Edible ash is the new black

Idlis infused with carrots at G.O.D. Cafe (Goodness of Dairy) prepared by chef Kailash Chauhan. A first of its kind in Mumbai, the A2 milk café offers sattvic meals. Pic/Ashish Raje

A dish of chicken breast with blue pea sauce, charred pumpkin and mango mash inspired by the changing hues of the sunset is art on a plate. And, the best part is there's not a drop of synthetic colour in it, insists chef Vanshika Bhatia of Saucy Spirits Hospitality. Since people tend to eat with their eyes first, the visual appearance of food matters. And chemical food colourings are a common additive in the production of foods and beverages. This, despite the health risks involved and the fact that they provide little or no nutritional value. Bhatia is of the opinion that it is important that we lose our obsession with perfectly-coloured foods. "Instead, use natural colour as a guideline for healthy eating, it's a better approach." She roots for natural colours from flowers, herbs and vegetable - her favourite being beetroot or berries for a beautiful shade of crimson. Questioning the norm, she says, "Why is colour so important in food that we feel compelled to use chemicals in it? The taste of chemical colours is, in fact, off-putting. Our nature is full of vibrant hues and humans have been extracting them for centuries. Learning from that, I use edible colours from spinach, beetroot, berries, turmeric and saffron. Each berry has a different shade, and besides the beautiful, natural colour you have an added flavour as well. It's only about conditioning the mind to accept it." When you add natural colouring, especially in shades of soft red and purple to dishes that are baked, the colour of the food turns brown and that's perfectly okay, she thinks. Her red velvet cake is made using beets - she calls it copper velvet due to its slightly brown tinge. "But, we know and are also told by patrons that it tastes so much better than the commercial red velvet cake," adds Bhatia.

Chicken breast with blue pea sauce, charred pumpkin and mango mash inspired by the changing hues of the sunset is art on a plate by Chef Vanshika Bhatia of Saucy Spirits Hospitality

Chef Shilarna Vaze, who lives in Goa, is on a mission to explore local produce. She says chemicals are hard on our body and also rob the fruit or plant of its inherent nutrition. Her version of brownies has beetroot. "You can add fun natural colours to almost any food, mostly any kind of dough like chapati and breads, and also popsicles and smoothies. I believe in eating the rainbow, that's the best way to get all the nutrition you need. Flowers like hibiscus and rhododendron are amazing for deep reds and purple, as are seasonal fruits like jamun and karvanda, which are a great local alternative to the usual blueberries. We love to use fresh turmeric and activated charcoal. Once, we made a tiger-striped ravioli for French fashion brand Hermes using fresh turmeric and charcoal."

Chef Shilarna Vaze's rainbow popsicle made using black grapes, karvanda, watermelon, strawberry, avocado and kiwi, mango and pineapple

Using plants for natural colours finds its roots in Ayurveda, explains Sheetal Bhatt, founder of G.O.D Cafe by Harrit Dairy Farm. On their menu, you'll find rose lassi, rose milkshake, khapli wheat-based pasta in a variety of sauce colours, including red, pink, and green. Biryani is made with haldi and kesar. To make sabzis or misal, beetroot juice or a pinch of geru is added to get a crimson colour. It is sweet, anti-phlegmatic, anti-bilious and cooling, she adds. "Our bodies work and respond entirely with natural phenomena along with the three doshas. Everyone subconsciously knows that whichever chlorine is used, it is toxic, but our conscious mind is heavily influenced by appearance and taste. We have a proclivity to slip into this chemical trap.

Chef Kailash Chauhan

Artificial colour can cause allergies. This is especially dangerous for growing children as allergies or reactions can last a lifetime. Throat infection is a common cause, and one can experience acidity and digestion problems. I prefer to use all natural products that are readily available in the market and primarily from my kitchen," say Bhatt. As an Ayurvedic practitioner, she chooses to acquire colours from Indian-grown fruits, veggies, and spices because they are "natural, easily accessible, and of high quality". For yellow, she uses pumpkin, mangoes, and turmeric. For orange, it is usually saffron, orange peel zest, and fresh carrots. Reds come from red carrots, beetroot, geru, red apple skin, and cooked tomato puree. Pinks are from prawal pishti with pink or red rose petals. Greens are from moringa powder, palak puree, pista, and dry coriander powder.

Chef Vanshika Bhatia

Blue and black are scarce in the palette of natural foods. Although highly nutritious - rich in health boosting phytochemicals anthocyanins and resveratrol that are loaded with antioxidants - these can be difficult to incorporate in your daily diet. Chef Vanshika Bhatia says, "In culinary school, we were taught that black and blues should never be on a plate of food. However, with cuisines evolving and chefs experimenting, we are seeing an increase in the demand for these colours in dishes across the world. We use squid ink for black, but for vegetarians, we use activated charcoal." To acquire naturally-occurring blacks, chefs turn to black rice, black garlic, edible ash, and nori. Black burger buns and spaghetti were all the rage in the West last year.

Sheetal Bhatt

Blue pea flower has risen the ranks in the culinary world for its quintessential tinge and healing properties. When mixed with anything acidic - lemon for instance - it turns purple or pink. For purple, G.O.D cafe uses pomegranate juice, purple yam, black grapes and jamun. "For black, we add black sesame powder, nagarmotha powder [an ayurvedic herb], mandoor bhasma [an iron supplement], and dry blackcurrents mulberries. For blue colour, blueberries are great but even karonda can be used." Vaze's signature rainbow popsicles have black grapes, karvanda, watermelon, strawberry, avocado and kiwi, mango and pineapple. It tastes just as delicious as it looks.

Colour Codes

Spinach or kale = Green
Cherries = Pink to red
Pomegranate juice, yam = Purple
Black garlic, edible ash = Black
Pumpkin, mangoes, and turmeric = Yellow

Blackcurrant shrikhand by Sheetal Bhat

Ingredients
1 cup hung curd
3⁄4 cup organic sugar
1⁄2 cup ground blackcurrant puree (soaked in lukewarm water)
Procedure
Grind soaked blackberries until it forms a smooth puree. Add hung curd and sugar and mix. Refrigerate for
2 to 3 hours and serve.