Merry Christmas, Stories in recipes

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas! May the season bring for you the perfect recipe of good health with wealth, prosperity and wisdom. Like each menu is made of a composition of different dishes, may the menu of your coming year be filled with exciting and fulfilling moments.

Menu planning for a chef is an entirely different story. We know the clientele but we really do not know them personally (with a few exceptions of the regular patrons). So we try to include dishes that have a story or a background with the hope that at least some of them will identify with it. Take the case of Lalla Mussa Dal which is on the TYC menu. It is a hot favourite.

There is an interesting story behind how this dal came into being. Pre independence when my parents used to stay in Pakistan they used to often travel from Lahore to Karachi. The first station that the train halted in the morning was called Lalla Mussa. This place was famous for its delicious food and specially the dal. My father, who was a complete foodie, replicated the dal at home and we all simply loved it. So when I was planning the menu for The Yellow Chilli I said to myself that this dal should be included in the menu. It was indeed a wise decision. In fact we are doing this dal for our guests today (a day of meetings for the channel) along with Dum Paneer Methi Bhurji, Nizami Tarkari Biryani and Kerala Parantha. Starting with Shammi Kabab and Fried Colocassia and ending the meal with Mango Phirni.

So till the week ends and a new one begins, have a party!

Sanjeev Kapoor