Restaurant Review : Narayan Dosa, French Bridge (Hughes Road)

Today I stumbled upon one of the city's numerous hidden culinary jewels - eateries which are too tiny to register on the food columnist/ food show anchor's radar but which are firm favourites in their neighbourhood. I'd spent the morning out of office( "on the field" ) meeting customers in South Bombay, so by the time I got back to our Hughes Road office it was late and I was hungry. Luckily, MK, my colleague was waiting to take me out to lunch at a dosa place well-known and well-loved in that neighbourhood.

It was a rainy day with a cool breeze - perfect for a long stroll. But, given the state of my tummy, luckily, Narayan Dosa was just a quick 5-minute walk from our office. Located off Hughes Road (right at the beginning of French Bridge). Narayan Dosa is a blink-and-you'll-miss-it tiny eatery which can seat 12 people at a pinch. In fact, it is so long and narrow (not more than 6 feet wide) it is more akin to one of the secret passageways so beloved of Enid Blyton books than an actual restaurant.

But who cares about the ambience when right at the entrance, you see the chef spreading yummy-looking masala onto the dosas and expertly folding them into crispy golden triangles? Who cares about sitting down at tiny tables boxed in between 2 walls when the air is redolent with delicious scents of garlic and butter and spices? Not me!


The menu boasts of some very radical dosas - Palak Paneer dosa, Chopsuey dosa, Paneer Chilly dosa, Chilly Cheese dosa, to name a few. Of course, there are the usual suspects - masala dosa, mysore dosa, uttapam and the rest of the "normal" brigade, but I'd choose the radical over the conservative any day! MK asked for the chopsuey dosa which is her usual order and I ordered the paneer chilly dosa. In less than 5 minutes, our dosas were served - crisp, golden-brown parcels stuffed with spicy fillings and served with generous dollops of 2 chutneys.

The Chopsuey dosa was filled with a medium-spicy mix of noodles and finely julinenned cabbage, capsicum and carrot. The Paneer Chilly dosa had a huddle of soft paneer cubes in a spciy brown gravy. Both had the perfect balance of crisp outside and soft inside. And both were piping-hot and tasty - perfect when it was so cold and wet outside!




We followed this up with the believe-it-or-not Palak Paneer dosa - smooth, garlicky spinach puree studded with soft pieces of paneer. While I liked all three dosas, the Paneer Chilly and Palak Paneer had the edge over the Chopsuey dosa, IMHO. And this review would be incomplete without a mention of the chutneys - spicy, tasy and and thick with the goodness of real coconut (not the recycled washed-out coconut scrapings so beloved of Udipi restaurants) - one with garlic, and one without. With free top-ups on demand. :)

The prices of the dosas range from INR 25 for the plain dosa and INR 55 for the ultra special variant (Chinese Cheese Dosa, any one?) The service is quick, the food is tasty (and made fresh on order, by definition) and the environs, while no-frills and cramped, are clean and hygienic. So, visit Narayan Dosa and enjoy hot-off-the-tawa dosas while the rain pours down!

Restaurant Review: Candies, Pali Naka, Bandra-West

Life has a way of throwing awkward situations - where we'd rather not be, thankyouverymuch - which must be faced. For instance, a forced dinner with people you'd rather avoid. Or having to eat out when you're trying to stick to a diet. In such situations, in comes Candies to the rescue - the veritable knight in shining armour, astride a white horse. Really, you don't see such thoughtfulness among eateries these days....

Got people who grate on your nerves? Take them to Candies. Candies has that much-dreaded feature of the restaurant world - self service. And before you start picturing the military-like efficiency of McDonalds, stop. Right there. For Candies, while in theory, has a battery of order counters (with name tags of the staff manning them hanging from the ceiling in case you want to cozy up to any of them), the people who take orders themselves go and get the order ready. So more than half the time, the counters are left unmanned as impatient patrons wait for someone to come and take their order. There is a single cashier at the back, who is, at any given time, hounded by at least 4 of the counter staff for the change to be given back to the patrons. This further adds to the wait time. So, despite the menu largely comprising of ready-cooked meals which just need a quick re-heating in the microwave, the minimum order-processing time for any dish is 30 minutes. Of standing at the counter, shuffling your (in my case, considerable!) weight from one foot to another, while you gaze at the rolls, croissants, fried chicken, quiches, lasagne etc kept in the chiller case. Sigh.

But this is a blessing in disguise if you are with people who you'd prefer were far far away! Because either you can escape them by volunteering to get the food from the counter (30 glorious minutes away from the annoying dinner companions!), or better still, get THEM to get the food.........you get the picture. :D

Its Candies to the rescue!! (Sound of trumpets in the background)

Or if you're stuck in the difficult situation of having to eat out when you're on a diet - go to Candies. Apart from standing in the queue for at least half an hour for the main course (and another half hour for dessert - that is a separate counter!), which itself burns calories - Candies gives you the added exercise of having to revisit the counter 2-3 times to check on the progress of your order (if you make the mistake of ordering something that requires actual cooking). There go all the calories you will have piled on during the meal! :P

Is that a bird? Is that a plane? No, its Candies!! (Sound of swoosh in the background)

All this is a shame - especially since the food is yummy (even if it is - or perhaps because it is!-not too calorie-conscious). The fish and chips, pasta, salad and sandwich that we sampled were all tasty. The red velvet cupcake and grape mini tart were fabulous. And the chocolate lava cake was scrumptious beyond words!

What's more, the prices aren't the burn-a-hole-in-your-pocket type either. Dishes start at INR 40 and go up to INR 150. Throw in a lovely ambience (terracota tile-topped tables, old-fashioned park benches, shrubbery outside), a salad bar (don't fool yourself - lots of mayo and salad cream on display) and a cool crowd (though leaning towards the teeny bopper variety), and you have a potential winner. In fact, the crowds that throng the place seem to think that Candies is already a winner.

Now, if only they hire some waitstaff to wait at the tables or order more staff to man the counters....till then, Candies will continue to remain one of the most considerate restaurants I have seen in recent times. :)

Kitchen Experiments: Chicken Kathi Roll / Frankie / Baida Paratha / Nizam's Roll

After having sampled the delicious (albeit very oily) avataar of the Chicken Kathi Roll / Frankie /Baida Paratha / Nizam's Roll at 'On A Roll' at Phoenix Mills (opposite PVR cinemas), I really really wanted to recreate the magic of succulent spicy chicken encased in an egg-swaddled crispy roti at home - without the grease overload.

I got all the ingredients together one rainy Sunday afternoon.....and finished with a flourish in the evening. In other words, its a multi-step, kind of time-consuming process.......though the good news is most of the steps can be completed well in advance to avoid being rushed.


Here's the flowchart for my version of the famous-by-many-names Roll:

Step 1: Prep the chicken filling
Step 2: Make the masala/sauce
Step 3: Prepare the other additions for the filling
Step 4: Make the roti
Step 5: Coat it with egg to make baida, or egg paratha.
Step 6: Assemble the roll
Step 7: EAT!!!

Step 1:
There are lots of variations you can do for this step. I went with shallow-frying Venky's Chicken Seekh Kebab in very little oil till golden brown on all sides.


Possible alternatives that strike me are:

1. Leftover tandoori chicken, torn into bite-sized pieces, or leftover chicken tikka, or leftover chicken cutlets/burger patties cut into chunks

2. Pieces of marinated (marinade: yoghurt, red chilli powder, turmeric, salt, ginger-garlic paste, garam masala/chicken masala/tandoori chicken masala) boneless chicken fried in a pan or microwaved. If you use this option, you can skip Step 2

Step 2:
This is actually an optional step. I went for it cause I wanted the filling of the Roll to be nice and moist.

What I did was fried finely chopped onion and garlic with some garam masala, red chilli powder, turmeric and whole jeera. Added finely chopped tomatoes, a dash of sugar, and let it cooked till the oil started separating from the masala.


In short, a North-Indian version of the famous Tamilian Tomato Chutney.



Easier options can be:
1. Any chutney of your choice (Mint chutney / Raw mango, coriander, mint and jaggery chutney) - any chutney with clean, fresh, spicy flavours

2. Chilli sauce with a bit of tomato sauce added (to balance the heat)

Step 3:
I really think onion complements spicy chicken like nothing else, so was keen to pack it into the roll. I sliced an onion lengthwise and fried the strands in the oil leftover from frying the chicken kebabs. The onions absorbed the spciy, chicken flavours in the oil (I was loathe to waste that flavourful oil - I am thrifty!) so well that all they needed was a pinch of chat masala and a squeeze of lemon juice to make them into an amazing condiment with the chicken.

You needn't get into anything this elaborate, just fresh sliced onion with lemon juice and chat masala will be wonderful too - in fact the crunchiness of raw onion will enhance the texture of the roll.



Step 4:
I kneaded a dough of 1/3 parts maida (superfine flour) and 2/3 parts whole wheat flour (atta) and water (with a touch of oil and salt)

Rolled out thin rotis and partially cooked them on both sides on a tawa (griddle)


You can use tortillas or leftover rotis as well. Do not use parathas preferably cause the roti has to be thin enough to first take on an armour of fried egg and then be rolled around the chicken. A thick paratha will not be flexible enough for this.

Step 5:

Break open the egg(s), add salt, chopped green chillies and chopped garlic. Whisk well.


Pour into a frying pan and press a roti onto the egg before the egg sets into an omelette. This way, the egg will adhere to the roti to make a egg paratha.

You can spoon on some egg misture on top of the roti and then flip it so you have egg on both sides of the roti. I did this, but you can skip it.




Step 6.

This is assembly time!

Spread the sauce/chutney/gravy/masala over the egg paratha.
Spoon the chicken slightly off-centre in the paratha, and add the onion on top.


Roll up the paratha over the chicken-and-onion. If your roll is very thick, you might need to secure it with a toothpick.


Note: If you have done Steps 1 through 4 in advance (Step 5 onwards have to be on-the-spot for the roll to be yummy), re-heat the chicken before use.

Step 7:
Bite into a glorious, piping-hot, glistening eggy paratha laden with spicy chicken, and don't bother to wipe the trickle of masala/sauce/chutney that WILL dribble over your chin.

Seven magic steps to some serious culinary magic. :)

Kitchen Experiments : Chhole Paratha, or how to convert leftovers from a North Indian dinner into a delicious take-away breakfast

Today, after many years, Mom made Chhole - the North Indian (don't know if its strictly Punjabi) dish of chickpeas redolent with tomatoes, onion and fragrant spices. Studded with soft cubes of paneer, Mom's version is finger-licking, plate-wiping good, though I have no clue about how authentic it is. :)


Being Sunday, I had some free time to mess around in the kitchen - and in a happy coincidence, I got a lighting bolt (no, make that two bolts) of culinary inventiveness, so off I started.

First off was Chhole Paratha:

Kneaded wheat flour (atta) and refined/superfine wheat flour (maida) (roughly in the ratio 2:1) and kneaded it with oil, salt and water to make a soft dough.


Mashed the pre-made chhole (leftover from lunch) and crumbled in a boiled potato to the mix. Adjusted the seasoning (salt, green chilly paste and garam masala) to make up for the added volume of the bland potato.


Rolled out a thin (a shade thicker than normal phulka) roti, spread out the mashed chickpea-and-potato mix, and folded the roti over the stuffing to make a neat rectangular parcel.


Cooked the paratha parcel in a frying pan with ghee to help things become all golden brown and sizzling. :)


Served piping hot off the tawa with a dollop of sweet-sour-spicy chutney (mint-coriander-raw mango-jaggery)

Preened as Mom and Dad dug in with gusto. :D

Yay!

The advantages of this technique (can't really call it a recipe) are:

• It transmogrifies leftover heavy curries/gravy dishes into a whole new dish, and make them more appealing/palatable - often I have noticed that I cannot face the spicy dishes I relish at lunch/dinner when they are served at the next meal as leftovers - especially if they have been made in large quantities like for a party.
• It is versatile - you can convert not just chhole, but any other spicy gravy dish (navratan korma, palak paneer, chana masala, and so on) into paratha stuffing when you blend in enough mashed potato/paneer
• You cant eat subzi-roti for breakfast, can you - but parathas go down a treat!
• Packing leftover subzi-roti as an office/school lunch can be a task (water-tight container for the subzi/curry, foil for the roti, spoon to eat the curry with) - a paratha is finger-food if made into a roll wrapped with foil - so much more convenient to eat!

Another technique that Mom suggested was to mash the leftovers of the gravy dish, add oil and wheat flour - keep adding flour till a knead-able dough is formed - roll out the spiced dough into a roti and roast with some ghee in a frying pan. So you are spared the multi-step process of stuffing the paratha, and can make parathas similar to the Gujarati thepla.

So go ahead, make your own paratha mutants...err....I mean variants (:P) And comment on this post with your own recipes!