In this short life of mine, I have seen it all. From the early Chinese restaurants of my childhood serving Kolkata style Cantonese food to roadside stalls called ‘Hungry Eyes’ and ‘Empty Stomach’ frying vegetable and paneer stuffed momos, Gobi Manchurian and Chinese Bhel Puri and ushering the era of crunchy noodles mixed with bean sprouts, onions and Imli chutney.
Then came the ‘Mexican Wave’. If we could do Chinese Bhel, how far behind could Mexican Bhel be? Not very. All it took was a bunch of tortilla chips, any kind of salsa, mixed with beans, potatoes, bell peppers, corn, cilantro, jalapeno, salt, cilantro, spice it with chilies, salt and cumin seed powder, lay out the mixture and douse it with some cheese sauce and garnish with freshly chopped ‘dhania’.
I watched this happy acceptance of Mexican food, first being embraced and then being smothered by Gujarati cuisine where corn tortilla found themselves as a version ‘Makke di Roti’, wheat tortilla as Chapati, a variety of Salsas turning into chutneys and kachumber, even Gorditas, which are a type of Mexican street food snack, thick corn tortillas stuffed with delicious Mexican fillings, like refried beans, cheese, potatoes, chorizo, chicharróns (pork rinds), braised pork al pastor, carnitas, carne asada, or even shredded chicken. In our world we convert Gorditas into stuffed parathas, stuffed with refried beans, cheese, potatoes, paneer, gobi, mooli, onions, methi or butter chicken.
Then came the Italians, and even Mussolini wouldn’t have been able to withstand the onslaught of the Indians. We took their pizzas and topped them with paneer and chicken tikka, green chillies, onion, capsicum and coriander.
We also took the lasagne, a dish that made its grand entrance in Naples, Italy during the Middle Ages in the 14th century. A rustic dish made from stacked layers of pasta alternating with fillings such as ragù, béchamel sauce, vegetables, cheeses, and seasonings, and we, just short of violated it. We took a good solid rustic lasagne and created the ‘Paneer Lasagne with Kadai Sabzi’. Let me with glee tell you what goes into it.
Pasta, of course, onion-tomato masala, a mixture of vegetables including potatoes, capsicums, zucchinis, carrots, French beans, turmeric powder, coriander powder and red chilli powder, ginger, raisins, pistachios and cashew nuts cheesy white sauce and finally half a slab of grated Amul cheese.
We have taken cuisines from all over the world that we have wholeheartedly made our own. We have Khichdi Arancini, Paneer Pesto, Palak Paneer Ravioli, Mozzarella Kulcha, Tikka Masala Pasta made with Linguine, garam masala, cashew nuts, ginger, red onions and Makhani Masala Pasta. We can even end up with Masala Doodh Panna Cotta for dessert.
Oh I can go on and on. Pav Bhaji Noodles, Tandoori Queso and Pav Bhaji Nachos, Idli Manchurian, Urad Dal Broccoli Vada, Tofu Tikka Masala in a bowl, Chinese Fried Rice with Tandoori Raan, Spicy Rajma Rice with Marinara Sauce, and how can I miss the Spaghetti Sandwich? Spaghetti and ground chicken, cooked in tangy spaghetti sauce and then stuffed in bread, then put into a toaster, finished with a garnish thin sev, pomegranate seeds and served with green chutney and tomato ketchup.
And for the grand fusion of half of Europe and Asia’s dishes all made Indian, you can try the Tandoori Pasta, Vegetable and Cheese sizzler in tomato Makhani sauce with fragrant rice, topped with peri-peri fries and onion rings tossed in soya-barbecue sauce.
Wait, wait, I am not done. Next week, I have a column for you about the Indianisation of Sushi. Starting with Dal Chawal Sushi. But that’s for the next time.
Kunal Vijayakar is a food writer based in Mumbai. He tweets @kunalvijayakar and can be followed on Instagram @kunalvijayakar. His YouTube channel is called Khaane Mein Kya Hai. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent the stand of this publication.
