Tag: podcast

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Food Lite Blogs Recipes

Audible’s ‘Your Mama’s Kitchen’: A Blend of Culture, Memories, and Recipes

Step into the kitchen with some of today’s most influential figures across the world as they share cherished recipes and heartwarming stories of their childhood in the Audible Original podcast ‘Your Mama’s Kitchen.’ From former First Lady Michelle Obama’s childhood favourites to Hollywood power couple Matthew McConaughey and Camila Alves McConaughey’s family traditions, this podcast serves up a delectable blend of nostalgia, culture, and culinary delights. Here, we take you through the cherished moments of their lives as we explore the recipes derived from their personal experiences and memories!

Michelle Obama | Recipe for Red Rice

Michelle Obama shares her family’s cherished recipe for red rice, a dish rooted in her South Carolina heritage. Reflecting on how she was influenced by all the things that she saw and experienced in that little old kitchen, she says, “The conversations around my household about fairness and honesty and how to be a person in this world, how to treat others, the compassion that all happened around the table, either by spoken word or story or just watching my father pay the bills every week at that table. The humour that I have, my ability to tell stories and laugh at myself and laugh at the world, it happened at that table, those stories happen there in that little bitty kitchen.”

Ingredients:

1 cup of long-grain white rice

1 chopped white onion

1 ½ cup of tomato juice

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 dash of Tabasco

1 cup crumbled bacon

¼ tablespoon bacon drippings

500 gm chopped shrimp

500 gm sausage roll

Method:

Cook the bacon until crispy, then set it aside and save the drippings.

Cook the shrimp separately, either by steaming or sautéing, and set them aside.

Crumble and crisp up the sausage, drain the grease, and set it aside as well.

Sauté the chopped onion in the reserved bacon drippings until golden brown, then set it aside.

In a large saucepan, combine the uncooked rice, tomato juice, salt, pepper, and Tabasco sauce according to package instructions.

Once the rice is cooked, mix in the cooked shrimp, crumbled bacon, and sausage.

Stir everything together well and enjoy your delicious dish!

Andy Garcia | Recipe for Fricase de Pollo

Andy Garcia enjoys cooking, making it a full-day event filled with music, dancing, and plenty of garlic. His crowd-pleasing recipe requires starting the night before to ensure tender and flavorful meat, but the effort is worth it for the delicious outcome. Talking about the profound connection between food and cherished memories, Andy shares “A curious thing about food is that it brings back very particular memories. Taste, smell… induces this kind of nostalgic times in your life that hopefully are positive, you know?”

Ingredients:

2 to 3 kilograms of chicken thighs

10 garlic cloves

1 cup of lime juice and 1 cup of orange juice combined

3 large onions, sliced

3 sliced peppers (green, red, and yellow), one of each for colour

2 small cans of tomato paste

Salt to taste

1 can of green peas

¼ cup of olive oil

1 cup of raisins

½ cup of pitted green olives

2 teaspoons of capers

½ teaspoon of black pepper

1 cup of Spanish dry sherry wine (or substitute apple cider vinegar if needed)

500 grams of potatoes, cut into pieces

Method:

The night before, marinate the chicken in a glass container with chopped garlic, onions, green peppers, salt, black pepper, and a mix of lime and orange juice. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

When cooking, heat oil and brown the chicken, then set it aside.

In the same casserole, sauté onions, peppers, and garlic from the marinade. Add sherry wine to deglaze the pan.

Stir in tomato paste, raisins, olives, capers, salt, and pepper.

Add the chicken to the casserole and mix well.

Add enough water to barely cover the chicken and cook over medium-low heat until the chicken is tender.

In the last 30 to 45 minutes of cooking, add the potatoes to cook.

Serve the fricassee with sliced ripe plantains (cooking bananas) fried in vegetable oil and white rice.

Matthew McConaughey & Camila Alves McConaughey | Recipe for Brazilian Chicken Stroganoff

Matthew McConaughey and Camila Alves McConaughey discuss how their childhood kitchens influenced their identities and relationships, revealing their approach to resolving conflicts with tea and tequila. Matthew recounts, “But the kitchen is where everything went down. The kitchen is where we cried when our heart was broken from a girlfriend breaking up. The kitchen’s where my brother Pat got in trouble for getting caught with the bag of weed. Then the kitchen is where we said our gratitude and prayers around the lazy Susan. The kitchen’s where we told stories, where I learned as a youngster in my family, if you want to get a story, you better hit the gap because a gap is not going to be there in the conversation long.”

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons avocado oil

6 cloves of garlic, smashed or grated

1 teaspoon salt

1 medium-sized diced white onion

1 tablespoon achiote annatto powder (orange-red condiment for food colouring)

1 medium-sized quartered fresh tomato

3 bone-in split chicken breasts with skin

¼ red bell pepper, cut into thin strips

4 cups of water (divided in half)

¼ cup of chopped cilantro

1-2 bay leaves

2 tablespoons of media crema (table cream); no liquid chill the entire can in the refrigerator, cream will rise to the top

1 cup of canned corn

⅓ cup of sliced pitted green olives

For serving:

Shoestring potato sticks

Cooked rice

Method:

In a large soup pot over medium heat, add avocado oil, smashed garlic, and salt. Stir until the garlic is fragrant.

Add diced onions and cook until translucent. Then, add quartered tomatoes and cook until soft and mushy.

Push ingredients to the side and add annatto powder to the middle of the pot. Let it cook briefly, then mix with other ingredients to form a paste.

Place chicken skin side down in the pot to brown. After a few minutes, push the ingredients aside and add bell peppers.

Pour enough water to cover the chicken (about 4 cups). Add cilantro and bay leaves.

Cover the pot, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 2-3 hours until chicken is tender and can be easily shredded.

Remove chicken from the pot, let it cool, then shred meat, discarding bones and skin. Reserve broth for other recipes.

In a large skillet over medium heat, add shredded chicken and 2 tablespoons of media crema (table cream), mixing until well combined.

Stir in canned corn and sliced green olives, heating until warmed through. Add reserved broth if needed for the required consistency.

Serve your Brazilian Chicken Stroganoff over rice, topped with potato sticks.

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Lite Blogs Woman

Desi Feminist Podcast Sparks Global Conversation on Women’s Liberation

Another aspect of online desi feminism is that the usual identity silos like nationality, economic class, caste, and religion are not visible. Instead, women are coalescing around a shared personal experience of being a desi woman…reports Asian Lite News

In recent times women’s movement has been characterised by a personal focus, aiming to dismantle deeply entrenched patriarchal norms concerning body image, colourism, and the rishta culture. This evolution transcends borders, emphasizing the remarkable consistency of the feminist conversation worldwide and uniting women as they confront shared challenges across diverse cultures.

In the digital realm, social media serves as a powerful catalyst for social change, bringing millions of conversations to life across various art forms. “Her Kajal Won’t Smudge,” a groundbreaking podcast, uniquely captures this energy and explores the question: Are we witnessing a desi women’s liberation movement?

A podcast for every desi woman who questions social norms and expectations. Hosted by Shana, a Pakistani-American attorney with a PhD in economics, the podcast delves into the complexities of domestic sexism, unravelling stereotypes that persist despite efforts to combat workplace discrimination. It presents candid conversations among women who tackle typically taboo topics

Shana talks exclusively to IANSlife about how a Google search on the economic literature on South Asian women’s empowerment, led to the discovery of Her Kajal Won’t Smudge. Read excerpt:

How has the online medium begun a dialogue on various feminist movements and issues?

Shana: Social media has been a game-changer for feminist movements, globally. While street protest happens intermittently when there has been a brutal crime against a woman or in support of an organized feminist march, online activism is happening daily and 24 hours a day.

I say this because – all around the world – desi women are creating content that targets social norms and expectations. Through video content, art, music, humour, and spoken word, women (and men also) are asking questions like: why are there so many double standards for women and men? Why is there an expectation that a woman must marry young and have children to be seen as “good”? Why is she expected to forego a career to raise a family? There are so many topics being discussed: rishta culture, colourism and shame – divorce shame, rape shame, domestic violence shame, body-shaming, period shame!

Another aspect of online desi feminism is that the usual identity silos like nationality, economic class, caste, and religion are not visible. Instead, women are coalescing around a shared personal experience of being a desi woman.

We can also see that the content creators are engaging with millions of followers and we can see that the appetite for this content is making its way into popular mainstream TV and film. This energy and activism is also visible in lots of other fields. Artists and writers have been at the forefront of feminist thought for decades. Taken together, this is why Her Kajal Won’t Smudge asks are we witnessing a desi women’s liberation movement?

Have you seen a positive change through the women you have interviewed? If yes, how and if you could share some examples?

Shana: In desi society, patriarchal social norms are a blueprint for how men and women are supposed to behave in society. Men are expected to be the stoical, unemotional, breadwinners and women are expected to be nurturing, giving, pure “good girls” and then martyr-like homemakers. There is a social expectation that – for women – marriage and children and home come before career and for men, it is the opposite.

Why is life set up like this and is it serving anyone? The comedian Radhika Vaz, for example, mines the female condition for her material. In her episode, we talk about all kinds of issues including a world in which women turn the tables and catcall men and men get confused by this.  Every guest I speak to is doing this in some way – challenging social norms and asking why they are the way they are.

This is important because it impacts all of us. Men are multidimensional beings. If a man has self-doubts, is he not a man anymore because he has to always appear “in charge of his emotions”? What if he is having a hard time coping with the demands placed on him, is he less of a man if he talks about this? Male mental health is a very real problem, globally, and it does not require much to understand why society’s ideas about what is “manhood” lie right under the surface.

What if a woman dreams of achieving something for herself? Why is it so controversial for her to talk about her autonomy? Women birth to children, raise them, feed them, and educate them, women are 50% of the world. Women are doctors, lawyers, professors, cleaners, cooks, nannies. Women are capable of doing any jobs so why does society get so unnerved by women saying they can make decisions for themselves?

The women I interview want us to contemplate these kinds of questions and, by pushing the boundaries, they are making social change happen.

The impact they are having is measurable. They have many millions of followers and subscribers and their numbers are growing so, clearly, the topics they are raising are on people’s minds and there is an appetite for these conversations. Take Leeza Mangaldas, for example, she has over 2 million followers and subscribers. She is a sex educator who wants us to explore taboos around female sexual pleasure, internalized oppression, and patriarchy and see these constructs as limitations that stand in the way of our own sexual identities.

Sheema Kermani is an activist and a dancer and her organization, Tehrik-e-Niswan, puts on theatrical and dance productions that unpack social norms. She re-enacts rapes and domestic abuse and in doing that she gets the audience to consider these issues head on. It is not possible to turn the page or scroll on.

Social change is happening because the women I interview and the 1000s of influencers, artists, etc. are creating conversations about issues that people treat as “just the way life is”.

Life does not have to be like this. There is no excuse for 149 million child brides who marry under the age of 15 in South Asia. We know this problem is becoming worse. Climate change is leading to earlier marriages as families struggle to survive. These marriages happen first and foremost because there is a patriarchal mindset that sees a girl’s virginity and purity as essential for family honour. This is more important than her access to education or to a future of autonomy in which she can contribute to her family’s financial security.

In this way, every woman I interview is making positive change happen.  There is a misconception that the women’s rights movement is supported by only a “fringe” group of society.

This is false on many levels. Firstly, the desi feminist struggle is in line with what mainstream economists are saying has to happen in South Asia. For economists, maximizing economic growth requires a reframing of social norms so women can, for example, move around safely in public spaces and apply their talents to economic development. Norms like a woman’s purity or that a woman is only a woman if she is married and has children limit her from participating in the workforce. In other words, women fighting for rights and changes in social structure are voicing the opinions of mainstream economists and vice versa.

Secondly, activists who call out women’s rights are saying something that is enshrined in constitutions and international law; women are sentient human beings with human rights dreams and choices. It seems almost ridiculous to make this point. But in a world where women’s and girls’ dreams are quashed every day for the sake of socially acceptable behaviour, it needs to be said and it is what the activists are saying.

And finally, activists are calling out a patriarchal mindset that engenders violence against women. There is nothing “fringe” about this idea either. Every time a rape happens and a rapist absolves his behaviour by saying a good girl would not have been out at night, we know that what women are saying is a real threat to society. Whereas people – all people – should be repulsed by crimes like rape or acid attacks, society enables it to continue by parsing blame on the female victim and shaming her into silence. Activists draw attention to this patriarchal mindset because it is the elephant in the room.

Stories from your personal life that inspired you to start Her Kajal Won’t Smudge?

Shana: In hindsight, I can say that Her Kajal Won’t Smudge came about because of a few realizations.  Early on in my career, I saw how women are not treated equally in the workplace. This became apparent after I had my daughter.

I saw this again during Covid. At home, I fell into a stereotypical gendered role and my husband was doing the same. We seem to have reverted to some learned behaviours without really thinking about who we are to each other or how we want to raise our children. He was working all the time and I was doing everything else. I was not the only one living through this setup; it was the same for the overwhelming majority of women I know. By now, we have seen enough studies to know that this was the lived experience of most women, globally.

When life opened up, after COVID-19, I started to see patterns of common desi female experiences on social media and this made me curious. I could see that women from different backgrounds, countries, and religions were coming together to call out desi social norms. The content they were creating was engaging desi women (and men) from all around the world. It was a kind of electric moment in history. Social media has made this moment possible.

What has been the feedback post-launch?

Shana: The feedback has been incredible. We have been New and Noteworthy on Apple Podcasts in the USA, India and Canada. We have been trending in Pakistan. The goal is to start conversations rather than to have full agreement with every guest. I hope listeners take this approach because, ultimately, it is about giving space to women’s voices.

In the South Asian community whether you live in India or outside India there are some preconceived notions about women. Did you even feel them today and is there something we as individuals do to educate people more?

Shana: Yes. South Asian women all over the world are taught by their parents, extended families, peers, in-laws, friends, TV/film, and social media that good, respectable, women are supposed to behave in a certain way. This blueprint is very much a part of our lives in 2023 and it is as present in the urban environment as it is in the rural. Of course, the degrees are different. But at the heart of it, lies the control of women through shame and violence. This is why the sexist system works so well. It is why women give up their dreams, marry early, have children when they may not be ready to do so, put up with domestic violence, and so on.

I think that gender sensitiszation and gender equality training are so important. Every school around the world should be making this part of the curriculum. If we can teach children to think about racism, why do we turn a blind eye to sexism? So many incredible NGOs and charities have been doing this work with great success.

On a day-to-day level, if you have children, think about getting your son to do the dishes with your daughter or to do whatever female-coded task you would usually assign to only your daughter. If your son has had a bad day, ask him to share his feelings about it. If you are a father, think about doing the dishes or clearing the table. Model this behaviour so your son sees that you are a partner – not just “helping out” – and so your daughter sees that it is perfectly normal to have a supportive partner.

The stuff we teach our children is the future they will inhabit. We are the most important people in their lives so why not give our sons and daughters a real shot at living fuller, multifaceted, inner lives? What are your plans for the Podcast?

Shana: Her Kajal Won’t Smudge is about bringing together and amplifying the voices of incredible women who are fighting for a better, fairer world for all of us. The goal is to share as many stories as possible so we can support social change, which is happening because people are talking about – questioning – social norms that hold women (and men) back.

The hope is that Her Kajal Won’t Smudge will become a way to raise money for charities working with women and girls.

If someone listens to an episode that moves them, I would like to be able to say – go to our website and find a charity that speaks to you – and give money to them directly. There are so many professional desi women around the world. I hope the podcast will create new opportunities to fund social change with their support.

I also hope Her Kajal Won’t Smudge will be able to collaborate with brands and through that also generate additional funds for charities.

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Lite Blogs Music

Change your vibes with music

Each week, writer/host Jeremy Godwin looks at one aspect of mental health and provides straightforward, practical advice based on quality research and his own experience of learning how to live with anxiety and depression…reports Asian Lite News

Mental wellness has become an increasingly popular topic in recent years, partly due to the pandemic, which was a difficult time for many of us personally, but also due to prevalent external factors such as world news and social media.

In the midst of this chaos, we seek solace in order to sleep better, feel less overwhelmed, or simply relax after a long day. In this age of visual fatigue and ‘doom scrolling,’ audio – both music and podcasts — is becoming increasingly important. Recognizing the value of audio, Spotify’s new initiative, ‘Pause with Spotify’, aims to create a mental wellness ecosystem of content, experts, and advocates who can simplify and share relatable conversations with anyone looking for relevant resources.

Here are a few examples:

The Pause playlist – this brings together podcast episodes and songs that will help you take a break, when you need it, where you need it. Updated every mid month, the playlist will focus on different aspects of mental wellness. Current theme: mindfulness.

The All is Well playlist – Episodes from across different podcasts, curated to nourish your mind and soul.

Here are also a few of the best podcasts catering to mental health needs – whether you want straight science, apt advice, or just listen to real life experiences of others like you.

Yours Mentally Podcast – The podcast discusses issues that are on all of our minds, but we are afraid to speak up on. Hosted by 3 teenagers with the help of multiple mental health professionals, the podcast aims to help listeners get answers to their questions that they may not get elsewhere.

Let’s Talk About Mental Health – Each week, writer/host Jeremy Godwin looks at one aspect of mental health and provides straightforward, practical advice based on quality research and his own experience of learning how to live with anxiety and depression — so you can get tips that actually work from someone who understands what it’s like to go through mental health challenges

New Mindset, Who Dis? – A podcast that has no gurus, no fluff, and no preaching of generic life advice. Just unfiltered thoughts on self-help, wellness, and mindsets with practical and personal insights on how to live a purposeful life.

Take a Pause with Varun Duggirala – Does the daily hustle make you anxious and overwhelmed? Join Varun as he sheds light on concepts and real-life stories that will motivate you, and build the right mindset.

The Sarah Jane Show – Sarah engages in a friendly conversation with a few incredible people who share their experiences and knowledge to inspire listeners. She also shares her own thoughts and ideas that can help you live the best life.

If you still cannot make up your mind, Spotify’s Wellness hub has a collection of playlists and podcasts that will help you navigate through a few of the most common issues we face on a daily basis. Go to the Spotify app, type ‘Wellness’ in the search bar, and pick your audio of choice.

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Interview Lite Blogs Social Media

Kubbra reveals three secrets to success

Throughout the podcast, I tried to just have fun and talk about my experiences, rather than focus on what the “idea of success” is. I’ve tried to talk about small things that make a difference, like my gratitude jar, and it’s all available on the episode for everyone to listen to…Kubbra Sait speaks with Siddhi Jain.

Being happy is the first and foremost thing in life. For ‘Sacred Games’ actor Kubbra Sait, the idea of success is much beyond ‘gaadi, bangla and bank balance’ (car, house and bank balance), the concept of success is purely based on the larger emotion of happiness. In a new Audible podcast, the quirky actor revealed her three secrets to success — one of them being, ‘get lots of sleep’!

“My 3 Secrets to Success” is available exclusively on Audible, produced by FirstAction Studios, a Rainshine Company. It reflects on Kubbra’s journey to success and her mantras that have led to it. It is a series that features prominent personalities from various fields speaking about success, its definitions, evolution, and the three principles that have led them to what they are today. Catch Kubbra being funny, philosophical, and downright crazy as she shares her insights on success and the importance of gratitude, on the podcast.

Kubbra Sait reflects on the podcast in an interview with us:

In the Audible podcast, you mention the concept of success has largely been rooted in personal happiness for you, since childhood. What are your thoughts on this cookie-cutter idea of success installed from a young age?

A: I think the concept of success is purely based on the larger emotion of happiness. I think that happened to me when I grew much older and when I started doing things that I actually loved, but until that point of time it was always the cookie cutter idea of success. We’ve been raised as a subcontinent to be people who save for tomorrow, and not who live to experience the today. Everything’s always been based on a settlement of value that has been instilled in us since the time we were babies. Throughout the podcast, I tried to just have fun and talk about my experiences, rather than focus on what the “idea of success” is. I’ve tried to talk about small things that make a difference, like my gratitude jar, and it’s all available on the episode for everyone to listen to.

It’s only when we look back at it, that’s when you discover that one moment where you literally go “Damn, that’s funny I actually enjoyed that”. That’s when it clicks that what if I could make money, live a decent life or live doing what I love to do. Or what if I have limited resources but hey, at least I really love doing what I do. I think the minute you tweak your mind to think that way, automatically success comes your way. And in the new age, we’ve got people like Vijay Varma, Taapsee Pannu who encapsulate that. They love what they do and they’ve worked so hard to get to where they are, that you actually look at them and see a quality career based out of doing what you love. Even me for that matter, now that I know what I love to do, I want to work harder towards what I love to do rather than chasing the money. That is always a byproduct so if success is directly correlated to money, then I think that’s the short game that you’re in, not the long term solution.

You decided to give your life the Bombay spin at the age of 27. Give us a glimpse of your mind back then, what were you thinking?

A: I was thinking of burning bridges with what I was doing at that point. I was pretty clear that if Bombay doesn’t work out, and isn’t kind to me, which it truly was, then I would have said that I’m going to drop everything and go look for another job in some other part of the world. But it would not have happened if I would have said that “Oh, I’m still going to have my safety net in Dubai, then I probably would not have been able to do what I’m doing in Bombay”. So yes, there was a little bit of fear of failure but there was also breaking out of the fear knowing that it’s only beyond this fear that I will truly discover what I want to do in life.

“In life, you should appreciate the lows as much as the highs. Like in Music.” were your inspiring words on the podcast. Why is acknowledging and accepting low points so important?

A: I was trying to tell my story. I think each person’s story is so unique and storytelling is so important. Accepting highs and lows truly define who you are. I think the character of a person comes through how you can be when you are going to the lowest of your lowest phase. I think it’s the true test of character when you’re at your lowest low because you tend to hold other life rafts to yourself, which are beyond your success… which are beyond what you do, and it all starts coming down to who you are, and the tenacity of you as a person. Which is why it’s really important to appreciate the lows when they come to you. I don’t mean it’s easy to appreciate your lows, but it’s just about going through them as you would go through the highs, but if you think life is all about the highs then we wouldn’t be living life, then we would be playing a game, and even in games you have to lose a couple of lives.

Has the lockdown, in any way, shaped or changed ideas of happiness or success for you?

A: Oh my god, yes. In a gazillion ways. I think you look around you and learn to be appreciative of the many things that you have and what you can do for your immediate circle. I’m not saying this is a Miss World answer where you go and say, I want world peace, but I’m just trying to see as an individual, if I can impact even one other life. I think that for me it has been life altering to be able to sit in one place without being edgy about yourself. I’ve come close to meditation during the lockdown so that’s helped me a lot. So in many ways it’s been a personal journey for me.

On the work front, what’s keeping you busy these days? What’s upcoming?

A: I’m really excited about ‘Foundation’ that’s about to release this year. It’s I think one sole project that I have put in about a year and a half of mine, and that feels extremely valuable because I don’t think today, your currency is money, your currency is time. So if I have been able to break out of that mental block and invest time in a project that I believe in, I think it’s going to pay off pretty well and I’m quite excited about it. Apart from that, I’ve got three work projects in process and when they come to realisation, I’ll share them with you. But otherwise I can say that, I’ve got a book coming, I’ve got a show coming out, I’ve been on this Audible podcast. Also, I’m in a state of solitude in a state of Zen. I am being that person. And it’s just allowing you to recognise the past, the present and the future as it’s going to be. I think it’s very important to be in a state of Zen so that you can allow the future to unfold. It’s exciting. So, what’s keeping me busy, my Zen is keeping me busy.

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