Colorado

Most of you know how lucky I feel about living where I do. The mountains are just an hour away, within sight every day. Sometimes we can't see beyond the Flatirons but when they can be as gorgeous as this, who cares?

Davidson Mesa in January, 2010

What am I doing posting pictures of winter? It may be spring for most of you but winter didn't really get over for us until a few weeks ago. Four inches of snow on May 15 had several people feeling sorry for us. Colorado is something spectacular, even in the flats. We had radiant sunshine the very next day and were back up in the 70s by the weekend. Lazy folks like me are very grateful for any precipitation we get because that translates into "no need to turn on the sprinklers."

Harper Lake on May 15, 2010

But there is so much more to Colorado than snow. Over spring break, we took our third trip on the California Zephyr to - where else? - California. The route winds through the Colorado Rockies and canyons in Utah, zips through the desert of Nevada and then chugs through the high Sierras.

Rockin' the frozen Colorado (river)

The Majestic Mt. Garfield, near the Colorado-Utah border

Events that unfolded in April held a slight hint of moving away from all this. We were all miserable, feeling wretched about it, each for our own reasons. We chose to live here; moving could not be an option. After four weeks of torment, we laid that to rest. Luckily. I don't know how or why but we are very lucky and I am grateful for that every moment of our lives. The sun seemed to join in the celebratory note with the return of spring sunsets.

Backyard sunset

For me, the celebration had to be red. It's all about Colorado, after all! With a very slight twist - it must be Indian, too. Shankari and Anita helped by making sure that these red beauties found their way to my kitchen.

Dried red chillies

Cousins: sichuan peppers on the left and tirphal on the right

Thanks to ET (remember Arusuvai?) and Anita for tirphal and my friend Jen for sichuan pepper from her bottomless pantry.

You know what I made, right? Tikshe amshe, a fiery fish curry from the western coast of India. For once this is a name that can be translated literally: spicy sour. Or, in Medha-speak, willingly fry your tongue and then go hold it under a running faucet. Seriously, though, if it doesn't burn your lips and your throat, it's not tikshe amshe. The name does take for granted the burst of lemon peppery fragrance that tirphals add to this fantastic blend of red chillies and tamarind. I couldn't add much more to the other bloggers who have waxed eloquent about tirphal: Ashwini, Meera and of course, Shilpa; except that its Chinese cousin has a very different, albeit heady, fragrance. I haven't yet figured out how much of sichuan pepper to substitute for tirphal. If anyone out there has an inkling, please let me know!

Tikshe Amshe

• 1 tsp oil
• 20-25 dried red chillies
• 6-8 tirphal
• 1 large clove of garlic
• a ball of fresh tamarind pulp that fits easily into a tablespoon measure
• 1 lb any oily fish
• Salt to taste
• Coconut oil (optional)

Fiery red fish curry

1. Soak dried red chillies in water to soften their skin. Use warm water if you are short on time.
2. Put the tirphal in your mortar with a little water and bruise them firmly with the pestle. Allow the tirphal to soak in the water for at least 10-15 mins.
3. Grind chillies, tamarind and garlic into a thick paste, adding only as much water as needed to stop your blender from groaning.
4. Heat oil, add paste, tirphals and the water they were soaking in.
5. Add salt a little cautiously and bring the mixture to boil over medium heat. Turn it down to a simmer.
6. Add fish which has been diced into pieces that are a little bigger than bite-size. Make sure that the fish pieces are covered by the sauce. Heat for only as long as it takes the fish to cook. When cooked, add coconut oil for additional flavor.
7. Serve immediately over steaming hot rice.

Don't forget your glass of cold water

Notes:

1. I've made this with salmon, Spanish mackerel and Chilean sea bass. The Chilean sea bass was the best even though it lacks the fishy flavor of Bombay's famed mackerel or bangda.
2. If the Indian grocer in your area stocks bangda, grab a few because that is the perfect fish for tikshe amshe.
   
3. I usually make this with 20 dried red chillies from the Indian store. This time, however, I used 5 of those beauties that Anita sent me and added 5-6 more of the regular dried red chillies. Anita's red chillies added a intense flavor to the heat of the chillies.
4. This is best made with byadgi (bedgi) chillies.
5. Traditionally, the sauce is much thicker, almost like a paste that clings to the fish. You could cook it down further before adding the fish. I like to drown my rice in the sauce which is one of the two reasons why mine is not as thick. The other reason being my blender.