In his deeply humorous book The Pedant in the Kitchen, Julian Barnes recalls the great onion problem with a painful memory of having tried chopping some wearing strimmer’s goggles. The result was bloody. We’ve all been there, one way or the other. With its increasingly expensive existence (at Rs 100 a kilo), maybe it’s time to give the vegetable a cold shoulder—if only for a while. Now, life can be pretty darn good without onions. Hear it from four top chefs who experimented with not just any recipes—but those that traditionally work with onions. The result of all that tinkering—finding replacements to bring out similar texture and taste—broke the myth of the Indispensible Onion. The price war over the big O may threaten to topple governments, but in the kitchen, you really needn’t shed a tear.
Photograph by Jagadeesh N.V.
French Onion Soup
By Manu Chandra, executive chef and partner, Olive Beach, Monkey Bar, LikeThatOnly (Bangalore)
Chef’s tip: The French Onion Soup without onions is unthinkable. Or is it? Why not use leeks to get a similar punch, and make up for the sweetness with green apple.
Ingredients:
- ½ K kg large leeks
- 300 gms celery stalks
- 2 tbsp fresh garlic, sliced
- ½ green apple
- 4 cup chicken stock
- 1 tsp fresh thyme
- 1 tbsp butter / oil
- 1 tbsp brandy
- Salt and pepper to taste
- ¼ cup Gruyere cheese (grated)
Method: Rinse the leeks and cut the top and the flared green bottoms off. Slice it lengthways, flat side down, to get half-cut rings. Repeat with the celery stalks. Heat butter/oil in a heavy-bottomed pan, add chopped garlic. Add leeks, celery and stir well. Reduce heat and keep cooking till it begins to caramelise. Cut the apple into straws and add to pan. Sprinkle thyme and deglaze with brandy. Stir. The leeks should look light brown with a sweet aroma. Add stock, cook till leeks are tender. Serve in a bowl covered with crusty bread, topped with cheese. Bake in a 180 C oven for 3-4 minutes. Serve at once.
Photograph by Tribhuvan Tiwari
Dahi Wala Lamb
By Manish Mehrotra, executive chef, Indian Accent (Delhi)
Chef’s tip: This classic meat recipe ditches onions for an extra dose of curd (you can add a sprinkling of heeng, too). Add less water than usual to the gravy, and voila, you have a nearly identical preparation!
Ingredients:
- 500 gms lamb leg boneless (cut into dices)
- 100 gms yoghurt
- 50 gms ginger-garlic paste
- 50 ml ghee
- 10 gms turmeric
- 5 gms degi mirchi
- 5 gms ginger julienne
- 5 gms green chilli julienne
- 2 gms mint leaves
- 2 gms garam masala
- Salt to taste
- 15 gms coriander powder
- 5 gms whole cumin
- 2 bay leaves
Method: In a heavy-bottomed pan, heat ghee. Add bay leaf and crackle cumin seeds. Add mutton, sauté till golden brown on sides. Add ginger-garlic paste and cook well. Add the masala and yoghurt. Cover the meat with water and stir constantly till it comes to a boil. Simmer on low heat till meat is cooked. Finish with mint, ginger julienne and green chilli.
Photograph by Amit Haralkar
Paneer Butter Masala
By Saransh Goila, anchor and chef consultant, Food Food Channel (Mumbai)
Chef’s tip: The onions here are replaced with melon seeds, more cashews, and finely chopped cabbage. It all comes together to give a similar texture and kick to the gravy.
Ingredients:
- ½ K kg paneer
- 1 kg tomatoes
- 2 tbsp magaz (melon aeeds)
- 100 gms finely chopped cabbage
- 50 + 50 gms garlic (chopped and whole)
- 1 tbsp honey
- 50 gms cashews
- 3 tbsp kasoori methi
- Salt to taste
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- 4 cloves
- 6 peppercorns
- 2 sticks cinnamon
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 tbsp coriander powder
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder
- 100 gms butter
- 1 litre milk
- 1 tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 tbsp cream
Method: In a cooker, add chopped tomatoes, magaz, garlic, honey, cashews, 30 gms butter, 2 tbsp kasoori methi, chilli powder, coriander powder, red chilli powder and salt. In a muslin cloth tie the left-over whole masalas and add to the cooker. Add one cup water and one cup milk. Cook the mixture for 30 minutes. Reduce flame after one whistle. Remove the muslin bag and grind the mixture into a fine gravy. To the tomato gravy, add one cup milk and cook on low flame for 15 minutes. Cook till gravy is reduced to a thick consistency. Melt butter in another small pan, add cabbage, chopped garlic, Kashmiri chilli powder and kasoori methi to make a tadka. Add tadka to gravy, then add paneer. Cook for 10 minutes. Finish with cream and butter on top.
Lagan ka Murg
By Sunil Gangwal, chef de cuisine, Lavana, Hyatt Regency (Gurgaon)
Chef’s tip: This easy Awadhi chicken curry benefits from an almond/ coconut powder /cashew /roasted chana dal curry which keeps its consistency rich.
Ingredients:
- 200 gms chicken, curry cut
- 50 ml ghee
- 130 gms curd
- 30 gms ginger-garlic paste
- 2 gms cloves
- 1 gm green cardamom
- 1 gm cinnamon
- 1 gm black pepper
- 2 gms turmeric powder
- 8 gms yellow chilli powder
- 5 gms salt
For masala:
- 5 gms chironji
- 10 gms desiccated coconut powder
- 5 gms almonds
- 1 gm saffron
- 10 gms rose petal
- 5 gms roasted chana dal
Method: Lightly roast chironji and coconut. Grind all the ingredients to prepare the masala. Marinate chicken with ginger-garlic paste, salt, yellow chilli powder, turmeric and yoghurt. In a lagan, heat ghee, add whole spices, then add the masala and chicken. Cook on moderate heat till the gravy leaves the oil, and the chicken is tender. Add saffron and serve.
Edited to fix. An earlier version of this piece erroneously mentioend the price of leeks at Rs 35 a kilo.
