A celebrity chef and chocolatier, a Guinness Book of World Record holder, TEDx speaker, a Mumbaikar and most importantly warm, funny and witty... Varun Inamdar is all of these and more. On one fine morning when t2 dialled him for a monsoon special story, the chef not only promptly agreed to a chat but also shared monsoon recipes from back home.
KEEMA SINGHARA
Singhara is an emotion across India with varying names. From the traditional Bengali with aloo, phulkopi fillings to samosa with noodle fillings, the journey has evolved. However, this Keema Singhara, a nonveg version is easy to make and is yum. Take it from a person who has a weakness for samosa (period)!
Ingredients: For the shingara dough: l 1 cup all-purpose flour l 2 tablespoon oil l ½ tsp nigella seeds (kalonji) l ½ tsp salt l 50 ml water, room temperature For the filling: l 200g goat meat, minced l 1/2 cup onions l 1 tbsp ginger, garlic, green chillies crushed l 1 tbsp garam masala l 1 tsp red chilli powder l 1/8 cup green peas, boiled l 1/8 cup Dill leaves, mint leaves and coriander leaves, combined. l Salt as required
Method:
1. Mix all ingredients for the dough and knead into a hard dough. Keep aside and rest. 2. In a pan, heat oil. 3. Saute onions, chillies and the keema. 4. Add in spices, herbs, salt and peas. 5. Cover and cook till all water dries out. Cool it. 6. Sheet the dough into a round and cut into two halves. 7. Take each and shape like a cone, apply some water and ensure it doesn’t open up. 8. Fill in the cooked and cooled stuffing. 9. Seal the singhara using water and pinch firmly. 10. Make some more similarly. 11. Fry on low flame till crisp and golden brown.
KUMBHANIYA BHAJI KADHI
One of the rarest bhajiyas from the streets of Surat paired with my favourite kadhi, perfect this downpour. Ingredients for the bhajiyas: l 1 cup gram flour l 1/2 cup chopped green garlic l 1/2 cup spinach leaves l 3/4 cup chopped coriander leaves l 5 nos green chillies, non spicy l 1 tsp salt l 2 tbsp lemon juice l 1/2 cup water as required oil to fry For the kadhi: l 1/4 cup curd l 2 tbsp gram flour l 1 cup water l 1 tsp salt l 1/2 tsp turmeric powder l 1 tbsp oil l 1/2 tsp mustard powder l Curry leaves, a sprig l 1/4 tsp asafoetida
Method:
For the bhajiyas: 1. Mix all the ingredients till lump free. 2. Heat oil in a kadhai. 3. Drop the batter in hot oil with the help of your fingers. They must disintegrate in oil and not clump. 4. Fry till crisp and golden brown. 5. Serve with the kadhi For the kadhi: 1. Whip together curd, gram flour, water, salt and turmeric powder till its smooth. 2. Heat oil in a kadhai. 3. Temper with mustard seeds, asafoetida and curry leaves. 4. Add the curd mixture and boil for six minutes on low flame. 5. Serve hot.
LOITTA TEMPURA WITH NAM JIM SAUCE
In monsoon Bombay duck is the best in terms of taste across fishing centres of Versova, Janjira, Jaffrabad, Masulipatnam and estuaries of Bengal. Tempura is a great monsoon recipe. Thank me later! Ingredients: l 6-8 nos. plump l Bombay ducks, deboned and flattened l 1 cup all-purpose flour l 1 egg l 1 cup iced water For Nam Jim sauce: l 1 cup lime juice l 1/4 cup garlic, chopped l 6 nos. Thai hot peppers, chopped l 3 tbsp coriander root and stems, chopped l 3 tbsp palm sugar l 2 tbsp fish sauce l 2 tbsp oyster sauce l 1 tbsp fresh ginger, chopped
Method:
1. For the Nam Jim sauce, combine everything and keep refrigerated. 2. Pat the fish dry and keep aside. Heat oil in a frying pan. 3. Sieve the flour thrice to lighten it up. 4. Whip the egg and add in the cold water. 5. Combine the sifted flour along with egg - water mixture till barely mixed. It must be a clumpy mix. 6. Dip each fish in the batter and deep fry on high flame till crisp. 7. Serve hot with chilled Nam Jim sauce.
MULTIGRAIN THALIPEETH
This is my grandmother’s recipe. Surprisingly, she ran all across the house to feed me this, but come rains and the tables turned. Something magical about this season, I think love tastes different. Ingredients: l 1 cup wheat flour l 1/2 cup multigrain flour l 1/2 tsp red chilli powder l 1/2 tsp garam masala powder l 1/2 cup onions, chopped l 1 no. green chilli, chopped l 1/4 cup coriander leaves, chopped l 2 cloves garlic, bashed to pulp l 2 tbsp oil l 1/3 cup water
Method:
1. In a bowl, mix all ingredients and make a moist, squishy mash-like dough. No resting. No kneading. 2. Heat oil in a tawa. 3. Use a muslin cloth and pat an orange-sized ball of dough onto it. 4. Flatten it into a thick disc. 5. Drop into hot oil. Fry on both sides till aromatic and crisp. 6. Serve with fresh homechurned butter or curd and pickle. We at home serve this with thecha (handpounced green chillies and cloves of garlic with a touch of salt).
KELI CHE KAAP
Kaap is a pan-fried fritter served as a side along with meals or as a starter. The first shower is usually followed with some crispy kaap at our home. This time with raw bananas. Ingredients: l 4 nos. raw banana l 5 tbsp gram flour l 3 tbsp rice flour l 1 tbsp coriander powder l 1 tbsp red chilli powder 1 tsp garam masala powder l 1 tsp chaat masala l Salt to taste l Oil for frying
Method:
1. Peel the raw bananas and slice thicklengthwise. 2. Soak in water to avoid oxidation. 3. Drain the water and apply the spices, salt and both kinds of flour. Rub well. 4. Pan fry in oil; on medium flame, till crisp and golden brown.
MONSOON CATCH CURRY
This curry is made when deep water fishing stops due to its breeding. Fish eaters glid to eating sundried seafood. Just then, we get this mixed bag that is caught around the shallow coastline. It also has a few nameless gems. This is a no recipe, recipe! Ingredients: l A portion of mixed bag l A couple of tbsp oil l Red chilli powder l Salt l Garam masala l Kokum/ tamarind/ dried raw mango wedges l Couple of garlic cloves
Method:
1. In the cooking vessel take all the ingredients, except the fish. 2. With the help of your palm whip it all up. Add a cup of water little at a time and continue whipping. 3. This is the most important step as the curry whips up to be thick, else watery. 4. Add the mixed bag of seafood, cleaned and washed. 5. Turn the flame on, cover and cook for 8 minutes on medium flame. 6. Serve hot with steamed rice (soft cooked) this monsoon!