Actor, director and well-known foodie, Kunal Vijayakar shares his passion for all things flavourful in his new book, Made in India.
Impressions: Keshia Dsouza | Images: Jaico Publishing
Peppered with personal notes and detailed guidlines, Made in India offers a treasure trove of some iconic, some forgotten and some beloved dishes from home kitchens across the country. Moreover, each recipe comes with its own twist to make for a far more delectable offering , and so you can have a fun time when cooking with this book. “Many of these recipes are not found in restaurants. These are simple ghar ka khana items that I have tweaked to make them more interesting. For instance, Goan Sausage Pulao, I’ve made with dry fruits to balance the traditional spicy and sour flavours with some sweetness.”
Yet, this food writer of more than eight years is modest about his skills in the kitchen. “You can be a foodie without having to be a cook. I would be just as passionate about food even if I did not know how to cook. And there are many people who are better cooks than me, for which I am very thankful,” shares
Kunal.
YOU NEED
1 medium-sized pomfret
3 onions, thinly sliced into rings
3 green chillies, slivered
1 Tbsp bottle masala (see page 143)
1⁄2-inch ginger, cut lengthwise
8 garlic cloves, cut lengthwise
2 Tbsp ghee
1⁄2 cup water
Vinegar to taste
Salt to taste
Oil for frying
METHOD
• Slice the pomfret into pieces.
• Wash the pomfret pieces and marinate with two tsp salt.
• Pour oil in a pan. Once the oil is heated, fry the pomfret pieces until they are crisp on both sides.
• In a pan, heat ghee or clarified butter.
• Add onions, chillies, ginger and garlic. Fry them till they are golden-brown, and then add the bottle masala. Pour in half a cup of water, vinegar and salt to taste.
• Let it simmer for a few minutes, so that the masala cooks properly and the oil separates.
• Once it is cooked, add the fried fish to it.
• Mix it well so that all the spices and flavours blend in with the fish.
• Cook for a few minutes.
• Serve warm.
YOU NEED
1⁄2 kg mutton
2 potatoes, cut lengthwise
2 onions, finely chopped
1 piece ginger, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 green chillies, finely chopped
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 tsp flour
10–12 whole peppercorns
2 cloves
2 cardamoms
1 tsp ground pepper
2 cinnamon sticks
2 tbsp ghee
Salt to taste
METHOD
• In a pan, fry cut pieces of meat in a warm tbsp of ghee, till meat is seared and changes colour.
• Remove from pan. In the same pan, warm a tbsp of ghee.
• Fry the ginger and garlic and add cloves, cinnamon and cardamoms.
• Next, add the meat and stir-fry for a minute. Stir in a tbsp of flour.
• Add the freshly ground pepper, too, and pour in the stock.
• Add the cut potatoes and salt to taste.
• Slow-cook till done.
• Serve warm. [As an option, you can add sliced carrots, French beans and halved tomatoes to the stew.]
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