Chef Harish Rao – HOSA, Goa
Goa is in the thick of its monsoon. And amidst the perfume of petrichor, Chef Harish Rao’s kitchen is awash with the whiff of pepper rasam. “During the monsoon, I like something spicy and soothing,” says the chef who’s initially from Chennai.
He likes to pair this rasam with mutton fry or curry. During this season he avoids sea meals at house and as a substitute has dry fish (karvadu). The karvadu blended with baingan masala is one in every of his favourite dishes, and one which he typically cooks throughout the rains. The dry fish or shrimp will also be made into sambal curry or thokku so as to add zing to a meal. Sometimes, even a easy omelette with the rasam can hit the spot, he says.
Chef Harish Rao together with his favourite rasam rice, rooster fry, and omelette
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A hardcore non vegetarian, uppukandan (dry cured meat) is Chef Harish’s different go to. “The mutton is salted and sundried and then we make it into a curry. As for dessert, “A hot badam halwa to finish the meal,” he says.
Where do you wish to eat throughout the monsoon?
To deal with himself he goes to the native poi outlets in Goa for pois with rooster and beef fillings. “I really enjoy the ros omelette that comes in a xacuti gravy along with meat. It is a monsoon favourite among the locals too,” he says, including, “I can also live on chicken/prawn sui mais.” But what he misses in Goa are the native soup outlets in Chennai that he used to frequent each time the skies turned darkish gray. He says, “They do a mushroom soup and they put cornflakes, murukku or boondi on top. I’ve been craving that.”
Chef Nikhil Nagpal, Chef Culinaire, Avartana, ITC Grand Chola, Chennai
During the rains, Chef Nikhil Nagpal loves pazham pori, a dish launched to him by his Malayali spouse. But initially, I used to be solely allowed to have it if I might pronounce the tongue tornado of a reputation accurately,” he grins.
During this season I like one thing heat and crisp and the pazham pori suits the invoice with a crisp exterior and heat, delicate, gooey inside, he says.
Chef Nikhil Nagpal indulging in contemporary sizzling pazham pori
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“On the days I’m at home, my little gourmet critic (my 10-year-old daughter) wants something warm, cheesy, and, in her words, “fancy.” These are the moments I really cherish — once I can cook dinner a hearty bowl of risotto for her, watch her eyes gentle up, and hearken to her chatter whereas sitting on the balcony, having fun with the rain,” he smiles. The risotto that he makes, he says, comes with lots of cheese and bacon. The different recipe that he likes to whip up shortly is scrambled eggs, once more with bacon and sausage.
“Monsoons for me are for cosy conversations and sharing the comfort food I’ve either grown up with or adapted to while staying in a city,” he says.
Where do you wish to eat throughout the monsoon?
Most of Chef Nikhil’s childhood monsoons have been spent at the foothills of Mussoorie. Now, each time he will get the likelihood, he heads to Dehradun, the place his mother and father dwell, and revisits his childhood monsoon favourites. All of them, nonetheless drive up the hills to have Maggi and momos. “In Dehradun, I have the famous chaat by the clock tower. Rains also bring out the Bittoo Tikku cart in Doon, and it’s a must-visit to have the bun tikki even if the water is ankle-deep and you’re standing in long queues. While there, the gourmand in me takes a break and the chatora (someone who loves spice, tang, and sweet) is reborn,” he says.
Chef Atul Lahkar, celeb chef and creator, Guwahati
When the skies open up, pithas are what Chef Atul Lahkar has on his thoughts. “We prefer to eat tekeli pitha that is steamed at the mouth of a kettle. It’s made with hand-pound rice powder, stuffed with coconut and roasted black sesame seeds, and served with jaggery,” he explains.
Chef Atul Lahkar
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“In Assam the monsoon is from April to September. Because of the high humidity and temperature, we prefer to eat light food and our cooking habits are different,” says the chef who owns eating places like Hurum and Heritage Khorika in Guwahati.
On his monsoon cook dinner checklist are pokoras. But completely different from different pakoras, he says. Made with black gram, it’s cooked in a tangy curry with potato starch, lemon juice, and a fruit known as thekera.
He provides, “The rains make us crave tangy flavours. From June, we get tenga fruit (elephant apple) that we are crazy about. We cook chicken, pork, and dal in it… We prefer sweet to salty dishes, says the chef. People like sticky rice, jaggery, and curd. “We call it bora saul jolpan.”
Where do you wish to eat throughout the monsoon?
Food being cooked in bamboo
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“During monsoons, I prefer to go to the interiors of Assam and spend good time with the communities,” he says. He likes to grasp the cooking strategies and what they do with the native substances. Each neighborhood has several types of recipes. “This is the time they prefer to cook bamboo shoots with vegetables, fish and pork. I enjoy rice cooked in bamboo hollow and with wild aromatic herbs, along with fish in bamboo hollow.”
Chef Auroni Mukherjee, entrepreneur, Kolkata
A duplicate writer-turned-chef, Chef Auroni Mukherjee was in promoting until 2016. Passionate about meals, he used to coach at Mumbai’s Cafe Zoe throughout the dinner shift, publish work. In Kolkata he labored as a chef at Salt House, adopted by a stint with Chef Ritu Dalmia, after which Sienna Store and Cafe earlier than deciding to stop and begin one thing on his personal. “I want to start a chef-led hospitality company that is rooted in the city,” he says. He is busy working on his new set of eating places, however in the meantime Auroni is having fun with Kolkata’s monsoon feasting on hilsa fish.
Chef Auroni Mukherjee
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“This is the only time of the year I eat hilsa — it is fresh and not from the freezer. I look forward to going to the baajaar and looking for a large one,” says the chef. This season can also be when the fish have roe. “That’s why I love eating it this season. Dim bhora are the female fish with roe and tel bhora are the male fish with stomach fat, and one can choose what they like,” he explains. A variety of different fish like pabda and tangra too have roe round this time. “Macher dim (fish roe) is a beloved Bengali thing,” he provides.
Inspired by his grandmother’s recipes, Chef Auroni likes to make maach bhaaja and bhaapa at house. He additionally enjoys easy macher jhol with kalonji, ridge gourd, and brinjal.
The different dish he likes making throughout this time is the congee. A household favourite, it’s one thing he learnt from his father. “Short grain, starchy rice is cooked in stock with little bit of ginger, garlic and onion. It’s boiled and then you can take anything from the fridge like leafy greens, or meat, and top it off with soy sauce and chilli oil.”
Where do you wish to eat throughout the monsoon?
“During my Mumbai days, it was bombil fry and dal khichdi from Jai Hind. In Kolkata I go to Byloom Canteen for its mochar chop and luchi mangsho and to Campari for roll and fish fry. Monsoon makes me crave something deep fried,” he says. Then provides with fun, “I also like to order in biryani from Manzilat, and Salma The Chef. Her biryani is all the rage in Calcutta now, and Handi Biryani — it’s light and I don’t have to pop a Gelusil.”
