I am trying to make some cocktails with distinctly Indian theme. We will see how many I can come up with. Today’s was Khatta Meetha. This literally means “Sweet and Sour”.
Tamarind juice with Old Monk rum from India and sugar syrup. Garnished with a cinnamon stick.
By the way, did you know India has the highest per capita consumption of rum in the whole world?
Made two big changes… got myself a vessel to heat up the milk in the oven. And thanks to a tip from Lakshmi, changed the decoction-to-milk ratio. For the first time, my memory cells from Taramani days were awakened!!
In a side story, our CHRO, Nicole, was in South India this week for work. This was her first trip to India. I had asked her to try “Filter Kaapi”. Apparently, after a fair bit of hesitation, she tried it.
And now we have “Plus One” for people who love South Indian “Filter Kaapi” !!!
This is a twist on the original Margarita recipe. First, I have used Tamarind juice. Growing up in a village in India, tamarind was one of those much sought-after things in the tree. It was always about who could throw a stone or stick to fell a bunch of them, and then the incredible squint in the eyes once the sharp, sweet, tangy, and sour taste exploded in the mouth.
In any case, I used a bit of lime juice with it, then, instead of the traditional tequila, went with mezcal to add earthy tones. Finally, topped up with Grand Marnier and Tajin salt for garnishing.
Got myself a bag of South Indian coffee powder from Hyderabad. The result was remarkably close to what I remember of the Taramani coffee we used to drink while at IIT Chennai. I am still not forgiving my South Indian friends for feeding me coffee that had 20% chicory in it, though 🙂
My next frontier to solve is the temperature. I used the thermometer today to monitor it. The milk itself is at 170 deg F. But once I do a few pours from the dabara to the tumbler to get the froth, the temperature drops to 140 deg F. The stainless steel vessels lose heat very quickly.
I want steaming hot coffee like my South Indian friends give me.
Microwaving does not feel authentic. None of those Taramani tea stalls had microwaves. So, I have a mental barrier. Plus, I am not putting any stainless steel vessels in the microwave. Resorting to ceramic feels like giving up on the art of South Indian Filter Kaapi.
I welcome your ideas!
… I am convinced, is to give you time to clean up all the stainless steel utensils required, in the meantime. Making a cappuccino in the machine didn’t require this many utensils.
In the meantime, I need the following to keep testing and tasting.
1. Dark roast coffee beans mixed with chicory. I have to admit that when I found out that South Indian coffee uses chicory, I was a bit deflated. Historically, chicory was added to coffee to cheat customers when coffee beans were in short supply. But apparently, I need that to get the authentic South Indian coffee smell and taste. Haver ordered on Amazon now.
2. Use full-fat milk. I am balking at this one. Being a bit afraid of lipids (and with my LDL levels high), I have trained my palate to enjoy coffee with skimmed milk. Maybe I will settle for 2% for a while.
3. The third one, I need help from experts. I cannot get my coffee to be steaming hot. Do you folks boil the milk? What do you do when you need it only for one person? That is 8-10 ounces of milk at most.
