sliceoffme - Travels for Taste

Uni brings Nikkei Cuisine to Victoria

July 20, 2014 by manjirichitnis 11 Comments

The largest Japanese settlement outside of Japan is in Peru and the unique fusion cuisine that is Japanese Peruvian is called Nikkei. Fiona invited me to accompany this time to discover Nikkei, she is an award-winning freelance writer and marketing consultant who currently writes about travel and London lifestyle for a number of publications and runs her own London lifestyle blog called London Unattached.

So it was a bright summer Monday afternoon that I trooped to Uni (the Japanese word for the sea urchin, a Japanese delicacy) restaurant and sushi bar designed by Andrew Martin, in Belgravia minutes away from the travel hub that is Victoria station.

I was shown to a cosy table downstairs.

For starters, I got some steamed edamame with a spicy chilli and garlic sauce (£4.50) and some refreshing green tea served in a typical cast iron heavy pot which I would love to have as part of my growing food prop collection which now occupies every corner or of our tiny rental flat much to the chagrin of my hubby – I guess the last straw was trying to pass off a very heavy cast iron pot as a ‘place to keep his USB drives and hide away the many wires…. hehehee

I had happily managed to forget my phone at home and therefore Fiona tried in vain to inform me of her delayed train. Blissfully unaware of this I sipped my tea and munched my edamame all the time trying to ignore some stuffy banker-type folks on the table next to me talking shop – how boring…

So when Fiona arrived she managed to move us to a bigger table away from the ‘big boy talk’ as she aptly called it and onto a table where I could dump my bags and lay my camera lens and other paraphernalia – I do not travel light …

To make life easier we chose to have bento boxes for our mains and mine came with the udon noodle and fish cake soup while Fiona had a light Miso soup. I was feeling ravenous by the time the soup arrived and devoured it in a flash! (£24.5 per bento box – comes with soups, salad, sushi, & maki, main dish, side, rice and dessert)

Nabe Udon – Noodle and Fishcake Soup with Prawn Tempura.

Beautifully light Miso Soup

My Bento box had Kaiso Wakame – seaweed salad, prawn and carrot tempura, main of duck tataki – seared duck breast finely sliced and dressed with mirin and soy, fried rice and sashimi selection. The duck tataki was deliciously morish, I also loved the seaweed salad and the sticky fried rice with the sashimi was very filling.

Fiona’s bento box came with steamed rice and artichoke sauce, and black cod and was very appetising.

We washed down our Bento lunch boxes with some chilled sake.

The very polite manager came and urged us to experiment with some of the Nikkei range from the menu and we were served two stunning dishes.

Tiraditos of Yellowtail with kizami wasabi,Yuzu and fresh mint presented in a creative and stunning display, it was delightfully fresh, sharp in taste with a delicate balance of colour and flavour. (£15.5)

Wildly beautiful looking salmon tartare tacos with cucumber,tomato,masago and creamy miso were crunchy and melt in your mouth creamy all at one once exploding with a light flavour in every bite – delicious! (£6)

Stuffed to the gills now I had to walk around click a few pictures and allow for some space to be created in my tummy to fit in some dessert 😉

To my amusement the very attentive young lady on the staff showed us how the colourful lamp shade were made from bottle of campari that could be detached and well glugged , given it was a hot summer afternoon I think it was a great idea that Fiona ordered us some Pisco Sour shots instead ;).Never having tasted these before I downed them in one go much to my own peril, the sake already in my system the shot gave me quite the buzz!

Thankfully, my cooling Matcha Gelato worked wonders and cooled me down several degrees -phew!

Fiona managed to stay light with desserts too with a selection of fresh fruit.

The creation of former Nobu chef Rolando Ongcoy, the menu at UNI offers a good selection of grilled meats ,fish, sushi,sashimi, selection of tempura and maki. The Peruvian influence is prevalent throughout UNI’s menu, ceviche and tiraditos peruano included.

The bar area upstairs also has plenty of seating on high stools and around the bar, perfect for knocking down Peruvian fav’s like the pisco sours or coconut-based Chilli Mojito.

Victoria being a very office space kind of area is lucky to have Uni in its midst now, with bite-sized healthier meal options, seven-dish bento boxes for short lunch hours are on offer at a price of course. So the big banker boys and girls can have their financial pow-wow meets in the fancy cubicles or basement vaults if you please which can seat about 10 – 12 people, and if the huge ice buckets with bottles of chilled Moet and the power talk we overheard from the table next to us are anything to go by then Uni is already a haunt for these suited and well-heeled office folks!

Website: Uni
Opening Times: is open for lunch and dinner, Monday to Saturday inclusive

*With thanks to Uni for the invitation. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. All opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Dinner at the Tower Guoman, London – a Review

July 18, 2014 by manjirichitnis 8 Comments

On the day of the Mens Singles Final when Djokovic won the match against Roger Federer ,I had an invite to go dine with a few fellow bloggers at The Brasserie at the Tower Guoman. I must admit the match was so engaging that I was glued to the tv and only in the game that I was just to nervous to watch so I dragged myself out and kept pestering a dear friend of mine in whatsapp till she gave me updates of almost every move on the court …. I was hoping that Djokovic would win and also hoping that the match would end before I hopped onto the tube and lost network… Lets just say that all invisible divine forces were with Djokovic ( and me )that day coupled with his awesome performance, just as I was about to get into the tube… there it was..,… message I was hoping to see on whatsapp…. ‘He won’… which led to a very comical impromptu gig on the staircase by me watched by bemused passers by…heck a good win deserves a dance ..at least ! Bonus points to all those who also watched this match to oogle at Boris Becker …teehee

After that I needed a refreshing drink and just as I was settling in the beautiful area just outside the Guoman, an open air bar and siping my cocktail gazing up the Tower Bridge was perfect. Chilled Prosecco, Cocktails and Mocktails flowed while we chatted up with the manager who also had dinner with us later .Meeting my friends after Food Blogger Connect was fun and camera lens choices, food photography ,the Wimbledon final results and the stunning view dominated our conversation. Before long the rain decided to play spoil sport and we were ushered inside to our huge table at The Brasserie.

I took the seat the far end of the end but the view from any where inside is just as brilliant , it’s the first time I was so close to the Tower Bridge and you can be guaranteed you will have the best seats in town at The Brasserie with superb views of Butlers wharf thrown in.

The table was neatly laid out with our special menu for the evening there and fresh bread , warm and just out of the oven with 3 different dips arrived.

Our rustic bread selection with truffle oil and olive oil.

To go with our Rustic Bread selection we had the smoked paprika dip – the bright orange one and my fav of the 3, one with chives in the middle and a plain one which I found a tad too salty.

I choose to have the Grilled Vegetable and Goat Cheese Tart to start off my meal with – it sounded very appetising – Tomato olive salsa,balsamic reduction,pine nut,sekura cress – hummm yes please.

The thin crisp pastry base was not one bit soggy or eggy, the grilled Manchego cheese ( a cheese made in the La Mancha region of Spain from the milk of sheep of the manchega breed) tasted great in combination with summery veggies like asparagus and grilled peppers and the salsa was very good ,I loved the taste of the olives and hints of fennel, the cress made the whole dish so fresh not just to look at but to taste too.

The Head chef Kamaldeep Singh (left) and his colleague decided to take us through the process of how the new menu was created , the origin of ingredients and basically make us hungry for more!

Madeleine seated next to me choose the other option as her first course :Peppercorn Cured Beef Carpaccio – Manchego cheese , home cured tomatoes,charred artichokes,mizuna and micro cress. I was avoiding red meat that so was very happy to photograph her dish and ask how it tasted but equally satisfied with my light tart.

The carpaccio was hammered thin and artichokes placed over – it looked great. Very happy with my first course, I expected the second course to deliver and impress me a bit more. Must say my Pan-Fried Fillet of Sea Bass served with diver scallop,caper crushed potatoes, mixed bean salsa, and the sauce did not fail to do so. It looked amazing and I had to photograph it from various angles – oh you know how obsessive we food bloggers are about getting the perfect photo!

But this was simply delicious and worthy of praise for more reasons than one – made using farmed sea bass responsibly sourced scallops, a lighter than most sauces that usually accompany a fish main the scallop sat one a delicious pea puree and cream base.

The mixed bean salsa tasted great with the morish caper crushed potato, the cress balancing off the dish in a subtle way.Nayna my vegetarian food blogger friend chose to have the Spinach and Ricotta Raviolli made with heirloom tomato salsa and served with freshly made basil cream sauce.Our first wine of the evening accompanied the first course , Vidal sauvignon blanc from New Zealand , aromas of gooseberry, passionfruit and guava lead into a palate that exudes tropical and passion fruit flavours.

After that very satisfying sea food dish ,we moved onto the next course , I stayed away from red meat again and the Garden pea,mint and pecorino cheese risotto was fabulous for me , I love my rice and many a times I really need some to complete my meal and make it me feel full, maybe a psychological thing but coming from the coastal side of western India ,fish curry and rice is our most staple everyday far.One of the staff members asked me where I was from and when I said Mumbai, pat came the next question which I was sort of expecting – was the sea bass as good as the Pomfret, well no! For me pomfret is the king of all fishes on this planet – but its a matter of what taste one has grown up with and our method of cooking is also so very different. But yes Sea Bass , Salmon and Basa are my favorite buys,best eaten fresh on the day of purchase ,hate frozen fish,tastes muddy and weird in curries especially.

The pecorino cheese added a subtle tangy taste to this very morish and filling risotto, its easy to get this dish so wrong because often the seemingly easier to make dishes are the toughest to produce to perfection . I am a great fan of the risotto that my elder sister hubby makes , he is a trained chef but now a very busy and senior marketing head honcho so it’s very rarely that we meet and even more rarely that I get to eat the risotto he makes. Ah sweet nostalgic family moments, only truly good food can bring on such an attack for me.. 🙂

By now the light had really faded and my risotto photo and all that follow look terrible!

I must admit Madeleine was very kind and allowed me to have a taste of burnt celeriac which I loved with some of the calvados sauce I scooped it off her plate with from her Confit of Gloucestershire Pork Belly. She enjoyed my cheesy risotto too.

The 14 hour low heat cooked pork belly looked so very appetising, the burnt celeriac adding to the earthiness of this dish,the cinnamon compliments the pork and the savoy cabbage and compressed apple give it a tart almost tangy twist on the side. This was washed down with several glasses of a full bodied Chilean Merlot – Errazuriz , almost opulent with notes of berry and cassis fruit.

It’s at this point that I slipped into blissful food coma and saw this beautiful rainbow emerge right in front of my eyes… the photo does no justice to the what we actually saw…

That is us at the table – L- R – Bintu who blogs at Recipes from a pantry, Nicki who blogs at Baking Beardy, seated opposite her is Fiona who writes an award-winning blog – London Unattached, Nayna – who blogs at Simply Sensational Food, and the lovely Madeline who blogs at Kitchen Journeys and documents heart-healthy recipes at From the Healthy Heart.

Was too full by now and the dessert platter served with a large shot of margarita in shot glass lined by sugar , managed to cut the sweet taste that was bound to settle on the palate after cheesecake ,a panna cotta that failed to impress because I was expecting the usual wobble and a refreshing pista flavoured ice cream – my fav from the selection.

As we strolled out for an impromptu photo session and gazed happily at the beautiful Tower Bridge,I couldn’t help but wonder that though the exterior of the Tower Guoman leaves one wanting the view of two world Heritage Sites – Tower Bridge and the Tower of London certainly makes up for it!A massive refurbishment project is on the cards too.A few more plus points include a convenient location within easy reach of the financial district, Canary Wharf, the Excel Centre, London City Airport, historic Greenwich, the West End and Westfield Shopping Centre. Also the newly launched menu at The Brasserie definitely warrants a visit. The menu is bold and one where the chefs have really gone the extra mile to hope that if they try ambitiously to achieve the Zero Mile Ingredient mark and grow their own herbs fresh on the terrace garden which is to come alive very soon!

The staff was very polite, genuinely attentive and ensured we had a great evening.

*With thanks to The Tower Guoman for the invitation. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review . All opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Smoked Spanish Peppers and Zingy Mushrooms in a creamy sauce

June 24, 2014 by manjirichitnis 12 Comments

My love for using smoked sweet red peppers is taking over my recipes for now , I made these zingy mushrooms for a friend who popped in for brunch about 2 months ago but I have been very lazy and this recipe is finally seeing daylight. I guess the electric atmosphere of the yellow jersey clad stadium full of Brazil fans and the super tight match going on with Camroon is giving me a much needed rush of happy hormones ,add to that the frenzy of the Wimbledon matches , the air in Wimbledon is heavy with anticipation, huge posters , fluorescent tennis ball props in all windows , the traditional colours of the Wimbledon ribbons and balloons galore, the bus service from the station to the venue with hyperexcited people , everything is screaming tennis here!

Lamuyo Peppers are great for roasting as they are bigger and sweeter than their cousins the hot variety. They are juicy and crunchy and go well with garlic,basil,oregano,taste fab with cheese , think stuffed peppers grilled , just perfect for summer !

The recipe was given to me by P aunty , shes a fab cook as I have mentioned in my past posts too and her recipes are innovative, delicious and easy to make, I love pestering her to keep sending me more recipes everytime we talk 😉 .So I decided to amp up this recipe with some madness my style and use up the handsome red pepper staring at me from my fridge 😉

Ingredients:

1 large pack Chestnut Mushrooms sliced
1 large red Lamuyo sweet pepper
8 cloves Garlic- bash and chop fine
1/2 red onionchopped very fine
2 chillies- (more or less acc to your taste) – chop fine
3 heaped tbs flavoured soft cheese, I love using the herby Philadelphia
2 tbsp Olive Oil
Sea Salt to taste
Parsley- a handful -chopped finely

Method:

Roast the pepper on gas flame till the skin chars and begins to peel off, I use tongs to hold it by the stem so it can char even at the top.
While the pepper cools just enough to allow you to peel and reveal the smoked juicy flesh, you can use the time to wash and slice the chestnut mushrooms
While taking off the charred skin off the smoked pepper remember to place a dish below as it will release lots of juice which we don’t want to loose as it is one powerhouse of smoky peppery sweet flavour!
Heat oil in a sauce pan and saute the garlic till it turns brown and the familiar aroma of fabulous garlic begins to waft and assault your nostrils.
Then add the very finely chopped red onion and cook on a low flame stirring regularly till the onion is thoroughly crispy and reduces in quantity, do not let it burn.
Then toss in the mushrooms and the chopped smoked pepper and cook for about 2 minutes on a low flame ,stirring and making sure it does not stick to the pan or overcook
Then add the soft cheese ,sea salt and finely chopped parsley,mix well and cook with lid for about 1 to 1 1/2 minute.
Serve with garlic bread smothered in butter – eat guilt free;)

What I love about this dish , its creamy , its a bit sweet a bit more zingy and has an underlying deep smoked flavour that is robust without being overpowering ,I’d say its a new comfort food for me , what with all the moorish soft cheese in there!

Smoky and Spicy Lamb Burgers

June 16, 2014 by manjirichitnis 27 Comments

Come Summer and I am one happy bunny,more so because I really miss the omnipresent sunshine from back home in Mumbai city! But the one thing I love the most about the British Summer is the amazing BBQ’s we have ! Last years most fun barbie was at our friends place , we OD’ed on grilled seafood and Pimms – hoping to have a repeat of that this year !

Some friends have a BBQ planned for later this month but I couldn’t wait so got myself some lamb mince and decided to use some fresh mushrooms and add my own twist to the burgers with a bright red smoked sweet red pepper! My trusty old griddle pan at hand , I turned my tiny urban open plan kitchen into a tiny BBQ party venue!

Perfect time to use up some of the wonderful La Chinata smoked paprika powder.

Ingredients:

500 gm Lamb Mince
1 bunch of spring onion
1 big sweet red pepper
250 gm button mushrooms
150 gm cherry tomatoes
3 tsp sweet paprika powder La Chinata
1 tsp red chilli flakes
2 tsp garlic paste
4 tsp coriander powder
a large sprig of fresh rosemary
1 1/2 tbsp chilli oil
Salt to taste

Method:

Flame roast the sweet red pepper on a gas flame, if you’re doing a BBQ ,first rub some oil and garlic paste onto it.
After it has been roasted and cooled down a bit,peel off the skin and chop fine
Chop the mushrooms to tiny bite sized pieces
Finely chop the spring onions and cherry tomatoes
Wash the lamb mince under a running tap by placing it inside a sieve.
Mix the chopped smoked sweet red pepper, mushrooms,spring onions ,cherry tomatoes,rosemary,chilli flakes,sweet smoked paprika powder from La Chinata and coriander powder,paprika and salt.

Knead all the ingredients into the mixture.
Make mini burger patties by taking palm sized portions of this mixture and ty and pat them into roughly round shape.
On a griddle pan add some chilli oil and place a few burgers on it. Cook them for a few minutes on one side and them flip and repeat.
Serve the cooked lamb burgers inside wholegrain soft burger buns generously lined with butter , a thick slice of cheese, pickles,crunchy salad leaves and doused with ketchup. Or if you’d rather not then eat them plain – I did , served with some grilled button mushrooms and tender shoots of asparagus on which I slathered generous amounts of smoked paprika sweet chilli powder mixed with some oil and garlic paste – pure heaven!

The sweet smoked paprika powder gives the lamb burgers a definite sweet hot flavour and the others spices combine well with the vegetables.Its also a great way to get fussy eaters to eat veggies hidden in layers of delicious meat and spices. I would have loved to add some boiled green peas too, they would add more bulk and taste too.

*With thanks to La Chinata for sending samples for review.No monetary compensation was provided for this post.All views expressed are my own.

Wine Pairing made easy by Waitrose Cellar

May 22, 2014 by manjirichitnis 2 Comments

On a fine evening last week when the sun suddenly decided to shine upon us Londoner’s I happened to be invited to a blogger bash to celebrate the launch of Waitrose Cellar – the new online wine service by Waitrose ,at the London Canal Museum.

With over 1200 interesting & exclusive wines,Champagnes & spirits to choose from at Waitrose Cellar online you can order any 6 wines with free delivery.The best part is the Waitrose Cellar experts hand pick mixed cases and they are just a phone call away to address any queries you may have related to their wines ,but if you’d rather do the food and wine pairing yourself ,there’s a wealth of knowledge on the Waitrose Cellar website where you can browse through 40 articles, watch over 150 tasting videos and read ratings on product pages,you can even learn how to expertly pop open a bottle of champagne!

Our wine experts for the evening – Stèphane and Xenia set the mood for the evening by popping some champagne.Stèphane started with a level 3 award in wines and spirits from WSET and perfected his wine knowledge to become a wine waiter, then head sommelier before he became part of the Waitrose Cellar team. Xenia a Master of wine (2003) came to Waitrose last December ,with 24 years experience in the wine trade, she has worked as an independent wine consultant,a buyer for a large brewery,retailer and wine importer. After a spot of introductions over some champagne and starters I chatted with some very familiar friendly faces. It’s then that I noticed my name badge had a little picture of a glass of red and some others had picture of white wine on their badges ,the red wine gang set sail with Stèphane and the white wine badges went off with Xenia.We were taken onto a traditional canal boat to sail along the Regent’s Canal ,sample some of the brilliant Waitrose wines while Stèphane, took us through the story behind each wine and got us to think how best we could pair our wine with various mains.

If like me you’ve never sailed before on a traditional canal boat these beauties come equipped with a cute compact kitchen, ‘leisure’ accommodation and a nice little seating area for socialising which we promptly abandoned for a place on the deck, after all who can resist the soft evening sunlight and the light cooling breeze while sipping some fine wine and dreaming of delicious food to pair it with! While sipping on Prosecco, Stèphane shared a naughty little trick to amp up your sweet bakes,he adds just a tiny pinch of pepper along with some salt ,takes the tooth-grinding sweet edge off the bake and gives just the right hint of flavour,am definitely going to give this fab idea a try soon!

We started with tasting the white wines ,of the white wines we tried I loved the Cave de Lugny Sparkling Burgundy Blanc de Blancs NV the most ,perfect for summer parties and nibbles.This Chardonnay from Burgundy has a fresh, crisp, apple and citrusy flavour makes it really easy sparkling wine to drink. Also quite liked the Vasse Felix Sauvignon Blanc/ Semillon,which is a very dry,fresh western Australian Sauvignon which would go really well with fresh seafood,steamed greens by the side or a sinful portion of gnocchi with toasted pine nut and fresh green basil pesto. This white,I daresay is even better than the other Antipodean varieties like Chardonnay. Moving on to red’s, by which time we had passed through the Reagent’s Canal and am sure managed to gulp some stray drops of water falling off the musty old bridge as well, but am sure we were either honestly engrossed in conversation or blissfully unaware of anything expect how much fun we were having by then , which I shall safely blame on the progressive climb towards feeling pleasantly buzzed – no , not shamelessly tipsy.Am eagerly waiting to once again savour the Waitrose Chianti Classico Barone Ricasoli. This full-bodied Tuscan red is a delight on the palate with its woody notes and velvety texture,perfect for grilled meats and roasted peppers- think juicy kebabs with minty chutney. Made in partnership with Ricasoli family who were the first producers of Chianti , no wonder then this wine has won the Decanter Bronze Medal for classic Chianti. Before we knew it, we had worked our way through 16 different ,fabulously delicious Waitrose wines and by the time we got back to the Canal Museum we had worked up quite an appetite and speedily devoured the fab spread laid out for us.

Stèphane and Xenia continued to reveal one secret after another of how best to choose a wine just right for you and how to go about pairing food & wine.Then it was time for some speed wining – yes you heard that right Speed Wining! I’ve never been speed dating but enough hours of watching crime and romantic dramas on the telly have left me no stranger to what its all about ,only this was way more fun because we got to talk about our favourite food and wine and didn’t need to impress our very friendly bunch of fellow foodies. I think I managed to ask some rather interesting and fun questions along with some rather boring ones but the user-friendly Waitrose Cellar website made it really easy for us to look for wines that would best suit the personality and tastes in food of our speed wining partners.

Don’t we all look like we really had a great time ‘speed wining’? 🙂 And now a look at my favourites from the evening, the sparkling burgundy and classic Chianti both perfect matches for the sea food lover in me who also has a weakness for juicy kebabs,lamb curry and a major sweet tooth.

Am happy to say that as a result of our speed wining session my fellow red team mates Becky,Snigdha,Anne,Laura and May managed to almost accurately guess which type of wines I’d enjoy the most.So when the 6 wine case for each of us, sent by Waitrose Cellar online, reached me I couldn’t wait to get cooking and wine pairing!

First up of course I shall be popping some Champagne – Waitrose Blanc de Blancs Brut NV(picked for me by Laura for my love of sweet and a bit of fizz) – to celebrate becoming aunty to a bonny boy and my niece clearing her GCSE equivalent in India with flying colours!Definitely calling for some bubbly,loads of canapes and well some more bubbly 😉

For my Sunday lunch with my family I will be pairing lamb curry with Catena Malbec chosen for me by Anne .I know my dessert wine for this month will be the Limited Reserve Peachy wine from my wine case selected for me by May to appease my sweet tooth after a spicy meal. Dr. Loosen Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Kabinett will keep me company for familiar flavours of fresh seafood curries and fusion meals with scallops and soft shell crabs ,thanks to Snigdha’s choice.Waitrose Chablis picked for me by Becky who quizzed me and learnt of my love for ciders.This Chablis is so apt for a lazy summer afternoons with sea food starters.Last but certainly not the least the Sparkling Burgundy with a beautiful label that adorns the bottle ,which also is in my case,will be shared over lots of cake for a double birthday celebration with my family who are visiting us end of this month – exciting times ahead!

Feeling a bit of envious are we now? Don’t !For even you can win £1000 worth of wine specially chosen JUST for you by Waitrose Cellar Experts .Plus 5 runners-up will win a ready-made collection of Waitrose Wine Teams 30 favourite wines. Now I would certainly clink my glass to that! You can also tweet away – @waitrosewine and chat up the wine experts.

All the fabulous photos in this post are by Emma @emmakerf.

*With thanks to Waitrose Cellar for the invite.No monetary compensation was provided for this post.All views expressed are my own.

Gujarati Kadhi

May 12, 2014 by manjirichitnis 6 Comments

Having grown up in Mumbai and always having had very friendly Gujarati neighbours , I have a long love affair with Gujarati cuisine and especially love the Gujarati Kadhi which was quite the star attraction in traditional Gujarati wedding feasts, always a sweet and welcome addition to a plate full of steaming hot khichdi, the large red chillies added into for more the effect than the punch.

If you don’t have access to buttermilk then simply use curd/ yoghurt.

Serves:4 Preparation Time:10 minutes Cooking Time:15 minutes

Ingredients:

3 cups buttermilk or 1 and 1/2 cup thick-set curd /yoghurt
2 tbsp besan or chickpea flour
1tsp freshly grated ginger and green chilli paste
Hing/ Asafoetioda – at iny pinch
Puree ghee/clarified butter – 1 tbsp
Few fresh green curry leaves
1/2 tsp Jeera/ cumin seeds
1/2 tsp rai/mustard seeds
2 large dry red chillies broken and de-seeded
Suhar 1 and 1/2 tbsp or Jaggery 1 heaped tbsp
a handful of fresh green coriander/cilantro chopped fine
Salt as per taste
Water

Method:

If using butter milk 3 cups this step is not required. Otherwise combine the yoghurt ,chickpea flour and 2 and 1/2 cup water till it becomes a smooth mixture. Use a fork or a whisk and if lumps are still visible just use your fingers to break the lumps.
Grate a small piece of fresh ginger and crush a green chilli into it.
On a medium flame heat the clarified butter in a large saucepan and add the asafoetida, mustard seeds , red chillies,cumin,ginger and green chilli and curry leaves.
When the mustard seeds begin to pop and cumin begins to change colour, reduce the flame to a minimum , tilt the saucepan with one hand and pour the yoghurt and chickpea mixture into this tempering/tadka mixture.
Add the sugar or jaggery now.
Cook with lid on a low flame for about 6-8 minutes , do not boil as the yoghurt will curdle.
Add salt and garnish with finely chopped coriander. Serve hot with khichdi or soft rotis.

Gujarati kadhi differs from Punjabi kadhi in that it is sweeter and does not include fried pakoras, I have a fusion recipe for Punjabi Kadi which I tried long ago, if you want something a little different why not try my Punjabi Kadhi with a twist.

LEARN HOW TO MAKE INDIAN FOOD FROM SCRATCH WITH MY EASY TO FOLLOW RECIPES

Lunch at Le Porte des Indes, Marylebone, London – Review (Permanently closed)

May 6, 2014 by manjirichitnis 7 Comments

Influence of the British Raj on India,its culture and their indelible influence on the railways , architecture and the many places of tourist interest is common knowledge but India was also ruled by Mughals,the Portuguese,the French and the Dutch. Each of these colonies bear distinct stamps of a deep-rooted influence especially on the food with some beautiful foods that have become a part of the local community and recipes developed by such confluence of are not only brilliant in taste but also a mixture of flavours that otherwise would not have been combined.

I had heard so much about Le Porte des Indes and Chef Mehernosh Mody who has been awarded Ethnic Chef of the Year 2012 at the Craft Guilds of Chefs Awards for people who pay attention to things like that. So when Fiona who blogs at London Unattached asked me to accompany her for a lunch at Le Porte des Indes it was an offer too tempting to pass up!

Le Porte des Indes literally means Gateway to India. The decor is warm and welcoming and I felt was in some old, Indian palace with intricate wood carvings, huge artefacts, paintings especially replicas of Raja Ravi Verma’s magnificent originals and stone statutes which reminded of the ones at Khajuraho. Indoor plants are similar to ones I would see probably at The Taj Hotel in Mumbai, India lots of wooden statues of Lord Ganesha too.

We started by ordering some drinks I ordered for a Tamarind Martini while Fiona ordered some white wine.My gin,tamarind and limoncello martini came adorned with a slice of Star Fruit on the side .The sight of the star fruit took me back to my college days when my friends and me , about ten of us would get off the train and trade the crowded bus journey on way back from school and walk home instead on the dusty footpath – our treat for walking, a tangy snack packed in an old newspaper sold by a haath – gaadi or hand cart street food vendor which included roasted peanuts in shells, tamarind -imli and star fruit slices sprinkled with chilli powder and topped with a squeeze of lime – very ,very tangy but totally fun. On a good day when we had some extra change between us we would follow this up with a fizzy drink from a small shanty opposite the gates of the IIT,Mumbai campus mummm – simple pleasures. Seems so far away now and I only ever see my friends on Facebook and comment on old scanned photographs 🙂

I fell in love with the beautiful cutlery and the copper plate sighh…

Our starter was Demoiselles de Pondiche’ry – seared king scallops with a hint of garlic in a delicious saffron sauce – succulent and morish…

The cuisine is a mix of French,Tamil and Creole influences and lots of fusion recipes using the chefs imagination.

Next up was a platter of starters with kebabs and a fish called ”Patra ni Machi” or Parsee fish (Patra – leaf , Macchi – fish) this divine fish was made using fillets of sole encased in a mint and coriander chutney steamed in a banana leaf.I remember eating this fish at a Parsee friends wedding feat in Bombay 5 years ago and it had green chillies in a generous amount in the green chutney.There was a mild hint of chilli in our fish ,just perfect, excellent in fact and I could have made more,no wonder this is Chef Mehernosh Mody’s speciality. The other starters on our platter were Kathi kebabs – spiced lamb kebabs rolled in an egg served with a dark fruity chutney. Murgh Malai Kebabs – tandoori grilled chicken tikkas marinated in a creamy cheese sauce with spices.A twist on the usual onion and potato pakoras we ate Chard Pakoras – red and green chard rolled in gram flour, green chillies,coriander, turmeric and caraway seeds and fried crisp – very tasty!All this served with Garlic and Coriander Naan.

In the picture about L-R :Murgh Malai Kebabs,Parsee fish,Chard Pakoras and in the middle Kathi kebabs.Peaking on the right side corner is a rice cracker with a roughly ground green chilli chutney with a cooling yoghurt and saffron dip.

In the picture above is the Pomegranate Raita -Natural yoghurt with pomegranate, a touch of cumin and paprika.We then ate this most perfectly cooked white fish in a rich tamarind sauce steamed in a banana leaf – pure pleasure.

For our mains we got a large assortment of dishes served Basmati Saffron Pillav Rice, Seed Naan and Red Rice– Steamed organic red rice.

L -R in the photo of our mains platter below:

Tandoori Barra Chops: British Lamb Chops Char-grilled with cinnamon, cardamom and cloves finished with caramelised onions -everything you expect from a tandoori lamb really – smoky,soft,packed with flavour and juicy ,falling off the bone.Prawn Assadh curry as it is made in Pondicherry with turmeric,ginger, green chillies,coconut, mustard seeds and green mangoes – so creamy and delicious we couldn’t get enough of it scooping it off our plate with our naan stuffed with spiced lamb.Poulet Rouge, spécialité de notre maison is a gallic inspired dish – Chicken Slices marinated in yoghurt and red spices, grilled and served in a creamy sauce. Rougail d’ Aubergine: Smoked aubergine crushed with red chilli, ginger and green lime also called Baingan ka bharta in Hindi.I was most delighted to find we had a portion of mutton – it is not easy to get goat’s meat locally and this Mutton Braised home style as in Pondicherry with robust spices and laced with coconut milk was a delicious curry with the mutton having soaked up all the flavours of the spices .With the Saffron rice it was very good.Chef Mehernosh Mody also let us in who his regular suppliers who he told us are all local British producers.

We also had a selection of chutneys to go with the naan.Though I was stuffed I was hoping I could manage to have some dessert. After all a grand meal like this is not complete without some Indian sweets!;)

Fiona had to leave in a hurry and only managed to taste some the many treats on our mixed dessert platters.

L-R : Frozen dessert – Rose flavoured kulfi -the indian home-made ice cream with no artificial flavourings or stabilizers, made using Jersey & Guernsey Milk with pistachios ,followed by a mini chocolate filled samosa – thin pastry stuffed with chocolate and deep-fried ,Belgian Dark Chocolate Mousse(55% Cocoa Solids) served in traditional leaf cup – in India its is common practice to serve desserts in a dried leaf folded into the shape of a cup especially at large public gatherings like the Sarvjanik Ganpati Festival and during Navratris – these are bio-degradable and much better option over plastic or foam cups, a fruit tart and a slice of mango carved artistically.

Chef Mehernosh Mody then took me on a tour of the premises .There is so much room for big parties in the Maharajah room which is very tastefully done up antique Indian artifacts, the Shamiana perfect for weddings and a lovely,a fully private big dining room with French colonial decor for corporate lunches too.If that is not enough there’s a Jungle Bar complete with cane furniture ,palm trees and tiger skin rugs so while you sip on a tropical signature cocktail called Karma which has – oh yes coconut juice and vodka, you can pretend your on the beautiful shores of Pondicherry ne Puducherry with pristine beaches of blue water and warm silky sand and are about to set off for a hunting expedition in a while with your buddies! Did you know that Puducherry meaning New Town is also referred to as ”The French Riviera of the East”?

That’s not the talented Chef Mody also conducts live cooking classes in the restaurant where the chef and his team unravel the mysteries of Indian cooking , explain the intricacies of the spices and how to cook a great Indian Meal – fab idea for team building exercise I say where you actually eat the fruits of your labour!

The Beautiful dome of the former Edwardian ballroom this adds to the grandeur of the place.

One of the private dining rooms, notice the beautiful statues at the back? 🙂

At the Jungle Bar it was common practise for patrons to throw peanut shells across the floor and then walk all over them on crunching shells!Fun I say.

For the images of the dome, the private dinning room and Jungle bar – Image Courtesy -Le Porte des Indes

Disclaimer: With many thanks to Chef Mehernosh Mody, the attentive team at Le Porte des Indes and Fiona. I was not required to write a positive review and was not compensated monetarily for this post. Like all my previous posts about events and reviews, ALL opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Pasta Please Challenge April’14 Round Up

May 3, 2014 by manjirichitnis 7 Comments

Last month I hosted my first ever food challenge linky called Pasta Please created by Jacqueline Meldrum of Tinned Toms Blog. The theme was ”Olive Oil” In the past month I have infused 2 large bottles of good quality olive oil with various herbs, garlic and chilli and used this oil for cooking, especially for Italian recipes it gives your dishes a new level of good taste.

Thanks to all bloggers who linked up and Thanks to Jacqueline for kindly letting me host #PastaPlease for April’ 2014.

The first entry was from Corina of searchingforspice blog. Her –Tagliatelle with Chorizo, Garlic and Sundried Tomatoes is a delightful pasta dish made using various bits of leftovers. I am always impressed with what can be made by salvaging leftovers which we may otherwise be inclined to chuck. I love chorizo and it pairs very well with pasta. The way she has described the juicy tomatoes bursting when you bite into them is enough to make me want to make my own pasta using her recipe!

sundried-tomato-chorizo-tagliatelle-500x373

Fusilli with Baked Eggplant and Marinara Sauce by Ridhi of Drizzling Delicacies Blog which is a meat-free and eggless recipe blog is an easy recipe which uses baked eggplant in a thick and delicious tomato sauce.I love using fusilli and penne pasta which are great for scooping off the sauce. And olives in a veggies pasta must add a definite crunch and saltiness that is so good on the palate.

Easy Entertaining: Stuffed Pasta Shells by Katie of Feeding Boys Blog is a Gennaro Contaldo recipe – a cheesy mix of ricotta, parmesan and mozzarella then baked with a tomato and basil sauce, for the Good Food Channel website that was part of the Spring photoshoot Katie cooked for. This one is fab for impressing guests on a weekend and giving the impression of having slaved for hours. I love such recipes! Conchiglioni rigati (large pasta shells) being shovelled into the mouth with melted cheese and other goodness is so so…. tempting …Ummm.Sharron’s image is to die for too!

Chicken Riggies: A Utica, New York Pasta Speciality by Rachel at The Crispy Cook Blog is one of the most intriguing entry in the link-up simply because it is made using very saucy, spicy chicken with rigatoni (the “riggies” part) and chopped hot red peppers. This recipe is native to the Italian-American community in Utica, NY and Rachel’s version is Gluten-free -Brilliant!

Red Peppers in Pasta Bake, Stuffed and in Soup by Johanna of Green Gourmet Giraffe Blog or triple G as I am going to remember her blog from loves green and dreams of being tall and graceful as a giraffe 🙂 She lives in Australia and has hosted the #PastaPlease challenge before. This was the first pasta bake of the 2 which linked up to the challenge. I love the main 3 ingredients in this bake – Angel hair pasta, red peppers and mozzarella cheese. Also, I had never heard of Tofu Bacon before I read through Jo’s post. While reading through her about me section I notice that all the foods she dislikes I like very, very much especially eggs and mangoes and GASP……Fresh Coriander and ermmmm very spicy food! Well dislikes aside Johanna’s blog is a treasure trove of veggie recipes and I ended up reading many of her posts!

Extremely Delicious Vegetable Lasagne by Chris of Cooking around the world blog came into the linky just when I was wondering why hasn’t any lasagne recipe made an appearance! This veggie recipe has a secret ingredient too – Radish, I have no shame in admitting I like a radish – no not love just like but that’s good enough I guess. Chris’s dish is dripping with deliciousness and flavour and its a must try with all the gooey cheesy goodness and each distinct flavour layered into this fab bake.

Farfalle with Sicilian Pesto by Torta di Rose is what I was hoping to see in the linky because it has pesto with anchovies whizzed through the food processor, I am a fan of anchovies ever since I was kid, growing up reading Enid Blyton and all the seniors at Malory Towers asking the junior students to make them some anchovy on toast ahhh good old days. Rose’s photo is magazine quality awesome I think and kudos to her for writing her blog in Italian and English!

Gnocchi with Asparagus, Sage & Prosciutto by Louisa Foti of Eat your Veg blog made me realise the sheer variety that exists in the types of pasta. Gnocchi is that type of pasta which is so sinfully good and tasty. I love when Louisa says ”The heady pairing of lemon and sage work really very well with the slight salty tang from the slithers of prosciutto”. Louisa’s blog is full of family-friendly recipes and in most of her posts, her 2 adorable kids are seen ‘helping’ her cook :).A recipe apt for the Asparagus season this is packed with goodness.

Eat-Your-Veg-Gnocchi-with-Asparagus-Sage-Prosciutto

Spicy Chorizo Pasta with loads of veggie goodness – last but not the least an entry by yours truly this was my attempt to get a ton of greens into OH’S tummy without the cribbing and using chorizo in a tasty sauce to mask the veggies. The things I have to rest to just to get him to eat all his greens, well well well.

I hope all of you had as much fun cooking and sharing your recipes with me and Jacqueline as we had hosting the #Pasta Please challenge for April’2014 with all of you.

Hope you liked my first ever round up too.

Greek Easter Feast with Tonia Buxton and Total Greek Yoghurt

May 1, 2014 by manjirichitnis 10 Comments

One of the things I enjoy most about being a food and travel writer is that I am able to experience various traditions from various cultures. Also, I think it is a privilege and also an incredible opportunity to to celebrate various festivals from across the world. As an added benefit I have had the good fortune of meeting the wonderful people on my journey into exploring various beautiful cuisines and destinations.

I have cooked alongside some very talented trained Michelin-starred Chefs, home cooks, and cookbook authors too.

I am so glad that I had a chance to cook with someone as passionate as Tonia Buxton who taught us how to make a 3-course Greek feast and took us through a journey of how Easter is celebrated back in Greece, relating in a very animated manner the rituals, prayer, and festivity surrounding the occasion. Total Yogurt the makers of the deliciously thick and creamy yogurt put together this cooking fest at a Cookery School called La Cucina Caldesi located in the heart of Central London.

Tonia Buxton a Greek Cypriot is the Total Greek Yogurt Brand Ambassador and a presenter of the award-winning T.V series on Discovery Channel called ‘My Greek Kitchen’ and has also authored a book titled ‘Tonia’s Greek Kitchen’. Soon to star in a new T.V series called ‘Pauls Family Feast’ a TV show by well, Paul Hollywood 🙂

After a quick ice breaker session, we got into groups and started preparing the main dish of the meal – Greek Lamb Pattie Tray Bake. I love cooking lamb and am delighted with the similarities in Greek and Indian cuisines. We too love our spices and cumin does add a very deep flavour to lamb. If I was to make it at home though I would tweak it and amp up the spices especially the cumin and just because I love heat crushed or paper-thin slices of green chillies with seeds ummm!

Here is the recipe:

Greek Lamb Pattie Tray Bake

Serves: 4

Ingredients

100g TOTAL Greek Yoghurt
100g fresh wholemeal breadcrumbs
400g lamb mince
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp ground cumin
4 red onions (2 finely chopped, 2 cut into wedges)
Large handful mint, chopped
4 waxy new potatoes, i.e. the Charlottes cut into wedges
4 courgettes, halved & quartered lengthways
250g pack juicy cherry tomatoes on the vine
2 unwaxed lemons cut into 6 wedges each
4 tbsp olive oil
100g feta cheese, crumbled

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C / 180°C Fan / Gas Mark 6.
Put the breadcrumbs, the lamb mince, egg, plenty of seasoning, and cumin in a bowl.
Add the chopped onion and sprinkle in half the chopped mint. Give everything a good mix and shape into 8 patties.
Lightly oil a large, shallow roasting tray and add the patties.
Place the onion wedges on the tray around the lamb patties with the potatoes, courgettes, and tomatoes. Drizzle with olive oil and season. Bake for around 40 minutes, turning & basting everything once halfway until the lamb is cooked through and the vegetables are tender. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the feta and remaining mint. (We used up most of the mint and our minty lamb patties were very juicy and yum)
Serve with a large dollop of Total Greek yoghurt and tahini sauce.

While our lamb patties were cooking we played a fun Greek easter egg game with eggs painted a cheerful bright red. We had to go about smashing our egg onto everyone else and in the end, I was up against Tonia- of course, she won! Years of experience laster she has mastered the technique 🙂

We then made a Greek dessert called Anarocrema using Anari Cheese, which I flavoured with orange blossom extract, fresh fruits, and generous bits of freshly made filo pastry crispy bits. This creamy dessert is made using goats cheese and marries well with fruits, pistachios, almonds, and honey too is very filling and moreish dessert.

While our desserts were sent for chilling we got cracking on with the starter a light and superbly flavoured starter – Greek Sea Bream fillets with olives, capers, lemon, and yoghurt Tahini Sauce.

Thanks to @satureyes for the brilliant photos.

It was a very well organised event and I got an opportunity to meet so many more bloggers.Cooking up in a team with Fiona (London Unattached) and Heidi was good fun and it great to be working with familiar faces. Many thanks to @TotalGreek yogurt for the lovely event & @ToniaBuxton for her lively, warm, and friendly way of conducting the cookery workshop and sharing so many beautiful experiences.

I hope all of you had a brilliant Easter Weekend and are looking forward to another long weekend coming up!

Disclaimer: With many thanks to Total Uk and Tonia Buxton.I was not required to write a positive review and was not compensated monetarily for this post. Like all my previous posts about events and reviews, ALL opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Pasta Please Challenge – April 2014

April 1, 2014 by manjirichitnis 29 Comments

Spring is here and so is April, Easter breaks around the corner. With kids being at home it is a great time to cook up some delicious, healthy, and quick pasta recipes for the whole family. I love cooking pasta because it is a great way to bring smiles around on full tummies and its a great way to combine lots of greens with meat or leave out the meat totally and get a very healthy meal on the table. Its also a thrifty meal idea to use up things from your larder and fridge that would otherwise face sure death. Pasta comes to the rescue always!

This is the first-ever food challenge and linky that I shall be hosting so am nervous and hopeful that everyone participates with great enthusiasm 🙂 Thanks to Jacqueline who blogs at Tinned Tomatoes, for letting me host this lovely food challenge for April’14.

The theme for this month’s entry is – OLIVE OIL. I have just infused a bottle of olive oil with crushed garlic,chilli flakes and fresh Italian herbs! Am very excited to create something tasty with this oil and use some of large packet of Pappardelle Pasta I purchased yesterday!

Sounds exciting? Ready to join in the challenge?

The rules ARE:

PASTA PLEASE – Food Blog Challenge – April 2014

To join in, simply post a pasta dish on your blog by the 28th of April 2014

Link to Travelsfortaste and Tinned Tomatoes.

Use the Pasta Please logo in your post.

If you use twitter, tweet your post with @tinnedtoms and @manjirichitnis using the hashtag #PastaPlease and we will re-tweet it to our followers.

Current theme is Olive Oil.

Vegetarian dishes and with any dishes using meat,sea food,pork,beef,chicken,dry fish are allowed (any non-vegetarian
dish).

One entry per entrant.

Recipes must be added to the linky by 28 April 2014.

Please email me your post with one image on fruitsnveg@yahoo.com.(Why? because the Linky has a GREMLIN inside and is not working! Thankfully its the last day to link up -phew!)

Entries So far :

Tagliatelle with Chorizo,Garlic and Sundried Tomatoes by Corina of searchingforspice blog.
Fusilli with Baked Eggplant and Marinara Sauce by Ridhi of Drizzling Delicious Blog.
Easy Entertaining :Stuffed Pasta Shells by Katie of Feeding Boys Blog.
Chicken Riggies: A Utica,New York Pasta Speciality by Rachel at The Crispy Cook Blog.
Red Peppers in Pasta Bake, Stuffed and in Soup by Johanna of Green Gourmet Giraffe Blog.
Extremely Delicious Vegetable Lasagne by Chris of Cooking around the world blog.
Gnocchi with Asparagus,Sage & Prosciutto by Louisa Foti of Eat your Veg blog.
Spicy Chorizo Pasta with loads of veggie goodness! by me 🙂

Uni brings Nikkei Cuisine to Victoria

Dinner at the Tower Guoman, London – a Review

Smoked Spanish Peppers and Zingy Mushrooms in a creamy sauce

Smoky and Spicy Lamb Burgers

Wine Pairing made easy by Waitrose Cellar

Gujarati Kadhi

LEARN HOW TO MAKE INDIAN FOOD FROM SCRATCH WITH MY EASY TO FOLLOW RECIPES

Lunch at Le Porte des Indes, Marylebone, London – Review (Permanently closed)

Pasta Please Challenge April’14 Round Up

Pasta Please Challenge – April 2014

PASTA PLEASE – Food Blog Challenge – April 2014

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