India is such a huge country, with such a diversity of cultures, races, ethnic origins, available ingredients, outside influences, historical events...basically such a diversity of everything, that the term "Indian Cuisine" shouldn't even be used, except in the broadest sense. To know that the British held sway in India for as long as they did, one can't really credit that cream was not adapted as a culinary ingredient. Even if it had been completely unknown prior to that era, which can hardly be the case in any culture where milk is utilized, it surely would have worked it's way into usage by now. Yogurt is much more common (which isn't surprising, considering the lack of refrigeration in a primarily warm country)of course, but I have seen quite a few recipes calling for cream. And, though considering the antiquity represented by the cuisines of India, I am but the merest novice (I've only been playing with it for about 10 years), I think I can trust myself to recognize recipes that have been re-written for the non-Indian cook. Potatoes are quite the popular ingredient, used by many of the Indian peoples, both in meat dishes, vegetable dishes, and alone. In fact, one of the things I love about the use of the potato in India, is that with the creative and judicious use of spices, herbs and other vegetables, the potato as cooked by an Indian housewife can be the nutritious, healthy food that it so often isn't in Western cooking, by the time we lace it with butter, cream, or cheese as is so often our wont. Jessica, Indian cooking can be very healthy indeed! (Leaving out the tendency toward deep fried snack foods!) While many recipes call for ghee (a form of toasty, clarified butter), you needn't add it with a lavish hand as the flavor is quite rich and distinctive. In many recipes, you can substitute olive oil quite easily, if you prefer. The use of so many spices and herbs, and the various methods in which they are used lends such flavor to meats, vegetables and grains that the addition of copious amounts of fats or yet salt, becomes unnecessary. Naturally, there are those curries that include fatty coconut milk, but then, if you eat the way a person in India eats, you won't be eating a big bowl of it, but a small portion along with vegetables, legumes and grains. My love affair with the cuisines of India began with Dal. The lowly lentil, which was to my knowledge just something one made a pot of soup with sometimes, has been transformed into a magical food ingredient by the hands of Indian cooks. I have read that it is a rare meal in India that does not include some version of legume. What we classify as lentils, peas and beans are all, "dal." Dal can be served in soups, porridge, breads, crackers, chips, snack nibbles, fritters, used as a base for thick sauces, toasted into crunchy bits to add texture, as a base for curries and stews...gosh, I'm sure I've left some uses out. And they are so good for us! High in fiber, satisfyingly filling, cheap sources of protein, minerals and vitamins. Okay, enough of my raptures...:D Earlier in the thread, someone mentioned wanting a Southern Indian cook book? I've a wonderful book that introduced me to the Vegetarian cuisine of Southern India, a style of eating quite different from much of what we Westerners think of when we think Indian foods. The recipes are mostly excellent but I must caution that the use of hot chilies is quite lavish. I have been accused of having an "asbestos mouth" by friends, but still I cut back quite a bit on the number of green, hot chilies and dried peppers the recipes call for. I figure, I can always add some hot sauce at table if needs be. Here is a link that might be useful: Dakshin-vegetarian cuisine from south India

Vee, you haven't missed much from never eating in a McDonald's, KFC, etc. The draw to such places is, I think, the predictability -- you know pretty much what you are getting when you enter such establishments, no matter that it's cardboard food, in both taste and detritus. However, there are subtle differences in predictability in such franchises, from nation to nation especially, but also from state to state in the US, sometimes. A Maine McDonald's will sell their local favorite, the lobster roll, while an Oklahoma McDonald's will have, say, a special barbecue pork (boneless) riblet sandwich. In the opposite place these sandwiches would languish and wouldn't stay on the menu. The rubbish angle: Well, at least the old-fashioned fish 'n' chips shops recycled out-of-date newspapers. But I wonder about the ingestion of newsprint ink; didn't some of it dissolve and get onto the food? I once saw a blubberburger on a menu in Alaska, but I didn't try it because I was afraid that it would contain exactly that: whale blubber. Scotch Eggs in the US used to be more common than nowadays. They were often a staple of school cafeterias, which generally meant poorly prepared and tasteless. Only about one kid in five really enjoyed the things; the rest grumbled and tore off the sausage part and mashed the egg part into mush so that it would look like they had at least tried to eat it. As with anything that gets a poor reputation, the Scotch egg lost favor, I'm afraid, in the US. I laugh at the fried onions at English BBQs because the English, who eschew garlic, do love their onions it seems. I had one English flatmate who seemed forever to be 'baking' (her term) onions -- nothing but onions in a pan in the oven. I have to admit, though, I got used to the aroma and was more than once glad to partake of the onions.

I've had similar frustration in trying to figure out what is happening with the Master Chef settings while cooking and how to use them effectively. This is especially true with bread baking, because Master Chef seems to include some proofing time in the oven but you can't tell how long the cycle is in the oven or how much proofing is needed before putting it in the oven. Imagine my surprise when I came across this Miele USA *convection* oven bread recipe book, which has recipes that tie to each of the Master Chef Plus settings for their convection oven: https://us.mieleusa.com/pdf/brochures/MasterChef_Plus_Recipe_Book.PDF. It would be so useful if they could produce something similar for the Combi Steam oven that tied to the Master Chef selections listed there.

Packaged broth, tinned corn, ? come on, you are a great cook. : ) Costco rotis can be picked of the meat, chill that separately, then make stock from the carcass. But you have an HMart. Add good meaty bones to the chicken carcass. I stopped by HM on the way home tonight. DH hit the Italian butcher. We have so many meaty bones I'll have to freeze some. Pork necks, beef bones, chicken paws...so much natural gelatin I can cut it with a butter knife. We are making kimchi, krauts, and bone broth this weekend for the holidays...a quarter cup minced kimchi and gingered miso, rich bone stock, is all I want in my sipping broth if feeling weak. Some protein and veg solids on the way-to-recovery-days. Might be the flu. Sounds miserable. Make the best, don't compromise. I would not bother freezing experiments with misc veg, cabbage.. Freeze the good stuff. Good broths. Add fresh veg to a sautéed mirepoix, then good bone broth.