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Sejal Sukhadwala

@sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social

61 followers 9 following 92 posts

London food writer. Author of The Philosophy Of Curry (British Library Publishing). Working on an Indian food dictionary for the past decade or so. I often write about Indian food history, culture and restaurants.

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 11h

This is getting worse by the minute

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 12h

OMG

Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 14h

In the UK, there's a lot of randomness associated with Diwali - food, entertainment etc with no meaning or relevance. The equivalent would be something like someone in India posting a photo of shepherds pie with a pint of Guinness and a picture of morris dancers with the words 'Merry Christmas'.

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 1d

17thC Mughal emperor Shah Jahan was thrown into prison by his son, who ordered him to choose only 1 ingredient to eat for the rest of his life. Based on his chef's advice, who promised endless versatility, he chose chickpeas. In modern times that chef would land a Guardian recipe column.

Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 1d

Astronauts are missing a trick - they should make sourdough starters on Mars, bake the bread upon their return on earth and sell it as 'space bread', thereby making a tidy retirement fortune.

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 1d

Somehow I missed this lovely piece by Priyadarshini Chatterjee on an early twentieth century Bengali recipe for a cheesecake that wasn't quite a cheesecake: www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-a...

The Indian cheesecake secrets found in a 1904 book

The 120-year-old recipes are a far cry from the cheesecakes we are familiar with today.

www.bbc.co.uk

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 2d

Goya is great, isn't it (lovely people to write for too)

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Reposted by Sejal Sukhadwala

Eating Beagles 🎱 @eatingbeagles.bsky.social · 4d

Big fan of jalebi funnel cake.

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 4d

Oh. My. God. That looks incredible.

Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 4d

I’m seeing so many cakes, cupcakes and cheesecakes in ‘Diwali flavours’ or ‘mithai flavours’ this year - basically just regular cakes with saffron/ cardamom/ pistachios/ rosewater added. Is this a thing now.

Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 5d

Wow, very autumnal!

Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 5d

Sounds great

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 5d

That is true apple-ing

Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 5d

Look out for the very many Apple Days coming up in the next ten days or so across England - a great way of supporting orchards (and eating and drinking apples and apple-y things).

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 6d

Thank you, will give it a try.

Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 6d

I have a press release about a beautiful new restaurant in Jaipur "with 350,000 hand-pressed mirrors, no artificial light or windows - lit only with candles." Restaurateurs, this is one way of saving on your electricity bill.

Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 6d

Sometimes :) Love niche, nerdy stuff, but you have to wonder who it's for - who's listening, who's interested? Is it just a dialogue between people who've spent too long reading on some obscure topic that nobody else cares about?

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 6d

Academia can be laughably niche

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 6d

"We'd like to lead Indian food history seminars."
"On which topics?"
"Um let's see... how about something very, very niche, like Kayastha cuisine of Lucknow that few people have ever heard of, and advertisements for asafoetida in Tamil Nadu in 1920s?"
www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...

Food History- Joint Session (November)

A joint session looking at the Kayastha Culinary Culture in Lucknow & commercialisation of the spice asafoetida in Southern India.

www.history.ac.uk

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 8d

Masala dosa in the Royal Free Hospital canteen. How cool is it that a major London hospital has a live dosa station where, on Wednesday lunchtimes, a chef cooks hot, fresh dosa right in front of you? All the food is absolutely delicious.
(Photos taken and shared with permission).

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 9d

Aha!

Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 9d

I discovered there's such a thing as 'firekraut' - spicy version of sauerkraut. Which makes it... kimchi?

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 10d

Sad to hear that Sri Owen has died. Her Indonesian cookbooks, in particular her Rice Book, are true masterpieces. RIP.

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Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 10d

Looks impressive - nice presentation

Sejal Sukhadwala @sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social · 10d

There seem to be a growing number of Indian gastropubs in London. The main difference with 'desi' or Indian pubs is that these are owned by second or third generation Indians and that's reflected in the more eclectic menus; and the clientele is younger and more diverse.

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