Lucknawis taste Pak delicacies

Munnar (Kerala): A tea museum situated at Nullatanni estate of Munnar is the right choice for tea lovers. One of its kind in the country, the museum provides a glimpse of the history of tea plantation in Kerala's High Ranges. It is also be the country's first tea museum opened in the popular Kerala hill station of Munnar. Antique office equipment like typewriters, EPABX of 1909 telephone system that was in use in the high range and many other things, are exhibited here. There is also a tea roller from 1905, the Rotorvane, which is an old-type tea processing machine. It also has a running tea manufacturing unit to inform tourists on different aspects of tea processing. Set up by the Tata Tea, the museum gives the younger generation a peep inside what changes the tea industry has occurred in the past 125 years. TV Alexander, General Manager of Tata Tea Plantations, said: "Lot of younger generation is not aware of what has happened in the last 125 years, and of late we have seen a lot of visitors coming to Munnar. So for their information and for the information of the general public we thought it is ideal that we set up a museum so that people become aware of what has happened over the years." Photographs and machinery dating back over a century tell the story of progress that has its roots in the adventure and courage of a group of people. At the entrance to the museum is a sundial, fixed on granite, made in 1913 which enables one to calculate the time from a gauge on which the sun's rays fall. Yet, another interesting showpiece is the wheel of the rail engine of the Kundale Valley Light Railway. The train used to run in Munnar during early part of the last century.
-Nov 26, 2004

Lucknow: The city of Nawabs is hosting Pakistani food festival to give with the Lucknawis a taste of the sumptuous Lahori spread. Began on Friday, the "Zaika-e-Pakistan" aims at familiarising the people of Lucknow with the delicacies of Pakistan. Pakistani chefs would fly down especially to Lucknow Pakistan to prepare the vegetarian and non-vegetarian delicacies. Pakistani food festivals have been held in several cities in the country, but it is for the first time that it is being held in Lucknow. The organisers are planning to hold a similar "Lucknow Food Festival" in Lahore in the month of March 2005 in order to make the people of Lahore taste the delicacies of the cuisine of Lucknow. "Prior to this, we have organised 5 food festivals in the cities of Agra, New Delhi, Mumbai and Shimla. Pakistani Food Festival was organised in New Delhi twice. The people of Lucknow are better known as the connoisseurs of great food so we believe that it will be a great hit. We also want to make people of Lahore aware of the cuisine of Lucknow so we are planning to hold an Awadh or Lucknow Food Festival at Lahore next year in the month of March," said Kasim Jafri, the manager of the food festival. Kasuri Methi, Karachi Halwa, Lahori Fish, Matan Khunna, Chappali Kabeb, Takatak Mutton, Gosht Biryani, and the list goes on. There are both vegetarian and non-vegetarian delicacies to excite the taste buds of food lovers. The Menu has something different on offer everyday. "The dishes like Lahori Fish, Chiroti Kunna and Chikkar Chhole are in great demand. We have veg items for pure vegetarians. We have a lot to offer. We are changing the menu everyday. I hope people enjoy the festival," says Mahboob Ahmad Khan, a Pakistani Chef. According to customers, such festivals should be organised regularly. "I have tried Fish Kebab, fish tikka and rice. The festival is really nice. Such festivals should be held on a regular basis," said Major Atre, a food lover. Such festivals pave a way towards strengthening the ties between the two countries and creating harmonious relationship between the people of India and Pakistan.
-Nov 21, 2004

The Food Park scheme

New Delhi: The Ministry of Food Processing Industries is implementing several infrastructure schemes for developing the processed food sector. It is willing to assist in setting up one Food Park or major processing facility in every parliamentary constituency of the country. According to a press release, the idea behind setting up food parks is to help small and medium entrepreneurs who find it difficult to invest in capital-intensive activities such as cold storage, warehouses, quality control labs, effluent treatment plants, training and conference facilities. The common facilities created in food parks ensure better market orientation and make the small-scale food processing units more cost competitive. PSUs, the private sector, NGOs and cooperatives are eligible to get grant @ 25% of the project cost subject to a maximum of Rs.4 crore for setting up food parks. The release said, food parks can be set up in rural areas near agricultural farms. The Panchayati Raj institutions can make cooperative efforts and mobilize resources and land. They can avail assistance from the Ministry of Food Processing industries for this.
-Nov 18, 2004

Competition of cooking balls

London: The World Testicle Cooking Championship is being held in Serbia. The renowned cooks would be exhibiting their skills of preparing dishes using testicles of different animals. The championship was organised by Ljubomir Erovic, of the Serbian Tourism Board, as a way of promoting the dish. "The best cooked balls come from Serbia and we wanted to stage this contest to show the world what great dishes can be cooked using testicles, which are known locally here as white kidneys," the Daily Times quoted him as saying in an interview with a Serbia based newspaper. One of the contests was won by gourmet testicle chef Dejan Milovanovic from Belgrade. He prepared a special dish using testicles from a bull and a boar beat off challengers from around the world. He cooked their way through more than 20 kilos of prepared testicles. According to the report, next year the event will include an "exotic testicles" section where chefs will have to come up with a dish using camel and ostrich testicles.
-Nov 5, 2004