On Feeding An Indian Roommate

     Page One Hundred Eighty-One.

Nainital, India

Nainital, India. Evening.

     I currently have an Indian roommate. He's finishing up medical school back home and he's here, in Cleveland, doing a medical rotation as part of his education. Raja's only here for a few months, but is hoping to come back and start his residency in 2015 at University Hospitals of Cleveland, the hospital he's doing his short rotation at right now. I've been driving him around and showing him the sites, museums and so forth (in spite of our Cleveland winter, God help me). 

     He's enjoying his time here very much but does complain that American food is difficult to get used to. He thinks it's, well, for lack of a better word, "flat". His home region, Kashmir, is known for their flavorful dishes in the first place and apparently his mother really pushes her spice usage over the edge. So, of course, when you've been eating that style for 23 years, hamburger and french fries can seem a bit bland. (He will eat beef.) His uncle, who's a doctor in Las Vegas loves American food. But Uncle has also been here for a couple of decades and has gradually acclimated to our flavors. Raja realizes that and is looking forward to acclimating too. He's being a trooper though. While I was perfecting my homemade pizza dough and pizza sauce for the pizza party/bridal shower last week, I did lots of taste tests. Raja was gleefully happy to aid with that dubious chore. I also make myself lots of rice & bean dishes to which I add Tabasco sauce and other extra stuff. One day I splashed some Tabasco into a spoon and gave it to him. He was impressed by its fire.

    I've made Indian cuisine a few times over the years, but am not at all fluent in it. So, I'm not yet comfortable offering to make him "food like Momma used to make". I have been blessed by being an extremely quick study in the kitchen, though. So perhaps I should offer one of these days. I think Indian food is all about the sauce. If that sauce is correct, you just pour it over lamb or chicken and white rice and call it supper. Unless, of course, you're dealing with a vegetarian. Then simply pour your sauce over lentils and rice. Either way, just stabilize that sauce and you're home free.  

     Raja is staying until early March. But, he's recommending me to a med school buddy back in India who's also coming to Cleveland for a rotation. That buddy is arriving just as Raja's leaving. So the buddy wants to move into my place for the month he'll be here. That's fine with me. I can't stand looking for roommates.   

     I can just see my place turning into an annex of the Cleveland India Community Center (which is 1/2 mile away). But if this does happen, I really should become a gracious host and learn their cuisine preparation. It would make all these ridiculously young medical students feel warm and cozy on the inside.