MARWAR INDIA MARCH-APRIL 2015 88 FOOD 89 Following the progressive, minimalist trend that has changed the preparation and presentation of food the world over, even Marwari food is beginning to be transformed. We talk to some of the best chefs in the country to see if the flavour and richness of Marwari cuisine can be modernised, and more importantly, if there’s any fire behind all the smoke! BACK TO THE Text ✲ Nirati Agarwal CHOPPING BOARD IMAGE: NEEHAR MISHRA NEEHAR IMAGE: Yogurt spheres with papdi, a deconstructed he culinary landscape in the 21st century is version of dahi anything but barren. Innovation, nouveau- papdi, created by fication and the use of molecular science has Executive Sous Chef Deepak changed the otherwise simple experience of Dange, Sofitel, dining into one where creativity is prized Mumbai, includes even more than truffle mushrooms! ‘Foams’, elements of ‘dust’ and ‘crisps’ have made their way molecular science around Paris, London, Tokyo and New York and have even crossed over to India, taking centre stage in Indian cuisine no less. Molecular gastronomy has permeated the food culture in the subcontinent, and even Marwari food, much like the sethjis of old, faces a choice: remain traditional or evolve. The question to ask is if the words ‘Marwari’ and ‘modern’ go together. Chefs around the country have tackled this phenomenon from two diagonal perspectives: retaining The traditional Marwari thali served at the and intensifying traditional flavours or innovating to present something different Piramal Haveli, Neemrana Hotels, Bagar, Rajasthan CHATTERJEE to modern palates. The point at which N their thoughts align is this: offering robust, choice flavours to old hats and modern connoisseurs alike. DHIMA IMAGE: MARWAR INDIA MARCH-APRIL 2015 90 FOOD 91 CHATTERJEE N IMAGE: DHIMA IMAGE: CHATTERJEE N IMAGE: DHIMA IMAGE: CHATTERJEE N Ripe for revision? celebrated desert berries and beans (caper- “Nowadays, people are also introducing MISHRA EEHAR In our travels across Rajasthan, in the sized ker and long, thin sangri, which could contemporary ingredients from different N IMAGE: IMAGE: districts of Sikar, Jhunjhunu and Churu, be dried and preserved for a great length regions to skilfully balance traditional food DHIMA IMAGE: and cities like Jaipur, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer, of time). “Non-availability of vegetables with flavour,” says Chef Santosh Chaudhary we saw subtle changes that prompted us brought gram flour to the fore as a major of Lebua Resort, Jaipur. This addition and for subtle flavour and aroma. If food is retaining authenticity. A case in point is Clockwise from above: Ghewar cheesecake with to ask if we were witnessing a perceptible ingredient to make dishes like gatte ki sabzi deletion of flavour, he explains, started emblematic of a region, then it is imperative the ker sangri ka achaar that we tried at pistachio dust and almond chikki served at The transformation in the preparation and (steamed, spicy gram flour dumplings in a in elite establishments with chefs trained that its core remain traditional, and chefs Jaisalmer’s beautiful Suryagarh resort, which Masala Library, Mumbai, is a modern, epicurean presentation of Marwari food. While we yogurt gravy). Powdered lentils also began at renowned national and international around the country have realised and featured ker sangri imbued with lemon and version of the traditional dish; Papad mangodi saw gatte ki sabzi, bajre ki roti and papad to be used to make mangodi and papad, destinations coming to Rajasthan to cook respected this, especially when it comes masalas and pickled for 15 days. Thisachaar , ki sabzi, served tapas style on bajra bakhri discs mangodi being served in houses and and was also made into sabzis and khichdis,” great food for well-travelled tourists. The to Marwari cuisine. Innovation has thus brainchild of Sous Chef Bhavarlal and created by Chef Deepak Dange, Sofitel, Mumbai; restaurants, we also saw bajra crackers, explains Sanjeev Kapoor, one of India’s best- tastes seeped into local consciousness and— come in the form of minimalist plating and Executive Sous Chef Chetan, heads in that The traditional ker sangri, served at the Piramal stuffedgatta with micro jelly and ker ka known chefs and restaurateurs. Even desserts with the availability of more ingredients, adding texture. traditional yet modern direction, containing Haveli, Neemrana Hotels, Bagar, Rajasthan achaar! This modernisation was no doubt like lapsi (made of broken whole wheat vegetables and garnishes—were adopted by intense, concentrated flavours of ker and a result of evolution and the subsequent and jaggery) and moong dal halwa, were local restaurants, then caterers and finally Answering to authenticity sangri, and bringing out their natural taste. change in modern Marwari lifestyle. made with lentils and grains, and contained reached home cooks, who were eager to Globally-renowned chefs like René Redzepi, Rather than the calorific ghee-fried baati, mammoth quantities of ghee that protected prepare something different. Tetsuya Wakuda and Daniel Boulud, who we tried Sous Chef Deepak Dange’s baked Marwar’s punishing heat and desert terrain its consumers from the harsh desert cold. have set the standard for modern food, have baati at fine-dining vegetarian restaurant Marwari food, much made both green, leafy vegetables and Chefs sought to retain traditional recipes now begun focusing on foraging locally Tuskers at Sofitel, Mumbai, and found it as like the sethjis of old, water an unaffordable luxury. Influenced Heavy on the palate, the quantities of red but used Mathania chillies, for example, to grown ingredients and looking to vegetables khasta (if not as mind-numbingly tasty) as faces a choice: remain by the aridity and harsh climate of the chilli and ghee used in the bygone era temper the tadka rather than add it to the as the hero of the dish. What this means for its heavyweight cousin. region, typical Marwari cuisine focused on cannot be consumed easily today, and dish itself. Visual appeal and texture now Marwari food is a hat tip to the traditional Keeping the core of the recipes the same, traditional or evolve. grains (like wheat and millets), was rich in this perhaps necessitates the revision of became important and so did the use of recipes and ingredients. “Marwari food is chefs have experimented with plating and The question to ask is if ghee (clarified butter that nourished and Marwari food. Both luxury and boutique innovative cooking practices. Borrowing still the way it is and will always be. We presentation. Chef Dange’s imaginative the words ‘Marwari’ and strengthened), contained chillies (which restaurants that we visited in Rajasthan from the past, chefs made use of techniques make some changes to it to adapt to our papad mangodi ki sabzi, delicately spooned prevent sunburn and heat strokes), used were already reflecting this change, reducing like the Rajasthani dungar mode of cooking, lifestyles, but essentially a baati is a baati,” onto biscuit bajra bakhri discs, are bite- ‘modern’ go together. condensed milk (rather than water) and spices and oil to appeal to modern tastes. which involves smoking the prepared dish says Kapoor, with his usual penchant for sized tapas versions of its traditional avatar. MARWAR INDIA MARCH-APRIL 2015 92 FOOD “Chefs are bringing sophistication into all, is the only thing that’s constant, and the cuisine, using the same ingredients the same has to apply to food.” In the differently—I have noticed bajra tortillas same vein, we also saw Chef Dange’s being used instead of maida for wraps,” minimalistic plating of dal baati churma says celebrity chef Ajay Chopra. Jiggs contain something totally unique. While Kalra’s Masala Library, at the forefront the dal and baati retained original tastes, of gastronomic experimentation with the churma was a crystalline crumble, inherently Indian flavours, also features the paying homage to the desert sand, and lovely bhindi jaipuri, papad ki sabzi and came flavoured with chilli and strawberry! hand-pounded churma into one cracker of “Thechurma is supposed to be a bit sweet, a dish that assimilates three flavours and so I thought of adding some seasonal fruit textures seamlessly—new but authentic! for tartness,” says Chef Dange; and why “Indian cuisine is undergoing a revolution not! of sorts, which is primarily being driven by global exposure and varied experience of Giving an innovative twist to easily guests. As such, various regional cuisines are procured local ingredients, Suryagarh’s Food, as we know it not just witnessing modernisation, but also Chef Chetan has also added the sangri They say necessity is the mother of getting an opportunity to come out of their kebab to the menu, which features finely invention. While that is true, in the case regional domains and become more visible minced desert beans with potato and of Marwari food, it is also to give creativity and accessible to diners across various parts spices to create a melt-in-your-mouth, free rein. Less ghee, more flavour, less sweet, of the country and the world,” explains slow-cooked kebab that defies description. more simple, less chilli, more experimental, Zorawar Kalra, Jiggs Kalra’s son and “The idea is to make local produce the less quantity, more complicated: the scales founder and MD of Massive Restaurants hero of the dish and create something never quite balance and perhaps that is Pvt Ltd. unique,” he explains, adding, “After all, the beauty of food. Sanjeev Kapoor puts what’s the point in being too exotic?” If it beautifully when he says that at least in Modestly Modern not exotic, then definitely experimental, India, tradition is the basis of innovation. One of the ways in which we saw regional taste the ghewar cheesecake with pistachio In a bid to innovate, let’s not lose out on Marwari food don a classier, edgier cape dust and almond chikki at Masala Library tradition.