press team pages
Page 19
S
hortS
or
SkirtS
?
A
S
S
uArez
rAceS
to
the
top
,
B
AleS
’
vAlue
SeemS
to
hAve
dropped
…
k
eeping
it
S
imple
T
he
Z
en
of
cooking
“Keep it simple,” says Grandpa, “No
messing around”. I am standing in
my Grandparents kitchen. Fragrant
smells of spices caress the air. The
songs of Jagjit and Chitra Singh
play softly in the background. I am
twelve years old. I am smiling. I am
hungry.
Saag Aloo is possibly the first Pun-
jabi dish I learnt to make. And it re-
mains one of my favourites. Some of
you reading may have heard of Saag
Aloo – which translates simply as
“Spinach and Potato”.
You have no idea how many times
people say to me “I love a good cur-
ry”. I smile normally, and reply with
sweet nothings, but underneath
I am wondering, “Have you had a
good curry?” Most Indian takeaways
serve mass-produced dishes, where
the original ingredients have been
smothered by too much flavour.
What happened to keeping it sim-
ple? I often say that you can judge
an Indian Takeaway on its Saag Aloo.
One cannot create a simple dish,
tak- ing advantage of the simple
flavours of spinach and potato, then
how can one expect to create a com-
plex dish? It is like the clichéd term
“running before you can walk”.
Cooking has followed me through
my life like a noble and silent friend.
I am still smiling. I am still hungry.
Serves four: 1 kilo potatoes, peeled
and chopped into rough “cubes” of
1-2 inches – You can use any type
you like, just preferably not Salad
or New Potatoes 250 grams Frozen
(preferably thawed) or Fresh Spinach
1⁄2 tsp. Turmeric 1⁄4 tsp. Chilli 1⁄2
tsp. Ground Coriander 1⁄2 tsp. Garam
Masala 1⁄2 tsp. Ground Cumin 2 tsps.
Whole Cumin 1 tbsp. Ghee, Butter
and Oil mix, Coconut oil, or any oth-
er Oil of your choice, (My favourites
are Coconut oil, or Ghee) A couple of
cups of water 1 heaped tsp. Sea Salt
Pilau or Plain Rice to serve
1)
Heat all the oil/ghee in a Sauce-
pan on a medium-high heat. Whilst
it’s heating, mix all of the ground
spices together with a tablespoon or
so of water to make your “Masala”.
2)
First put the Whole Cumin in
the pan – they should sizzle. Using
a wooden spoon/spatula, mix the
seeds for about five seconds. Then
pour in the masala -it should bubble
a little in the oil. Stir constantly for
about ten seconds – until the spices
smell fragrant and cooked.
3)
Pour in all the potatoes, and a
splash of water. Fold the potatoes
into the spices. When they are all
covered in the masala, add a couple
of cups of water –so it half covers the
potatoes.
4)
Cover the pan. Bring to a boil. Turn
the heat down. Simmer the potatoes
for about fifteen minutes or so –
folding them every few of minutes.
5)
When the potatoes are cooked
but still firm, add the spinach. Stir a
little, and cover the pan again. Leave
for about five minutes, stirring a
couple of times, until the spinach is
cooked. It should be fully mixed now
with the potatoes.
6)
Serve with Rice.
When a year 8 schoolboy from
Cambridgeshire was angered by
the school policy that stated boys
weren’t allowed to wear shorts to
school, despite the hot weather, he
decided to take matters into his own
hands. He believed this policy to be
discriminative as girls were allowed
to wear skirts, however he used this
to his advantage on discovering that
nothing had been said about boys
wearing skirts too. His peaceful pro-
test prompted the school’s manage-
ment team to review their policy.
KEVICC’s recently introduced uni-
form policy also prohibits boys from
wearing shorts during the summer
months, causing boys throughout
the school to modify their uniform.
Since the uniform policy has been
put in place, male students have
voiced their concerns that it lim-
its their freedom and parents have
echoed these opinions. However, the
college leadership team have lis-
tened to these requests and are in-
vestigating the availability of plain
tailored black shorts. The college
aims to introduce an option of shorts
in September 2014 but currently no
sources have been identified.
As football finally takes a break fol-
lowing the end of the World Cup,
football players will be relaxing and
enjoying their well-earned millions.
But are they all worth it? Thanks
to a study by the CIES Football Ob-
servatory, it seems to be that some
players are extremely over-valued.
Gareth Bale: one of the highest
paid footballers in the world the
most over-valued. Real Madrid paid
£80.6m to have him on their team,
a gap of £29.8m from his real value
of £50.9m. However this differs for
some players who really have lived
up to their expectations. Barcelona
player Messi is the most valuable
player with his minimum value of
£161.5m. Catching him up from
behind however is Luis Suarez after
his stunning season at Anfield pro-
pelling him up the rankings. Will he
continue to race to the top? Will he
be the star of the 2014/15 season?
