Bombay duck is a fish

A lizardfish, to be exact, and a stinky one, at that. Fortunately, today we just got the anecdote, not a real-life sample.

I saw Chef Stazi in the elevator yesterday afternoon, and he asked what class we had now. I told him we were in Asian, and he said "Oh, Chef YODA."

This morning, Chef Rhoda admitted that Indian cuisine, in all its regional variations, deserves a week of its own, but we do our best with one day. To grossly simplify, northern Indian cuisine uses meat and the tandoori oven, and the spice mixture known as garam masala and no turmeric. Southern cuisine is more commonly vegetarian or pescatarian, and uses curry spices, including turmeric.

Meghan and I made samosas, deep-fried savory treats filled with spiced potatoes and peas. I made the dough while she worked on the filling, then we both stuffed. We also made a version using spring roll wrappers, folded like a flag or like spanakopita. Those are more common to Burma.We had a variety of sauces: mango, tamarind, and mint chutneys, as well as raita (cucumber yogurt sauce) and a spicy cilantro-coconut paste.
Of course, we had dal: this one made from yellow mung beans. Andrea made aloo gobi, cauliflower and potato stew.Andy's shrimp curry with cashews was terrific. It included poppy seeds, sun-dried and cherry tomatoes, and just enough coconut milk to add richness.The tandoori-style chicken was marinating since yesterday, then grilled today and finished off in the oven. Yogurt in a marinade really does impart a wonderful succulent quality to the meat. In case you're wondering, it's food coloring.We finished off lunch with khir, a delicious rice pudding, generously spiced with cardamom and studded with almonds and raisins. Andrea pointed out something interesting today: most of our chefs have repeatedly confused Jim and Derrick, the two small Filippino students in our class. But Chef Rhoda confuses Alex and Andy, the two tall blond boys.

Andy and I took a plate of leftover samosas down to the first floor Advanced Baking & Pastry class and we were impressed by the welcome we received from Chef Lorianne. She asked about our process and ingredients, then loaded up a 12" cardboard cake round for us to take back to class: little slices of beautifully decorated cakes. As Andy carried them back across the hall, we encountered a big group of junior-high-sized students and their chaperones, on a tour of the school. Everybody ooh'd and aah'd at our desserts and we chatted while waiting for the elevator. It reminded us of the enthusiasm we had before we started school, and it reminded me once again how lucky I am to be spending my days this way.