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Since its debut in 2010, StarHub’s Hubablicious has been celebrating all kinds of food related events. Its aim is to bring you closer to the celebrity chefs you watch on TV by connecting with audiences first hand.
From closed-door food events where celebrity chefs cook for guests, to public events where everybody can interact with the chefs and pick up cooking tips in the ‘live’ demonstrations, Hubalicious unites viewers everywhere who share the same passion for food.
On a bright sunny Sunday, I will be joining a Hubalicious’ cooking event with Asian Food Channel’s Celebrity Chef Bal Arneson.
As a culinary personality that is known for blending the best of East and West in her Indian-inspired cooking, Bal is the author of two best selling cookbooks: Everyday Indian and Quick & Healthy Indian, which won the Asian Cuisine category prize for Canada by the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards in 2012. She launched her third cookbook, Bal’s Spice Kitchen, in 2014.
Also know as the ‘Spice Goddess’, Bal had appeared as a Judge on Iron Chef America and has judged with Bobby Flay on Bobby’s Dinner Battle. Her son Aaron, and daughter Anoop, travelled with her frequently around the world and even participated in demonstrations.
If a 10 year old can cook these simple Indian dishes, I’m sure those participating won’t have that hard a time as well, right? Or so I thought.
At this event, 11 lucky StarHub viewers were given a chance to bring two of their friends and get up close and personal with Chef Bal Arneson, as well as try their hand at cooking some of her famous recipes.
Thanks to Gushcloud and Starhub, I’m here together with Winifred (aka the cake Goddess) to embark on this Spice adventure first hand.
Sweet Potato and Yam Samosa With Fresh Mango Chutney
The first dish of the day was Sweet Potato and Yam Samosa With Fresh Mango Chutney. Most of the ingredients have been prepared beforehand, and all you need to do is mix them together. We started by mashing up the sweet potato and yam filling, then adding the green peas.
Next came the technically challenging part of trying to create a cone out of the flat dough, then filling it with the potato and yam mash. I, of course, needed some one-on-one tutelage to handle the thin, flimsy dough.
Not having the most nimble hands, I think ‘triangle’ is an abstract descriptive of my samosa’s resultant shape.
The other participants were also hard at work, churning out beautifully filled samosas that made mine looked like a mutant Samosa.
The finished samosas were then taken to the back kitchen and fried. This is what mine turned out to look like.
Served together with Mango Chutney, this combination is a real treat for the taste buds!
Full recipe for Bal Arneson’s Sweet Potato and Yam Samosa
Butter Chicken
Next up, we had a go at cooking one of my favorite Indian dishes: Butter Chicken. Spices like turmeric, garam masala, cumin and chili flakes were all neatly arranged for participants.
The diced garlic and onions were first pan- till slightly brown.
The rest of the spices were then added together with the tomato paste. My gravy turned out a bit too dry because I turned the heat up too high but it became better when more water was added. The chicken breast was added in last.
Powerful spices and chilies go into this chicken dish, and I recommend eating it together with rice.
Full recipe: Bal Arneson’s Butter Chicken
Spiced Yogurt with Summer Berries
The last dessert dish we made was pretty simple and straight forward. Firstly, mix yogurt together with crushed cardamon seeds, steeped saffron and honey. You can add more honey if you prefer it to be less sour.
Slice the berries expertly and add them together in the yoghurt mix.
Plate and garnish with almonds and the remaining berries.
The dessert may taste a little tart due to the yoghurt, but the saffron and honey helped to strike the perfect balance. You can add any amount of honey according to your personal taste. The saffron and honey serve to add a bit more dimension and is quite different from the usual yoghurts elsewhere.
Full Recipe: Bal Arneson’s Spiced Yogurt with Summer Berries
Plating everything we’ve cooked today together, you get a nice mix of Indian dishes rich in flavour. Ending with the yogurt served to lessen the spiciness of the dishes, as well as cleansed the palate from this hearty meal.
Everyone at this Hubalicious event definitely enjoyed themselves, cooking up a storm and getting a chance to speak to Chef Bal Arneson in person, instead of just watching her work her magic on TV.
For more information on upcoming Hubalicious, visit www.starhub.com/hubalicious for more details.
You can catch more of Bal Arneson on Spice of Life with Bal Arneson and Spice Goddess on StarHub TV Asian Food Channel 435.
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Spice of Life with Bal Arneson: Every Sunday from 3 Aug to 31 Aug, 10am and 6pm (2 episodes back to back)
Spice Goddess: Every Sunday from 3 Aug to 31 Aug, 11am and 7pm (2 episodes back to back)
