The secret recipe of guru's arbi

Guru aka Inderjit Singh has never recognised me even once in the four decades Ive known him Ive been to Guru da Dhaba his legendary Punjabi vegetarian diner in Lokhandwala Complex scores of times Ive probably written about him half a dozen times including once in this very column starting from the 1980sMy hosannahs have always been directed towards his redoubtable pieacutece de resistance his rajma whose recipe he regrettably let slip in my presence many decades ago I have shared it without remorse with legions of cooks and readers It has been the single most popular recipe Ive ever postedLegal disputes over his shop forced him to shift his diner over a decade ago to the first floor of Kamadhenu Shopping Complex so it took me a bit of finding It was still an oblong space flanked by fourseater tables Gauche lanky village adolescents still took ordersGuru was still a gnome in an orange turban this time a little plumper An unfamiliar young woman sitting behind the cash counter was introduced as his daughterinlaw His daughters had married and moved on The indomitable Ranjeet Kaur the woman who had married him and turned him into a cook better than herself had passed on The old Sikh a widower now sits alone in his eaterieIts best not to go with expectations His single most striking feature then as now is that he himself doesnt know what he might say nextMany people come here you know he said as though I needed to be put right What will you haveThe usual I said Without missing a beat he shouted back to the kitchen Give the gentleman makai di roti and sarson da saagYou have no idea who I am right I said cancelling the order He stared at me unblinking for a long time not sure whether to surrender or soldier on Then brilliantly he said Those who want justice must wait in lineI wrote about you I saidMany timesHe sprang up suddenly as though electrocuted Its you he said Its really you He called his daughterinlaw and introduced me Its really himHe ran to the back and rummaged emerging with a cutting from the Punjab newspaper Jagbani See His name is Khurana My old friend Khurana He came and sat next to meThe only two dishes I ever order at Gurus are the rajma and the dry masala arbi Gurus is the most elegantly spiced arbi I have ever eaten mdash but I have never been able to tease the recipe out of himArbi the root of the colocasia plant is not easy to cook It gets slimy mushy mashy squishy and unmanageable Because it has no taste of its own there is a strong temptation to smother it with spices But somehow ginger garlic coriander onions the usual suspects do not have happy marriages with arbi It needs compassion a light touch and something tart to cut the blandnessGuru had left and returned this time with a family of diners He was brandishing a cutting from The Telegraph This is my lifelong friend Fonseca he introduced me He has made me famous Read thisBut while he had been away Id quickly asked his daughterinlaw the new kid on the block how Guru made his arbi And god bless her newly married soul she told me allYou need arbis about 12 mediumsized tubers of similar sizeGreen chillies 4 long ones Ajwain 12 tsp Coriander whole 34 tbsps Amchoor mango powder 1 tsp Red chilly powder 12 tsp or to tasteTurmeric a pinch Salt to taste Cooking oil 2 tbspsSkin the arbis and quarter them lengthwise Wash them in cold water several times to get the slime off and then completely boil them removing them while they are still firmRoast the coriander seeds slightly long enough to release their fragrance and then grind them leaving them a little coarse Heat the oil add the ajwain and then the whole green chillies stirring As soon as you see white spots on the chillies add the coriander powder turmeric hing and chilli powderStir for a few seconds and add the arbis Lower the heat to medium and cook for a minute Add the amchoor and cook for another two minutes Serve with hot rotis and ghee nothing more if I were youAs I left fully topped up on rajma and arbis I asked Guru how much I owed You ask your brother for a bill he said shaking his head at my immaturity What sort of man are you Mr GopinathHere viewed from there C Y Gopinath in Bangkok throws unique light and shadows on Mumbai the city that raised him You can reach him at cygopigmailcomSend your feedback tomailbagmiddaycomCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates