EAST MEETS WEST

INDIAN CHEFS ARE INCREASINGLY RELYING ON WESTERN COOKING TECHNIQUES TO HEIGHTEN THE FLAVOURS OF CLASSIC RECIPES FROM RAAN TO RAJ KACHORI, SAYS FAREEDA KANGA

Indian cooking being so highly regionalised has no singular identity.

Masalas, ingredients, spice blends vary from the north to the south. A school tiffin of two children in an Indian school will never be the same.

Cooking techniques also differ wildly from the tandoor in Punjab to the fermented batters which we use to prepare dosas and idli in the South. “What is common to Indian cooking is certain methods in which we handle food,” suggests Chef Milan Gupta, Taftoon Bar and Kitchen, Mumbai. “As Indians we tend to sometimes overcook food be it meats or veggies and of course over spice,” he adds. The fear of allowing the meat or vegetable itself to shine through gets eclipsed by the masala or marinade.

However times are changing and as Indian chefs travel abroad or scour culinary sites on social media there is a change in attitude and methodology when cooking

desi khana. Chef, Dimple Sharma, Sous Chef, Atlantis, The Palm, Dubai says, “I have learnt many techniques throughout my career working not only in Dubai but also Indonesia and Thailand. Most of these are influenced by western food such as slow cooking, roasting, baking and confit. One of the most important techniques I have learnt however is presentation and plating. In Indian cuisine we cannot always change the cooking techniques or the ingredients of a dish, but we can always change the presentation, which can make such a difference.

“One example of using a western technique such as baking in Indian cooking is my Tandoori Raan Wellington. Here I used a typical Indian Spiced Lamb

Raan recipe but combined it with the British method of wrapping and baking it in puff pastry to create a delicious Indian-style Wellington.

Another example is a fragrant Indian version of Confit Salmon which we did for an Indian wedding recently. As we rarely cook with Salmon in Indian cuisine, I infused and cooked the fish with mustard oil, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and bay leaves, using a very Indian marinating technique paired with a Western cooking method,” he divulges.

Chefs like Milan Gupta have worked and studied in French kitchens and have realised how much sense it makes to incorporate some of the western or even oriental styles of cooking in our recipes. For chefs with a traditional western style of cooking, say a French school

background, they’ve started using the techniques from their respective school of learning presenting their Indian dishes with a lightness in both flavour and presentation. Indian curries which are normally generously served, are presented in a similar manner that the French use to present their sauces i.e. below or surrounding the focus of the dish.

“When working in Geneva with Michelin Star Chef, Vineet Bhatia, I learnt the sous vide technique on meats and seafood with Indian staples. One of our star dishes was broccoli khichdi with sous vide lobster. This technique used in Continental cooking works well on our recipes also as it keeps the meat succulent and tender. Dehydrating food is another great Western concept that works on desi food. It can be used to make healthy papads, tandoori gobi popcorn and dehydrated beetroot chaat,” says Chef Gagandeep Singh Sawhney, Executive Chef, Shangri La Bengaluru.

Many have started incorporating more modern techniques like sous vide, foaming etc — there’s a lot of experimenting going on based on how these techniques work with Indian flavours, how to make these techniques less gimmicky and more substantial in their final contribution to the overall dish.

“The chefs at Farzi Cafe for example, have been serving a raj kachori with a foam of tamarind chutney. In addition to being delicious and looking good it also delivers a fraction of the calories that the original recipe would have. Renowned chef Manish Mehrotra, has given a twist to the humble kulcha by stuffing the quarter-sized naans with molten blue cheese and pairing the kulchas with oddball ingredients,” says Celebrity Chef, Ananya Banerjee. The focus is to stick to the authentic and be creative.