Roll On!*

*DISCLAIMER: This blog entry is not to promote smoking or to inspire anyone to do so. Your life is your responsibility.

Let it roll, baby, roll.
Let it roll, baby, roll.
Let it roll, baby, roll.
Let it roll, all night long.

Or so 'The Doors' sang a few decades back. Back, when there were no severe duties on tobacco products and smoking was not something looked down upon. As we know, those were the days!

Coming to UK, I was hit most by the cigarette prices, from the Park Street, Kolkata, WIN fags for INR 20 (£ 0.25) to a packet here for £6 (~INR 400) has been quite a dent in my wallet. Till I can source some duty-free tobacco, I thought about rolling my own. Now, I have tried this earlier and never been any good at this. And, so enters _drums roll_ the 'Rolling Machine'. This blog is a step-by-step instruction to using one. So, read on if you wanna roll your own!

Step 1

TOC.

What you need to get started:

• Tobacco: I bought DRUM on Kiran's recommendation
• Cigarette Paper: I got Rizla Kings but it won't fit this roller, so I am using the ones I got free with the machine.
• Filter Tips: You don't want to miss out on the filter, do you?
• The machine: Of Course.
  

Step 2

Open.

The roller has two positions - open and close. In this photo, the roller is in the 'open' position, ie. you can put in the tobacco. You will understand the difference when you see the 'close' position. The red lever allows you to roll Ultra Slims if you so want!


Step 3

Tambaku.

Time to get the tobacco out. I wouldn't recommend DRUM as this is the only one I have tried. It's not as mild as I would have liked it to be.


Step 4

Tipped.

Take out a filter tip from the packet. There are loads (120 to be exact) to last you a few weeks.


Step 5

Layoff.

Just spread the tobacco on the roller with the filter tip at one end. Be careful not to put in too much tobacco. I did that the first time, and the tobacco didn't burn easily.


Step 6

Close.

This is what is called the 'Close' position. Just slide one of the arms close to the other one. The arms fixes into a slot and is ready to be 'rolled'.


Step 7

Intruder.

Slide the paper in the crease with the sticky side up and begin to roll the paper into the machine.


Step 8

Licked.

Lick the sticky part, continue rolling. Holla.


Step 9

Reddy.

Separate the two arms. Lo and Behold! Your cigarette is ready to smoke.


Step 10

Rush.

Now, either go out to the balcony or as some of my friends suggest, turn off the smoke detector - light up and enjoy! :)


All images are protected under:



The Rolling Machine by
Gautam Prakash is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 India License.

Come Up The Years

No deeper meaning, just a song I like!

Come Up The Years - Jefferson Airplane



I ought to get going
I shouldn't stay here and love you
More than I do
Cause you're so much younger than I am
Come up the years, come up the years
And love me, love me love me

A younger girl keeps hanging around
One of the loveliest I've ever found
Blowin' my mind, stealin' my heart
Somebody help me 'fore I fall apart.

I ought to get going
I shouldn't stay here and love you
More than I do
Cause you're so much younger than I am
Come up the years, come up the years
And love me, love me love me

The things she's doing keep turning me on
And I've been happy to go right along
I know it's time that I said goodbye
I know I can't leave no matter how hard I try.

I ought to get going
I shouldn't stay here and love you
More than I do
Cause you're so much younger than I am
Come up the years, come up the years
And love me, love me love me

Free as a Bird?

If I leave here tomorrow
Would you still remember me?
For I must be travelling on, now,
cause theres too many places Ive got to see.

But, if I stayed here with you, girl,
Things just couldnt be the same.
cause Im as free as a bird now,
And this bird you can not change.
Lord knows, I cant change.

Bye, bye, its been a sweet love.
Though this feeling I cant change.
But please dont take it badly,
cause lord knows Im to blame.

But, if I stayed here with you girl,
Things just couldnt be the same.
Cause Im as free as a bird now,
And this bird youll never change.
And this bird you can not change.
Lord knows, I cant change.
Lord help me, I cant change.

PS: I just love this song, and it means a LOT to me.

Cheers guys!

Kitchen Love!

*WARNING*
This post is not a recipe for Matar Paneer. If you are looking for that, please use Google. Well, yes, you will end up with an amazing meal but you will have to follow each instruction, so if you don't like beer or 'The Who' playing live for hundreds of thousands of 'freaks', my apologies!

Step 1:

Life.

Food is all about living, so is music! No music collection is ever complete without the Woodstock album. The first step, therefore, is to plonk in the DVD. No pirated copies on your laptop please, Woodstock deserves better!


Step 2:

Matar Paneer.

Matar Paneer's on the menu tonight. If it's not to your taste, too bad it is the only one on the list. Frozen Peas and Paneer works just fine. Keep them out of the refrigerator before you begin. You won't have to struggle with the ice later.


Step 3:

Reds.

Onions! The more, the merrier. Ideally, I would like to chop in at least one red onion per person. Too bad I had only one to cook with!


Step 4:

Tears.

Chop the onion as small as you can. If you have a blender or a mixer, even better. Churn it into a paste.


Step 5:

Chop Chop.

Also, chop a small piece of ginger. You can always use ginger-garlic paste. But nothing beats the aroma and flavour of fresh cut ginger and garlic. If you are putting your onions into a mixer/blender, put in the ginger and garlic as well. This is checkpoint 1 - you get a beer!


Step 6:

Fry.

Time to get cooking. Heat some oil in a pressure cooker and put in the chopped onions/onion paste. Fry till onion is fried brown. Put in the chopped garlic and ginger. Fry for a few more seconds.


Step 7:

Spicy.

Now's the time things start getting hot. Time for some spices:
Coriander (Dhaniya) Powder: 2 tsp
Garam Masala: 1 tsp
Red Chilli Powder: 1 tsp
Turmeric (Haldi) Powder: 1/2 tsp

Cook them with the onions. Also put in a 1/4 glass of water. Cook for a few minutes till the oil starts separating.
In the meanwhile, quickly chop a tomato into small pieces and put them in the cooker. Squash them with all your might! Add salt!


Step 8:

Deforestation.

Once the tomatoes are squashed and cooked (you would know when you can't recognize one thing from another), put in the green peas and cook for around two minutes. Add around two cups of water or as you wish. Once done, close the cooker and let it heat on full heat.


Step 9:

Cubes.

While the curry is cooking, it is time to get the paneer out of the packing and chop it into small cubes.


Step 10:

Yummy.

I always love the paneer a wee bit fried in Matar Paneer, and believe me, it's worth the extra effort. Just put in a little oil on the pan and saute the paneer cubes in it.


Step 11:

Belly.

Make sure the food is not the only thing adding to your belly. Have some beer.


Step 12:

Bhaat.

Optimize the cooking time. Put in the rice to cook in the microwave. This is the easiest bit for people who don't know.

• Wash the rice.
• Put in twice the water.
• Microwave 15 mins.
• Open another beer.

Step 13:

Curry.

Once the cooker whistles, lower the heat and let it cook for a minute. Release the pressure after this and put in the fried paneer pieces into the curry. Cook it on medium heat.


Step 14:

Roti Sabzi.

Finally, an optional step. No north indian meal is complete without roti. To add a mexican flavour, (just being lazy) heat some tortilla wraps/frozen chapati on the pan. Let the matar paneer cook on medium heat in the meanwhile.


Step 15:

Finally.

Comment on the amazing instructions and enjoy the meal!

PS: Sorry for the shortcomings in any of the pictures. I am still getting used to not putting my DSLR on the stove!


All images are protected under:



Kitchen Love! by
Gautam Prakash is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 India License.