Celebrate oldest traditional recipes of Mumbai

Chimboriche Khadkhadla

Home chef Kalpana Talpade, known for her venture Kalpana's Kitchen that celebrates the flavours of Pathare Prabhu community, has now launched a recipe book. A collection of close to 200 traditional recipes that are packed with distinct flavours and a lot more love, Kalpana's Kitchen Pathare Prabhu Recipe Book celebrates the culinary heritage of one of the oldest communities of Mumbai.

We caught up with the chef, who shares, "We are a small community, much smaller than the Parsis. While the city is a melting pot of cultures that draws in communities from far and wide to make it their home, our community was lost for a long time."

Shingdya

Elucidating this with an anecdote from 2013, when she participated in the TV show MasterChef India, she narrates, "When I was part of that show, except for chef Sanjeev Kapoor, not many in the mainstream cooking scene knew about our community or our cuisine. That is when I knew, bringing our recipes to the forefront was my calling."

She adds how her recipe book plugs the 100-year-old void that the discontinuation of the Gruhini Mitra recipe book created. "The book published in Marathi had 1,000-plus recipes but dabbled into other cuisines too. The original publishers tried to revive it, but the quality was no longer the same. And so, I felt that my book is much-needed."

Paatvad

While many families still have old Marathi recipe books in tatters that lie on dusty shelves, Talpade's book targets the younger generation from the community with easy-to-access, precisely documented recipes, to carry the culinary legacy forward.

Fans of Pathare Prabhu cuisine know that many of the recipes, especially the spice mixes, are often closely guarded secrets. So, here's an offering for them. "I am going to unveil my recipe of the Pathare Prabhu sambhar masala, which is the heart of our cuisine, in this book, too."

Kalpana Talpade

Log on to kalpanaskitchen.business.site (to buy the book)
Email kalpanatalpade@gmail.com (to order the masala)
Cost Rs 599

Kolambiche atle

Prep time: 5 mins
Total time: 15 mins
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients
15 kolambi (prawn/shrimp)
1 onion
A bunch of coriander leaves
½ tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp red chilli powder
2 tsp Pathare Prabhu sambhar masala
10 pods of garlic
1 inch of ginger
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp tamarind pulp
4 tbsp oil
½ cup of water

Method
Clean the shrimp. Chop the head, tail, and devein. Set aside. Wash and chop the coriander leaves. Chop the onion into thin slices. Add the onion and coriander leaves to a shallow vessel, and crush them with your fingers. Next add oil, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, the Pathare Prabhu sambhar masala, garlic, ginger and oil. Now throw the shrimp into the mix and add water. The tamarind pulp goes in next. Once all the ingredients are in, place the vessel on the flame with a lid. Bring it to a boil by cooking it for the next five minutes. Once done, atle is all set to be devoured.

Did you know?

. Unlike the deep-fried karanji, the community's shingdya preparation is a baked, healthier version. The filling can be coconut and sugar, dudhi halwa or even mutton kheema, for a savoury twist.

. The community veers away from the coconut base in most fish curries, and instead, prepares watery fish stews. "We add minimum spices to ensure that the fish remains the hero."

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