Sunday, March 24, 2013

Sula to launch new Tempranillo wine



Sula Vineyards set to launch new red wine in India, using Spanish grape Tempranillo which they have harvested for the first time ever in Nashik

March 24, 2013

Mumbai
Dhiman Chattopadhyay

What does a master wine maker do?
It takes great grapes to make great wine. It’s my job to articulate a definable style for a wine but I wont create an identity. That comes from the grapes! My job is like that of a gem cutter. Unless I get high quality grapes, I cannot work wonders.
Kerry Damskey
You live in the US. How do you manage to make wines in India?
I come down to Nashik three times a year. As we speak, we are nearing the completion of the 2013 vintage. We are currently fermenting some varietals while also bottling some of the early white wines. I am tasting the grapes and the wines at different stages of fermentation every day.
How do you make sure the grapes are protected enough to produce good wine?
In Nashik we prune the grapes twice a year instead of the usual practice of pruning grapes just once a year in many nations. This happens in March and in September. The quality of any wine is dependant on the weather. So we pray that there is no rainfall after the second pruning in September. Luckily the rains stayed away post-September last year and so, we have had a fabulous harvest
this year.
You bottle different varietals at different times of the year. Why is this so?
Just like any other fruit, different varieties mature at slightly different times. We usually pick the white wine grapes first. So we start by picking Sauvignon Blanc grapes in January. Riesling and Zinfandel varietals follow this in February. And finally, in March, we pick the grapes for Shiraz and Tempranillo. It takes a month or more for the grapes to dry and then ferment.
So at this moment we are bottling the first of the Sauvignon Blanc. Next up, are the Rieslings.
Riesling in India? Isn’t that a German wine?
Yes of course we grow Riesling. You are correct that German and French Rieslings are the most famous. But now others also grow this variety. Australia does it for instance. But our Riesling is better the Australian ones for sure.
Wow! And what is the Tempranillo?
This is a Spanish red grape we are growing for the first time in India. This is surely one of our strong suites this year. It is an early red grape, dark purple in colour, has spice and berry tones on the nose. It has long legs, tastes bright acidic without leaving a heavy tannin aftertaste. We are yet to decide what we will name the bottle. But trust me this will be a red wine Indians will fall in
love with.

Sounds like 2013 is going to be a good year for wine connoisseurs.
Yes, overall I would say the 2103 vintage in Nashik is probably the best in the last five years.
Kerry Damskey is a viticulturist with a degree from the University of California t Davis. He worked for wineries at San Diego before becoming a winemaker for Zellerbach Winery in the USA in 1986. He has been the chief winemaker at Sula since inception. 
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Vegan movement thrives in Mumbai

Vegans across Mumbai are networking big time over potluck parties, cook-offs and cycling expeditions to make sure they support each other.

March 24, 2013

Mumbai
Phorum Dalal

Even before Monika Siriya answers her door, I can hear dogs barking in the background. “That’s Rapchik and Dhinchak,” says the 29-year-old, pointing to her two pet dogs who are now busy wagging their tails. “They are vegan too,” she says. Monika, an entrepreneur, and her husband Chintan, a CSR consultant, are recent converts, having moved to a vegan lifestyle since 2010.

Three cheers: Entrepreneur Monika (centre) and CSR consultant Chetan Siriya (right) join fellow vegan Chidanand Hiremath (left), a web developer and photographer, for some delicious cold coffee made with soya milk. Pic/Nimesh Dave
When we visit the Siriya residence, preparations are on for a potluck party, a monthly event. She has prepared a chocolate cake and strawberry ice cream. But none of the items have eggs, milk or even butter. “People feel it is really tough to be a vegan as you have to give up on a lot of foods, which is not true at all. If you learn to replace some ingredients, you can have all your favourite dishes. They’ll only taste better,” she says, offering me a cup of tea with cashew milk.

Strawberry ice cream without any dairy products by Monika Siriya. Pic/Nimesh Dave
The couple has not only given up dairy products in their diet, but discarded using any animal-made products such as leather and turned environment-friendly even for items such as shaving cream, natural oils and toothpaste. They even wash their clothes in reetha instead of detergent and extend support to many new vegans through social media networks and give free lectures to whoever invites them.
What seemed to be an underground movement of sorts a few years ago, has today turned into a widespread lifestyle that people are choosing for their health and for environmental purposes. In fact, as we discover, Mumbai’s vegans are bonding with likeminded individual through virtual groups that meet up for potlucks, treks, picnics and share information too.

Monika Siriya makes almond milk at her Kandivli residence. Pic/Nimesh Dave
“It is a good time to turn vegan,” says Chintan, adding that he hears about a friend turning vegan almost every week. “These are the people who are realising that the change for a healthier life and a better environment lies inside them. The moment I turned vegan, my acidity problems have never given me a sleepless night. To add to that, my wife and I have not fallen ill in the past two years. Our doggy Rapchik had a severe heart ailment when we adopted her. Today, her reports are excellent,” smiles Chintan.
Take the case of 28-year-old Rithika Ramesh, who runs a vegan bakery, the Green Stove, since 2010. She knew just about a dozen or so fellow vegans in the city when she chose to give up dairy products in 2009. “I didn’t even know what the term meant. I read about going vegan online and attended a seminar by Dr Nandita Shah, founder of Sharan, a health awareness non-profit organisation, and one of the pioneers of the vegan movement in India.

Richa Rungta and her friend Akriti Tobhal dig into a vegan bagel at Bagelwala in Bandra. Pic/Shadab Khan
Today, I am connected to at least 200 vegans on a regular basis. It’s awesome to know there are so many people who share your way of life and are approachable,” says the chef. Her cakes replace eggs with oil and flavseed, condensed milk with soy or cashew milk, and uses non-dairy whipped cream available in the market. Since the past three weeks, she has been shooting vegan recipe videos for a YouTube channel, India Food Network, and has also started supplying her vegan delights to Bagelwala in Bandra. “Once a month we host potluck parties, and it’s amazing how this network is growing. People are really passionate about their vegan choices,” smiles Ramesh, who has demonstrated healthy gajar halwa, vegan pesto pasta and tandoori mushroom recipes on the channel.

Amit Mehta founded Unived in July 2012. The company manufactures Omega-3 pills using micro algae instead of fish oil. Pics/Pradeep Dhivar
No more fish oil
With awareness spreading fast, initiatives and sustainable businesses are also looking into vegan options. Amit Mehta, for instance, founded Unived Healthcare, which manufactures and retails herbal and vegan products, last July. “We make Vegan Omega-3 DHA MAX using micro algae oil. It is a myth that only fish oil contains Omega-3.
The fact is that micro algae are the biggest source of Omega-3,which is consumed by fish,” explains the 30-year-old Bandra resident, whose company is recognised by the Vegan Society of UK. Even their capsules, which are generally made of pig fat or cow bone, are made using plant leaves. Their other products include Red Yeast Rice, an alternative to natural statin that lowers bad cholesterol. They also manufactureherbal teas.
After a successful stint with PeTA in Delhi, 37-year-old vegan blogger Himani Shetty founded Choosing Life Foundation in January this year. “We are creating a website that will offer a comprehensive vegan database that offers a scientific explanation about veganism. There is a lot of misrepresentation of facts, so we are consolidating data from United Nations,” says Shetty. And, it is the youth that is her primary target. “We are creating leaflets that will answer the question that is riding on everyone’s lips: ‘Why veganism?’ Facts make a better impact than advice,” opines Shetty, who turned vegan four and a years ago, after she saw a study on dairy and skin industry.
One of the biggest obstacles to turn vegan, as 25-year-old Chidanand Hiremath puts it is explaining the concept to non-vegans. “In the beginning, people always questioned and argued with me about turning vegan, saying I would not get enough intake of protein and calcium. Since the past five years, I have turned completely vegan,” says Hiremath, a web designer and photographer.
Casual meetings
Vegan meetings are a whole lot of fun as they involve like-minded people who care for the environment. “The Vegan Mumbai group on Facebook has 270 members and everyone is active. People voluntarily put up posts for treks, cycling, potlucks and even organic farming. And if you think there is nothing vegans can eat when they go out. Think again. South Indian and Chinese cuisines are mostly vegan. We just ask them to replace butter with oil,” smiles Hiremath.
Meanwhile, for people with health problems, Dr Rupa Shah conducts a disease reversal programme through healthy vegan diet. Along with Jinal Rathod, she started this clinic to help patients suffering from diabetes, heart risks and cholesterol problem, etc. “I help them chart a vegan diet, and firstly get them off dairy products. Jinal even visits their kitchen and skims through their food items and gives them a kitchen replacement chart. We monitor their shopping lists, teach them how to read product labels and even share recipes,” explains Shah. The duo even conducts workshops for corporate and homemakers. “We also conduct a cook-along class for a smaller group. Veganism can solve many lifestyle related diseases,” says Shah.
If the question still arises: Why vegan? Monika’s simple explanation offers a powerful answer. “When you walk into a butcher’s shop, do you like what you see? Can you eat the meat in its raw state? Do you like the smell? And can you hear the shriek of an animal being butchered? No. This is because all five senses are rejecting this as food. Your body tells you what is edible and what is not. Walk into an orchard, smell the fruit. The red apple tempts you to pluck it, and take a juicy bite. This is good for you, the body signals.”
Studying vegans
Mia Baldursdottir, 23-year-old research student at Aarhus University, Denmark, has been conducting anthropologic and ethnographic research in India/ South Asia. “I have conducted a field research on veganism and vegans in India. Last year, I visited Mumbai and joined the Vegan Mumbai Facebook page. I also took part in a meeting on veganism at Tata School of Social Sciences. I visited PETAs offices and met vegans working there. My overall experience with meeting the Mumbai vegans has been very positive. They are very passionate about their cause.”
Make your own milk
Author Anuradha Sawhney, who has started a vegan home delivery service in Pune, Back to the Basics, last December, shares the recipe of peanut milk
Ingredients:
½ cup peanuts
3 cups of water

Curd and chaas made using peanut milk
Method:
>> Soak 1/2 cup raw peanuts with their red cover for about 6 hours till soft.
>> Grind very fine with minimal water
>> Take a heavy-bottomed pan (not non-stick) and transfer the ground peanut mixture in it
>> Add 3 cups of drinking water and mix well
>> Bring this mixture to the boil, stirring all the while
>> Cool to room temperature
>> Strain (optional)
Curd
Ingredients
10 stalks of chillies, washed and dried
Method:
>> To set peanut milk dahi, when the milk is at room temperature, place it in the bowl
>> Put 15 chilli stalk caps in the milk
>> Cover the milk and leave it undisturbed for 10 to 16 hours
>> Remove the stalks before using. Add lemon juice, salt and any other flavourings to make the raita or the chaas
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Knead of the hour

By: Sonal Ved Date:  2012-03-11 Place: Mumbai





Dough is to bakes, what scripts are to movies. One can't be right without the other. Sonal Ved takes down notes as baking experts teach her how to make fresh dough for breads, pizzas and pastries at home

The next time you bite into that homemade bread, which you picked up from a nearby deli, think twice. Is it really homemade? For all you know, it might be made from a premix. Most reputed bakeries and delis around the city rely on this magic potion to get that perfect bread, pie and an array of baking items. Chef Savio Fernandes from the Bombay Baking Company at JW Marriott Mumbai says, "Premix is a flour-based powder that is conditioned with the necessary enzymes that go into making a good bake."



To explain its effectiveness in terms of bread making, he cites the example of Ciabatta (an Italian white bread made from wheat flour and yeast). "If you decide to make Ciabatta from scratch, then it can take you as long as five hours, whereas with a premix, you can finish the process within two hours," explains the pastry chef.

There are many reasons why chefs rely on pre-mixed powders in commercial baking industries. Firstly, premixes are non-messy to work with and secondly they guarantee a foolproof result, which saves a lot of time and effort for a mass production industry. Also, "Mumbai's flour quality isn't exactly conducive to baking from scratch," explains Fernandes.

Some bakers are also of the opinion that the humidity in the air affects the dough and prevents products from rising well. Yet there are some like Chef Viraf Patel who insists on making bakes from scratch at Caf © Zoe, his newly-opened restaurant. "If you regulate the temperature of your kitchen and control oven-conditions, then you can do without premixes," says Patel, who makes puff pastry, short crust pastry and dough for breads such as French loaf, dinner rolls, burger buns and multigrain, at his cafe. He likes to restrict the usage of premixes as they are not fully natural.

For some, making bakes from scratch is a passion. Take for instance, Mumbai-based food blogger Nikhil Merchant (from nonchalantgourmand.com). "For me baking is a mentally satisfying activity. I like to put together a good bake -- right from binding the dough to waiting for it to rise in the oven," says Merchant.
If you think that making fresh dough in the confines of your kitchen is a cumbersome process, then you are wrong. Experts show us how we can make freshly baked products without sweating it out.

Basic bread
(Recipe courtesy food blogger Nikhil Merchant)


Food blogger Nikhil Merchant adds finishing touches to his basic
bread recipe before popping it into the oven. Pic/ Pradeep Dhivar

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups plain flour (sieved)
25 gm active dry yeast
2 tsp honey or 1.5 tsp sugar
3/4 cup warm water
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil


You can also make focaccia and crispy cheese sticks with a basic
bread dough. PIC/ Pradeep Dhivar
Method:
* Heat water and pour it into a glass bowl.
* Add honey/sugar and stir well.
* Add the yeast and give it a brief stir.
* Cover the mixture and let it sit for eight to 10 minutes.
* Once the yeast is activated, add it to cup sifted flour and mix well. This is your 'starter dough'. Cover it with muslin cloth and let it rise.
* Preheat the oven to 180 degree celsius.
* Once the starter dough has risen, take another bowl, add the rest of the flour, salt and olive oil and mix it well.
* Knead this dough evenly until you get a soft product. Ensure that there are no dry flour specks.
* Cover the dough again with a wet muslin cloth and let it rise.
* This should take around 30 to 60 minutes.
* Once it has risen, punch it down and place it in a greased baking tray. Give it an egg/milk wash.
* Bake the bread for 20 minutes or until the top is brown.
Variations:
* You can also make focaccia with the same dough. For this, skip the oil and the egg/milk wash. Instead, fold flat-rolled dough into half and fold it once again. Place this dough in your tin and spread it with the help of your fingertips. Top this with a powdered spice of your choice and bake it for 30 minutes.
* Another option is crispy cheese sticks. Here roll out the dough into a thin sheet and layer it with cheese. Fold this into a tube and bake it.
Dabble with your dough:
"You can flavour your bread with herbs like thyme or marjoram, sea salt and pepper. For a garlic loaf, add garlic powder. Flat bread topped with some sundried tomatoes and chilli flakes also tastes good."

Choux pastry
(Recipe by baking expert Kiran Salaskar from Country Of Origin)


Chef Kiran Salaskar pipes out the Choux pastry at his restaurant
Country Of Origin. Pic/ Santosh Nagwekar

Ingredients:
100 ml water
130 gm butter (at room temperature, cubed)
125 gm plain flour (sifted)
5 eggs (at room temperature)
Vegetable oil to grease the tray


Profiteroles with milk chocolates can be made from a Choux
pastry dough. Pic/ Santosh Nagwekar

Method:
* In a saucepan, place the butter and pour in the water. Stir the mixture until it melts completely. This should take about three to four minutes.
* Once the mixture comes to a boil, let it simmer on a low heat for about one to two minutes.
* Remove from fire and let it cool for a minute.
* Whisk the eggs in a separate bowl and add it to the flour mixture.
* Beat the batter well with a wooden spoon and keep it aside.
* Preheat the oven to 140 C.
* Meanwhile, brush a baking tray with oil and fill up a piping bag with the flour batter.
* With the help of a plain nozzle, line the tray with small dots or lines of the batter.
* Brush the top of your pastry with a little whisked egg and bake it for 15 minutes.
Variations:
* Depending on how you shape the dough while piping it onto the tray, you can make several desserts. For Profiteroles (light Choux pastry balls filled with cream), pipe the dough in a swirl. For clairs (cream-filled oblong shaped pastry), pipe a straight line. Cheese lovers can add some cheese to the raw dough paste to make Goug re (a savoury Choux pastry) and pipe it as they like before baking.
Dabble with your dough:
"This is one of the most complicated doughs to make. It can be flavoured with dry herbs such as thyme, basil and chilli powder."

Pizza dough
(Recipe courtesy pastry chef Savio Fernandes, Bombay Baking Company, JW Marriott Mumbai)


Chef Savio Fernandes of Bombay Baking Company rolls out the
pizza dough.  PIC/ Nimesh Dave

Ingredients:
1 kg flour
25 gm dry yeast
50 gm sugar
75 ml olive oil
20 gm salt
550 ml water


Chef Savio with his creations - Three-pepper pizza, strawberry
and fudge pizza and doughnuts, which he has made using a
basic pizza dough. PIC/ Nimesh Dave
Method:
* Activate the yeast, as per the instructions given by the manufacturer and keep it aside.
* On a large surface, place all the dry ingredients and make a well.
* Pour all the wet ingredients in between and mix everything together.
* Knead this into a soft dough and allow it to rest until the yeast starts acting. This should take around 30 minutes.
* To make a pizza, roll out the dough into thin sheets and sprinkle it with some butter.
* Half-bake the bread in an oven for about 10 minutes at 150 degree celsius and save it for use.
Variations:
* You can use this dough to make dessert pizza as well. For this, sprinkle sugar and extra butter on the fresh dough and bake it for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and layer it with chunks of chocolate. Re-bake it until the pizza looks crispy. Serve it with vanilla ice cream.
* You can also experiment with doughnuts. Simply cut the dough with a doughnut cutter and deep fry it until golden. Top it with chocolate sauce and serve.
Dabble with your dough:
"Pizza dough is one of the easiest doughs to make at home. All you need is good quality flour and yeast. You can flavour it with ingredients such as garlic flakes, chilli flakes, dried parsley and kasuri methi."

Short crust pastry
(Recipe courtesy baking expert Kiran Salaskar from Country Of Origin)


Chef Kiran Salaskar mixes the dough for Short crust pastry  at his
restaurant Country Of Origin. Pic/ Santosh Nagwekar

Ingredients:
200 gm plain flour
125 gm unsalted butter (chilled and finely chopped),
2 eggs
125 gm icing sugar
A pinch of sea salt


Short bread cookies with various fillings and toppings can be
made with a short crust pastry dough.  Pic/ Santosh Nagwekar

Method:
* In a food processor, mix together flour, butter, sea salt and icing sugar and churn it until it begins to resemble breadcrumbs.
* Whisk the eggs and add one tablespoon of chilled water.
* Add this mixture to the flour and bind all the ingredients together.
* Give the dough a final knead, wrap it in a plastic wrap and refrigerate it overnight.
Variations:
* Short crust pastry is very versatile. Fresh pastry dough can be used to line tart and pie moulds to make shells. Fill them with chocolate ganache or slices of banana and cream to make Chocolate tart or Banoffee pie, respectively.
* You can also cut it with cookie cutters and bake it to make short bread cookies. Cheesecake lovers can powder these cookies to make a crumbly base for their cake.
Dabble with your dough:
"Short crust pastry is an important part of the baking repertoire. It can be used for a variety of sweet and savoury dishes. You can even flavour it with ingredients such as rosemary, vanilla and walnut powder."
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Colour Palate

Traditionally, Holi fare has to be either cooling or energising. As the festival marks the onset of summer, the food doled out during this period focuses on flavours that helps one sustain the sun-soaked days.
Take for instance Mawa or Lentil-stuffed Gujiyas and Puran Polis that farmers chomped on the fields for their instant energy. Similarly, thandai was gulped down by peasants because the fennel-fragrant concoction had a natural cooling effect on the body.
Keeping these rules in mind and without meddling with the traditional essence of Holi, a lot can be done by simply adding new flavour notes to classic preparations.
An effortless experiment is stuffing gujiyas with varied fillings. A popular Holi staple in many parts of the country, this flour pastry-based dumpling packs-off almost all ingredients well. You can clog it with dessert cheeses such as comte or fruity stilton or infuse traditional mawa with real vanilla bean and orange extract before pushing it into the flaky dough and frying it until golden.
Similar attempts can also be made with malpuas whose filling can range from classic Belgian chocolate to salted caramel to peanut butter to fresh fruits.
Daring ones can also convert these desserts into salty treats by gambling with fillings such as minced meats or herbed-roasted vegetables such as bell peppers, zucchini, shitake mushroom, spinach and red amaranth.
This season, I took a spin on the quintessential thandai. While the North Indian coolant is known for its peppery aftertaste, I introduced a few sweet and fruity elements to make it friendlier for first timers attending our annual Holi bash.
I infused this drink with seasonal pieces of strawberries, petals of home-grown and dried rose and a spoonful of rose syrup to give this adult milkshake a cool pink colour and a summery, fresh zing.
To serve, while I stuck to traditional clay pots to add a rustic touch, you can go ahead with classy shot glasses, tall high balls or glass flutes.

Strawberry, Rose Petal and Peppercorn Thandai

Strawberry, Rose Petal and Peppercorn Thandai
Pic/Sameer Sayed Abedi
Ingredients
>> 1 cup strawberries (halved)
>> 1 ½ tbsp rose syrup
>> 2 tsp black peppercorn
>> 8 cups milks
>> ½ cup almonds
>> ½ cup pistachios
>> 1/3 cup watermelon seeds
>> 1/3 cup white poppy seeds (khus khus)
>> 1 tbsp fennel seeds
>> 2 tsp dry rose petals
>> Few strands of saffron
>> Sugar as per taste
Fresh rose petals for garnish
Method:
>> In a blender, grind strawberries with two tablespoons of sugar and churn it into a fine purée.
>> In a bowl, soak almonds, pistachios, peppercorn, watermelon seeds, fennel seeds, rose petals and white poppy seeds in water (enough to cover the ingredients completely).
>> Allow it to soak for two to three hours and drain the water. Grind this into a fine paste and keep aside.
>> In a deep-bottomed pan, heat milk with sugar and bring it to a boil. Add saffron strands to this and mix until it gains a pale yellow colour.
>> Allow the milk to come down to room temperature and add the almond-poppy seed paste to it. Mix thoroughly until the coarse powder dilutes well. Do not do this while the milk is still warm or it will curdle.
>> Transfer the thandai into a jug and chill it in the refrigerator for four to five hours.
>> To serve, add strawberry puree and rose syrup to the thandai and give it a quick stir.
>> Garnish with fresh rose petals and serve cold.
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'Our Bombay sandwich is a big hit'



Juhu Beach in California? Yes, you heard us right. Celebrity chef Preeti Mistry has just launched the full-service Juhu Beach Club restaurant in the port city of Oakland, which serves everything from Vada Pav and Gujarati samosas to Vindaloo Chicken Wings and even Limca! The UK-born chef, now settled in the US, talks to Dhiman Chattopadhyay about her memories of Juhu Beach and how Americans and NRIs love her Bombay Sandwich with sassy lassi

March 24, 2013

Mumbai
Dhiman Chattopadhyay

One knows Indian cuisine is popular pretty much everywhere, but Mumbai street food? And that too in California? Wow! How did this come about?
I love street foods and have always been fascinated with all the snacky items you find on the streets in India and in snack and sweet shops. So I was drawn to creating my own version of these items. I have been a chef in California for almost 10 years and so, I figured that applying my professional experience to the Mumbai street foods I love and crave so much, would be a fun project where I could add my own imprint on the iconic dishes.

Preeti Mistry started Juhu Beach Club as a pop-up restaurant in front of a liquor store with a small deli in 2011. Now she has opened a full-service restaurant with table service, beer and wine and an exhaustive menu. Pics courtesy/ Preeti Mistry
You left a steady job to start a pop-up restaurant. What triggered that?
I always wanted to do something on my own. In 2011, I realised that I was ready to do something different from running large kitchens for Google, where I was an executive chef (and before that at the deYoung Museum). I was craving to do something more personal. I had just come back from visiting Mumbai with my partner and parents and I was really inspired by all the amazing and varied street food in Mumbai. The pop-up started in 2011 with very humble beginnings in the front of a liquor store that had a small deli. Two years down the line, we have just opened a full-service restaurant with table service, beer and wine and a full menu.

The Vindaloo Chicken Wings is one of the bestsellers at Preeti Mistry’s Juhu Beach Club restaurant 
Why did you name it Juhu Beach Club?
I remember Juhu Beach from visiting India for the first time when I was four years old. Of course my fondest memories from that time is about kites more than food. But when I went back as an adult, I was intrigued by the place, the sunsets, the food…everything.
Is your clientele largely NRIs or pretty much every community?
The famous Mumbai Vada Pav is one of our most popular pav, second only to the beef pav! That gives you an idea of the global nature of my clientele. People in the SF Bay Area are very open to new foods and enjoy everything we make. There is a great deal of interest on our Facebook and Twitter pages every time I announce a new dish. People from different communities and ethnicities come to Juhu Beach Club to eat.
You have managed kitchens and been on celebrity chef shows. But running a business is different. Was it tough to set up shop?
Well, I had a lot of help from my partner to set things up, but I really did the pop-up with just me, a cashier and a dishwasher! Since then, there have been a ton of people involved in supporting us in getting the restaurant open. Now I have a great team in the back and the front of the restaurant to make it happen.
So what do people ask for most with their beer or wine?
The Vada Pav, Vindaloo Chicken Wings, the Gujarati Samosas, which I make by hand and the Shrimp Curry are all best-sellers. Our Bombay sandwich is a big hit too. When people tasted it first, they were delighted. Most said they didn’t know what they were nibbling, but it tasted great. We put the cilantro chutney, the sliced beets and pickled onions into the Bombay sandwich. It’s grilled and served much like we had at Juhu Beach when I visited India.
I believe you serve wine and beer too. Imagine Mumbai’s street food stalls serving chilled wine!
All of our wine is on tap. But given the weather and the spicy nature of Indian food, people prefer beer. But that’s not all. I make a sassy lassi in-house, and it’s sweet and salty. We also have lemonade and the Darjeeling Limited, which is half cilantro lemonade and half tea. Of course there is hot chai. And believe it or not we will also be serving Thums Up and Limca imported from India! Very like Mumbai.
The first of the Juhu Beach Club restaurants is open at Oakland. Any expansion plans?
We are just focussing on this restaurant and making it great for now. No big plans beyond that at this stage.
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Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Diet secrets of the stars are ‘bogus’

Celebrities have claimed that everything from green tea to acupuncture has helped them lose weight, but the secrets of the stars are all “bogus”, the “Quackbuster” has found.

Gwyneth Paltrow has recommended the slimming benefits of acupuncture 
12:18PM GMT 11 Mar 2013
Comments18 Comments
While Sophie Dahl claims green tea helped her drop her dress size, Gwyneth Paltrow raved about the slimming benefits of acupuncture and Simon Cowell praised the value of natural diet pills.
But after spending several years looking into the alternative treatments Edzard Ernst, professor of complementary medicine at the University of Exeter, has said that he has not found a single one he would recommend.
He said that people by into alternative slimming aids despite the “overwhelming evidence” that they do not work.
“They are also misled to assume they are risks-free. This latter assumption is false too: apart from the harm done to the patient’s bank account, many alternative slimming aids are associated with side-effects which, in some cases, are serious and can even include death,” he said.
Those desperate to loose weight will try anything, but Professor Ernst has found that alternative diet remedies — such as green tea capsules, herbal supplements and acupuncture — are all "bogus".
Natural weight-loss remedies may have a more wholesome image than slimming pills, but some still have adverse side-effects, such as headaches, insomnia and stomach upsets.
The can also interfere with prescribed drugs, according to The Times.
Professor Ernst, nicknamed "the Quackbuster" for his attempts to expose alternative remedies which do not work, believes that the £1 billion-plus industry in alternative medicines is preying on the desperation of consumers who become “easy victims”.
Alternative slimming aids have proven popular with celebrities. Kylie Minogue and Robbie Williams are also green tea believers and Madonna, Jennifer Lopez and Elle Macpherson have all praised acupuncture.
The study, published this week in the Journal of Dietary Supplements, looked at evidence from three clinical trials into supplements containing African bush mango (Irvingia gabonensis), which is named as an active ingredient in a variety of herbal diet pills.
The team found that all the trials had major flaws, and the results could not be relied upon as there was either not enough data or weight reductions was too small to be clinically significant.
Professor Ernst has campaigned for alternative therapies, such as homeopathy, to be withdrawn from the NHS.
He has also criticised the Prince of Wales for putting his name to a detox treatment in his Duchy Originals brand.
Professor Ernst recommends that those wishing to loose weight eat less and do more exercise.
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Sunday, February 24, 2013


What breakfast. Whoa!

ByBORIA MAJUMDAR, TNN | Feb 24, 2013, 01.35 AM IST
Breakfast, it is universally agreed, is the most important meal of the day. We eat breakfast after a lag of almost ten hours since dinner the previous night and it is important we have a sumptuous meal at the start of the day. A good breakfast inevitably makes you feel good first thing in the morning and without a proper breakfast I usually have ended up eating much more for lunch than I'd have liked.

In the West, breakfast is standard. Cornflakes, fruits, yogurt, eggs to order, bacon, sausage, toast with butter or jam and tea or coffee. Most cafes in the world will serve this breakfast day in day out month after month. Occasionally a doughnut or a croissant may be introduced as variation. Having eaten this breakfast for months on end, in fact years while living abroad, it was only natural that I'd start craving for the variations I'd be given at home in Kolkata. Rather, the varieties that Kolkata offer at minimal cost makes it the best breakfast city in the world. From the well known breakfast at Flurys, a rare treat on a Sunday, to the street side telebhajar dokan in North Kolkata with its fresh early morning fare, the varieties in Kolkata are endless.

A typical North Kolkata breakfast on a Sunday for example can very well consist of a hot singara and a couple of kachoris. A piping hot singara with tamarind chutney with a jilipi to round it off - things couldn't get any better. Having two kachoris and a singara on the way to the bazaar in the morning is a typical North Kolkata ritual that is still observed today. Every narrow by-lane in North Kolkata has a street side telebhajar dokan, all with their loyal band of customers. It is this chance to stop at the telebhajar dokan while going to the bazaar every morning that helps counter the monotony. Some of these street side stalls experiment with the morning fare and the phulkopir singara or the dal vada, made once in a while, are in high demand. Winter inevitably brings the natun aloor tarkari to go with the kachori and it is a challenge to stop at two kachoris during these months. Readers who are fans of the Bengali sleuth Byomkesh Bakshi will know what having a phulkopir singara with muri can do to liven up an off-colour morning.

Watching the singara being made in the morning at one of the many street side stalls is sheer bliss. First the dough has to be made correctly to ensure the crust isn't hard. Then the singaras are given shape with the potato stuffing and then twenty or more singaras are released into the boiling hot oil. Again, traditional Kolkatans will tell you that the stuffing shouldn't be made with smashed potatoes. While commercial considerations force such shortcuts, real singaras are made with choto kore kata aloo and is a 19th century tradition. Just when the singaras are perfectly browned, not too much because there's always a chance they will get burnt, they are all scooped up to serve the many hungry customers waiting patiently for their turns.

Nowhere else in the world do you get this variety. For example, in some North Kolkata households the day starts with phulko luchi and tarkari. And each of the luchis would have to be adequately fluffy - flat luchis mean the person making them has failed to deliver. Hot luchis just out of the frying pan with smoke coming out every time you pierce the crust and tarkari, spiced with dried red chillies and fresh coriander leaves means the day starts with a spark! And the luchis, which are made in real numbers, keep coming to ensure plates are never empty. Luchis also change colour on occasions. From the maidar luchi to attar luchi, certain varieties of luchi are made to suit certain types of tarkari. Finally, the tarkari too changes each morning. From simple aloor tarkari to aloo tomator tarkari to aloor beguner tarkari to chola diye kumror chakka to ghugni, breakfast is often the highlight of the day in most North Kolkata Bengali families.

More than most things it is the local food that one misses when staying away from home. Things that we take for granted, a telebhaja for example has a ubiquitous presence in Kolkata, is one of the most missed food items when living away from the city. Packaged singaras sold in the supermarkets like Sainsburys hardly whet the appetite and people just tend to hog at the local delicacies when they make it back to the city again.

It is time now for my piping hot morning singara.
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