Affair with Indonesian flavour

Down foodpath

I’m the food director at Azure hospitality that oversees the kitchens of the restaurants Mamagoto, Speedy Chow, Rollmaal and Mamapaati. I embarked the journey into the hospitality sector from a boutique company which served Pan Asian and European cuisines for over 25 years. I’ve beena chef and a chief promoter at Delhi’s first authentic Thai street food restaurant ‘Spice’.

At Azure hospitality, I do everything related to food, right from choosing the recipes to handpicking the ingredients, deciding the menu, food presentation and analyzing the market. My cooking philosophy is to take standard recipes and tweak them with new, contrasting flavours, providing signature tastes that are original and scalable.

I was fond of cooking since I was six years. My family, especially my grandmother encouraged me for that and now it is my passion. Since I never had any formal training, I have solely relied on everyday experiences and I think that has contributed in my journey from a chef to a now food director. 

Other than cooking, I love watching cricket matches. I’m sharing the recipe for chicken satay. The dish holds a special place in my heart.  As my mom was an Indonesian, she used to prepare the dish at our house quite often, and we used to crave for it! In my own small way, Food and Azure makes me keep my Indonesian heritage alive.

Janti Dugal
(As told to Puja Gupta)

Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

Recipe

Ingredients

For Peanut Sauce  Onion, medium finely  chopped 1       
Garlic Cloves  6–8 pcs
Red Chillies, dried 4–6 pcs
Peanut Butter 100gm
Water 100ml
Sugar  2tbsp
Salt To Taste
Lemon Juice     30ml
Vegetable Oil     30ml   
Chicken Thigh,  boneless, cut in half- inch cubes 200gm
4 sticks

Method for Peanut Sauce

Take oil in a frying pan.
Fry ground onion, garlic  and red chillies in oil till light brown
Add water
Add all other ingredients. n Check for salt and lemon  flavor
Boil until it becomes  thick, with sauce-like consistency.
Marinade for chicken
Garlic, ground into paste 1tbsp

Sugar     1tbsp

Soya Sauce dark     1tbsp
Vegetable Oil      1tsp
Black pepper powder 1tsp
Marinate the chicken and
  keep it in fridge for 12 hours minimum

Method for chicken  satay

Cover marinated chicken with Peanut Sauce
Put the chicken on metal   rack/ baking dish with a dish underneath to collect the drippings or it can  also be placed in a    greased baking dish
Bake uncovered for 15–20mins 200 degree until done
Brush with Peanut Sauce      once while cooking
Serve immediately,  alongwith Peanut Sauce