As I travelled I realised that the cuisine is changing. Dishes even ‘sambhar’ and ‘rasam change. Andhra-style ‘sambhar’ is very spicy in some places and a little sweet-ish in others…Chef Khanna speaks with Siddhi Jain.
Food is transcultural that has evolved and changed enough over these years. It is important to respect the sanctity of any cuisine, as it is deeply rooted in culture, says Chef Anurudh Khanna, Multi Property Executive Chef at Westin Gurgaon, New Delhi. Having curated a food festival that brings to town culinary treasures from the Tamil city of Tiruchirapalli, Chef Khanna highlights that there are many misconceptions relating to cuisine from Southern Indian states, which make for a rich culinary bouquet in themselves. Chef Khanna speaks on the side-lines of ‘Treasures of Trichy’ food festival which is going on at Westin Gurgaon, New Delhi till September 15. Excerpts:
Could you tell me about the inspiration behind ‘Treasures of Trichy’?
Khanna: While planning a food festival, we were just thinking which cuisine and Indian state to tap into. We looked at the resources in our culinary team at Westin – here someone is from Uttarakhand, from Nepal, southern states, Rajasthan, Bengal – so it’s quite varied. Our resident South Indian chef, Chef Vijaykumar is from Tiruchirapalli, who is with us from 2019. That’s where we thought of putting this cuisine in the front, and making him the main chef for food festival. There are many variations in what is singularly thought of as ‘South Indian cuisine’. As a chef, what do you have to say about this?
Khanna: I also discovered this, during my last assignment in Bangalore where I traveled to Mangalore, Kerala, and to Andhra. As I travelled I realised that the cuisine is changing. Dishes even ‘sambhar’ and ‘rasam change. Andhra-style ‘sambhar’ is very spicy in some places and a little sweet-ish in others. Not just the palate changes from state to state, but breakfast ‘sambhar’ is different from all-day ‘sambhar’. The Spice level matters a lot. For example, Kannada cuisine is not that spicy, Mangalore cuisine is rich with spices, Andhra cuisine is heavy on chillies but Kerala cuisine is very fragrant.
About the stereotype, yes there are a lot of misconceptions about food among people who are not native to south Indian states or who haven’t travelled much. They think South Indian cuisine is mostly just ‘idli, sambhar, dosa, vada’, and there are a lot of varieties of dosa. But in reality, South Indian cuisine is immense. Chefs are experimenting with fusion styles, for instance, something like a dosa-flavoured burger. Any opinions?
Khanna: As a chef, I’d say it should not be done. A little twist to the recipe is acceptable but changing the recipe upside-down is not. Food is an element very rooted in culture. You can be just a little bit around culture, adapt but complete 180-degree changes and fusions, are not my food philosophy. Let’s keep the sanctity of the cuisine as it is. It is different from doing multi-grain dosa or ragi dosa, even variations in stuffing is possible.
What’s next, when it comes to food festivals at the Westin?
Khanna: Next would be regional as well. I’d discover some more regional talent from my team first. Maybe I could do a travel flow within Uttar Pradesh, and bring out regional variations among UP dishes.”
Udupi is a temple town located in close proximity to Mangalore and lies between the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea, reports S Ravi
Udupi cuisine is taking Hong Kong by storm as Asian residents in the gleaming metropolis and beyond bite into India’s spicy south Indian delicacies, which are extending India’s soft-power across the globe.
In an article in South China Morning Post, Rakesh Raghunathan recalls the still intact taste of this cuisine said: “The most amazing dish that I have had at a Udupi restaurant is at the old Dasaprakash Hotel in Mysore, where they served haalbai, a halwa made with rice flour, jaggery, coconut milk and ghee. I can still remember that melt-in-the-mouth goodness years later.”
It is not just Raghunathan but several others spread in different mega and metro cities of India, who have fond memories of this variety of food. For a very long time, food outlets like Woodlands and Dasaprakash with their trademark waiters donning white uniforms and caps served rice with a liberal helping of ghee to be relished with sambar, a tangy lentil stew and rasam and vegetables dishes with mango pickles and well fried papads on the side.
The emergence of Udupi style
Udupi is a temple town located in close proximity to Mangalore and lies between the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea.
Explaining in the SCMP article, Raghunathan said that the Udupi cuisine began in the 13th Century, when Shivalli Brahmins made elaborate food in the Lord Krishna temple kitchens.
The food offered to Lord Krishna included no less than 14 different cooked delicacies each day. The same food was also served to the devotees who visited the temple in large numbers throughout the year.
The article quoting Raghunathan stated: “The food that was served here was essentially satvik (foods that are ripened and harvested according to nature, and promote harmony) and had to be cooked with many religious restrictions, which banned the use of onions and garlic, root vegetables like potatoes and even �English vegetables’ like cauliflower and radish. Seasonality was key and there was a list of things that would not be eaten during the monsoon months.”
With passage of time, in the 1920s, a number of eating outlets came up in the town, all offering simple food. This included lentils, vegetables which were seasoned with spices freshly grounded with a pinch of jaggery added to sweeten the dishes.
The offerings featured whatever was locally produced like mattu gulla, a type of green-skinned brinjal, gourds, plantains, white pumpkin, and seasonal greens.
New additions Technological advancements brought in new equipment for grinding and steaming thereby expanding the Udupi food to include tiffin which consisted of masala dosas, crisp lentil crepes stuffed with a spiced potato mixture, and moon-shaped idlis eaten with sambar and chutney.
Besides the usual fare, Udupi area boasted of some special dishes. These included kadubu idlis (lentil and rice batter steamed in conical moulds) and goli baje � deep fried fritters of flour and curd with a smattering of green chillies and ginger. Another speciality was thanbulis — cucumber or other greens cooked and then mixed with buttermilk and seasoned with mustard and curry leaves.
Dispersal to new areas and cities
In 1923 Udupi was struck with a massive flood that had a major effect on the region. A number of cooks moved to bigger cities like Mumbai and Chennai, starting Udupi restaurants that offered wholesome food at reasonable prices and hygienic environs.
In 1924, three brothers from the Maiya family left for Bangalore from Udupi to work as cooks and later they established a quiet restaurant. Called Brahmin Coffee House, it served idlis and filtered coffee.
Moving on, in 1950, they set up Mavalli Tiffin Rooms (MTR), which over the years has grown to become a mammoth organisation in the Udupi cuisine world. It has branches world over and sells a line of packaged foods.
Talking to SCMP, Vikram Maiya, a third-generation restaurateur hailing from the family that runs the MTR with his siblings said: “We have tried to be close to the original cuisine from Udupi but of course the food has evolved to include elements of Mysore kitchens and of North Karnataka. But the sambar and rasam that we serve is quintessentially Udupi style. We have franchises in Singapore, Malaysia and Dubai and have adapted our menus to local tastes. Ultimately a sensible brand adapts to consumer preference.”
Butter Masala Dosa(WIKIPEDIA)
Many of the Udupi outlets today have adapted to the changing times and needs and now offer North Indian dishes and desserts though a number of them are family run, and old fashioned in their decor.
Located in Hong Kong’s Tsim Sha Tsui neighbourhood is Woodlands Indian Vegetarian Restaurant. It was started in 1981 and it offers to its patrons everything from vegetarian thalis to dosas and idlis.
Elaborating on this outlet, Arun PE, who runs it told SCMP that was the only Udupi-style restaurant in the city, where ethnic minorities account for about 8 per cent of the population.
“Our chefs are from Udupi itself and have been with us for over 25 years,” he said proudly.
Another Udupi native, K. Seetharama Rao started the Dasaprakash chain of restaurants. In 1921 Rao joined his brother’s tiffin business in the southern city of Mysore.
At present K. Vishwanatha Das, who runs the chain with his family, informed that even though they offer other cuisines, from North Indian to Chinese and even European, to suit customers’ preferences � it is always the Udupi flavour that makes the customers revisit them.
“The authentic taste of Udupi cuisine was the freshly ground spices and the use of firewood for cooking. We still use a lot of jaggery to give the food a hint of sweetness. It’s traditional food which will always have a demand because it’s wholesome, healthy and nutritious,” Das avers.
Despite all this global expansion, Udupi remains unchanged. Daily the devotees at the Sri Krishna Temple are served free food on banana leaves while there are small outlets that sell freshly made tiffin.
(This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)
FnB columnist Riccha Grrover in conversation with Chef Saransh Goila to know more about his GOILA BUTTER CHICKEN in London and launching meal-kits & a nationwide delivery system in the UK
One of India’s most widely respected chefs, Saransh Goila has developed a cult-like following for his eponymous butter chicken recipe globally. Having garnered a legion of high profile followers after the opening of his restaurant Goila Butter Chicken in Mumbai in 2016, Saransh was flown to be a guest judge on Masterchef Australia in 2018 where he judged contestants’ iterations of his signature dish. In 2019 his Goila Butter Chicken won the ‘people’s choice’ prize at India’s famed food festival, World on a Plate (WOAP); and in February 2020 Saransh teamed up with the Templeton brothers for a sell-out fortnight-long residency at Carousel (Marylebone), before setting up a London-wide hot meal delivery service in November last year. He has been in the Forbes 2019 Celebrity 100 list and amongst Facebook’s 100 Future Tycoons of India.
Saransh Brings ‘Goila Butter Chicken’ To London
RICCHA GRROVER- Tell us about your journey as a professional chef, across kitchens and FnB set ups from India to London. Did you always plan to be a chef or did you dabble into the profession as an extension of a hobby?
SARANSH GOILA- I grew up in Pitampura near Delhi. From a very young age, I had an inclination towards cooking. By the age of twelve, I started experimenting and cooking in the kitchen with my mom and granddad. Soon, I started cooking for my uncles and aunts and neighbours and my grandpa wanted me to pursue a career in cooking looking at my aptitude and interest. I believed in his vision of converting my hobby into profession and someday being a chef like ‘Sanjeev Kapoor’ and decided to pursue culinary arts from Institute of Hotel Management- Aurangabad, India.
After completing my professional studies and work at the Leela Hotels in Bengaluru for a couple of years I wanted to try something different. I wanted to be on television in order to teach people more about India Cuisine. After many failed attempts, I secured a spot as a contestant on Bollywood celebrity Madhuri Dixit’s comeback show, Food Food Maha Challenge, which was being hosted by Chef Sanjeev Kapoor. I went on to win the show and that got me what I wanted a food travelogue that made me travel 100 days of India by road is search of lost regional recipes and street food artistes. It was called Roti Rasta Aur India (which meant – Bread, Roads and India).
After the show, I found my space in the FnB industry in Mumbai (the city of dreams!). I came up with my version of butter chicken by a happy accident. I wanted to make a dish that tastes exactly like butter chicken but without the chicken as I wanted my vegetarian parents to be able to taste it. For that made few tweaks to the classic recipe and balanced it out in a way that the base gravy would have all the tasting notes of butter chicken enhanced and well balanced. When my friends in Mumbai first ate it when I moved to Mumbai, they loved it so much that they started a Twitter hashtag, #GoilaButterChicken.
This soon became my signature dish, which I started serving through my outlets and pop-ups in 2016 and it was later also seen on the epic TV show, MasterChef Australia in 2018. It was after this show we got a lot of international acclaim which led us to do a pop in London at Carousel. Post which we built a great relationship with the Templeton bros (founders of Carousel) and that took Goila from Mumbai to London.
RG- How is your butter chicken brand different from all the other Indian restaurants in London in terms of what unique food experience you offer?
SG-The secret to my recipe is the tomato to dairy ratio (80:20 as opposed to the usual 60:40), the all-important infusion of smoke and insistence that only the absolute best ingredients make it into the pot.
It all begins with fantastic tasting, ethical ingredients. That means truly free range, slow-grown, herb-fed chickens from Yorkshire, the creamiest French butter and eco-friendly charcoal from FSC-certified forests.
With less butter than the classic recipe calls for and absolutely no colouring, sugar or fluorescent orange additive, Goila Butter Chicken is made fresh each day by chefs who take pride in turning curry into an art form.
RG- Where does your menu take its inspiration from?
SG- Inspiration for this menu comes straight from my home kitchen in Delhi. It’s what my mom and dad find comforting and they’d eat for dinner almost every weekend. Sometimes less is more. There are six elements to the quintessential Goila meal experience: Butter Chicken, Dal Makhani, Jeera Rice, Sourdough Naan, Pickled Shallots and Coriander Chutney. I do believe… too much choice is overrated.
RG-Tell us about some of your highs and lows in the journey as a chef. What keeps you motivated and what’s been your mantra of success? What advice would you give budding chefs?
SG-Before I set out on my entrepreneurial sojourn, I was working as a chef at The Leela Hotel – Bangalore. I felt like a misfit although I had a stable and a well-paying job. The decision to quit that path for a road of uncertainties where the stakes were high, lack of staunch financial support and inadequate operational experience to run a business has been the most difficult yet rewarding decision of my life.
To have been able to make a self-funded homegrown brand in Mumbai to Masterchef Australia and then opening an outpost in London is a definite high which keeps us motivated to keep innovating and pushing the boundaries further to grow the brand and make Goila Butter Chicken a global brand. What keeps me motivated is to keep promoting Indian cuisine across the globe, our cuisine is so diverse and full flavours and we need to make sure that the world knows about it!
My basic quote for all the young chefs out there – Be true to yourself! Do not replicate a recipe fully. Add your personal touch to it and make it unique to yourself. Your own rendition of the dish will make it a memorable one. For all you know, you may just be able to do more justice to it than the original creator of the recipe! Cooking is an amalgamation of science and art – so experiment and express your inner-self through your food, don’t forget to infuse love into it!
RG- What is your vision for your food brand in the UK- do you have plans of expansion?
Saransh Brings ‘Goila Butter Chicken’ To London
SG-We envision Goila Butter Chicken to be available all across the UK at your doorstep in the next future. Meanwhile our meal kits are already doing that! We plan to expand our cloud kitchens all across UK and will also be indulging in some pop-up stores that will reflect more diversity and innovation in the menu. We really want Goila to be the first choice for people in the UK, whenever they think of curry!
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Chef Saransh Goila’s world-renowned butter chicken is now available to diners nationwide in the UK, for the first time ever, through the launch of Goila Butter Chicken meal kits. Along with the butter chicken, the feasting meal-kit box is complete with Dal makhani – developed by Saransh to be the perfect accompaniment – as well as Sourdough naan fired in a pizza oven, crunchy and tangy Pickled shallots, Coriander chutney and Jeera rice. Vegetarians can replace the chicken with paneer.
