I can go back in a heartbeat to the flower-patterned sofa in my grandmother's living room, where I was curled up with my face pressed close to the slightly rough fabric. It was a Saturday morning, but not a typical one. I was 14 years old, deep in the throes of my first heartbreak, and I imagined that nobody in the world had ever felt the monumental pain I was feeling that day.
How A Broken-Hearted Young Girl Found Healing In Her Grandmother's Vadais
If I close my eyes, I can go back in a heartbeat to the flower-patterned sofa in my grandmother's living room, where I was curled up with my face pressed close to the slightly rough fabric. It was a Saturday morning, but not a typical one. I was 14 years old, deep in the throes of my first heartbreak, and I imagined that nobody in the world had ever felt the monumental pain I was feeling that day.
How A Broken-Hearted Young Girl Found Healing In Her Grandmother's Vadais
If I close my eyes, I can go back in a heartbeat to the flower-patterned sofa in my grandmother's living room, where I was curled up with my face pressed close to the slightly rough fabric. It was a Saturday morning, but not a typical one. I was 14 years old, deep in the throes of my first heartbreak, and I imagined that nobody in the world had ever felt the monumental pain I was feeling that day.
How A Broken-Hearted Young Girl Found Healing In Her Grandmother's Vadais
If I close my eyes, I can go back in a heartbeat to the flower-patterned sofa in my grandmother's living room, where I was curled up with my face pressed close to the slightly rough fabric. It was a Saturday morning, but not a typical one. I was 14 years old, deep in the throes of my first heartbreak, and I imagined that nobody in the world had ever felt the monumental pain I was feeling that day.
How A Broken-Hearted Young Girl Found Healing In Her Grandmother's Vadais
If I close my eyes, I can go back in a heartbeat to the flower-patterned sofa in my grandmother's living room, where I was curled up with my face pressed close to the slightly rough fabric. It was a Saturday morning, but not a typical one. I was 14 years old, deep in the throes of my first heartbreak, and I imagined that nobody in the world had ever felt the monumental pain I was feeling that day.
How A Broken-Hearted Young Girl Found Healing In Her Grandmother's Vadais
Medhu vadai, with chutneys and sambhar (a lentil-based gravy), are best served piping hot. Awanthi Vardaraj for NPR hide caption toggle caption Awanthi Vardaraj for NPR Medhu vadai, with chutneys and sambhar (a lentil-based gravy), are best served piping hot. Awanthi Vardaraj for NPR If I close my eyes, I can go back in a heartbeat to the flower-patterned sofa in my grandmother's living room, where I was curled up with my face pressed close to the slightly rough fabric.
What Is Marmite, and Why Is It So Good? — Cult Favorites
Ah, Marmite. When I think of that little glass pot of yeasty goodness, with its familiar yellow lid and iconic label, I can't help but ask myself one simple question: How do I love thee? How indeed? I was first introduced to Marmite when I was a little girl, growing up in India; it arrived on our breakfast table one morning on a golden-brown piece of buttered toast. One taste of that savory spread and I was in heaven. It was salty and yeasty and strong.
My Father was an Alcoholic, and the Scars Remain - Wear Your Voice
“I was born of violence and dissonance; it was not love that made me.” –1976 My father didn’t come to the hospital to visit when I was born. It’s not as though he had anything better to do; he had probably been drinking the night before, and he’d probably been drinking his breakfast when they told him that I’d made a less-than-triumphant entrance into the world.
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