Sesame Asian Kitchen: Ashland, Oregon

Stopped in Ashland for lunch today, the result of a yarn emergency. Just around the corner from the destination yarn-weaving store The Web-sters, found Sesame Asian Kitchen. It’s a bright sunny space that looks out onto Lithia Park. The interior is sleek and attractive and the food is good. We started with vegetarian eggrolls which were beautifully presented and fine, but not exceptional. The Asian slaw on which they were sitting was great however, as were our entrees. I had the crispy eggplant with tofu and Mr. Gastronome had the pumpkin curry. Both were winners. Service was mostly attentive and very friendly. We’ll definitely plan to stop here again. As far as I can tell, Ashland is the only outpost of civilization between Portland, Oregon, and Sacramento, California, in a valley that regards the “theory” of evolution as a communist plot. And I’m not that sure about Sacramento… But Ashland is definitely solid. Actually upon further reflection, Corvallis and Eugene obviously have progressive leanings.

Carrot Ginger Soup with Curry Leaves and Cumin Seed

2 tablespoons olive oil
¼ teaspoon asafoetida
1 tablespoon cumin seed
1 ounce ginger, peeled and chopped
5 cups of water or vegetable broth
1 pound of carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon salt
Generous pinch red pepper flakes
6 cardamom pods
15 curry leaves


Put the oil in a stockpot and heat until almost smoking. Add asafoetida and cook 30 seconds, then add the cumin seed and cook, stirring, until the seeds are evenly golden brown – 30 seconds to a minute. Add the ginger and cook until fragrant. Immediately add the water or broth to keep the mix from burning.

Add the carrots, salt, pepper flakes, cardamom and curry leaves. Bring the pot to a simmer and cook until the carrots are very soft, 20 to 30 minutes.

Allow the soup to cool enough to handle. Remove the cardamom pods (just like a surgeon with clamps and sponges – count ‘em going in, count ‘em coming out). Puree the soup in batches in a blender. Taste for seasoning and correct as necessary.

Reheat the soup and serve. Like almost all soups, this tastes better if made a day ahead reheated.


Serves four.

Vegetarian State Dinner

Although there is a prawns option for the main course, tonight's state dinner honoring Prime Minister Manmohan is vegetarian. Is this a first at the White House? I don't know. Guest chef is Marcus Samuelsson of New York's Restaurant Aquavit who is working with White House executive chef Cristeta Comerford. Looks like a great menu.

Cookbook: Vij's Elegant & Inspired Indian Cuisine

This is a brilliant book. I have been cooking Indian food for over 30 years, and this book has totally changed the way I think about Indian cooking. Where many Indian cookbooks have a long list of ingredients, this one tends to have fewer ingredients, but they are absolutely the *right* ingredients, and not in stinting quantities. The result is flavors that are crisp and bright.

Because of the clear instructions and illustrations, I am now making my own paneer (cheese) at home. It’s far superior to anything available in the stores and is much cheaper (less than $2 a pound if you get milk on sale).

I hesitated to buy this book because so many of the recipes are for meat and seafood, but I’m very glad I got it. The non vegetarian recipes can often easily be adapted for meatless use. And there *are* quite a few meatless recipes.

There are some editorial anomalies. For example in the recipe titled “Sautéed Arugula and Spinach with Paneer and Roasted Cashews,” the arugula and spinach is in fact never sautéed. It is added to the liquid curry at the very end and cooked until wilted and heated through. Go figure. (Great recipe by the way, but reduce water to one cup from three.) Two recipes call for three cups of pureed tomatoes. One calls for “six large” the other for “nine medium”. Why not just give us the weight? I’ve found that a 28 ounce can of tomatoes yields just over three cups of pureed tomatoes and that’s what I use.

I also found that the authors tend to use more liquid than I would. If you are an experienced cook and you feel that a recipe calls for too much liquid, trust your instinct and go with less to start with. You can always add more if you need it. The only time this was a problem for me was when I made a lentil rice pilaf, using the quantity called for – it was one of the first recipes I made. There was so much liquid I had to cook it down much longer than I would have liked and the result was mushy. The flavor, however, was superb. I’ll make it again often, but with much less liquid. (In this recipe, the problem could simply be a difference in the rice and lentils these cooks use compared to what I’m using, although other reviewers have mentioned the same problem.) I have often also significantly reduced the amount of salt called for.

Despite these quirks I’m giving the book a full five stars. It’s a beautiful book and the food is magnificent.