I resemble a strawberry: Aamna Shariff

Says Aloo Chaat actress Aamna Shariff, who's always in the 'pink'. And yes, she loves aloo chaat, too!

Aamna's thought for food

I am a: Non-vegetarian.

I begin my day with: A glass of carrot/beetroot juice.

My lunch is: A chicken dish, pulses, veggies and two rotis. I carry food from home as much as I can because I love home food. I love yellow dal as well as dal makhni; in veggies I love palak paneer and ladyfingers. I also like having sarson ka saag and makai ki roti. I do like aloo occasionally. I love masala aloo.u00a0u00a0

My favourite food: Chinese. I relish veg fried rice, chicken Schezwan noodles and chicken in black bean sauce. In Indian, I love the traditional butter chicken with butter naan. I also love seafood once in a while.

In sweets I like: Everything. My favourites are dark chocolate, cakes, rasgullas, honey noodles with ice cream and gajar halwa.

My fitness regimen is: Weight training, power yoga and running on alternate days. I am very fitness conscious and usually hit the gym about four times a week. I do power yoga for about an hour thrice a week. I usually eat an hour before training and immediately after training too to make up for the lost calories.

My favourite restaurants abroad and in India are: Abroad, my favourite is The Cheesecake Factory in the US and Royal China, UK. In India, it's Martin's Corner and Brittos in Goa. In Mumbai, my favourites are Golden Dragon, and Dakshin and Peshawari at the ITC Maratha Sheraton.

My favourite cook in my family: My mum. She makes yummy Arabic mutton chops.

My idea of a romantic meal: Him and I with our little picnic basket on an isolated island. Well, it may sound funny but honestly, I would love to see Chinese food in my picnic basket with some soft drinks. I don't drink alcohol. I would like to end the meal with Chinese tea.

My Sunday lunch is: Sundays are always lazy. I like to binge on chaats and junk food like burgers, pizzas and nachos with melted cheese.
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One thing I can't resist buying is: Chaat from the road. Yes I love aloo chaat. In Mumbai, I love chaat at Elco Arcade, Bandra.

I feel guilty after eating: Pizzas and my favourite cheese masala pav.
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My childhood memory of food is: Home-cooked biryani for Eid. One Eid, when I stepped into the kitchen and told all my relatives that I had made the biryani, they believed me. But the truth is it was made by my mum. My mum also played along with me that day and since that day I have earned the reputation of being a fabulous cook.

I think I resemble: A strawberry, as I am always in pink.

My fridge always has: Dark chocolate and cheese.

I always carry: Fruits.

My comfort food: Potato chips.

I am allergic to: Certain types of seafood.

My favourite spice: Tobasco.

My favourite poison: Water.u00a0

My favourite kitchen appliance: Juicer.

My food memories while shooting for Aloo Chaat: The kebabs from Kareems, Delhi were outstanding. My favourite in Delhi is Dilli Hatt. The entire unit of Aloo Chaat lived upto the name of the film and were hardcore foodies. We would wait for the director to announce lunch break so that we could binge on the kebabs as well as the chaats. All of us sat together and ate in a common van. It was a delicious experience.


Aamna's favourite recipe: Mutton chops

Ingredients

1kg mutton chops
3 big potatoes (peeled)
4 big onions
4 big tomatoes
20 cloves garlic
2'' piece ginger
2 tbsp coriander leaves
2 green chillies
Salt to taste
1 tbsp oil


Method

Wash the chops well. Keep it aside in a vessel. Grind together coriander leaves, garlic, ginger and green chillies along with 1 tsp salt (or as per taste). Mix this ground masala with the tomato chops and keep aside for an hour. Cut the onions, potatoes and tomatoes in round pieces. Take a heavy bottomed vessel. Spread the onions at the bottom of the vessel. Evenly spread the mutton chops on the onions, then the potatoes and lastly the tomatoes. Pour 1 tbsp oil and cover the vessel with a lid having some water on it. Cook on a high flame for five minutes. Simmer for about 30 to 40 minutes, stirring gently at regular intervals till chops are done. Serve hot.