Home Chefs Of Mumbai – Part29 – Purnima Kanojia

Streetfood is the common sight everywhere in the world. 

Everybody will crinkle their nose, shrug shoulders complaining that its unhygienic and unhealthy but still, they all love it. 

Back then, the vendors used to make their rounds in narrow lanes with their Haat ghadi or a heavy basket balanced on their head and would shrill (in a musical tone) to announce their presence. People would speed walk outside their gates (bringing their own plates) and smack on the food which was mainly prepared snack (evening Chaat) that needed only garnishing like sweet and sour chutneys, some mixed masalas, chopped onions, chopped tomatoes (or curds), chillies and coriander leaves and was spicy and tasty.  They had their fixed timings and people would eagerly wait for them.  

Now you find vendors stationed at almost every street corner. They carry water in big (dirty) cans, that they use for rinsing dishes, the food is uncovered, exposed to dust and germs. Different vendor specialise in different chaat like Panipuri/Sevpuri, or Batatawadas/Samosas, or Tava fried exotic Dosas, or Chinese soups/noodles, or  fresh Sugarcane/fruit juices.  

Nevertheless, things are changing a bit (of course) and they are paying attention to hygienic issues too. Panipuri wallah have started wearing gloves, many are using paper plates, there are food courts at the mall, Dabhas at Express highways  have mushroomed everywhere for people making intercity tours and more recently we have seen food-trucks near the promenades/beaches.  

Purnima Kanojia really enjoys food, be it sitting on a car bonnet enjoying Pav Bhaji and Falooda, or travelling intercity and stopping to eat Dal Gatti with gud ka Churma at Jaipur, or Patiala glass Lassi at Punjab, or even Puttu and Kadla curry to Idiyappams in Kerela. 

Purnima Kanojia is adventurous in exploring street foods, both eating and cooking.

Purnima Kanojia (of MyFoodJourney Fame) is Pharma professional with twelve years of industry-experience; she is set all out to make a mark for herself in the culinary world too. She hopes to start a commercial kitchen soon.

Her journey with food started at seven years of age. She discovered the joy of doing a perfectly round roti on a Chulah, (back then it was by fluke). It took years of practice after that to do it perfectly. It was a kind of fun activity she did with her Bhabhi at her Nani’s house in Ghaziabad and it struck a chord.

“Food instills lot of emotion in me. Ever since I have understood the joy of cooking and feeding, its’ novelty has taken me up by surprise every single time.” She says

Purnima Kanojia specialises in Dum Biryani and Indian Cuisine. Anything and everything about food excites her including food photography. Food plating and food styling is another arena she wants to explore.

She believes that if love melts the hearts, Food is it’s glue to join them.

In the past, cooking was a need-based act for her, that included exploring randomly different cuisines. But her food passion took her to another level in October 2019 when she started her blog page _’Myfoodjourney’_, and set out on a trail to explore her talent. 

“My first experience with dishing out Lebanese cuisine was an amazing experience.. It was simply fabulous to realise how flavours and textures enhance your dish. I made Beetroot Fatey in a live, fun-filled cookery show  called ‘Kitchen ka Dangal’ of  Moms’ magic cooking. In this dish, the traditional Pita bread was replaced by Nacho chips from Cornitos. Such amalgamation of flavours, textures, colours in a dish, yet without love nothing taste better. It’s the emotion with which you cook counts and makes your dish stand apart.  I am keen to exploring the world through my taste buds, hence my tagline 'Exploring the zesty flavours of life.” Says Purnima while showing the photographs of her creation.

She is happy to share this recipe of this Lebanese dish called Beetroot Fatteh.

In a classic dish toasted pita bread is used. In this preparation you can replace with Cornitos Sweet chilli nachos. 

1. To prepare seasoned Curd – 

a. Whisk 400 gms Curd till it is creamy

b. Add coarsely ground 2- 3 pods of garlic

c. ¼ teaspoon of  Jeera powder

d. Salt  - ¼ teaspoon

e. Mix all the ingredients well 

2. To prepare seasoned chickpea –

a. Boil 250 gms chickpeas, add salt and cook till soft. 

b. Drain the water add ¼ tsp pepper, salt (a pinch) 

c. Add 1/4 tsp jeera powder 

d. Squeeze l1tsp lemon juice 

e. Mix well

3. Boil 250gms  Beetroot. 

4. Once done, peel, dice.

5. Season with salt, pepper.

6. Saute diced 3 tbsp yellow bell pepper in olive oil. Leave them crunchy

7. To prepare Tahini – 

a. Take 2 table spoon of Sesame seeds. 

b. Dry roast them till slightly brown in colour

c. In a grinding jar, add roasted Sesame seeds, a pinch of salt, and 2 teaspoon of olive oil.

d. Coarsely grind this mixture.

e. Fresh Tahini is ready

8. Now to Assemble the dish – 

a. In a bowl add nacho chips at the bottom

b. Add seasoned chickpea (of step2) 

c. Add seasoned beetroot (of step3)

d. bell pepper, (of step6)

e. 2 tbsps chopped onions

f. Add the seasoned curd mix (of step1)

g. Sprinkle a pinch of Jeera powder

9. Give a Final Nutty finish – 

a. In a small pan, add 1 table spoon of olive oil

b. Warm it, then add 5/6 slivered almonds

c. Put off the flame.

d. Add ¼ teaspoon of Kashmiri chilli powder

e. Immediately pour this over the Fetteh 

f. Drizzle Tahini  (of step7)

g. Garnish with freshly chopped coriander 

Enjoy crunchy, creamy, nutty, flavourful Beetroot fatteh.

Portion size – serves 2 people

Visit her Facebook to read her food stories at MyFoodJourney

Follow her Instahandle at  _my_foodjourney_

Order for Dum Biryani on Watsapp at  96193 13795

 

Restaurant Review – Urban Street Café

Not that we were hungry at that hour, we had cappuccino and garlic bread just an hour ago at a coffee shop, but we needed some other place to sit and chat. Friend called up and informed us about a new eating joint at Khar station road just opposite the main market. She said that it was launched just fifteen days ago. We decided to try it out.

A small cozy café, you could miss it if you were just passing by but it had a great flashy letter board to attract us.

There was a cart of street food at the entrance with variety of different chaat (like Golgappas, Dahi Puri, Sev Puri, Papri Chaat, etc.) that one would enjoy snacking on Deli streets.

picture courtesy, a friend who went back the next day

Try the ‘PalakChaat’ the boy at the counter suggested. It was the spinach fritters that would be doused with curd, and topped with chutney and garnish. If it wasn’t for the sweet curd, we would have ordered it immediately. But sweetness is the the flavour I don’t normally relish. We asked for menu to understand what other options café had to offer.

There were few metal tables spread out in the open. The exterior ambience was good with colorful bamboo rods, bamboo curtains and some colorful metal artifacts everywhere. Through the glass dividing wall, I could see the air-conditioned interiors artistically done with large graphics dominating one walls and colorful stairs leading up to the private office, upstairs

We ordered just two dishes and we were not disappointed. I loved this perfectly cooked dish that was spicy and tasty, just the way I like it.

Soyabean Kheema Pav

Chhole Puri

This is a great place for vegetarian people. They have a large selection of international dishes. Indian, Indonesian, Arabic, Italian, a little of each, the favorite one...they have all desi and pardesi cuisine.

Pasta is the dish one must try, (although I am not a pasta fan - an Italian with Indian touch) the management insisted that we try their speciality. We were too full but promised to try on our next visit. However, my friend went back the next day to try their pasta and palak fritters and she says its ‘too good!’ so I must try that on my next visit.

The owner, Abhishek Gupta, personally came to our table for our feedback and discussed his great plans for making this café a success. He plans to have a live cooking station of hot jalebis at the entrance. He was open to new ideas and his face lit up when my friend suggested that they serve dhal Pakwan during breakfast hours.

He offered us a complimentary mocktail that he made specially for us, mixing beet root with sprite and adding some Indian spices and herbs. It tasted good.

A great dining experience, I would definitely recommend a second visit, specially for my vegetarian guests.

Hot Dog Round The Corner

When travelling, it’s important to try local food and most importantly to try the street food because true essence of local food can be found in the street food.

I had my first tryst with street food was when I visited Bangkok for the first time. The air smelt of seafood and the food was very spicy and tasty. I have never forgotten that taste.

It’s my habit to try street food in every city that I visit. It could be a simple stir fries or more complicated sandwiches, or some weird dishes, but try I must. Every country has its own variety of street food.

Here in Canary Islands, most of the street food you will find at the Sunday market. On regular days, you will find near the city plaza, near the beach or closer to the church. People enjoy churro chocolate, a favorite street food and I had blog about this earlier.

Street food in Canary Islands is clean and sold in kiosk or in a vehicle. Last week I tried a hot dog by the beach at Garachico.

Now hot dog is the international dish, found in almost every country in the world. The basic method of cooking the hot dog is same. You put the hot dog in a saucepan, put little cold water and cook till it begins to boil, then let it stand for five minutes and you are ready to grill. What is different from country to country is the topping you get. While under Mexican influence you might get mango salsa and avocados, or under British spin you might get gravy infused spoonful of mashed potatoes but I kind of liked the topping at this place in Tenerife.

The couple was happy to share their recipe.

Hot dogs with the topping of mustard sauce, chili sauce and mayonnaise, a salad leaf, tomato and deep-fried onions and potato chips

Chicken Roti of Suriname

I have happy memories of Surinam. Whenever I think of Surinam I am reminded of the food that I enjoyed while I was there and the memories comes alive whenever I have visitors from that place. We discuss food and relish the virtual taste, sometimes exchanging notes. I used to love the street food the most, there is a different kind of pleasure while eating in the open air on the wooden benches.

Just next to my house (in Surinam) lived a Javanese family who ran a restaurant. On the days when I was too lazy to cook, I would order duck Bami with mixed vegetables from my balcony. She would pack a large portion which would last me for two full days, full value for money.

The food in Surinam had a very peculiar taste that I have never been able to find anywhere else. My favorite used to be chicken roti. I have often asked my cousins (who live there) to pack me the cooked Surinamese food whenever they make their trip to India but they just laugh it off. 

They do come and cook for me whenever they visit me, replicating the taste as closely as they can but alas! It is just not the same.

The main taste of this chicken gravy is in Surinam masala. I must ask my cousin to send me this

I asked my cousin to send me the picture of Roti Chicken so that I could drool on it and she sends me this.

Well, this is not the way we used to get back then. It used to be dhal roti brushed with the layer of chili chutney and stuffed with chicken gravy, potatoes and beans, folded like a roll.

I came across this blog of Kayotic Kitchen and she explains step by step, the method of preparing this dish, which is quite time consuming but very tasty. She has used potato stuffing for roti pancakes but the authentic roti is the one made of dhal.

To make the stuffing of Dhal, you need to soak split peas overnight then boil until soft. Place the boiled split peas in a food processor, add cumin, onion, garlic and salt, process until well-blended but not pureed.

A similar Roti chicken is also sold at Trinidad roadside stalls, but the taste is a bit different. I think the taste lies in the curry powder and how it is used. For example, in Tom’s recipe of Chicken curry, he has mixed curry powder and turmeric powder, added water and stir fried till it becomes a thick paste and then added the other ingredients. His chicken also has mustard paste in the marinate mixture. But the results are equally good.

Some things are best enjoyed when cooked by native chefs. Also the person who has tasted, can cook it too if she has the right ingredients, maybe I can too, if I have the right ingredients….

 Hello…you hear me?? My family in Surinam?? …So now you know what to get for me when you visit me in India.