RECIPES

CHEF EXTRAORDINAIRE Rohit Ghai

Ghai has spent a decade at the helm of various Michelin-starred Indian kitchens - having honed his craft at some of the most prestigious hotels and restaurants in India - including The Oberoi Group and the The Taj Hotels.

Michelin-starred chef and restaurateur Rohit Ghai is hailed as one of the UK’s most creative and accomplished Indian chefs. Ghai has spent a decade at the helm of various Michelin-starred Indian kitchens - having honed his craft at some of the most prestigious hotels and restaurants in India - including The Oberoi Group and the The Taj Hotels.

Chef Ghai began his international career working with Michelin-starred restaurant Benares in London in 2008. He then moved on to lead several other Michelin-starred kitchens, including multi-award winning Gymkhana, Trishna, and the JKS Group, where he developed innovative menus and became accomplished in all areas of operations, recruitment and managing teams across different sites. He then went on to launch the Leela Groups’s first London venture, Jamavar, in 2016, where he became the fastest Indian chef to win a Michelin star - being awarded the accolade within ten months of the restaurant’s opening. Ghai then opened Bombay Bustle to critical acclaim.

Ghai’s highly anticipated solo restaurant, Kutir, meaning ‘a small cottage’ in Sanskrit, opened in late 2018, and it received instant success. In 2019, he launched Koolcha - a street food concept offering Indian favorites such as kulchas, Chowpati vada pav as well as innovative additions like the chicken popcorn masala.

His creative and refined cooking has been applauded by celebrities, dignitaries and food critics. His revolutionary, precise and beautifully presented cooking regularly received praised from media. He has been featured in BBC Good Food, Foodism, and Daily Telegraph. Chef Ghai is also often invited to appear on television. He has featured on high profile shows including BBC One’s MasterChef and Channel 4’s Tricks of the Restaurant Trade. He recently released his first cookbook titled, Tarkari: Innovative Vegetarian and Vegan Indian Dishes with Heart and Soul.

RECIPES DARPAN

Fish Moilee

Michelin-starred chef and restaurateur Rohit Ghai is hailed as one of the UK’s most creative and accomplished Indian chefs. Ghai has spent a decade at the helm of various Michelin-starred Indian kitchens.

Ingredients

For the fish marination: For the sauce:

• 50 ml vegetable oil • 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped • 20 gms fresh ginger, julienned • 4 green chillies, deseeded and finely chopped • 10 fresh curry leaves, finely sliced • 150 gms onion, finely sliced • ½ tsp ground turmeric • 1 tsp mustard seeds • 400 ml coconut milk • 4 cherry tomatoes (cut into half) • 4-5 mussels

Preparation

• 2 fillets of seabass (300-400 gms each) • 1 tbsp vegetable oil • 20 gms butter • Pinch of turmeric powder • Ginger-garlic paste • Salt • To make the sauce, heat oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds, garlic, ginger, chillies and curry leaves, then stir until the curry leaves begin to crackle. • Add onion and cook over medium heat for about five minutes until the

BY CHEF ROHIT GHAI

onion is translucent. Add the ground turmeric and salt, and stir for one minute.

• Add the coconut milk and mussels and bring to a boil cooking over medium heat for about six to seven minutes until you get your desired consistency. Then add cherry tomatoes and turn off the heat.

• Marinate the fish with the ingredients. Heat another non-stick pan and add oil, place the marinated fillet in it and turn down the heat to medium.

• Keep an eye on the edges of the fish fillets, when it’s start cooking you will see a light golden color on the edges. Carefully flip the fillet with a spoon and add a knob of butter and baste with a spoon. • Once the fish is cooked, serve along with the sauce and plain rice.

Credits: Courtesy of Rohit Ghai, Charlie McKay

BY CHEF ROHIT GHAI

Paneer Anardana

Credits: Courtesy of Rohit Ghai, Charlie McKay

Ingredients

• 250 gms cottage cheese/haloumi • 2 tbsps finely chopped cashew nuts • 1 tsp finely chopped green chilies • ½ tbsp chopped mint leaves • ½ tsp toasted cumin powder • Salt as per taste • 1 tsp pomegranate powder • 1 tbsp sweet mango chutney • 250 ml rapeseed oil for frying

For the paneer batter:

• 3 tbsps corn flour • 2 tbsps rice flour • 1 tsp turmeric powder • Water • Salt

For the paneer anardana gravy:

• 150 gms fried onions • 50 gms fried cashew nuts • 2 tbsps oil • 2 tbsps yogurt • Water to grind the fried onion and cashew • 100 gms tomato purée (fresh tomatoes blended for purée) • 2 tbsps rapeseed oil • ½ tsp black cumin seeds • 1 bay leaf • 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste • ¼ tsp turmeric powder • 1 tsp Kashmiri red chili powder • 1 tsp coriander powder • ½ tsp garam masala • 1 tbsp pomegranate powder • 1 tsp crushed dry fenugreek leaves • Water as needed • 2 tbsps fresh cream • 2 tbsps chopped coriander leaves for garnish • 2 tbsps fresh pomegranate seeds for garnish • Salt as required For the paneer stuffing:

• In a bowl add sweet mango chutney, finely chopped cashews, green chilies, chopped mint leaves, pomegranate powder, toasted cumin powder, and salt. Mix everything and keep aside.

• Cut the paneer in triangles. Now make a slit in each triangle of cottage cheese piece gently. Place some of the stuffing between the slit using a butter knife. Stuff all the cottage cheese pieces with the filling and keep aside. • In another bowl, add corn flour, rice flour, salt and turmeric powder, and mix well. Add water and make a smooth batter (shouldn’t be too thick or too thin). • Add paneer pieces to the batter and coat from all sides. You can also use a spoon or small tongs to coat the slices. Deep-fry all the paneer pieces in medium hot oil. • Fry till they are crispy and golden brown on both sides. Drain the fried paneer on paper towels, and keep aside.

For the gravy:

• In a blender add fried onion, cashew nut, yogurt and water, and grind to a smooth paste. Keep this paste aside. • Heat oil in a pan. Add bay leaf and black cumin. Sauté till the black cumin starts crackling. Then add ginger-garlic paste and sauté till the raw aroma of ginger-garlic goes away. • Now add turmeric powder, pomegranate powder, coriander powder, salt and Kashmiri red chili powder, and stir. Add the tomato purée, stir and cook for three to four minutes on a low to medium flame.

• Add the fried onion paste. Stir well and sauté for three to four minutes. Then add water; stir and cook on slow heat for about 10-15 minutes. If the gravy splutters a lot, then cover the pan with a lid. • The gravy will thicken, add water if required. Check seasoning and add garam masala, crushed dry fenugreek leaves and cream. Stir till the cream is mixed evenly. • Place the fried paneer pieces in the gravy. Serve paneer anardana hot garnished with fresh pomegranate seeds and coriander leaves along with tawa paratha or chapati.