Lounge Loves: Kilrr marinades, Ugaoo and more

Easy green

Those who know me well know I have a black thumb; even perennials shrivel up and fade away under my care. But urban gardening companies like Ugaoo are changing that. There are several filters that allow you to choose the right kind of plant or seed for your home—flowering, low-maintenance, medicinal and even pet-friendly. Ugaoo, started by Siddhant Bhalinge in 2015 to make an effort to restore the green cover in cities, sends you notes and tips on growing happy plants, including number of hours to keep a pot in direct or indirect light, the amount of manure to add and when, and more. There are great gifting options on Ugaoo as well, these too come with tips for the receiver. Meanwhile, the peace lily and the fittonia green plant seem to be thriving just fine, leading me to envisage great dreams of planting an urban garden. —Avantika Bhuyan

Slow baked

I don’t bake. Never have. Never will. Not even a microwave cake. The prospect of measuring, weighing, mixing, beating, layering and then cleaning is not at all appealing. And no, I don’t turn the pages of baking books with pleasure either. And yet, I’ve been drawn into a newsletter that describes itself as “a project in pastry”. Saturdays Test Kitchen is a log of the home experiments of Sonali, a London-based pastry chef, who goes by one name on Substack and has worked in kitchens in Brussels and New York. In a world of overconfidence, superspeed and Reels, her tone is quiet, the step-by-step photos a throwback to a time of slow afternoons of mothers and grandmothers baking. It makes for calming reading, and though I’m no judge, it does seem detailed enough to be useful if one was ever inclined to attempt croquembouche. — Shalini Umachandran

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Skincare special

Acne was the last thing I expected to deal with as an adult, especially after a bill of clear skin growing up. It wasn’t just the appearance of acne that bothered me—it was the discomfort. A make-up artist friend suggested I try Solved Labs’ hypochlorous acid, and I’m so glad I did. After two months, my redness and acne have almost cleared up. It has a pH level close to skin, which speeds up the process of healing. Using it with niacinamide and tranexamic acid has made a huge difference to the overall appearance of my skin and its texture too. Unlike retinol, it has no adjustment period or overbearing dryness to deal with. I’m almost out of my first bottle and can’t believe I went so long without this in my skincare routine. —Ghazal Chengappa

Kilrr combo

I am an enthusiastic but lazy cook, always on the lookout for short-cuts—not for me all the labour of growing my own produce or grinding masala from scratch (except my ginger-garlic-green chilli paste). At the same time, I’m fussy about taste, and not all pre-mixed masalas will do (Shan Masala being the gold standard). I tried the Kilrr “Gangs of Awadh” pre-mixed dry marinade over the Diwali weekend to make some chicken kebabs and was quite impressed with the complexity of the flavours in this super-convenient packet—just mix the powder, which contains over 20 ingredients, from your basic coriander and cumin to unnab ber and kebab chini, with 3 tbsp water, mix in your protein, and grill/fry it. —Shrabonti Bagchi

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