Website to help Mumbaikars cook a gourmet meal at home

Weve spent many afternoons over chatter and Hot Apple Tea at the Food For Thought cafe inside Forts Kitab Khana So when we heard that the brains behind this cafe mdash Kapil and Reshma Sanghi mdash had started a new food portal Out Of The Box we were piqued To save time and effort the boxes contain premeasured ingredients and easytofollow recipes of gourmet meals that you can cook in your home kitchenThe menu grabbed our attention with their pure vegetarian spread that ranged from Malaysian Rendang Curry to Parsistyle Dhansak We liked that the ingredients would come chopped and all one had to do was cook it Excited we ordered five dishes mdash Malaysian Rendang Curry each box costs Rs 300 serves two Spanish Paella Soba Noodle Bowl Parsi Dhansak and MochaButterscotch Silk PuddingPlacing an order was hassle free and the boxes arrived the next day some were marked with a please refrigerate tag However when we opened the first box Parsi Dhansak we found whole veggies mdash an onion half a pumpkin a potato a portion of carrot etcThese didnt appear washed and were not chopped When we crosschecked with the portal about the lack of chopped veggies they explained that this was because it would lose nutrients if cut besides it would also give the option to cook these dishes a day later if refrigerated well We agreed with the rationale but the portal should have mentioned this on its website instead of showing misleading chopped images on each boxTASTE TESTThe ingredients and recipe sheet for MochaButterscotch Silk Pudding PicDatta KumbharThe pudding was rich in tasteMochaButterscotch Silk PuddingIngredients With only six premeasured ingredients in this box we thought we could finally conquer our dessertmaking phobia with this puddingCooking time Unlike many complicated pudding recipes available online this was interesting chocolate is boiled through the double boiling technique and easy to follow While the prep time of 1520 minutes matched the gooey pudding needed at least an hour in the refrigerator to settle and that tested our patienceResult Silky smooth in texture and not overtly sweet the pudding was appetising The rich dark chocolate blended well with coffee and butterscotch provided a nice crunch Plus we were overjoyed that it filled a large bowl sufficient for a family of four Valueformoney we sayPreparing Spanish Paella went beyond its measured cooking timeSpanish PaellaIngredients Unlike its exotic name the ingredients for this recipe looked simple bell peppers onion peas garlic parsley olive bay leaf and a spice mix and images on the recipe sheet gave us an idea of the way in which the veggies needed to be choppedCooking time The eightstep process looked easy but we were lost at the first step itself While the onion and garlic needed to be sauteacuteed the medium oil butter or ghee wasnt mentioned and as someone unfamiliar with cooking we had to ask for some inhouse guidance on this Thumbs down Though the recipe mentioned 3035 minutes as the cooking time preparing this dish took an hour the rice taking a little longer to cookResult The morethanprescribed time taken to cook seemed worth it when Spanish Paella turned out to be a delectable fare with strong hints of smoked paprika and a pinch of saffron adding to the flavour However wed suggest you fix a dip or a vegetable as a side dish to make for a hearty mealMalaysian Rendang Curry had a restaurantstyle flavourMalaysian Rendang Curry Ingredients We were a tad overwhelmed by the number of ingredients in the box mdash four to five veggies a curry paste a spice mix sweet soya coconut powder as well as rice that needed to be cooked tooCooking time The recipe required 3035 minutes cooking time and much to our relief we clocked in the same amount including the prep that required some more work mdash squeezing soaked tamarind into pulp mixing coconut powder in water as well as soaking the riceResult The strong aroma of tangy kaffir leaves wafting from the gravy added a kick to our cooking spree The crunchy veggies the curry paste and the spice mix added bagfuls of flavour to the thick coconut gravy giving it a restaurantstyle flavourSoba Noodle Bowl had a nice smoky flavourSoba Noodle BowlIngredients All ingredients including the leafy pokchoy looked fresh when the box arrived By the time it travelled home the sauce mix had leaked a bit The box also contained a chunk of carrot that was not a part of the recipe However we thinly sliced it along with other veggies and it added to the dishCooking time The steps were easy We followed the instructions stepbystep and found that the timings for each process including simmering for the gravy to thicken were inaccurate We took about 10 minutes more than the prescribed limitResult The noodle bowl resembled its representative version on the box We managed to plate it similarly too We liked the smoky flavour that the sesame sauce added to the Soba noodles The gravy was flavourful The quantity was good for three people with an average appetite However we werent sure if the meal qualifies as healthy and at 300 this bowl felt a tad overpricedIngredients of the Parsi Dhansak delivered by Out Of The Box PicDatta KumbharThe Dhansak was accompanied by brown rice and kachumbarParsi DhansakIngredients The box had everything that a vegetarian Parsi Dhansak dish requires including a peeled pumpkin an eggplant and even peeled garlic and ginger Everything came in neatly labeled so identifying spices like fenugreek was not a problem and saved time The vegetables looked fresh the lentils and brown rice packed were also of a superior qualityCooking time The stepbystep recipe sheet made the whole process of cooking Dhansak a better deal especially for someone who has never made it earlier and had eaten it only once before Though cooking time mentioned was 45 minutes we took around 3035 minutes to prepare the dish including the prepResult The Dhansak brown rice and kachumbar looked close to the image on the box While Rs 300 for this dish that serves two would make it overpriced the quantity was sufficient to feed four people and as a result it turned out to be valueformoney and tasty too