A peep into The Bohri Kitchen

The Story:

December 2014. Munaf Kapadia in an attempt at keeping his Mom, Nafisa, busy, started inviting guests home every weekend at a nominal fee, in return his mother and father would prepare a simple Bohri meal and take the guests through the experience of eating in a Bohri Thal.

1.5 years later, overwhelmed by the response from both our client and the Press, the

 Kapadia family is trying to turn this project into a sustainable business, built on the same principle with home made love, sincerity and the passion to host and feed people.

The day: Sunday September 10, 2017.

Our family, my husband, our 2 daughters, 1 son-in-law and our little granddaughter set out all the way from Kandivali to Colaba to partake in this novel concept. As we climbed the 2 floors a huge door opened up to a well decorated home waiting with open arms to receive the day's guests for the the Bohri Meal. Mr. Kapadia welcomed us with Tender Coconut Water blended with the coconut cream. The first sip was so cool and tasty we forgot the long journey undertaken and were excited to participate in the Bohri experience which was soon to follow.

The Bohris are closed knit community who come from Kutch and Surat. Many outside the community have not entered their homes and thus have little or no knowledge about their food and their customs. Today we were getting a peep into this beautiful world of soft spoken people with a great heart and a desire to introduce themselves and their food to total strangers.

The Thal signifies this very thought. The Thal is a huge metal plate, around which 6-7 members can comfortably share a meal. 

Various condiments are placed in the Thal. In the centre was a cute bowl of salt. There was Pudina Chutney, Dry fruit pickle, Boondi Raita with pineapple pieces, Stuffed Bhavnagari Chilies with crushed peanuts and a bowl of lime pieces.

The main dish is placed in the centre with the condiments around it, the space left after that becomes a plate for the person facing it and the meal is shared by people around the Thal.

Strangers who eat together turn friends by the end of the meal.








Munaf started the service.

The youngest member around the Thal passes the salt to other members. As the salt touches your lips a humble silent prayer goes across to the Almighty to thank him for the meal before you.
The dishes were presented in a specified sequence. The salty one followed by the sweet and interspersed with a variety of drinks to cleanse the palate before the next course.
These are some of the dishes we enjoyed. The starter of the meal was the famous TbK Smoked Mutton Kheema Samosa. Munaf instructed us to eat it the ideal way.(Just bite a corner squeeze a lime and spread the Pudina Chutney) now relish the best samosas in town.

Some of the dishes that followed :

Chicken Shami Kebab

Firni made with Sooji instead of Rice Flour

Rann in Kaju Masala

Khichda

Nalli Nihari

Khichdi

Naan

Saancha Icecream: Sitaphal & Strawberry

Mr. Kapadia and the younger Nafisa who looked after the service with one of the guests.

Munaf and his father.

The lady on the left is Ms. Nafisa Kapadia.

This is Nafisa who creates magic in her kitchen and serves the most authentic tasty Bohri food. As she stepped out of her kitchen I couldn't help hug her. She looked so beautiful, petite and soft spoken. The day's hard work did not show on her face and she lovingly mingled among her guests accepting their praises with a sweet smile.

Where do I start, each dish was perfect. The different Masalas well blended in the right quantity to bring out the beautiful fragrance and the subtle taste of home cooked food with a mother's love. She had used all spices in the right quantity and every dish had a different taste of its own which lingered on our tongue. It was mild, succulent meat cooked so tender it was falling off the bone. We dug into that central plate enjoying the feast and we gently reminded our-self that there were many courses to follow and we should do justice till the last dish.

The last dish was the Sancha Ice-cream for those who have never tasted this before the Taj Ice-cream in Bhendi Bazaar churns out a variety of fresh fruit ice-creams hand made churned in wooden barrels. The taste is so good that people place orders to dispatch it abroad.

In all a great, novel experience every foodie must participate.

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A thousand miles to enjoy Amritsari Khulcha

A couple plans a holiday. But much before the destination is fixed start a hilarious exchange of views and opinions on the proposed spot. Kallol is attracted to the snow clad mountains and snow fall. I am afraid to walk on the slippery snow for fear of hurting my bones when I fall, which has happened in almost all our earlier trips. The beautiful play of sun and shadow on the snow capped mountains has kept the photographer in Kallol busy capturing the right moment.

Today we are senior citizens. The foodie within me was more keen to explore new delicacies in mecca of food Amritsar. In particular I was on the lookout for the best Amritsari Khulcha. They say an Amritsari chef refuses to cook his Khulcha in any other place outside Amritsar, the reason being he has no access then to the sweet water of Amritsar. I had therefore no option but to travel a thousand miles to taste the Amritsari Khulcha. So Amritsar it was for me. Kallol thought of a middle path. Let's first go to Palampur in Himachal Pradesh and watch at a short distance the snow clad mountains and then proceed to Amritsar.

Our hotel in Amritsar was a stone's throw away from the famous Golden Temple. Everyday early morning and late evening we would visit the Golden Temple and enjoy the serene atmosphere.

The day was spent tasting different delicacies we had so meticulously studied and gathered through food sites and the internet.

Just outside our hotel there was a row of battery operated auto-rickshaws. Disciplined drivers eagerly waited for their turn to ferry passengers. I think they had an unwritten rule. Whoever was booked first by the hotel guest would get the preference of ferrying the same passenger through their entire stay. We got the services of one Joginder Singh Pehelwan. True to his name he looked more like a pehelwan than an auto driver. As we came to know later this strong exterior of the pehelwan had a soft heart.

 

It was our 2nd last day in Amritsar. Our itenary mentioned Amritsari Khulcha. Since only 1 meal was allotted for this dish I had decided to taste the best this city had to offer. A detailed study of the various joints, interaction with the locals on this subject, I even got the opportunity to speak the owner of the famous Kesar Da Dhaba where we had a meal a day earlier. Almost all had advised the same destination. A Dhaba near chungi wala corner.

Our day started with our visit to the temple. We bowed to the Guru and prayed for our and our family and friends well being. Some friends messaged me "your every wish shall be granted here". This is the Holiest of Holy places. We walked out feeling blessed. Kallol asked me to relax on the bench and he went to an ATM to withdraw cash. He returned in a few minutes with a worried expression. NO CASH a board hung at the ATM door. Our cash in hand was almost over. We had a flight to catch next evening. We walked towards our hotel discussing the options before us should we not get any cash, a local at the ATM had told him most ATMs were dry. This was the month of February 2017.

Joginder Singh Pehelwan was waiting for us. He read the anxiety on our faces and was curious to know our problem. On knowing it was for a few thousand rupees in pure Punjabi he said "no problem", I will take you to an ATM, there are hundreds on the way". If you fall short of cash pay me at a later date. With his assurances we hopped on to his auto-rickshaw. Now the Khulcha was forgotten what mattered was an ATM with cash. Through lanes and by lanes we drove through the flood of humanity, markets with sellers and buyers, handcarts, two wheeler and cars. It was an organized chaos. Each person unmindful of the presence of the other human or cattle. Through all this our eyes were fixed on spotting the ATM. Even Joginder Singh Pehalwan had his eyes off the road and on the side walk looking for an ATM with cash. Today was a bank holiday. The cheque  book in our purse was of no help. We just realized what it is to have an empty pocket when your bank account has the requisite cash.
I personally never had the experiance of standing in long queues outside bank and searching for an ATM that had cash during the demonetization period. Stories of people's problems was what I would read in newspapers and watch on TV. Today I was a victim of that cash crunch 3 months after demonetization.
As the signal turned red Joginder Singh Pehelwan informed us that we were closed to the dhaba. Within minutes we got off and saw a small dhaba, 2 tables and a few plastic chairs. This was our destination for one of the best Amritsari Khulchas in this city.

A mud platform with a tandoor fitted into it, just 4 employees worked in this place. One filled the atta balls with the potato mixture, the next patted it in to around it and garnished it with some herbs and slapped it on the tandoor wall. In a few minutes the hot khulcha was out and the 3rd spread a generous dollop of butter, The fourth would plate it with a bowl of chana, some chatni and an onion salad and place it before the hungry customer.
The first morsel was heaven. Can a simple dish like this give such heavenly pleasure. I was enjoying every bite of it. All ingredients in this meal are available all over the world, then what was it that gave this unique taste. As belived by all chef it is the sweet water of Amritsar. That just why you have to travel a thousand miles to taste this simple but tasty khulcha.

I could not get the recipe from the Dhaba as they were all busy serving hungry customers.

Back home I looked around for the same recipe to replicate the dish in my kitchen and serve it to my loved one. The recipe goes like this:

AMRITSARI KHULCHA & CHOLE:

• 1 Cup Chole soaked overnight.
• 1 Tea bag.
• 1 Tsp Jeera powder
• 1/2 Tsp Chilli powder
• 1 Tsp Dry Mango Powder (Amchur)
• 1 Bayleaf
• 1/2 Tsp Ajwain seeds
• A pinch of Hing
• 1 Tsp Ginger paste
• 1 Onion ground to a paste
• 1 Chopped green chilli 
• 1 Medium Tomato pureed
• 1 Tomato roughly sliced
• 1 Medium Potato boiled cut in to 8 pieces and deep fried
• 2 Tsp Lime juice
• 3 Tbsp Oil
• Salt to taste

Dry Spice:

• 1 Tsp Jeera
• 4 Cloves
• 8 Black peppercorns
• A small piece of Mace
• 1 Black Cardomom
• 1/2 inch Cinnamon stick
• 1 Tsp Coriander seed
• 2 Dry Red Chilli

Dry roast all the above ingredients and grind to fine powder

Garnishing:

Chopped coriander leaves green chillies and ginger julians.


METHOD:

Boil Chole with tea bag and 2 cups water in a pressure cooker.
When cooked strain the mixture, throw away the tea bag and preserve the liquid for further use.
In a kadai heat oil add hing, ajwain seeds and bayleaves. Saute for a few seconds, add onion paste and cook till it turn light brown. Add tomato puree and cook till oil separates, add boiled chole, chilli powder and 1 teaspoon of the ground spices, dry mango powder, salt, and half of the reserve liquid, mix well and cook for 5-7 mins. Add tomato slices and cook for 2 mins. Add the fried potatoes mix, remove from flame, add lime juice and stir well. Garnish with coriander leaves, green chilli and ginger julian.

AMRITSARI KHULCHA:

Ingredients:

• 1/1/2 Plain flour (Maida)
• 1/1/2 Wheat flour
• 1 Tsp Baking powder
• 1/4th Tsp Soda
• 2 Tbsp Oil
• 1/2 Tsp salt
• 1 Tsp Sugar
• 1/2 Cup Curd
• Water as required

Stuffing:

• 2 Boiled Potatoes and then grated
• 2 Chopped green chillis
• 2 Tbsp chopped coriander leaves
• Salt to taste
• 1/2 Tsp Amchur
• 1 Tsp Chat Masala
• 1/2 Tsp Red chilli powder or more according to taste

Topping:

• Chopped Coriander leaves
• Nigella seeds (Kalonji)

Method:

In a mixing bowl add both flours, baking powder, soda, salt and sugar. Whisk well. Make a well in the centre add oil curd and water and knead into a soft dough. Cover dough with wet muslin cloth and set aside for 2 hours.
Mix together all ingredients under stuffing and divide into 4 balls.
Take an orange sized ball from the dough into a size of a Puri. Place one portion of the stuffing in the centre, bring together all sides and roll into a medium thick roti. Top the roti with a sprinkle of Kallonji and Coriander leaves, apply some water on top of this khulcha and put it on a hot tava wet side down so it sticks to the tava. Cook on medium flame. WQhen Khulcha starts to puff up turn tava upside down and cook Khulcha on direct flame. When cooked put a dollop of butter and serve with lacha onions, green chutney and chole.

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A nostalgic evening

When the Mother decides to leave her kitchen for a while and travel, she weaves her story to places and local food. That's just why I thought let's start the Travel Food Blog.

The kitchen had been my laboratory for many years. Several discoveries/experiments were made by me and enjoyed by my family and friends. The heat of the kitchen would make me tired and I would feel like running away from there to live in some cooler places and enjoy new activities.

Today, was one such day.

Today the heat was unbearable. A cold shower was the only answer. I rushed out of the kitchen saying aloud to myself my favorite line " Ba Retire Thai Che".........Really ? My husband, Kallol, jocularly replied, now I know what you will say hire a cook. Since most of your friends enjoy the services of a cook. It's been 40 years I yelled back. Our daughters are married and gone. I have fed all of you every day of the year. Now now calm down. You need a glass of cold water he said. Relax, he handed me a glass of cold water. You need some entertainment. My anger was mounting, not that TV again. Ok. Will a play in an auditorium help ? You serious ? I asked. Yes he nodded. Utkarsh, our friend from Doordarshan, Mumbai, were we all worked in the initial years is one of the artistes in the play. We had just revived our contact with some old Doodarshan friends and were enjoying a few get together. Utkarsh is a great actor, a veteran on Gujarati and English stage. 

The play we were going to watch is Girish Karnad's "WEDDING ALBUM", a delightful comedy about love & longing in a Shining India. The play is directed by Lillete Dubey and Cast: Utkarsh Muzumdar, Suchitra Pillai, Ira Dubey, Meher Dar, Deepika Amin, Rajev Paul & others.

Wow. But you remember my old request about the "gajra" a husband buys for his wife when they attend a Marathi play. I had always enjoyed this romantic gesture of a couple. Kallol laughed. He could never associate with 'gajra' as a love gift because he was a Bong. He however kept up the amusement by saying a) this is an English play b) you have short hair so the "gajra" is out.

The show in Bandra west and we live in Kandivali west.. The distance being about 20

kms. Tickets mention No Late Entry. Mumbai is a mad house these days with construction in full swing on the main roads for the Metro layout. We would had to leave home at 4pm to reach just in time, normally it would take an hour. Our next best option Mumbai's lifeline the grand old Indian Railways reaching you in minimum time at our destination. To be precise 45 mins for a sum of Rs. 210.00P per return ticket in Iclass. Journey was smooth and comfortable. Bandra, the suburb where I was born and lived till the date I got married, my home my playground. At Bandra station as we waited for our turn to get an auto rickshaw I saw the 'old lamp post'.......Rewind 55 years my brother and I played round and round it with our grandmother watching over us to the song 'gol gol rani, ita ita paani'. The horn of the incoming train reminding us that our Aai had arrived from work and we would rush to the platform. Kallol nudged me to get in the rickshaw and a quite station then, now turned into cacophony of peoples and vehicles. As we drove down the roads I could barely spot the places I once walked through. My thoughts were disturbed by the rickshaw driver telling me my destination had arrived when by fault he had taken us to St. Andrews Church and not St. Andrews Auditorium. In another 10 mins we crawled to the auditorium. Enjoyed the play.

The journey homewards was more hilarious. With Bandra's swanky light shops and our feeble vision, at 11 pm we could not get an auto rickshaw that could ferry us to Bandra station. So we walked and reached the bus stop. Kallol insisted I would not be able to board a bus because of my stubborn knees, but by then my heart and brain was strong and as I saw the incoming bus, with all the determination in my mind I climbed the steps and we reached the station. The train journey back home was fast.

And a hot meal Shepherd's Pie with a glass to cheer made our outing very special.

Shepherd's Pie

RECIPE

Ingredients: 

• 500 gms mutton mince
• 250 gms potatoes.
• 3 onions finely sliced.
• 1 tsp Rosemary.
• 1/2 cup red wine.
• 2 carrots chopped.
• 1 tbsp celery chopped.
• 1/2 cup tomato puree.
• 1 tsp coarsley ground pepper.
• 1/2 cup chicken stock.
• 2 tbsp worchestershire sauce.
• 2 tbsp oil.
• 4 tbsp butter.
• 6 tbsp milk.
• 1 egg yolk.
• Salt to taste.

Method :

• In a pan heat oil add sliced onions and stir fry till it turns pink.
• Add mutton mince, salt, pepper, rosemary, carrots and celery, stir for 2mins.
• Add wine, and let it cook for a minute.
• Add stock and tomato puree and cook till the meat is tender and the liquid has dried out.
• Add worchestershire sauce and mix.
• This process should take 30 mins.
• Keep the mixture aside.
• Heat a pan add  4 tbsp butter and 6 tbsp milk, stir till the butter dissolves with the milk.
• Keep this warm, aside.
• Boil the potatoes in a pressure cooker and when hot mash them.
• Add salt, pepper, egg yolk and the warm milk, stir vigoursly.
• Take a pie dish, place the mixture.
• Now with the help of a pipping bag pipe the potato mash over the meat.
• Preheat the oven to 250 deg C.
• Bake for 10 mins or till potatoes turn a golden brown.

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Shepherds Pie

There is a Birthday in the family. My husband's cousin. Sounds like a distant relative. To tell the truth he is my friend. We live miles apart, I in Mumbai and he in Kolkata. There are many wonderful moments we have spent together when we met at family gatherings. Lots of gossip and great food. Yes he is a foodie. His love for food begins with the shopping. He does it, shops for the best, with all the knowledge at his command. At family gatherings he participates in all menu plannings with the authority of a professional. This goes as far as Bengali food. For continental he turns to me. And that's how the topic of Shepherds Pie propped up. It was just a few days earlier he mentioned that I should post this recipe of Shepherds Pie. A humble dish prepared from leftover meat and mashed potatoes which satisfies the hungry Shepherd and is economical on his pocket.

This then is for Sumit Maitra whom I address as "Sumitda", on his birthday. Hoping the aroma wafts  through the air to his nostrils and fills his stomach.

 Happy Birthday once again.

Ingredients: 

• 500 gms mutton mince
• 250 gms potatoes.
• 3 onions finely sliced.
• 1 tsp Rosemary.
• 1/2 cup red wine.
• 2 carrots chopped.
• 1 tbsp celery chopped.
• 1/2 cup tomato puree.
• 1 tsp coarsley ground pepper.
• 1/2 cup chicken stock.
• 2 tbsp worchestershire sauce.
• 2 tbsp oil.
• 4 tbsp butter.
• 6 tbsp milk.
• 1 egg yolk.
• Salt to taste.

Method :

• In a pan heat oil add sliced onions and stir fry till it turns pink.
• Add mutton mince, salt, pepper, rosemary, carrots and celery, stir for 2mins.
• Add wine, and let it cook for a minute.
• Add stock and tomato puree and cook till the meat is tender and the liquid has dried out.
• Add worchestershire sauce and mix.
• This process should take 30 mins.
• Keep the mixture aside.
• Heat a pan add  4 tbsp butter and 6 tbsp milk, stir till the butter dissolves with the milk.
• Keep this warm, aside.
• Boil the potatoes in a pressure cooker and when hot mash them.
• Add salt, pepper, egg yolk and the warm milk, stir vigoursly.
• Take a pie dish, place the mixture.
• Now with the help of a pipping bag pipe the potato mash over the meat.
• Preheat the oven to 250 deg C.
• Bake for 10 mins or till potatoes turn a golden brown.

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