VEG OUT
It’s not like I used to stand in my mother’s kitchen, learning how to cook. I used to stand in her kitchen looking for food,” said Vicky Ratnani, tossing up some easy recipes for the ladies of The Calcutta Swimming Club recently. t2 caught up with the celebrity chef...
Are you specially interested in vegetarian food?
I spent a lot of time with vegetarian food because the vegetarian menu is always smaller than the non-vegetarian menu. When I was asked to do a vegetarian show, I had to turn things around. The more stuff I started doing with vegetables, the better it became.
Do you have a favourite recipe from your repertoire?
The recipes that I’m doing today at the club are pretty cool. One is Quinoa Lentil Chaat, which is nutritious too. You can replace quinoa with barley in this recipe. I add a lemongrass and musambi juice dressing. Barley Risotto is a healthy and cheaper option.
What are the latest food trends you’ve noticed?
A lot of regional food is coming in with a quirk. It’s making it to the bar menus as well. Things like Vada Pav Sliders and Chicken Tikka Panini. Peruvian and Korean food are becoming big. People are increasingly buying local ingredients and using them with a twist. Recipes are getting healthier and portion sizes smaller. Meats and heavy sauces are less popular than stir-fried pastas and minimal sauces. People are looking for organic or home-grown ingredients.
What food would you recommend for a healthy diet?
Unsalted nuts (walnuts are the best), brown rice, quinoa, kale, apples, millets (because they have more roughage than wheat).
What are your go-to ingredients?
Whether I’m cooking Indian food or not, it’s garlic, ginger, chillies. I also like a light olive oil or grapeseed oil and the flavour of citrus, so orange juice, lime juice, sweet lime juice.
What’s your fave cuisine to cook?
I cook a bit of everything. In today’s day and age you can’t limit yourself to one thing. I particularly like cooking Mediterranean food. My favourite cuisines to eat, though, are Indian and Japanese.
Ramona Sen
