Chef Kunal Kapur: Fresh ingredients is the key to elevate food's taste

Having created a culinary buzz in Dubai and New Delhi Chef Kunal Kapur arrives with lsquopincodersquo fever in Mumbai To test the waters we pulled up at his popup event ldquoPincode to Platesrdquo hosted by Virat Kohlirsquos One8 Commune in JuhuldquoWhy pincoderdquo we ask the chef He tells midday ldquoBy using pin codes weve curated a selection of legacy dishes which echo nostalgic flavours of heritage Indian cities Kapurs menu is nothing short of a culinary journey through the diverse Indian kitchens akin to holding a passport to myriad palatesAnd quite literally so Each dish on the menu was accompanied by a pin code For instance Champaranrsquos iconic mutton curry had the cityrsquos postal pin code ndash 493992 The crispy chicken strips coated with podidust signalled Thiruvananthapuramrsquos pin code ndash 695036 Another variation was Tawastyle mutton seekh kebab hailing straight from the heart of Karol Bagh in Old Delhi 110005The menu doesnt just offer a wide array of dishes it presents a journey through various cooking techniques that have shaped Indian cuisine over the centuries Dhungar from the central and northern regions infuses smoky flavours Khurchan from the west and north for that delightful crispiness while Bhapa from the east and northeast offers tender fragrant delightsSecrets from the Pincodersquos kitchenDelving into the intricacies Chef Kapur reveals that his vision for ldquoPincodesrdquo serves a dual purpose Primarily he intends to safeguard the authentic timehonoured flavours from lesserexplored pin codes And secondly he wants to charm the wellseasoned globetrotters with inventive and contemporary culinary offeringsTo fathom the quintessence we scrolled through the pedigree dishes birthed in traditional Indian cities The first platter to arrive was Kanpuri Shami Kebab Bun Tikka which summarised the sterling flavours of minced meat cooked with passion in the Awadh Eastern Uttar Pradesh region Kapur shares that while Lucknow is famous for Galawati Kababs finely minced mouthmelting meat cutlets it is the shami kababs that stand out as the true gemsKapur shares with us the culinary secrets he acquired from the Nawabs kitchen in Lucknow ldquoFor authentic shami kababs you cook the meat first and then you handpound it You absolutely never use a meat mincer to make a patty It is the handpounding that makes the kababs juicy moist and seamlessly dissoluble in our mouthsrdquoElaborating on the ingredients he mentions that the proportion of chana daal is supposed to be 1090 90 being the minced meat In Lucknow the kababs are never deep fried but tawafried unlike what you find in Mumbai kitchens ldquoWhere people goof up is when they assume shami kabab to be a cocktail snack They fry shami kababs and serve it with chutneys at their soirees ndash which becomes an innovative dish and not the authentic dish itselfrdquo remarks KapurThe debate on food innovations is a heated one that is capable of touching the chefrsquos raw nerves And rightfully so ndash chefs are the medium through which culinary practices get passed on from generation to generation As custodians of ageold gastronomic wisdom they preserve the culinary heritage that evolved in Indias expansive landscape marked by cultural diversity but united by a shared passion for foodIn order to spice things up we quiz him Shami or galawati To which he says both ldquoI am able to enjoy the variations given my hunger and moodrdquo We quiz him again on a pro tip to enhance any dish Kapur blurts without thinking ldquoFreshness of ingredients It doesnrsquot matter what recipe you choose if your ingredients are raw and crisp ndash your dish will automatically stand outrdquoFancy a chaat HummuslsquoPincodesrsquo is not just a symphony of Indian kitchens Through this eclectic menu Kapur has made an effort to infuse flavours from the Middle East and the Levant Since the first lsquopincodersquo was launched in Dubai he was inclined to pick up their signature delicacy ndash The hummus In a rather radical move chef Kunal has dished lsquoChaat Hummusrsquo which is the marriage of taste budstimulating flavours from the core of India and DubaiNaturally we had to try it out The Chaat Hummus 122002 arrived with a chickpea spread twisted with the tangy raw mango infusion The hummus was flavoured with chaat and chutney topped with farsaan and papdi on the side A bite into it was a series of realisation reflection and revelry For a moment we forgot what we were chewing and just soaked in the flavour outburst Amaze would be an understatement for the unique blend of papdi dipped in creamy hummusOn a personal level Chef Kunal loves to devour chaat So we spice things up again with a rapid one Delhi chaat or Bombay chaat And bang came the answer ldquoDelhi does it betterrdquo We held a moment of silence for obvious reasons At this point there was no going back and the mother of all chaats ndash The Delhi chaat pulled a 1 in the timeless trialHowever the loyalists will remain loyalists and for legitimate reasons We have grown up consuming food prepared with localised techniques and thereby acquired tastes over a period of time Hence every nook and corner will find patrons for the customary regional flavoursCommenting on Mumbairsquos cosmopolitan nature Kunal says that we cannot really typecast the cuisine of Mumbai ldquoJust like the heart of Mumbai we have to keep the cuisines wide open Here the acceptance level for newcomers communities and food palates is exceptionally high The city has historically been a melting pot of cultures languages and traditions which imparts it a diverse flavour This necessitates a mixed gastronomical experience that I wish to serverdquoEvery food item on the menu whispers the scents and hues of Indiarsquos culinary geography Springing from Kapurrsquos travels spanning two decades he tells us ldquoThe menu is an attempt to map delectable bites across 6 preIndependence era regions ndash There is a strong influence of Old Delhi there is a bit of Hyderabad and Lucknow We have also secured the iconic Punjabi Chole Chur Chur Naan A little bit of Bengal and a lot of Keralainfused flavours find a place on the spreadrdquo