Singh tends to deal in large quantities even when he cooks for himself. On weekends, he’ll prepare a pressure-cooker potful of lentils or chickpeas that will last through the week, combined with rice (which he cooks in the microwave) or freshly sauteed vegetables.
“There isn’t a vegetable I won’t eat,” he says.
With that, he seizes the moment to set the record straight on dancers and food.
“We love to eat!” he insists, although his limber, impossibly lean body suggests otherwise. “At least modern dancers do. We can afford to have healthy appetites. We tend to be snackers.”
Mom Violet Dorai Singh is the source of his favorite recipes, and one of the family members responsible for Daniel’s passion for food with heat. He remembers watching uncles eat dishes so packed with chili peppers that tears streamed down their faces. “That meant it was good,” he says.
The Singh family emigrated from southern India to the Washington area in 1985 to be closer to his older and newly married sister, Tara. Daniel went to the University of Maryland to obtain a computer science degree. A ballet class he took for a PE credit changed his course of study — his life, really — and he finished undergraduate and graduate work in dance at College Park.
“I was surprised when he started dancing at 18,” says Violet, who now lives with her daughter in Laurel. To her, his cooking makes sense. She watched with pride when he tackled his first rajma, a red bean curry, when he was 8 or 9. “I don’t get to eat his food all that often. But he’s a very good cook,” she says.
Back at party central, it’s 30 minutes till the official 7 o’clock invite. More guests have arrived, each commenting on the wonderful smells and leaving their shoes at the door. Potato chips, paper goods and wine have landed on the coffee table. A buffet spread has materialized on the dining table, albeit with room at each end for designated helpers to chop cilantro and halve limes on small cutting boards. Perhaps the most visually mouthwatering offering is the salad he assembles in two minutes: mixed greens on a large round platter, piled with tumbling layers of blueberries, blackberries and grape tomatoes. People can’t wait to dive in.
“It’s cooling to eat with spicy foods,” he says; it’s another trick from his mom. “With juicy fruit, there’s no need for a dressing.”
Singh has started the carrot halwa, stirring sweetened condensed milk, sugar, grated carrots, cashews and raisins into what will become a silky, rich pudding. It will need to cook for at least two more hours. The mushrooms, shrimp and rice are done just before 8, about the time when the guests seem unable to hold back any longer.
In the end, as predicted, the timing was perfect. Dessert was ready when his guests had had opportunities to go for seconds or simply digest. Serene smiles all ’round. “His hands are magical,” McMath says.
And, as his AAC&U colleagues had hoped, Singh delivered leftovers at work the next day.
No room in his fridge, he shrugged. “I’ve got roommates to think about.”
RECIPES
For information on Dakshina/Daniel Phoenix Singh Dance Company’s upcoming performances, including its eighth annual Fall Festival of Indian Arts, go to www.dakshina.org. Do you know someone who’s a great Washington cook? Send an e-mail to food@washpost.com, with WASHINGTON COOKS in the subject field.
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