I have been on this self-imposed asinine diet, where I have decided that I need to eat light, non-spicy food with less oil and, more fibre and a balanced carb-protein partnership. So, while my daytime carbs are taken care of with a breakfast of rolled oats, fruits and almond milk, and either dal kichadi or Poha for lunch, both of which, mind you, I love and am obsessed with, I am finding my evening line-up a bit difficult to determine.
I am avoiding spicy and oily Indian gravies, and am happy to eat sabzi, a little chawal, or sweet potato done in the same way you would do a sukka aloo or just roasted or boiled. It’s now one of my top-seeded tuber. I’m avoiding kebabs and tikkas, just because I’m a little bored with them, and because I keep ordering kekabs from any Sigdi, Yakub and Darbar there is always a little dubiety about what part of the chicken or mutton is being purposed. I cannot bear chicken tikkas made out of the dry breast of chicken, and seekhs made with leery-looking kheema and incinerating spices. Hence, I started the hunt for a good grilled or roast chicken.
There was a time when the roast chicken was a regular at any slightly cosmopolitan Bombay home. The Parsis, Goans, East-Indians, Anglo-Indians and modern Hindus cooked one or the other form of the chicken. Some, the classic English way, others with a gravy, spice rub with large quantities of onions, and even with dry fruits and nuts. At our homes, it would be with an extra rub of ginger-garlic paste and turmeric making it slightly desi.
Now, what is a classic roast chicken? At its simplest, it’s a whole chicken, with skin intact, rubbed with a little butter under the skin; and lemon, salt and pepper rubbed everywhere else, trussed and put into the oven till it comes out delicious, crispy-skinned with a juicy breast and well-roasted thighs. You can also choose to fill the cavity of the chicken with stuff, which I will come to later on.
Often, if there was no oven available in an Indian kitchen, the chicken would be cooked on a greased pan covered with another metal pot to recreate the heat and environment of an oven. In fact, the famous Goan Roast Chicken Cafreal was made exactly like that. Some say the first Cafreal was cooked as a street food by sailors at Panjim Port. Chicken marinated in ginger, garlic, ground coriander leaves, green chili, lime juice along with dry spices is cooked in oil on a pan sealed with a metal utensil under pressure. When ready, the chicken turns out like it’s been roasted.
Or the classic Tandoori chicken, which absolutely does not go back to the days of the Mughals and Afghan invaders, but in truth is a creation of post-partition refugees. Marinated whole chicken cooked inside a mud baked tandoor. If the skin was left on and the chicken was marinated a little more delicately, the Tandoori Chicken would make a world-class roast.
Bandra in Mumbai is not only the queen of the suburbs but it’s also the regent of pick-up snacks and food, and the parade of Christian-run eateries like McCraigs, Andora, Candies, and Family Table all make a variety of roast chicken. At Andora, opposite St. Andrew’s College, you can order a full bird in advance, or buy it in portions, and it comes well roasted with a crackling skin and a stuffing of sausage and herbs.
At the Family Table, there is always a pile of roasted half chickens on display. They make their chicken peppery without a fuss or gravy, charred, juicy, tasty and easy to pick up on the go. Candies, however, are a little more elaborate. They have a Classic Roast Chicken, roast chicken with a stuffing, and a Chicken Cafreal. But their Classic Roast is what I like. They serve their roast chicken with a variety of sides and sauce. A large piece of leg or breast, with skin, beautifully roasted in an unpretentious way, served with a portion of mash and veggies with a comforting brown gravy and a free salad thrown in.
As far as restaurants go, I really like the Asian Spiced Slow Roasted Chicken at Smoke House Deli, Bandra. They serve the chicken with Sweet Potato Mash and Stir-Fried Greens in sesame. But for a full whole roasted chicken, delivered straight to your home, I discovered ‘230°Celsius’. It’s called that because, apparently, the ideal temperature to roast a chicken is 230°Celsius. I ordered it perchance and was pleasantly surprised. Their chicken is packed with aromatic herbs and is slow-roasted at 230° Celsius and comes with sides of veggies, fries, potato wedges, corn and caramelised onions. You can choose. The roast is available in Italian herbs, Thai, Kashmiri spices, Chettinad spice, and Bhooth Jolokia marinades. I actually liked the Bhooth Jolokia although I’m trying to avoid spicy food! So much so for my diet. After all, it’s me who called it self-imposed and asinine.
Kunal Vijayakar is a food writer based in Mumbai. He tweets @kunalvijayakar and can be followed on Instagram @kunalvijayakar. His YouTube channel is called Khaane Mein Kya Hai. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent the stand of this publication.
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