(Well) Made in India

Spicy chillies, tangy tamarind, sour yogurt and zesty garlic — if just the sound of that stirs up your appetite and makes you anticipate good food, Made in India is your kind of book. Actor, director and television personality Kunal Vijaykar's debut book is a breezy read that covers traditional recipes and gives you glimpses of rarely-seen regional cuisine.

Put together after having traversed through the length and breadth of the country, Vijaykar has explored a variety of cuisines, such as Kashmiri, Goan, Tamilian, Keralite, Bhopali and oddly, Pakistani as well. The book is neatly divided into nine sections, such as vegetarian, egg, chicken, fish and mutton. It holds 60 recipes.

A big plus point about the book is that even if you are well-versed with Indian recipes, it still throws up surprises like fugias, charcharleli batati, Bhopali roti, chinchoni, varias, Bombay chicken curry and others — dishes that are all unique to their region and not commonly cooked by outsiders. Unlike a homely butter chicken or palak paneer that every household boasts of, these are fun to try out if you are enthusiastic in your kitchen.

The book is also peppered with contemporary ideas such as vanilla bean-spiked sheermal paratha, croissant pudding made with store-bought croissant and, given that pizzas and pastas are staples for city dwellers, pizza sunny side up and chicken pasta curry.

There are some hiccups too. Though every chapter in this mixed bag of recipes opens up many possibilities, the book lacks an underlying thread to bind them together. There is also much focus on certain communities like East Indian, Goan, Parsi and Maharastrian but little or no representation of Chettinadi, Gujarati, Rajasthani, Manipuri, Oriya and other very-Indian cuisines.

If that can be overlooked, Made in India is pleasingly detailed with beautiful anecdotes, history and trivia that Vijaykar has penned down at the start of each recipe. He has also specified the number of people each recipe will serve, cooking time and sides the dish can be served with — all of which are common but thoughtful touches.
The section we enjoyed reading the most (after Cyrus Broacha's foreword, of course) is titled 'masalas'. Hardly deserving a section of its own, this one has only two foolproof recipes of bottle and rechad masala. Vijaykar guarantees these will spark up any humdrum preparation and we concur.

Q and A with Kunal Vijaykar

India is a country of chaat lovers. Where do you find the best chaat in the country?
In Delhi. I like Shree Balaji Chaat Bhandar and Prabhu Chaat Bhandar at Shahjahan Road.

Indian has several versions of biryanis, which style do you prefer?
There is nothing like a Lucknowi biryani. But for my money, I like the Bohri biryani the best. I find the Hyderabadi biryani too subtle and bland. Think about it, you always need to add mirchi ka salaan to the Hyderabadi biryani to make it complete.

Mumbai versus Delhi - who cooks better food?
I have to unfortunately admit, that would be Delhi. I love Mumbai and the street food here. But Delhi offers far more variety and tastes. Also, much better quality of ingredients.

What is the most overrated Indian food ?
I think non-vegetarian Punjabi food is highly overrated. Everything has a pyaaz and tamatar bhuna. Although Punjabi vegetarian food is spectacular.

The caterer on your speed-dial is...?
For Maharashtrian-Goan food, it is Raju's Malvani Corner (24462405) and Godiwalla caterers for Parsi food (23736136).

What would you choose as your last meal?
My mother's prawn pickle and crisp potato sabzi with chapati.

Which aroma stirs your appetite?
The smell of garlic being fried.

What's your comfort food?
Sweet corn crab meat soup and beef chilly.

TV goes best with...
Kolkata mutton egg rolls from Hangla.

Breakfast in bed or a seven-course meal?
Seven-course meal.

Your favourite food movie?
Ratatouille.

A food critic whose work you follow?
Fay Maschler and Vir Sanghvi.