This past Saturday, I taught a Hands-Off Indian cooking class. I made my Aloo Cholay (Chickpea-Potato Curry) and Raita (Yogurt-Dill Sauce). In addition, I made a recipe from my favorite new Indian cookbook, 5 Spices, 50 Dishes: Simple Indian Recipes Using Five Common Spices. I copyedited the book, and have been using the fantastic recipes ever since. Now you can buy it too! You can also learn about Ruta's cooking classes, held in the Bay Area, at her Web site.

The recipe I demonstrated on Saturday was the Corn with Mustard Seeds. I've never seen corn used in Indian food in this way and it's very fast to put together. Not exactly Hands-Off, but quick, simple, and flavorful. As promised, here's the recipe:

Corn with Mustard Seeds
From 5 Spices, 50 Dishes (Chronicle Books, 2007) by Ruta Kahate

5 ears fresh or frozen (thawed) yellow corn
3 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 or 2 small green serrano chiles, sliced thinly into rounds
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
Salt
1 tablespoon minced cilantro leaves

Slice the kernels off the corn cobs; you should have approximately 4 cups of corn. [Note: I used a 1-pound bag of frozen corn, thawed, and it worked well.]

Make the tadka [spiced oil]: Heat the oil in a medium wok or saute pan over high heat. When the oil begins to smoke, add the mustard seeds, covering the pan with a lid or spatter screen. After the seeds have stopped sputtering, add the chiles and stir until they are well toasted. Lower the heat to medium and add the turmeric, stir, and add the corn and salt to taste. Toss well, turn the heat to low, cover, and cook the corn until soft and tender, about 5 minutes.

Stir in the cilantro and serve warm or at room temprature.

Serves 4