forest hut

Towards the kitchen I walk
Because I wanted to cook
I'm on my own
Without any recipe book

By heating the pan I start
And let it get nice and warm
I chop up some garlic
Some Tadka Masala would add flavours like a storm

Some oil and few mustard seeds I add in
And let it sizzle and splutter
Normally, I use oil
But sometimes even butter

Some Tadka Masala I toss in
And the garlic I had cut
Along with some paprika and salt
Oh! A delicious aroma wafts inside our hut

Contents of the pan I stir up
And to the store room
To get boiled beans out
That I had prepared yesterday afternoon

In the pan I pop them
And cover it all with a lid
For a few moments I stand there
Before sitting down to read

Five mins later I see what's going on
The stuff smells great
The beans are crispy and brown
I could be a chef if I go at this rate

The heat is off and everything is cooked
I transfer it to a bowl
Chopped sun-dried tomatoes I mix in
My tummy does nothing but growl

Now it's time to create the bast
Well, this is quite simple
Some Til Seasoning I mix with curd
The variations in curd basts are ample

The beans I coat in the bast
And decorate it with potato wedges
Just shallow fried with salt
Oh, against this you can't bear any grudges! 

To my family I serve it, and they dive
On it like hungry hippos, spooning out - spooning in
No wonder they are famished
It is 2:30 PM, I note, as I too tuck in