An article that deals with Parsi food must, in all fairness, open with a statutory warning this cuisine is injurious to the mental health of vegetarians. For very often the only herbivorous item that sneaks onto the Parsi festive table or restaurant menu is the carrot-and-raisin pickle.
Of course, various ladle-happy Jeroos and Bhicoos do include the mandatory "vegetables" sections in their cookbooks, but it's soon apparent that they are better acquainted with eggs than eggplants. And although Parsi hosts may feel compelled to prepare vegetarian dhansaaks and istews for fastidious guests, their funereal expressions and sighs ("If only you could taste my Hilla's mutton pulao...") reveal their dismay. After all, this is a community that fetes icons like former Tata Steel chairman Russi Mody as much for his 18-egg-omelette breakfasts as for his managerial achievements. A religion which doesn't bother with fasting - the four days in the year when mutton and chicken are prohibited are deemed sufficiently harsh lessons in abstinence.