Convenience Big Store: Woodlands chef behind Amrina wins on Food Network's Chopped

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Woodlands chef behind Amrina shines on Food Network's Chopped

In the last year, Amrina executive chef Jassi Bindra has done more than open one of the most talked-about restaurants in the Houston metro.

The chef behind the upscale Woodlands Indian restaurant won an episode of the Food Network's Chopped, which aired Tuesday evening.

Bindra had several lemons-to-lemonade moments as he transformed several conflicting ingredients—from smoked peanut butter and sardines to camel's millk and giant fortune cookies—into well-balanced dishes in 20 to 30 minutes. The chef aimed to "show how Indian cuisine can be sexy," crafting popular Indian street food mirchi wala, grilled short ribs with pea green salad and cola coconut sauce, and a creamy fortune cookie rabri with candied blue hubbard squash across three rounds.

Bindra beat out James Beard semifinalist Rachel McGill in the final dessert round to take the $10,000 prize. He's already watched the show several times, including at an Amrina watch party for the premiere, and plans to make some of the dishes he made on the show into specials at the restaurant. Read more about his Chopped experience here.

This feels like my cue to finally try Amrina. What's your favorite dish there? What are some other can't-miss dishes at Woodlands restaurants? Let me know at claire.partain@houstonchronicle.com.

Claire Partain, Suburban reporter producer

Claire.Partain@houstonchronicle.com

Education

First grade teacher Kristi Garrison assembles activity bags for the upcoming school year at Eddie Ruth Lagway Elementary School, Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023 in Willis. The Willis ISD School Board approved a one-time payment of $1,500 for teachers and staff using Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds, left over from the three federal stimulus bills during COVID-19 pandemic, in lieu of a raises in the district's 2023-2024 budget.

Photo by: Jason Fochtman, Staff Photographer

How Montgomery County school districts closed the gap on teacher hiring this summer

Several Houston and Montgomery County school districts have started the school year with fewer teacher vacancies than last year, while other districts are still working to fill positions.

Growing The Woodlands

Home construction continues near Conroe ISD's Christopher J. Hines Elementary, Wednesday, June 28, 2023, in Spring.

Photo by: Jason Fochtman, Staff Photographer

Montgomery County districts prep for more schools, bond elections

Montgomery County school districts are planning for more bond elections as regional growth continues to attract more homeowners and businesses.

A cleared area for a multifamily and development project in the Shenandoah Plaza, formerly known as the former Sam Moon Shopping Center, is seen, Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2023, in Shenandoah. Four multifamily and rental developments projects are currently under construction in The Woodlands area, including one at the Sam Moon Shopping Center, Gosling Oaks, NeuHaus Apartments and Camden Woodmill Creek.

Photo by: Jason Fochtman, Staff Photographer

4 new multifamily developments, build-to-rent homes coming soon to The Woodlands area

Multiple apartment complexes and build-to-rent housing properties have broken ground in and around The Woodlands.

Need to Know

Montgomery County Sheriff Rand Henderson speaks during the department's annual awards and promotion ceremony at the Lone Star Convention & Expo Center, Tuesday, May 9, 2023, in Conroe.

Photo by: Jason Fochtman, Staff Photographer

Montgomery County to add 29 law enforcement officers, tax cut to $419M budget

Montgomery County lowered tax rates despite a $2.3 billion loss in property value and a revenue shortage of almost $6 million.

Openings and Closings

The former Avanti Italian Kitchen has rebranded into contemporary Italian-focused Terra Vino Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar at 2520 Research Forest Dr.

Shout out

Fall festival season is coming soon—can't-miss events in the Houston suburbs include the Texas Renaissance Fest and the Tomball German Festivals Christmas Market.

One last thing …

I'm obsessed with interactive maps and graphs, and ever since the 2021 winter storm blackouts, I've liked to keep an occasional eye on how our power grid's holding up.

Check out real-time updates of our state's power supply vs. demand updates here.

Speaking of, new lawsuits are emerging alleging that corporate greed, not extreme weather, was to blame for blackouts during Winter Storm Uri, columnist Chris Tomlinson explains in a four-part series.