As Moti Mahal turns 103, we drop into their Delhi outpost to see what's cooking

Dal Makhni

In 1920 at Gora Bazaar, Peshawar, restaurateur Mokha Singh ran a dhaba called Moti Mahal. It was manned by three friends - Kundan Lal Jaggi, Kundan Lal Gujral and Thakurdas Mago. This is widely believed to be the birthplace of tandoori chicken - a whole bird was roasted in a dug-up mud tandoor and lit with coal and wood for the first time. Butter chicken, it is told, was created out of the necessity to rehydrate the cooked chicken to prevent it from drying out. Dal makhani, a creamy dal to go with the rich non-vegetarian food was born there too, and so was chicken pakora, a dish made for a British dignitary, who would ask for fried chicken.

Butter Chicken

With the Partition in 1947, the four found themselves as refugees in the Delhi of new India. Singh backed out of the enterprise, but the other three continued the next chapter with a roadside thela in Daryaganj, Delhi. The spot was later granted to them in the Rehabilitation Conveyance Deed by the then president of India and Moti Mahal was re-established there in independent India.

In 1979, Mago sold his share equally to Jaggi and Gujral. In the early 1990s, the two sold off Moti Mahal at Daryaganj, which is not operational now, to a certain Vinod Chadha. Incidentally, till date, there is a dispute between the two families about the original creator of the butter chicken. This year, Moti Mahal the brand turned 103 years old; the century year passed them by in the lockdown of 2020.

Chicken Kalmi

Back in Peshawar, Gujral had fed Meharchand Khanna, the political stalwart who later became a minister in Jawaharlal Nehru's cabinet. Through him, Gujral's famous tandoori chicken was served to Pandit Nehru post-Partition. The list of dignitaries who have visited Moti Mahal is long and includes the Shah of Iran, former US president Richard Nixon, former US first lady Jacqueline Kennedy, Soviet leaders Alexie Kosygin and Nikolai Bulganin, former Pakistani prime minister Zulfikar Bhutto and more recently, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

On a recent trip to Delhi, we met Monish Gujral, the third-generation owner of Moti Mahal Delux. Nestled like a time warp in M-block in Greater Kailash 1 among a cluster of modern eateries, suede sofas in beige and rust, wooden flooring and sitar notes set the ambience. Subtle new touches are spotted in the light fittings. For a Friday afternoon, the space is well-filled with families dropping by for an authentic North Indian meal. We scoop up some thick curry with a piece of roti, folding it itno a generous bite. The butter chicken is simply executed and it doesn't have the punch of masala we expected. "This is the original butter chicken," Gujral explains. "Most eateries make it laden with garam masala and garlic. But here, tandoori chicken pieces are tossed in a tomato and cream puree, lightly spiced with chilli, cumin and soonth. You actually get to taste the tandoori chicken in it," Monish explains.

Non-veg platter

The dal makhani is simmered on a tandoor overnight, and cooked on fire for four hours with milk and tomato puree. The classic mutton burra kebab, with black kalonji masala cooked in mustard oil, is succulent, and the dahi ke kebab hold shape. The kalmi kebab with a white marinade is a milder chicken lollypop.

The group has over 200 outlets across the world, including franchises of Moti Mahal Delux, Tandoori Trail (created to celebrate the food journey of Kundan Lal Gujral), along with QSR (quick service restaurants) formats in food courts and malls. In the lockdown, Gujral's team experimented with ready blended masalas, including ones for butter chicken, chicken pakoda, tandoori, rogan josh and brown curry to be sold under the brand name Kundan Lal Gujral's Original Recipes since 1920. They will be available in leading grocery stores across the country in a few weeks.

Monish Gujral. Pic/Nishad Alam

"All restaurants have a set blend recipes," says Gujral, "Par haath, haath ka farak pad jata hai [the taste differs from hand to hand]." While the appeal of butter chicken remains evergreen, he conscientiously adds innovations to the menu. Case in point: Chicken momos in red gravy - youngsters love it. "This dish matches their taste palate," he explains. We raise an eyebrow but take the plunge. Interestingly, the butter chicken that Kundan Lal Gujral created to rehydrate dried chicken, has found its way into the momos. It gets our nod and leaves us thinking of what more can we expect from the century-old kitchen that gave us an iconic dish.