Patience is a staple of Indian cooking

Yes, the ingredients are key, technique is important and the spices — many spices — are crucial to Indian cooking.

But the prime component: “To cook Indian, it takes a lot of patience,” says chef Ronald Thomas Minezes.

Indian food typically involves marinating, followed by long, slow cooking and reduction of sauces, Minezes says. It can take three hours to make a single dish.

Minezes is corporate chef in Mumbai, India, for Sodexo, an international food-service company that provides cafeteria services in facilities such as schools and hospitals. He was at the University of Hawaii at Manoa last week as part of Sodexo’s Global Chef program, which sort of stirs the pot, sending chefs around the world to bring knowledge of international cuisines to local cooks and diners.

In past years UH has hosted Sodexo chefs from England, France, Russia and Colombia.

Hawaii was the last stop for Minezes, who spent five weeks touring seven cities, mostly in California (including Disneyland). In each he supervised preparations for at least three events aimed at introducing Indian dishes to students and the kitchen staffs.

At Manoa he hosted a dinner and Bollywood show that drew more than 150 people from throughout the community; other appearances were in dormitories and campus facilities for which he’d cook, then mingle with students as they ordered.

All that, plus the hours it takes do these dishes right.

The reality of Minezes’ statement about patience became clear when I saw his recipe for chicken tikka masala, which he assured me was something a home cook could pull off. While the technique wasn’t scary, the recipe called for two gravies that had to be made first — and each one took 30 minutes just to simmer, and you couldn’t make them at the same time because one gravy required incorporating some of the other gravy, and then you needed both to finish the dish. …

At that point I surrendered. Not this home cook.

Instead I offer you two of Minezes’ recipes for vegetarian side dishes, one made with kidney beans, the other an aromatic mix of cauliflower and potatoes. No gravies, but you might need to stock up on spices. These aren’t hard to find, though. Most supermarkets will have them.

Minezes travels once a year with the Global Chef program. The most common misconception he encounters?

“‘Oh, Indian food is so spicy,’ which is not the case,” he said. “It’s not like you’re putting hot sauce on the food; it’s aromatic spiced food.”

It’s the difference between spices and spicy — between aromatics like coriander, cardamom and turmeric, as opposed to chili peppers.

Still, chilies are part of the mix. “In India we use many types of chilies, some spicy, some mild,” Minezes said. “I typically use mild chilies in America.”

The Global Chef program is an exchange, so Minezes is taking home ideas, particularly involving Mexican dishes learned in California and Asian dishes learned here, using soy sauce, sesame oil and oyster sauce. “In India there is a big, huge demand for Asian food.”

If you’re used to buying a bottle of a spice and taking years to use it up, a teaspoon at a time, these recipes are going to seem alarming in the quantities of spices they call for. If you’re worried the flavors might be too intense, start with half the amounts of spices (especially the chili powder), taste and adjust.

Rajmah Masala (Kidney Bean Curry)

• 1 pound dry red kidney beans
• 2 quarts water
• 3/4 cup sunflower or canola oil
• 1-1/2 cups chopped onions
• 1-1/2 tablespoons minced ginger
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 3 tablespoons red chili powder
• 1/4 cup ground coriander
• 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1-1/4 cups diced tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon garam masala powder
• Cilantro leaves, for garnish

Soak beans in pot of water overnight.

Place pot over medium-high heat; bring to boil. Lower heat and simmer beans until fully cooked, 45 to 60 minutes. Add water if needed as beans cook. Drain; set aside.

Heat oil in skillet over medium-high. Add onions and saute until browned. Mix in ginger and garlic. Add chili powder, coriander, salt and tomatoes. Cook until oil begins to seep out of mixture, 7 to 8 minutes.

Add beans. Cook 10 minutes more. Mixture should be thick, but add water if it’s too thick.

Stir in garam masala. Taste and add more salt if needed. Serve garnished with cilantro leaves. Serves 10.

Approximate nutritional analysis, per serving (not including salt to taste): 300 calories, 17 g total fat, 2 g saturated fat, no cholesterol, 400 mg sodium, 29 g carbohydrate, 12 g fiber, 2 g sugar, 11 g protein

Aloo Gobhi (Cauliflower and Potatoes)

• 3 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut in chunks
• 1-3/4 pounds cauliflower, broken into florets (about 7-1/2 cups)
• 3 tablespoons salt
• 1/4 cup ground turmeric
• 2-1/2 tablespoons sunflower or canola oil
• 3-1/2 tablespoons cumin seeds
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 2-1/4 cups chopped tomatoes
• 1/2 cup red chili powder
• 1/2 cup ground coriander
• 1 cup water
• Cilantro leaves, for garnish

Bring pot of water to boil; add potatoes and parboil. Remove and drain.

Add cauliflower, salt and turmeric to same pot of boiling water; parboil cauliflower. Drain.

Heat oil in skillet over medium-high. Add potatoes and fry until browned. Drain on paper towel-lined plate to remove excess oil.

Add cumin seeds to skillet; saute until they begin to pop. Add onions and brown. Stir in tomatoes. Let simmer 8 to 10 minutes.

Add chili and coriander, then potatoes and cauliflower. Stir to mix well, adding water as needed to thin slightly. Serve garnished with cilantro leaves. Sprinkle with more salt if needed. Serves 10.

Approximate nutritional analysis, per serving (not including salt to taste): 200 calories, 6 g total fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, no cholesterol, greater than 1,000 mg sodium, 36 g carbohydrate, 8 g fiber, 6 g sugar, 6 g protein

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