Rustic fare redefined

Rustic food is making a comeback with many classic dishes getting a contemporary spin, writes Ishijyot Surri

The moment we think about rustic food, we only think about the ingredients, recipes or the foods that our ancestors relished on. But the foods from the 50s that were forgotten by 90s have made a comeback today. These foods were out of sight and hence out of mind owing to various reasons such as being more time-consuming. Sometimes, they were just out of trend.

With more and more people preferring to try different foods, the present age has seen more of a revival of rustic foods and authentic flavours, sometimes with the idea of preserving family traditions or just with the purpose of serving the forgotten foods.

But what is rustic food? It indicates food cooked simply and presented without ‘dressing up’. The recipes or ingredients are rural-sourced, homegrown and old-fashioned. To sum it up, food is more traditional, more native, unpolished and simple here.

In restaurants

Even in the event that you stroll into one of the popular cafés springing up around the nation, you’re probably going to see some food relics showing up on their menus. Chefs, today, are trying to go back to the basics, back to the old-school methods of serving organic food, and hence putting forth the concepts of farm to table or the age-old techniques like smoking food.

Even ancient grains like buckwheat, rajgira, millets & jowar which were long forgotten and replaced are making the most awaited comeback. Dishes or items that had long passed by the wayside are beginning to sneak their way back into menus in the most innovative forms.

Owing to the array of nutritional benefits, coupled with the lifestyle changes people are undergoing, traditional rustic culinary treats are back in several household kitchens and hotels.

Quinoa Tabbouleh

Rice pudding

Ingredients: Soaked bulgur 50 gm, boiled quinoa 50 gm, parsley chopped 20 gm, tomato chopped 10 gm, onion chopped 10 gm, salt as per taste, sumac powder as per taste, lemon 5 ml, olive oil 30 ml, pomegranate for garnish.

Method: Make a dressing using the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and sumac powder. Mix together the soaked bulgur, boiled quinoa, chopped onion, chopped tomato and chopped parsley. Top it with the olive oil and lemon juice dressing. Toss it all together. Garnish it with fresh pomegranate.

Rice Pudding

Ingredients: Soaked rice 200 gm, milk 500 ml, sugar 100 gm, vanilla essence 2-3 drops, rose petals 10 gm.

Method: Soak the rice overnight. Grind the soaked rice into a fine paste. Boil the milk and gradually start adding the rice paste. Add the rose petals. Simmer the milk till the rice paste is cooked. Once the rice paste is cooked, take it off the flame and add the sugar. Add the vanilla essence and heat it slightly. Pour it in a glass and refrigerate it for 4 to 5 hours. Garnish it with rose petals. Serve chilled.

(The author is executive chef, Mulk Restaurant)