Home Chefs Of Mumbai – Part 3. Anjali Bhargava

Cooking is an art. It’s also a kind of meditation where every thing else is forgotten, except the food and the concentration is solely on producing the most innovative dish. Its like you dip your brush into your own soul and paint your own nature.

 Lucky are the people who surround such artists because they are the beneficiaries of the fruits of their efforts.

 

Who doesn’t like good food?

 

 

Anjali Bhargava ( of MySocialTable fame) is one such artist whose cooking skills are appreciated by all her family and friends. She excels at every cuisine and can confidently vouch for the simplicity and purity of the ingredients used in her cooking. Whenever she tries any new cuisine, she always researches on the authentic way of cooking, the right sources and the cooking culture of that place. Although being a vegetarian herself, she cooks amazing non-vegetarian dishes without tasting (as it is required to do)

 

“I always had a dream of opening up a bistro cafe with a reading corner but due to some or the other reason kept delaying...I was always a good, lavish host and used to try all new things at every event. My food was well appreciated by all friends, relatives, acquaintances. Apart from all the fancy things I cooked, my simple food too was loved by many. Over a period of time I realised, taste and purity is in simplicity .The traits of a good efficient cook is in coming up with healthy options for all in the family and getting the flavours of all ingredients out in a dish.”  She says

 

People really drool over her Dahi Badas, Malpuas, Chicken preparations, simple UP dishes, Rajasthani cuisine,  and also the Chinese, Italian that she cooks at home. But her forte has always been and will be event planning for niche parties and social gatherings. She was into event management too, is freelancing now, handling mainly the social functions & gatherings. In fact, she prefer even conceptualisation, planning and execution which involves menu planning too

 

Her first memorable eureka moment of good food was in Rome.  “My best flavourful memory would be of a crunchy salad plate with fresh Mozarella and bread served with a rich red wine in a small cafe in Rome!” she says.

 

Her Mustard Chicken Salad In Lettuce Cups will leave you wanting for more.

 

 

1.     Boil 200gms Chicken breast and dice in chunks

2.     In a bowl, take 2tbsps of Mayonaise, 1tsp of English Mustard. 1 tbsp Tobasco. Mix it well.

3.     Add 1 medium sized Onion, handful mix of chopped green, yellow, red Bell Peppers, few shredded Basil leaves.

4.     Add the diced Chicken chunks

5.     Toss it well

6.     Take one big Iceberg Lettuce. Wash and wipe it dry.

7.     Place it like individual bowl on a flat tray.

8.     Put the Chicken Salad in it

9.     Eat one mouthful to get the crunch and all flavors in one mouthful

 

 

“I want to streamline everything but not spread too much  as I can then control the quality ... Once the corona thing gets over, might have a food studio.” She says

 

One can order directly from her on Watsapp no 9820959470

 

You can also follow her on her Instagram handle  anjbhargava

 

Home Chefs Of Mumbai- Part 2 – Inderpreet Nagpal

There’s now an encouraging trend to treat home chefs as stars they undoubtedly are. They have found solutions of delivering food all over Mumbai to ease the overload of unending household chores.

 Generally we judge home chefs on two grounds: The quality of all food that emerges from their kitchen and the innovation of the dishes on the menu.

 

 

Inderpreet Nagpal, popularly known as ‘Rummy’s Kitchen’ is the most versatile home chef who can build the most innovative delicious dish from any ingredient. Food is always on her mind, not only in her kitchen but also when she is out of her kitchen, in the garden, or with friends and even during travelling.

 

She fondly talks about her first memory of food.

 

“During my Singapore trip we went to a sea food place called Tiong Bahru.
Oh my God! The variety of live sea food was just too good. It was like . You go select  the sea food you want to eat , select the preparation and it comes ready on your table! Amazing! ”

 

She does catering for small parties, plus keeps weekly menu. Every week, there is different menu with different cuisine. This month is only meats, started with mutton, then fish, chicken and pork. She specializes in non-veg dishes, fusion food, mix of South and West.

 

She is happy to share her recipe of Sweet Buns

 

 

1.     PREHEAT OVEN TO 180C

2.     Mix together 2 tsp yeast, 1tsp sugar, 125ml water. Keep it aside for 2 minutes and let it bloom.

3.     Add 450 gms maida, 100ml warm milk, knead the dough, hook in on medium speed.

4.     Add 1tsp sugar, salt and knead on high speed for 10 minutes.

5.     Add 1 tps butter and ½ cup mix of tin fruit cherries, nuts, dry berries, black and white sesame seeds while mixing.

6.     Knead the dough till it becomes very soft and elastic.

7.     Remove the dough from the mixer and give it a quick knead with your  hands.

8.     Place in a lightly greased mixing bowl, cover with cling film or a damp cloth and leave it to prove for approximately 2 to 3 hours until doubles in size.

9.     Once risen knock back the dough, place on a lightly floured work surface.

10.  Make 9 to 10 balls  or roll the dough and keep it in the loaf tin to make bread loaf.

11.  Let this rise for another 30 mins

12.  Brush with beaten egg or cream, sprinkle sesame seeds . Place on a baking tray

13.  Bake for 20 mins on 200°  until golden brown

14.  Remove from the oven, transfer to a cooling rack and leave it at room temperature

15.  Enjoy with butter or jam

Inderpreet Nagpal was awarded Home Chef and Baker's award 2020 for the contribution to India's Home chef & Baking Industry in the category of 10 years+

 

 Rummy loves baking bread, “Its  so relaxing working on breads” she says.  She has a pickle brand called “Herbs n Spices’

You can get in touch by following her Instagram handle ‘Rummykitchen’

 

Home Chefs Of Mumbai – Part 1- Introduction

Lockdown means stay at home, be with self and introspect, and do the unlimited household chores.. Lockdown is also an learning experience for me. It has taught me many things.  There have been many obstacles that has kept me on edge. But food has never be a problem at all. It has been available from day one itself. I am not talking about restaurant/hotel foods, not even street food that we love so much but it is about home cooked food. Ingredients were available almost everywhere, some of the shops had even changed their business. The kiosk that sold newspapers or fresh flowers were now selling vegetables. It is demand and supply mantra.

 Many people, specially home chefs, have devoted their time in cooking meals and sending it across the city to many families. During this pandemic, with no helpers at home and the family member always hungry, home chefs have been a God-sent angels, their food, cooked with care, hygiene and love is reaching every home.

 

I am so happy to start this series on 'Home Chefs of Mumbai'.   I have been thinking about this for a long time, we have so many talented home chefs in our city of Mumbai and still when we want to order food, we only select a few whom we know personally. Of course friends are always dear and we trust them the most, but I want to dig into the jewels of Mumbai city, the most talented home chefs, whose food is “Must Have, I don't Wish To Miss This” that kind of attitude. And I will be featuring them, their food stories, their recipe and some details with most honesty and sincerely, I promise…..

 

During my growing up days, I remember, there were always visitors in my house and food was plenty, mainly fried stuff to entertain the guests. Nobody cared about health issues, or the food they could eat or what they should avoid. Everybody cleaned off the plates, relishing good  meals and the food was always tasty (or so because everybody enjoyed it) nobody really cared about jotting down the recipes and reproducing the same....a verbal information was shared and people cooked to their own preferences of taste. 

 

Since food was always very tasty in my house (tasty meant spicy till the eyes and nose leaked) which I still enjoy  But my first eureka moment ( the taste is still fresh in my memory) was when I was in Hong Kong about a century ago. I was having a sleepless night and I was restless. It was 5am and everybody was fast asleep. I quietly woke up, changed into decent clothes and decided to go for a morning walk. I walked down the streets and hopped into a bus to enjoy the ride..Dawn was slowly creeping in. I alighted the bus at the last stop and there was a big crowd, a small distance away. 

That was a street food hawker selling a rice congee that was the most tastiest breakfast I had ever tasted in my life and its taste linger till now. It was a simple bowl of broth garnished with thinly sliced pieces of chicken, pork, fried eggs, spring onions and chiilie sauce. That was the day, I developed my taste for Chinese food....

 

I am no home chef, but I have great passion for food and I appreciate people who spend time in their kitchen cooking for their family and friends. From the little  knowledge that I have about food, I happily share my recipes to the last detail if they enjoy my food.

 

Like I always say, the taste is not in the list of ingredients that you use, it’s the thought process and the interest that goes into the food to give it a real flavour, being in good mood is the best ingredient for churning out a memorable food. Rest is the normal recipe that you can easily get on social media or on u-tube.

 

But yes, recipe is also important. I will share a simple recipe that I cooked for me last week

 

Hara Bhindi Aloo (In english you can call it Okra Potatoes in green Masala) It is cooked regularly in every Sindhi Home. (In Sindhi, this dish is called Sayal Bhindi patata in saoo masalo)

 

Main taste in the gravy.

 

1.     Grind green masala with 4-5pods of garlic, small bunch of coriander leaves, small bunch of fenugreek leaves, lots of green chilies, 1tsp of turmeric powder, 1tsp of coriander powder.

2.     In a pan, use one tbsp of oil/ghee, fry the masala that you had prepared in step i.

3.     Add 2 chopped tomatoes, cover and keep on low flame for 5 minutes

4.     Mash the tomatoes in the mixture, add 250 gms of Okra and 2 medium sized sliced potatoes

5.     Add salt, mix it well add 1cup of water

6.     Cover and cook till potatoes are tender.

7.     Serve with rice or chappatis.

if you don't like Okra, you can substitute it with cottage cheese or even with fish.

My journey with Home Chef is about to begin.....watch out for my next post......

Prepared Bitter Gourd In Pressure Cooker

 Inspired by KanchanAhuja, I cooked Bitter gourd. I followed her recipe..

 

I rarely use pressure cooker unless I am cooking mutton, or lentils. But cooking normal vegetables? It is unthinkable for me.  I always prefer slow cooking. I understand that using pressure cooker is quick but I always add water. Never before have I ever cooked anything without water in a pressure cooker. But then, there is always first time. Yesterday I attended live cooking session of KanchanAhuja and she demonstrated three quick recipes. It seemed so easy. I decided to try her technique for cooking bitter gourd (although she had used Okra)

 

I was nervous throughout the cooking procedure..(what if there is sudden explosion without water)..What if it gets burnt? The only solace was that I had watched Kanchan do it, so I was getting a bit courageous. I waited eagerly for 2 whistles.(staring at the gas with  eyes wide open)…I was tempted to quit (was I taking risk?) and phew.when the whistle finally sounded, I was relieved. .It was success. It was good 

 

The trick is in layer cooking with juices extracted from onion and tomatoes mixture

 

This is how I cooked it….

Layer the pressure cooker in this order

Layer one 

2tbsp oil

Layer two..

spread 2 finely chopped onions

Layer three..

spread 2 finely chopped tomatoes

Layer four..

add deep fried 250gms of bittergroud (i have salted the BG with salt for few hours..then squeezed out the water and deep fried it)

Layer five..

add 1tsp turmeric, 1tsp coriander powder

Layer six..

add green masala (1small bunch of coriander leaves, 1 inch ginger, 5cloves of garlic, 4green chilies)

Layer seven:

Add salt

Cover and pressure cook for 2 whistles

Release the pressure

Mix it well and serve.

Multigrain Bread and Pickled Mushrooms

I have always wanted to bake bread. Each time I went to a super store, I would see range of different kinds of breads and most of them were made by home chefs, and I would think, someday I will bake it too.

 Many times I had even bought yeast, waiting for my moods, the yeast aged and I had to throw it away. Then this lockdown happened, I was not able to go to the store to select the loaf of bread that took my fancy, that’s when I decided that I would bake it.

 

The first one I tried was with just plain flour. I watched about twenty different videos on U tube, to understand the techniques. Baked the first one, it took me about five hours, it did come out good but plain flour bread is not my liking.

 

Then I decided to make multigrain bread and voila! It was just the type I wanted.

 

 

So, before I forget the recipe, I decided to write it down.

 

Just soaked 1 tbsp dry yeast with salt and sugar in warm water for 10 minutes for it to ferment

 

Meanwhile take 1 cup plain flour, plus 1/4 cup Wheat flour plus 1/4 cup Rajgira flour

 

Add 1 tsp of Fennel seeds, 1tsp Poppy seeds, 1tsp Cumin seeds,  1tsp Sesame seeds and a pinch of Baking powder

 

Mix it well and add the fermented yeast

 

Mix it well, it should be wet and sticky, transfer to the greased silicon baking dish...smoothen it with wet hands

 

Cover the dough with mixture of crushed almonds walnuts n pistachio.

 

Keep it for one hour..

 

It will rise to double its size

 

Bake it for 30 minutes, cool and cut into slices..store it in the freezer..

 

Although the bread tasted very good but I decided to make Mushroom pickle too so that I could toast this slice of bread and have it with mushroom pickle.

 

This is how I pickled it

 

Clean and blanch the mushroom and chop into thin slices.

Add crushed garlic, chilies, finely chopped dry fruits like walnuts almonds pistachio, veg cube, lime juice. Pour olive oil and keep it bottled for 2 days.

 

Mushroom pickle can be stored in fridge for 15days and I use it for topping pizzas, or add in fry rice or even with pastas. One spoon should be enough for one serving…

 

Better to pickle it rather than to let it go bad with neglect.

Fish Curry

 When I see the red bubbling fish curry, I get hungry. OMG. It only 12:30 afternoon and its not even my lunchtime, but I just can’t wait to eat it.

 

 I am confined at home since six months already, but cooking has been my favorite pastime, in between catching various webinars, zoom meetings and Instalive. Not that I ever went to fish market to buy fish, (I rarely do) its too slippery for me to walk in the market, although fisherwomen are quite clean and they maintain cleanliness but there is always too much water on the floor.

 

Plus I have a fisherwoman who visits me regularly. I have known her for many years, always came to my doorstep, cleaned, washed and salted the seafood before she left. There was a personal touch in buying fish from her. She shared recipes, discussed interesting stories and spent some time chatting at my doorstep. Now that my building is redeveloped and with new rules, fisherwomen are not allowed to come up, vegetarian folks get offended by fishy smell, so she waits downstairs outside the gate and I have to go down to fetch it. Like many other changes, the personal touch is disappearing too.

 

The picture looked so good on my Instagram, that few of my friends asked for a recipes (It was tasty of course, but only I ate alone and enjoyed it) but you can enjoy it too.

 

This is how I made it.

 

Marinated 250gms of fish with 2 green chillies, 1inch ginger(crushed), 5 cloves of garlic, 1tsp of turmeric powder, 1tsp of coriander powder, 1tsp red chili powder, 2tsp of Malwani powder, 1tsp of lime juice and salt to taste.

 

Cover and keep it for 2 hours.

 

In a pan, fry 1 large finely chopped onions in 2tbsp of ghee, add marinated fish, add 1 large tomatoes and let it cook for 5minutes.

 

Mix it slowly then add 1cup water, cover and cook on slow flame for 15 minutes.

 

Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with roasted chappatis.

 

PS: Malwani masala is the combination of about 25 spices, that are roasted, mixed, grounded and stored in jars. It is enjoyed in the coastal kitchens of Malvan. You can either make at home (Google it or you can buy from any Indian super store.

Meeting My Foodie Friends During Lockdown On Social Media

 During this pandemic, life would have been very depressing if there were no technology to connect with outer world. I cannot imagine what my life would be? I would read books, yes, or sometimes sit by the window side and watch the skies (and the rains) but what else would I do.?  Luckily, food has been plenty, and cooking has been one activity that has kept all of us occupied and how!!

 Everybody has been innovative in creating dishes, some of them improving on their cooking skills and some learning new skills.

 

My most favourite activityon social media is picking out strands of knowledge from every field. I love watching my friends (on social media) who share their wealth of food knowledge and that has been very rewarding for me. From the comfort of my home, I have been able to catch some Instagram Live broadcast.

 

My foodie friends are really very talented and they have been my companions during this lockdown. I see them everyday, live on Instagram, and catch up on latest trends whenever I have some free moments to spare. On normal days (that is when we lived in a normal confused world) I would meet them only during food events but now, I can meet whenever I wish. I have learnt a lot during these five months in isolation, which actually is not an isolation at all. I am wiser now!

 

Although there are many live events happening everyday on various fields like art, poetry, travel, etc. but today I will talk only about the live broadcast by my foodie friends whom I follow on Instagram.

 

My favourite from this food world is this lovely couple Sam and Saloni Malkani, the founders of TheFBAI  (a social platform for food and everything related to it).. Both are ardent foodies and love to connect with everything food, drink and hospitality. Meeting them is a blessing for me because they have introduced to the inner circle of food industry.

 

 

Sam Malkani has great variety of  discussion on #InstaLive  covering different food topics. Each time I visit his page, there are different kind of topics he is covering, sometimes he is interviewing entrepreneurs, sometimes he is on food quiz shows, sometimes live cooking demos and sometimes a deeper knowledge on products available during pandemic.

 

 

Saloni Malkani is very caring friend and most influential person in food industry. I admire her for her warmth and in cementing everybody together. Last year she created a storm with her partner, Chef Ananya Banerjee by starting Wild Asparagus Table, (a potluck on international cooking) and this got me interested in different cuisines and cultures of the world.

 

Their very latest Newspepper is creating waves on social media.

 

 

ChefAnanya Banerjee  is very glamorous and talented person. Between food and being Chef, she is also a traveller, food curator, food consultant and ex-editor of #BBCGoodFoodIndia  She interviews Homechefs around the globe on #Instalive  (twice a week, Tuesdays and Fridays) giving us the insight on the homechefs’ life in general, their cooking methods, the utensils they use in their kitchen and much more.

 

 

I met Inderpreet Nagpal  at  Wild Asperagus Table, an SriLankan potluck organised at her own home at Vesova and was completely awed by her talents in cooking, art world and gardening. Inderpreet Nagpal of Rummy’s Kitchen is a multi-talented homechef who can develop a recipe with any ingredients.  Twice a week (Mondays and Fridays), she comes #Instalive to chat with foodies, where she discusses one particular ingredient with different participants and then she comes back with most exotic recipes.

 

 

 I met Rushina Munshaw first time at one food demo at Nature’s Basket some ten years ago and there is no looking back. I have learnt a lot from Rushina and she was the one who counselled me to get a food blog (Papadchai) if I was really serious about writing on food.  Rushina is a culinary expert, is very knowledgeable about ingredients, cuisines and history of food. Catch her on #Instalive at 11am everyday on her series on #SpiceChroniclesWithRMG where she is exploring the different spices used in different regions of India.

 

 

During one of events organised by Rushina for Women’s Day, I met Shubra Chatterji,  a very friendly and amiable person. She is an award-winning filmmaker and enjoys travelling and documenting Indian Culture and Heritage and in particular the vast Culinary Cultures of India, via travel-based non-fiction programming, visual essays, articles and curatorial projects. Shubhra, (known as Historywali) currently hosts an Instagram LIVE series, History On A Plate, which started off as a Lockdown passion-project but has gained quite a bit of eyeballs, and media coverage.

 

 

Kurush Dalal  is the most interesting person I have met, He is loaded with food knowledge folded under his charm of humour and stories.  Kurush is an archeologist by profession, also an historian, food anthropologist, culinary expert and a very friendly person. You can watch his #InstaLive everyday and listen to his stories on #Knowyourprotiens. You can also watch his recorded IGTV on A to Z series of ingredients, that he completed some time ago, where he spoke in details about all the ingredients found in the kitchen.

 

 

I met Kalyan Karmakar during one of his organised food trails (around Mohammed Ali road, a place that he calls as cultural unifier) and I had a great conversation on our drive back in his car. Kalyan is very well verse with food culture of Mumbai and is a good conversationalist. He has won the title of best food blogger three years in a row, and is very popular. You can watch his #instalive under the handle of  #Thefinelychopped where he talks to entrepreneurs of food industry about how they started their food biz and how do they go about with their business during these rough times of pandemic. A very interesting talk indeed!!

 

 

Who doesn’t know Amrita? She is Social media celebrity, was known for her OMG Bacon Jam which she stopped making after she turned vegetarian. I have met Amrita Kaur several times during food meetings.  She has wealth of food knowledge, specializes in Ayurveda nutrition. You can watch her #Instalive under handle #Amritaforlife where she discusses different interesting aspects of food, nutrition value, recipes and healthy eating habits.

 

 

There is wealth of knowledge on #Instalive and the best part it that it is possible to see the recorded version at IGTV (if you missed live sessions), which are equally good although you might miss the live conversation of the people who were watching that discussion at that time. I am interested in watching all sessions but sometimes I am unable to watch it live because of my first commitment  towards my #Specialchildren of my SBP, school for PWID. Special children need be kept occupied or else they will have behavior issues, so with the help of my staff and the parents of special children, we have been experimenting different methods to keep children busy too and I am glad that I could help them in some way.

During this pandemic my #SindhiCuisine book also went viral on Watsapp, travelling around the world (where I personally have never visited those places), and I was getting call from most remote places around the globe,  (I am told) many of them felt that my book is the treasure of sindhi cuisine and many have learnt to cook simple food, specially the beginners. Well, I was glad of that.  

 

But whenever I get time, I turn to IGTV to pick the missed sessions of #Instalive. It certainly is more interesting than watching those depressing news on TV or some series on Netflix or on Prime Videos….

 

And why not….Food is my passion too!!