Not just nacho

A short walk from the much celebrated Americano Chef Alex Sanchez opened doors to Otra his second restaurant in Mumbai With its dark forestgreen walls and round bar in Kala Ghoda Otra pays homage to Sanchezrsquos Puerto Rican heritage He says it was the obvious next step for him and his team ldquoI also have this incredible flavour memory from my childhood of taquerias in San Francisco I think to this day itrsquos my favourite food to eat Irsquom not Mexican but I know these flavours They are ingrained in my mind and thatrsquos also something I want to pay homage tordquo he saysOtra at Kala Ghoda pays homage to Chef Sanchezrsquos Puerto Rican heritage It has a corn tortilla on the menu that is made with masa maise flour grown in India and ground on custommade lava stone molino PicsKirti Surve ParadeSanchez brings forth unique offerings such as masa gnocchi lsquochochoyotesrsquo dumplings made from masa a dough made with fresh corn and they taste nothing like you have ever eaten in the city But there are also dependable bites like the tostadas and tacos that offer a sense of familiarity Sanchez says that the tacos on the menu are the closest to what he has grown up eating The rest is recreated creatively except the pork belly pernil a Puerto Ricanstyle roast pork shoulder ldquoWhen I became more acquainted with my dadrsquos side of the family this would be made for a big family event like a Sunday roastrdquo he says The pernil at the restaurant is made with pork belly instead of the traditional pork shoulder Some ingredients in the sauce it is served with have been switched tooLatin American ingredients and dishes have always existed in India but the cuisine has only now begun to get heat We have long been familiar with the TexMex offerings such as nachos tacos and burritos at iconic restaurants such as New Yorker and Cream Centre Even before that we consumed vegetables that came from Latin Americamdashwhether itrsquos the chillies that spice our food the tomatoes and potatoes that form the base of everyday Indian meals or makai rotis without which sarson ka saag feels incompleteFor centuries the Portuguese travelled the length and breadth of Latin America and introduced these vegetables to their coloniesmdashIndia being one of them In the 15th and 16th centuries we farmed and adapted these vegetables into our cooking Besides many of our cooking techniques in India and Mexico are similar as wellNiyati Rao and Anushka NeyolNiyati Rao Head Chef and Partner and Mihir Lavande Sous Chef and Head of RampD at Ekaa have extensively researched this for the Aztec course on their tasting 50 menu which launched in March The course features a masa tortilla a chocolate mole a traditional Mexican sauce with spices and a lot of complexity turtle beans with spirulina a fermented tomato salsa with red ants from Bengal and a lightly smoked pumpkin for the vegetarian menu or slowcooked pork bellyAs the tasting menu is based on kingdoms of the world their research led them to discover the similarities in cooking in the Aztec civilization and Indian cooking ldquoThe use of spices the way they Latin Americans use in their food to create a complex sauce is something the Indus Valley was also known to do We can trace that the first spicemix was used in protoIndian cuisine from the pottery found in the Indus Valley Next they Latin Americans use starters for flatbreads we use wheat and they use corn The flavour profiles are very similar as well we have quite a bit of an overlap of flavours and even some ingredientsrdquo says Lavande highlighting that ingredients like tomatoes pumpkin beans are all ingredients that Indian cuisines use as well Rao adds ldquoIndians believe in eating very balanced meals therersquos something fresh acidic a carb protein I noticed this in Latin American cuisines too Itrsquos not something you see in many other Western foodsrdquoThe Aztec course in the Tasting 50 Menu at Ekaa had the team extensively research the cuisine and its historySurprisingly Latin American food has yet to catch on widely Perhaps itrsquos the lack of Latin American migration to India or our palettes were introduced to those flavours only via American dinerlike restaurants Head chef Pablo Benitez at Mezcalita in Churchgate says ldquoOne reason is the lack of availability of key ingredients such as tomatillos nopal jicama etc central to Mexican cuisinerdquo Could this be why restaurants stick to tacos tostadas and burritos Benitez adds ldquoThese basics are more familiar and easier to market because they are already popularised globally Mole and other traditional sauces require a deep understanding of the complex ingredients and techniques Additionally the flavour profiles of mole include ingredients such as chocolate and various chillies which might be unfamiliar and challenging for new patrons to appreciate immediatelyrdquoOtra developed a homegrown solution to tackle the need for more ingredients and avoid high import duties The restaurant wanted to make its own masa for tortillas tostadas and more ldquoThe tradition of making corn tortillas from masa goes back to Mesoamerica The more that I looked into it the more curious I became Itrsquos this amazing culinary process and a bit of chemistryrdquo says SanchezPablo Benitez executive chef at Mezcalita makes his favourite recipe esquites or corn soup from Mexico PICSAMEER MARKANDEldquoChef Alex told me lsquoIf you can grow corn Irsquoll open a restaurantrsquordquo says Anushka Neyol founder of Three One Farms in Punjab a seventhgeneration farmer ldquoNinetynine per cent of the corn grown in India is hard and used to feed poultry or processed industrially to make flour starch and so onrdquo she says Tortillas need a medium to soft variety of corn which took several tries to find Neyol worked closely with Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana to find varieties Otra could use for its inhouse masa She says it took over 50 varieties to find the onemdashan indigenous heirloom yellow corn that is around eight years old in India and has a buttery flavour Neyol found this at the university which maintains over 100 varieties of corn At her farm she is now growing more varieties that will be used at Otra The harvest is expected in June giving the restaurant a few colourful varieties of crop to work withThe restaurant is working with other farms to grow more ingredients that are key to the cuisine This includes aji amarillo chillies oregano and cilantro varieties But would growing crops that are not native to India work ldquoYou either grow in small portions or not at all The seed takes almost five to seven years to evolverdquo says Sneh Yadav founder of Tijara Organic Farms in Rajasthan ldquoWe once tried to grow jalapenos in small quantities but the crop did not surviverdquo Yadav found a different variety of heirloom chilli which has a similar texture and flavour to a jalapeno except itrsquos a little hotter As heirloom crops have long adapted to the soil and become part of the ecosystem they yield better produce Yadav says corn has adapted well to India ldquoItrsquos part of the Indian diet in many states In Madhya Pradesh they eat red corn porridge daliardquoMihir Lavande and Hanoze ShroffAt Otra once Neyol sent over the corn chefs got to work They broke the corn and ground it by hand until the custommade lava stone molino arrived from Los Angeles and the masa of their dreams was finally produced to make airy aromatic tortillas ldquoThe challenge that we presented ourselves was to show India a country that has arguably some of the best flatbreads in the world that this has valuerdquo says Sanchez who might have begun growing vegetables once only native to Latin America but therersquos still a lot they importWhether thatrsquos Mexicorsquos agave spirits such as tequila and mezcal or even Nikkei the JapanesePeruvian cuisines restaurants in India are pushing the bar to bring forth Latin American offerings ldquoThere has been a growing global interest in exploring diverse cuisines and experiencing authentic flavours of different regions Mexican cuisine naturally fits this trend with its rich tapestry of ingredients history and vibrant flavours The rise of welltravelled and culturally curious diners has created a demand for genuine Mexican farerdquo says Rizwan Amlani partner at MezcalitaRizwan Amlani Partner MezcalitaThe question remains Are we doing justice to the 33 Latin American countries and their unique cuisines Chef Hanoze Shroff of Juju a tequila bar in Pune says ldquoOur menu is a blend of inspiration and authenticity While most dishes are inspired by traditional Latin American cuisine we do have a few that we prepare authentically For instance our lamb birria taco This balance allows us to introduce new flavours while respecting culinary traditionsrdquo Shroff says that patrons are hungry for more ldquoThis openness makes it a joy to introduce Latin American cuisine to the local palaterdquo he adds