onE I & DoUbLe EE
My colleague keeps bragging about how his wife makes fancy gourmet meals in a jiffy. One day its fish thrown in teriyaki sauce and on other its low fat and healthy Vietnamese wrap with sprouts. She actually bakes hers kids birthday cakes to go with Cow theme and the finger food is made at home too! Lucky him! But I feel very inadequate and upset every time the cooking prowess of this super woman is discussed.
Yet taking efforts to actually learn such cooking and enjoy its success doesn’t really fit into my lazy scheme of things. So I look for the next best thing and turn to the Ready to Eat brigade that has a place of honour in my freezer!
Recently I discovered a brand called Al Kabeer(keep those puns about Kabir to yourself!;) and their range of frozen foods. So here I am to share my gyaan on what’s latest on the food shelves in super markets in your city!
Al Kabeer Sweet Corn:
Having garam bhutta with nimbu and lal namak while there is a slight drizzle as you walk on Marine Drive is obviously the best way to enjoy this delicacy. But, not all dreams come true all the time! Frozen sweet corn comes in handy when you have the craving par no zariya to fulfill it. Just steam it up a bit in micro or just thaw it in bit of warm water. Remove the paani, add a dollop of butter, l’il salt, l’il lal mirch and enjoy!For healthier version, just do away with the butter and add finely chopped pyaaz and tomato and mix well. Goes really well as chakhna with your daru! Must have in your freezer for anytime snack!
Al Kabeer Jalapeno and Cheese Sticks:
How can one possibly go wrong with sinfully melted cheese and spice of this firangi mirchi Jalapeno(pronounced as Halapeno)? That too when its deep fried with a crisp coating on the outside and soft cheese on the inside! So when someone drops in unexpected for chai or drinks, this one is a sure shot hit! Just remove from the freezer and deep fry in oil on medium flame till it turns golden brown. Soak the extra oil on tissues and serve with Thai sweet chili sauce or regular maggi hot and sweet ketchup! If you have tartar dip, that would go pretty well too!
Cost around 60bucks for a pack of 10.
Al Kabeer Chicken and Cheese Sticks:
Pretty much the same thing as above, except that chicken replaces Jalapeno. It is as yummy if not more. Only thing if you are frying both make sure you keep them propah in a separate plate, lest your vegetarian friend bites into one of these instead of those!
Cost around 70bucks for a pack of ten.
Al Kabeer Chicken Spring Rolls:
So you are making Knorr soup along with Knorr MaM, what do you about the starters! Al Kabeer to your rescue!:p Just remove from the freezer and deep fry the spring rolls. Remove them on a tissue to soak the excess oil and serve with any Chinese chili or schezwan sauce. The spring rolls do tend to get a little more oily and aren’t as impressive as the previous products mentioned. Yet, all in all, they are pretty OK and you can always use it in emergency and not be embarrassed.
Al Kabeer Aloo Tikki:
This veggie offering from Al Kabeer is the only chink in their armour. With all the right ingredients it just doesn’t pack a punch. You need to shallow fry these and eat with your favourite chutney or sauce. But they tend to get too oily, yet not crispy and the taste just doesn’t tingle your taste buds. This bit is easily avoidable.
If you like aloo, there is this really cute(?) product called Smileys(which doesn’t belong to Al Kabeer clan). These are small round things made out of potato with smiling faces carved on them. I don’t think aloo tastes bad in any form, especially fried!
*Al Kabeer Onion Paratha:
How could I forget this. These are frozen parathas. the day you are too tired to make chapatis or just want some change, put em on the tawa and seko for close to 2 - 3mins. Add l’il oil or butter to make it tastier. This onion paratha is really soft and yummy. Not to be eaten thanda. Goes well with nice northi sabzi or just with achaar!:)
All in all Al Kabeer frozen foods are quite interesting. It isn’t exactly cheap but then if you go out to a restaurant the same thing will cost you as much with half the quantity. Plus the taste is quite new and different and your guests are sure to ask you”Did you get this in India?”
Of course all the frying and cheese added with preservatives, doesn’t make it the healthiest of snacks. So exercise restraint while eating!:)
All products except sweet corn should NOT be thawed before use. All these cost between Rs.30 – Rs.80 and should be available in your nearest super market.
Does CubbyR like Al Kabeer?
What do you think?!:D