By  Shekher Phadnis
You must have often wondered as to what the most famous chefs of India prepare for their own cuisine. Well a survey shows that they cook — and eat — steamed food. “Steamed food can be absolutely great after a good day at the master kitchen supervising every thing to poached truffles to kheer paneer.

”says the chef Hari Ponniah of  the Chola Sheraton Madras and he adds that a good steamed dish almost works like a dose of medicine. He has given a new name to steamed food — he calls it medicated health food. Most chefs believe that when it comes to the taste of food, you can’t beat steaming. For one, it seals the natural juices and flavours of an ingredient, and ensures that you don’t lose its natural goodness. The moist heat cooks evenly, and there is no fear of scorching .Steamed food is the closest you can get to food in its natural state if you are not eating it raw. And Chef  Ponniah is right — it beats antibiotics.   
One great factor in steamed cuisine is that  it gives you the real flavour of a particular ingredient. When you fry food, the first taste that you get is that of the fried exterior. Steaming, on the other hand, takes you directly to its core. 
Steaming is one of the earliest modes of cooking that our ancestors hit upon. When they put their freshly-preyed hunt in hot geysers, they found a new way of preparing food. Somehow, many of us seem to associate  steaming  with European cuisine. It is actually a veritable part of Oriental  cuisine. In India, for instance, we have a great many steamed dishes — from idlis and dhoklas to momos and dumplings.
And it is not limited to vegetarian cooking. In  Bengal, the hilsa is almost always steamed with mustard paste and mustard oil, and large prawns with grated coconut, a bit of curd, mustard paste and mustard oil. And we use our rice cooker to steam pork chops. The much-loved paturi (where you wrap a piece of fish in a banana leaf — is a steamed dish.
Most   often, non-veg steam cooking is combined  with searing and stir fying.  In the north, before steaming meat, it is always seared over a high flame. This seals in the juices, so when you steam it over a low flame, it cooks in its own juice, thus retaining most of its nutritional value. 
The most famous non veg-steam cuisine is the  Dum cooking  originally enjoyed by the Nawabs of Awadh , rulers of the Northern Provinces of India  during the 18th Century.
It defines a unique style of  steam cooking. The dishes are cooked in traditional degs or handis sealed with atta or kneaded flour, to trap the steam. It is then placed over glowing coal fires to simmer in its own juices until tender and delicious. The resultant richness of flavours and taste is incomparable and memorable.
Of course, it goes without saying that you need a bit of experience to know when the food is done. There’s nothing quite as bad as a vegetable or a fish that’s been steamed for too long. But the great thing is that you can steam food without an electric or a gas steamer too. All that you have to do is put your ingredients with the right mix on a steel plate, cover it with a tight lid and place it on top of a pan with boiling water. And remember to place a weight on the lid to keep it sealed. These days, of course, you get steamers of all kinds — including some electric ones where you can regulate the temperature. Steamed food is also becoming more and more popular, as the young work out for long hours everyday and the middle-aged look at their middles with horror.
Here are more tips on Steam Cooking:
• Flavorings can be incorporated into steamed foods by adding herbs, spices, aromatic vegetables, wine, juice, etc., to the  steaming liquid, and using it as a marinade before cooking. Try lemon grass, ginger, a touch of toasty nut oil or a splash of or pomegranate molasses.
• You don't need fancy equipment. One good option is a collapsible steamer basket (available at supermarkets) or metal rack set into a large pot, wok or skillet.
• An alternative is to create a platform for the food with a pair of chopsticks or upside-down small glazed ceramic or glass serving bowls . Place the food in a heatproof dish and set it on top.
• Whatever your equipment, a tight seal is important. Choose a pan with a tight-fitting lid, or cover the pan with foil and press it tightly around the edges.
• The steaming  liquid must be at least 1 inch deep and should not touch the bottom of the steamer basket or rack. Too much water and the food is immersed and will boil instead of steam; too little and you risk evaporation and burned pans.
• Bring the liquid to a boil over high heat before adding the food. Then adjust the heat so the water simmers briskly. Begin timing at this point.
• Keep a pot of boiling water on the stove to replenish the  steaming  liquid if needed. A few marbles placed in the bottom of the steamer will make a racket until the water is gone; silence means it's time to add water.
• If you open the lid of the steamer briefly to check the cooking progress, add a minute to the total  steaming time.
• Steam is hotter than boiling water, so take care not to burn yourself. Use oven mitts when putting in or removing food from the steamer or lifting the lid. Always lift it away from you and let some of the steam escape before removing the lid entirely.