Indulge in regional cuisines by ace home chefs this Gatari Amavasya

The menu boasts of meaty options including Ghee roast chicken

Hailing the beginning of the month of Shravan, when a large section of Maharashtrians practise several culinary restrictions, Gatari Amavasya calls for eating to your heart's content before the abstinence begins. And this year, amid the pandemic, upcoming food tech platform Bombay Bhukkad is hosting the Gatari Food Festival, bringing together five cuisines - Keralite, Goan, Bohri, Kolhapuri and Mangalorean, prepared by four home chefs - to the table.

The platform that is set to launch later this year, is aimed at amplifying the reach of home chefs, shares founder Tanmay Bahulekar. The entrepreneur, who shuttles between Mumbai and Pune, tells us that he's always been passionate about regional cuisines. "Bombay Bhukkad came to life as an Instagram page almost eight years ago like a personal food diary. I order from home chefs a lot, and look at small food businesses as a subculture. And to really understand this subculture, one has to work with home chefs from ground zero," Bahulekar explains, adding that food festivals are a step in this direction. "We felt that Gatari was a perfect time to bring together hyper-local F&B concepts. Other food fests including Shravan Special, Maharashtrian Mutton Trail and The Mountains Are Calling are underway," he adds.

Tanmay Bahulekar

The festival will play out over three days in Mumbai and Pune. In Mumbai, they have on board Aiyo, Patrao! (Keralite and Goan cuisine), Chef With Six Pack Abs (Bohri), Every Aroma (Kolhapuri) and Suvarna's Kitchen (Mangalorean). Each day's menu, comprising starters, mains and desserts, packs in multiple options. On offer are delicacies such as Kerala fried chicken, mutton loncha, thecha chicken wings, prawn samosas, nalli nihari, Bohri Russian cutlets, prawn balchao, payasam, and more. "Since people indulge in meat during Gatari, we wanted the menu to be regional, meaty and indulgent," he notes.

Surmai varutharacha

For cooking up a feast on Gatari, Marian Nicole Dcosta and Ashwin Nair of Aiyo, Patrao! recommend varutharacha, a Malayali favourite in the Nair household. "This recipe has been passed down generations, and perfected along the way. My amma would make me surmai/mutton varutharacha every Sunday with either matta rice or flaky parottas. This is a memory I hold close to my heart, as it was her language of love," Nair elaborates.

Ingredients
>> 1 surmai/kingfish
>> 1/4 medium-sized onion
>> 1/4 grounded coconut (50-55 gm)
>> 1.5-2 Kashmiri chillies
>> A pinch of fenugreek seeds
>> 1-2 green chillies
>> 1 tsp coriander seeds
>> 2-3 gm tamarind
>> 1/2-inch grated or finely chopped ginger
>> 1 tsp cooking oil
>> 1/2 tsp coconut oil (to be added in the end )
>> Curry leaves (to be added in the end)

Method
Heat oil in a saucepan and cook the onions till translucent or slightly brown. Roast the coconut, Kashmiri chillies, coriander seeds and fenugreek seeds till light brown. With a little water, finely grind the mixture. Add the paste to a kadai, and pour in enough water to cook. Tip in the chillies, tamarind water and grated ginger to the mixture and boil on medium flame for around five minutes. Add water, if required, for the desired consistency.

Now, tip in the fish and continue boiling for two to three minutes on a low flame. Add the curry leaves and switch off the gas after a minute. Drizzle the coconut oil and cover the saucepan. Serve with warm rice.

On: August 6 to 8
Log on to: @bombaybhukkad on Instagram to order
Cost: Rs 1,499 onwards