out of india

8/18/2019 Out of India

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OF

INDIA

Eating & Drinking

Influenced by myriad traditionsand cultures, India’s cuisine is

wonderfully rich and varied.Until recently, food from theNorth has dominated, butthanks to a southern re-naissance, we now getto enjoy the subconti-

nent’s culinary diversity By Dee Hon // Photographs

by Shannon Mendes

Bombay calling A fixture since 1981, Raga

on Broadway serves some

of the juiciest, tenderest

tandoori in the city

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I RUN INTO THE WORD whenever I eator discuss Indian food. Sure enough, it’sright on the menu at newly opened Sara-vanaa Bhavan on Broadway: “Authentic

South Indian cuisine.”“I hate that word,” says my lunchcompanion, Meeru Dhalwala, as shehelps herself to the buffet of classic SouthIndian dishes like channa, idli, sambar,and other assorted treats. Dhalwala is halfof the husband-and-wife team behind theceaselessly celebrated Vij’s and Rangolirestaurants just off Granville. (The otherhalf is her husband, Vikram Vij.) No onewould ever call their recipes “authen-

tic”—in the context of their genre-bend-ing restaurants, the word is oppressive.Vij’s earned its fame by fusing Indianflavours with local ingredients and con-

temporary cooking techniques; Rangolidoes a more casual version of the same.They’re tossing “authenticity” aside tocreate food that’s more connected to im-mediate influences than to an imagined,far-away past.

Yet the lunch we’re enjoying todayat Saravanaa Bhavan (a chain of SouthIndian restaurants with locations in eightcountries worldwide, including a whop-ping 19 in its hometown of Chennai)

encapsulates something else happeningto Indian food, both in Vancouver and ona global scale. Northern-style food—withits rich, stew-like curries and tandoor-cooked meats—has long been synony-

mous with Indian cuisine in these parts,so much so that bastardized versions ofPunjabi-style samosas and butter chickenturn up in 7-Elevens and Costco freez-ers. But after decades of a northern-stylestranglehold, southern cooking is storm-ing Vancouver kitchens.

I discovered Indian food as a child, ata Calgary restaurant called Taj Mahal. Itasted a masala of spices and a richnessof textures I’d never imagined during myupbringing of char siu and cheeseburgers:tandoori chicken, basmati rice cookedwith cardamom, the velvety potato-and-

spinach curry saag aloo. I was convincedI’d never taste anything finer.Northern Indian food is, at heart, food

descended from the courts of the legend-ary Mughal emperors, whose pursuit ofluxury knew no bounds. These rul-ers controlled northern India, but hadethnic roots in what is now Uzbekistanand Afghanistan. The clay tandoor ovenin particular has Central Asian lineage.Imported chefs came from everywherethe Mughal empire touched. Europeans,particularly the Portuguese, introducedfoods like potatoes, tomatoes, and even

chili peppers from their conquests inSouth America. (Before 1500, the hottestIndian spice was black pepper.) The now-standard Indian vindaloo is a corrup-tion of the Portuguese carne de vinho ealhos—pork cooked in wine vinegar. Youcan sample the progenitors of what wenow call northern Indian cuisine in thekebabs and palaws at the Afghan Horse-men near Granville Island, and at Persianrestaurants on the North Shore.

India’s food is as varied as its arrayof religions, landscapes, and cultures.Recipes differ from village to village, even

from house to house, but the line betweennorthern food (those marinated tandoormeats and butter-rich curries) andsouthern food (pancake-like breadsand thinner, more soup-like curries) isbold and clear. Overall, southern dishesare lighter and more suited to every-day dining, with sharp tangy tamarind,citrusy-and-bitter curry leaves, velvetycoconut, and generous doses of chilies thedominant flavours. The dosa, a crêpe-like

Authentic

Eating & Drinking OUT OF INDIA

Southern comfortWith outposts all over the

world, Saravanaa Bhavan,

serving southern-style

vegetarian dishes, touched

down here in January

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Master of the masalaPondy Veera, who hails from

Madras, helms the stove at

Saravanaa Bhavan

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pancake made from a fermented batterof rice, urad dal, and water, is perhapsthe region’s most famous export; idlis aresteamed cakes made with similar batter.Both are usually served with sambar, alentil-based stew, and a variety of chut-neys. Nooru Mahal, a six-year-old FraserStreet spot run by Sri Lankan native RajAiyathurai, is a stalwart, and one of thecity’s original southern Indian restau-rants—regional devotees love Aiyathurai’s

recipes, which come not from the generic“South” but from Sri Lanka in particular.Back at Saravanaa Bhavan, our conver-

sation turns to a menu item at Rangoli.Dhalwala has created a dish of blackchickpea, pea, and onion cakes in a spicycoconut curry. I assumed the dish wasinspired by a southern recipe—not so,explains Dhalwala. She had no qualmsabout adding southern coconut to a dishwith Punjabi spices. She didn’t grow upin India, and thus doesn’t feel burdenedby its conventions. A lot of the fuss aboutwhat is and isn’t authentic, she says, has

to do with marketing. No restaurant own-er questioned here would dare admit hisfood isn’t authentic. In India, such rulesare too rigid for such a varied cuisine. “Ifyou actually get an Indian chef,” she sayswith a laugh, “he’ll say, ‘I don’t know if it’sauthentic. It’s mine.’ ”

Vancouver boasts countless Indian res-taurants, thanks to the region’s 150,000-strong Indo-Canadian community. Mostof the immigrants, and their restaurants,

are Punjabi, and so you might think thequality of the food would be fantastic bysheer force of numbers. But India’s restau-rant culture has only recently blossomedin the wake of globalization. Historically,social and religious beliefs restricted notonly the foods people ate, but whom theyate with and the kinds of people theywould allow to serve them. An upper-caste Brahmin, for example, would neverput lips to a cup that had been used by a

Dalit, who belongs to the lowest rung.Modern restaurant culture grew in the1920s and 1930s out of the necessityto feed a swelling class of urban officeworkers. Even today, Indian restaurantsare mainly utilitarian eateries, not placesto seek pleasure in a meal; home-cookedmeals remain the best way to experienceIndian food. In Mumbai, deliverymentransport tens of thousands of homemadelunches each day from wives and mothersto their working men, in a network asintricate as an ant colony.

This shallow history of restaurant

culture in India means that many es-tablishments in Vancouver are startedby immigrants with business, or othernon-culinary, backgrounds. There is littleprestige in becoming a chef, so youngIndians don’t typically aspire to the pro-fession; for the most part, restaurants hereare established by people who can work aspreadsheet but not a clay oven.

So where do you find really great Indianfood in Vancouver? We’ve got some ideas.

Northern Foundations

Raga1177 W. Broadway, 604-733-1127

This West Side institution, which opened

in 1981, serves food fit for the legendaryMughal emperors. Raga’s charcoal-firedtandoor produces luxuriously tendermeat. Chicken is unbelievably juicy;prawns are plump and tender. Light cur-ries allow the spices to sing—this is whyyou fell for Indian food in the first place.Many vegetarian options are available.

Ashiana Tandoori1440 Kingsway, 604-874-5060

Writing in this magazine in the early1990s, James Barber called Ashiana’s“undoubtedly the best Indian food in the

city.” And its northern-style classics stillearn gushing reviews. The menu and theprices haven’t changed since 1992, butchef/owner Rick Takhar keeps re-invent-ing his food; his newest creations arefound on the takeout menu. Try “ChefRick specialties” like jaan-e-man—pota-toes, jackfruit, cauliflower, and spinachcooked in peanut sauce—and tofu cornmethi malai. The sauce for his ginger-and-garlic-infused chicken dilpasand issublime; ask for the takeout menu even ifyou dine in.

Southern WaveNooru Mahal4354 Fraser St., 604-873-9263

Nooru Mahal was a Punjabi restaurantuntil Sri Lankan native Raj Aiyathuraitook control six years ago, giving Vancou-verites a taste of the subcontinent’ssouthern flavours. Sri Lankan–style king-fish curry is light and brothy comparedto the gravy-like stews of the north. It’s asharp, one-two bite of tangy tamarind andhot chilies. Sop it up with flaky southern-style paratha bread. Nooru Mahal’s idlis—

fluffy, sourdough-like steamed rice andlentil cakes—are perfect models. NooruMahal also offers its own take on fusion,found in southern dosas filled with north-ern stuffings like vindaloo. Singaporeanstaff have also lent their touch to themenu: Sri Lankan sting hoppers—pattiesof fine rice noodles—get a Singaporeantreatment with coconut and palm sugarto make puttu mayam. “Only in Canada,”says Aiyathurai of his creation.


Rainbow bright A sample of the assorted

treats at All India Sweets

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Beyond butter chickenSaffron lamb chops in coconut

saffron cream sauce at Mysala,

the latest addition to downtown

Granville Street’s eclectic mix

of eateries

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Saravanaa Bhavan955 W. Broadway, 604-732-7700

With 41 restaurants around the worldincluding places like Delhi, Dubai, Oman,London, New York, and Toronto, Sarava-

naa Bhavan is the surest sign the worldis catching on to southern Indian cuisine.The Vancouver branch of the chainopened in January to lineups out the doorfor vegetarian food that is light, fresh, andfull of spice. Northern-style dishes arekept on a separate menu to keep dinersfocused on the South. Stick to the dosas,utthappams, adais, and other southerntreats. A bonus: the prices are unbeliev-ably low.

Chutney Villa147 E. Broadway, 604-872-2228

Chutney Villa’s southern-style curriesearn the spotlight, bursting with permu-tations of coconut, curry leaves, and hotchilies. But take note of the namesakechutneys; the not-so-“authentic” pearand banana chutney is outstanding.

Global Excursions

Samosa Garden3502 Kingsway, 604-437-3502

Samosa Garden has plenty of Punjabi

standards on the menu, and its tandoor-baked naan is perhaps the best in town.But the real lure is to sample foods fromEast Africa’s Indian community. SamosaGarden’s highlights include masala tila-pia, the love child born of Indian spicesand African fish. Kuku paka, from theSwahili words for “chicken” and “rub,”is a delicious curry of grilled chickenmarinated in coconut milk.

Green Lettuce1948 Kingsway, 604-876-9883

This is Chinese food the way Indian peo-

ple eat it. On weekend nights, Indo-Ca-nadian families line up and squeeze intoGreen Lettuce for a taste of home. Just asChinese immigrants to Canada tailoredlocal ingredients to suit their palates (andcreated uniquely Chinese-Canadian cui-

sine), India’s Chinese immigrants infusedtheir recipes with Indian spices and heat.The result is dishes like gobi Manchurian,crispy battered cauliflower with a sauce ofchilies, onions, and cumin.

Indian 2.0

Vij’s1480 W. 11th Ave., 604-736-6664

Vij’s reigns as one of the world’s mostcelebrated Indian restaurants. Its still-revolutionary blend of contemporarycooking and Indian flavours helpedspawn a modern-Indian movement fromLondon to New York to Toronto. Butwhile others seek to elevate Indian cui-sine with ostentation—witness London’sRasoi and its tandoori chicken wrapped

in 24-karat gold foil—Vij’s transformsquality local ingredients to make foodthat’s unexpected, dynamic, and alwaysappetizing. Try the beef short ribs, servedin a cinnamon and red wine curry withwarm greens.


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Rangoli1488 West 11th Ave., 604-736-5711

The pulled pork with sour cream chutneyis like a sloppy Indian pulled pork bur-rito, a ménage à trois of Indian, Mexican,

and American Southwest. The fresh mintand mango chutney breathes new life intothe classic Punjabi snack of samosas withchanna masala. Playful and relaxed, Vij’sall-day younger sibling hits all the rightnotes for lunch or a casual dinner.

Mysala Indian Bistro980 Granville St., 604-688-2969

Vancouver’s Indian restaurants are usu-ally mom-and-pop shops; Mysala is whathappens when the kids grow up and opentheir own joint. This 60-seat lounge,in the heart of the Granville bar zone,

mashes urban cool with Indian flair: deepbooths, flickering candlelight, groovyelectro-Indian beats. The menu is stream-lined to fewer than a dozen mains. AAArib-eye steak, free-range chicken, andgrilled wild salmon with cilantro mint

sauce are all cooked on a state-of-the-artgrill (although there are tandoor items onthe menu). Partners Paul Thind and DavySangara hope to develop the concept intoa casual fine-dining chain, an Indian ver-

sion of Earls or Cactus Club.

Sweets and Snacks

All India Sweets andRestaurant6507 Main St., 604-327-0891

Situated in Main Street’s Punjabi Market,All India features tables overflowing withneon Indian sweets up front and buffetsteam tables at the back. Try the hyper-sweet gulab jamun, pastry balls madeof powdered milk, then deep-fried anddipped in honey syrup. Skip the buf-

fet and order savoury items à la carte.Indo-Canadian families take a break frombrowsing the nearby sari shops to loadup on snacks of samosas with chutneyand chickpea curry, or meats cooked inthe tandoor.

Groceries

Punjab Food Centre6635 Main St., 604-322-5502

These grocery stores in the Punjabi Mar-

ket offer all manner of spices, vegetables,and Indian cooking tools, like non-stickgriddles to cook chapattis or pappad-ums. Here you’ll find all the necessaryingredients to make curries, dosas, andidlis from scratch, or take a chance onpowdered mixes (though they won’t pro-duce the same results). Simplest of all arepappadums—toss them in your toasteroven for a quick and tasty snack.

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