Michelin star chef Vikas Khanna’s book Savour Mumbai highlights the co-existence of diverse cultures and culinary identities that has always been the hallmark of the city. On a day-long trip to Delhi, he shared stories of his childhood while cooking some simple recipes and visited Jama Masjid to relish the iftar fare. By Divya Kaushik
If you rate people for their humble attitude and for being down-to-earth, then you would surely give this Michelin star chef full marks. And you might end up being generous and giving some bonus points for the gift of gab that he possesses. In the last few years, Vikas Khanna has graduated a million times not just as a chef but as a person, who knows that more than food it is memories and experience related to the food that counts. That is why he loves sharing his stories of how as a kid he stole dry fruits from the guest’s plate and how particular was his grandmother while using cardamom or cashew nuts in the home made desserts. In a nutshell things all Indians would relate to. These stories were definitely an important ingredient to each of the five dishes that he cooked at The Imperial. The chef had multiple agendas on his one-day trip to Delhi. launching his book Savour Mumbai, A Culinary Journey Through India’s Melting Pot was one, cooking a few easy recipes and reminding the guests present there that the magic lies in simplicity and being desi is the trick to come up with the best was other. And the last but equally important one was to visit the Jama Masjid, sample the iftar fare and feel the divinity through the scrumptious delights served in the lanes. There were many who wanted to accompany him, but as is said that most of the great and unusual experiences come to you when you are only with your own self, Vikas wanted to be with himself, talking to people who are known for their kebabs and curries across the world.
Vikas shared that street food is the most honest expression and part of any city’s culture and street food of Mumbai is an important part of his recently launched book. Though the book is divided into sections as per his favourite eating joints in the city and each section lists the recipes of his favourites that can be easily cooked at homes, he has made a special section dedicated to the street food. “Earlier that was not the plan but then what is Mumbai without his missel pav, vada pav and pav bhaji. I have listed the best that I had in the city and some will be revelation to the readers. like hari mirchi ki ice cream at the Bachelorr’s. None of my walks at the Marine Drive is complete without this ice cream. Then there is mucchad wala paan and sardar ji ki pav bhaji…the list is endless. When I eat on streets I am often told to be careful but I tell people that this food can never make me sick, it is the oversterilised food in the West that makes me sick,” laughed the chef, who has had the privilege to cook for President Barack Obama and he shared that he soon planning to have a cook up with Obama as Michelle Obama claims that her husband cooks kheema curry. “He apparently had a Pakistani roommate while he was at Harvards, so he know about Pakistani food. Michelle says that he will beat me at it, but I will be cooking the keema in the desi style, like my biji cooked,” added Khanna.
The chef told us that his first introduction to the Mumbai food was through his aunt who visited Amritsar. “For us Surinder Bua’s visits to my home in Amritsar meant much more than just time with her. They were our chance to see the world through her eyes. We sat spellbound as her tales unfolded. She was a gifted cook in addition to being a wonderful storyteller, and she loved feeding the family. Sometimes she made dishes we had never tasted before, from various regions of India. The effect on my culinary imagination was profound. She introduced me to the fact that Mumbai effortlessly absorbs the culture of various regions and religions and that is the speciality of its food,” he shared.
His first trip to Mumbai was while his brother was working there. later he was training with the Sea Rock Sheraton Hotel, Bandra in 1993 and lived in Mumbai for two months. “My affair with the city and its food continued in multiple ways and one thing I often thought about was why people only talk about Mumbai either as a financial capital of India or to be a home of Bollywood stars. Why nobody talks about the food. I was determined to put the Mumbai’s cuisine on the map. The seamless coexistence of the diverse culture and culinary identities that have always been the hallmark of the city are presented through the book,” he said.
Apparently, this was the first book that Vikas started to write but the desired presentation and compilation took time. “But nothing is late in India, we can start whenever we want,” he quipped and said he hopes to bring out a book on each city of India. May be, we will soon have Savour Delhi. The chef and author of books like Flavors First: An Indian Chef’s Culinary Journey, My Great India Cookbook and The Spice Story of India will soon come up with the book on the food of Amritsar. “It will bring out the facts, legends of the food before and after Partition, but will be only about Amritsar,” he informed.
photos Pankaj Kumar