/xml/top-banner.xml /xml/bottom-banner.xml no Padma's text/html; charset=UTF-8 en-us Ivo Widjaja description equeenox equeenox (c) equeenox /xml/taxonomy.xml friends toc.xml padma no About Padma

Padma is my best friend's wife. I wish she will be my wife's best friend. The strange thing is that I feel more comfortable talking to her rather than her husband cum my best friend. Probably because the best friend status demand more careful attention into the relationship, or probably because we both are very sensitive men trapped in male bonding myth.

We met in Singapore, when we're working for the same polytechnic. Sometimes, if not many times (or maybe most of the time), they invited me for dinner or breakfast. She just a great cook, like her mother. We're the separated when they moved to Melbourne, but we're joined again when I moved there. And, again, they invited me for dinner in the weekend. Unfortunately, I stayed far-far away from their place, I could not accept their invitation as often as I used to do and I like to wish.

In Melbourne, she made something that I haven't tasted before, Black Pepper and Garlic Chutney. It was heaven. I can just eat rice with this sauce. I think it's great with roasted beef (though it's not intended to, because my friends are vegeterian).

 Black Pepper and Garlic Chutney
  • 12 cloves of garlics (diced)
  • 1 lime-sized ball of tamarind
  • 1 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1 tsp coriander seeds
  • curry leaves (as much as you want, though optional)
  1. Temper some mustard seeds in a good quantity of oil (you need more oil, as it acts as a preservative)
  2. Add the garlic and fry until light golden
  3. Add the paste made of tamarind, black pepper, coriander and curry leaves. Put in water and salt to taste
  4. Also add a piece of jaggery and allow this mixture to thicken
  5. That's it...simple, taste wonderful