In New Orleans, When Harikesa mentioned that he was spending two-and-a-half hours to cook Srila Prabhupada's lunch, Prabhupada said, "You do not know how to cook. I will show you and do it in one hour."
"One hour?" said Harikesa, almost in disbelief. "This is amazing!"
Prabhupada then took off his shirt and entered the little kitchen of the Mississippi farm. While a crowd of devotees peered in through the open door, Prabhupada looked at his wristwatch and announced, "It is now twelve o'clock."
He used the same three-tiered brass cooker he had brought to America in 1965. In the bottom section he put mung beans and water, in the middle section he put rice, and in the top he arranged various cut vegetables - squash, peas, potatoes, and cauliflower. Putting the cooker over a low flame, he then poured an inch of ghee into a frying pan and placed it over a flame. Next he cut up an eggplant, dipped the pieces into turmeric and salt, and began to fry them in the hot ghee. He mixed and kneaded dough and began rolling out capatis. Periodically he checked his wristwatch, and when forty-five minutes had passed, he took the cooker's top off and turned it upside down to use as a small frying pan. He put in ghee and cooked some bitter melon, then deftly added cumin, anise, chili, and asafoetida. He squeezed lemon on the steamed vegetables and, within a few minutes, had finished.
Srila Prabhupada looked at his watch. "One hour," he said. "We have cooked nine preparations." He then left the kitchen while his servant prepared his plate. Prabhupada said that everyone who had watched him cook should be given some of the prasadam.
Reference: Srila Prabhupada Lilamrta Volume 6 - Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami
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