Tough love

The lockdown has turned us into cooks We have used up all the easy hacks from three ingredient cakes without an oven Dalgona coffee and the easypeasy banana bread It is time to take the challenge a notch higherOn Maria Gorettis Instagram handle theres a video of her attempting the poached egg As the water whirls the egg white which almost seems like it has dispersed is coming together and wraps itself around the yolk and she lets out a childlike glee In Indian cuisine we rarely poach eggs we have more cooked versions like bhurji and omelette The halffry is as runny as it gets A poached egg is when the egg white cocoons around the egg yolk that is creamy and runny You pick it up with a spoon and place it on your toast with avocado or a bed of creamy spinach with a hollandaise sauce she explainsStill in the process of mastering the technique Goretti says the lockdown is a perfect time to do it In a pan of water you add salt and vinegar The latter prevents the egg white from feathering The egg white is protein and begins to coagulate The whirling of the water is what keeps everything together A poached egg gone wrong is an overcooked egg so nothing to lose she laughsAppamOn the Indian front Goretti has been triumphant with appams Reminiscing about her days as a VJ she recalls a trip to Chennai with her colleague and friend Nikhil Chinappa We checked into the hotel and met for lunch He ordered a spread and it was the first time this Bombay girl tasted appams recalls Versovaresident Goretti drawing our attention to the gruel that plays an important part You soak rice overnight add fresh coconut and stale rice and grind it The residue in the mixer is mixed with water which forms the gruel It is then mixed with salt and yeast and left to ferment You make a paste with the remains of whats in the mix with water cook it cool it and add it once it cools down This is what makes the appams fluffy and light Her only tip is to keep practising any technique you choose to experiment with Some say not to twirl the appam batter twice to retain the lacelike edges It is all about trial and errorPoached egg on toastMeanwhile Navi Mumbai home chef Rhea Mitra Dalal has made more than 20 attempts at perfecting the simple dosa and is still learning Many of my TamBram friends use the readymade idli batter to make dosa at home and I thought Yeh toh ho jayega But getting the perfect texture requires skill I will get to making the batter from scratch but for now it is getting the perfect round with rings of fluff and rings of crisp In my trials I learnt that putting a few drops of oil on my nonstick before pouring the batter makes the dosa clumpy Without the oil the dosa bubbles into a lovely spongy texture in the centre I now drizzle the oil on the top Also you are not supposed to palti flip the dosa that was my lightbulb moment Also I prefer a ladle to pour the batter than the vati that the dosa stallwallas useFor momos we spoke to Dalals friend Doma Wang who runs Blue Poppy restaurant in Kolkata There is nothing more to momo dough except water and maida The dough has to be tough and have elasticity A soft watery texture will not work The halfmoon shape and the money bag shape are the easiest to attempt Ensure the meat quality is good so the filling of mince tastes great We use ginger paste to flavour the onion and mince mixNot just another soupChef Alexis Gielbaum of Slink amp Bardot and Souffle Sil Vous Plait says all stages require patience to achieve the perfect consomme which is a clarified soup that feels much more refined and much less rustic The bones need to be roasted just right to deepen the flavour without having any blackness a sign of carbon which will result in bitterness Gielbaum says The most common mistake while making a consommeacute is to whisk in the egg whites too hard this leads to breaking down the protein Another error is adding the egg whites before your stock has completely cooled to room temperature Both scenarios will result in scrambled egg soupConsommeacuteIngredients1 chicken carcass meat skin and fat removed2 carrots1 leek1 celery rib2 white onions1 head of garlic1 bouquet garni 3 sprigs of thyme 1 bay leaf 5 parsley stems30 ml neutral oil15 litres waterIngredients for raft1 white onion1 carrot1 celery rib2 egg whitesMethodStart by rubbing the chicken carcass with 15 ml of oil and roast at 180 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes or until golden brown Peel and chop the vegetables roughly The carrots must be kept very large as they are most likely to cloud your consommeacute In a large heavybottomed pan sweat the onions and carrots on low heat for 5 minutes Add water followed by all the other ingredients and bring to a simmer and skim the scum as it rises to the surface Simmer for three hours then cool to room temperature Strain this preparation To clarify your consommeacute finely dice vegetables brunoise and put into a small bowl with raw egg whites Put your strained stock back into a large pot and very gently whisk in your egg whites and vegetables Slowly bring your stock back to a simmer Your egg whites and vegetables will coagulate and rise to the top crafting a raft which draws out and collects all impurities Once simmering immediately remove from the heat Cool back to room temperature remove your raft and youll have a perfectly clear consommeacuteFluffy delightRhea Mitra Dalal has been studying Bengali food for a few years now I thought the aamer luchi will be just like the original maida puri but with added mango pulp But it is not so mdash it needs chhana and is kneaded in coconut milk I referred to the recipe by Amish O Niramish Ahaar by Pragyasundari Devi a vintage cookbook on Bengali foodAamer luchiPicRhea Mitra DalalIngredients375 gms maida allpurpose flour2 tsp ghee30 gms chhana or use fresh malai paneer34 cup mango pulpFresh coconut milk as required approximately 34 to 1 cupGhee for fryingMethodTo make the dough mix the chhana into the maida Mash the chhana as finely as you can with your fingers pressing to flatten the granules Add maida a little at a time to the chhana and keep mixing and kneading till all the maida is used up You will end up with a crumbly mixture Add ghee and mix well Add the mango pulp Next add the coconut milk and knead a soft dough Use as much coconut milk as is required The dough should be smooth and soft with no stickiness at all Knead the dough for several minutes work it well Make small balls of the dough and roll out luchis around 6 inches in diameter Heat ghee in a kadai and fry the luchis Hot ghee will ensure your luchis fluff up nicely but regulate the heat to ensure the ghee doesnt burnCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and a complete guide from food to things to do and events across Mumbai Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest news