Play it cool with water chestnuts

When chef Floyd Cardoz was growing up, he remembers the singhara walas who would visit residential areas to sell water chestnuts. “We would have it raw and fresh, like a snack,” he recalls. While there are many fruits that lend themselves to all kinds of dishes, this white fleshy fruit with its slightly sweet flavour has started becoming more common in dishes across Mumbai, in the past couple of years. And why not, asks chef Floyd, who used them in a chaat at The Bombay Canteen last year. “There is a cooling sensation when you eat it. Plus, I think it also has a slight coconutty flavour to it, which gives a dish a little more complexity without too much work,” he adds.

Texture trail

Whether it’s the roasted almond, baby spinach, water chestnut and edamame scented soup at Keiba, or the Water Chestnut & Baby Corn Tempura at Toast & Tonic, the water chestnut’s ability to lend itself to all kinds of dishes, makes it an extremely versatile ingredient. As for its health benefits, a Google search will throw up lists of the positive effects of consuming water chestnuts. Says chef Raymond Wong, head chef at Hakkasan, “Water Chestnut is rich in fibre, vitamins and minerals and has an immense cooling effect on the body. It also helps in regulation of water retention.” At their restaurant, they use sautéed water chestnut in their wok dishes, as they give a crunchy and nutty taste to the dish, while they steam it for their dimsums. Texturally, it retains its crunchiness even after it’s cooked.

“Sometimes, what happens is that you feel you can’t eat anymore of a particular dish. We call it palate fatigue. Texture helps break the palate fatigue because it’s something new being brought into play which you weren’t expecting. I think texture is a smart way to make less complex dishes more complex without extra work,” he says, adding that while many people might think that it has no flavour of its own, water chestnuts have an ability to absorb flavours easily when it’s cooked.

Versatile and how

There is no dearth of possibilities when it comes to playing with the texture and flavours of the fruit. At By The Mekong at The St Regis Mumbai, they do a Crystal Water Chestnut Dumpling, where they toss water chestnuts in Asian Barbeque and Hoisin Sauce, stuff them into potato starch and made into dumplings. 

Neel — Indian Bar & Kitchen offers a snack called Seb Singhada, which is a combination of fried water chestnuts and granny smith apples tossed in kali mirch. The recently opened Mango Tree in Juhu makes a mean version of the Thai dessert knows as Tub Tim Krob, using jellied water chestnuts, jackfruit and coconut ice-cream, while at Izaya, they do their own twist on the classic dessert by doing a panna cotta made with coconut milk, that is topped with water chestnuts and placed on a base of coconut ice cream.

The Spicy Salmon Tartare available at The Table in Colaba, is a dish loaded with the goodness of fresh ingredients such as water chestnuts, pine nuts and crispy lotus root. “Raw fish is marinated in a soy and lemon vinaigrette while the other fresh ingredients including water chestnuts makes this a healthy dish,” says Senior Sous Chef Louis Bapi Gomes. He tells us that while the fruit can be cooked in different forms, he prefers to use it fresh. “The health benefits of water chestnuts are well-known and one can use it in the form of flour, in salads and even as pickle,” he adds.