Dishoom: The first ever cookbook from the much-loved Indian restaurant

Product Information

Koolar & Co. has a specific importance for me. Not far away is a small ground-floor flat in an unremarkable building, where my mother and I spent a few months of my very early life. My family had been thrown out of our home on another continent, and Bombay was our refuge when we had nowhere else to go. We actually celebrated my first birthday here in Koolar & Co. and apparently we had a little cake. This would certainly be a memory I would lovingly treasure if I had it. Add the tomatoes, salt and chilli powder to the pan. Bring to a rapid simmer and cook until reduced by half, stirring regularly so it doesn’t catch – this should take about 30 minutes. Add the butter and simmer for a further five minutes. Add the garam masala, sugar, honey, cumin, crisp garlic, kasoori methi powder and dill fronds, and cook for a further 15 minutes. Add the cream and simmer gently for five minutes. The sauce is now ready to use. However, as you spend more time in Bombay you might begin to see past your first impressions, past the crowds, past the extremes and into the layers: Portuguese then British colonial rule, massive inward migration from both land and sea, development of enterprise and wealth, myriad and unexpected ethnicities, religions, cultures and languages. It’s certainly the biggest, fastest, densest and richest city of India. But it is also the most cosmopolitan; it is startlingly full of accumulated difference. In a way, it seems that this accumulated difference, and its complete internalisation, has become the nature of the city itself. So many different voices from so many different places telling so many different stories joined together to become Bombay. At long last, we’re delighted to say that we’ve written the Dishoom cookery book, with over 100 recipes for the Bombay comfort food and drink that we love.

This sweet and spicy take on chai makes a wonderful alternative to your run-of-the-mill cuppa. It’s best served piping hot – just make sure you’ve got a pot nearby for refills. It’s simply a beautiful, hefty thing to have in your home, fragrant with stories of the Parsi cafes dotted across Bombay and a narrative that’ll have you greedily racing towards the end like a pulp fiction novella." – Lucas Oakeley

Confirmation

He also believed in reincarnation. We’d like to think that he is somewhere reading this dedication and diving into this book with delight. CONTENTS So this book is a total delight. The photography, the recipes and above all, the stories. I’ve never read a book that has made me look so longingly at my suitcase.” – Nigel Slater As soon as you walk through the front door of any one of their eight restaurants, you just get it. What is ‘it’ exactly? It’s that warm feeling where you know you’re experiencing something authentic and genuine and that you’re in for a completely unique dining adventure. The service is warm and friendly, the smells are enchanting and you could easily spend an entire meal sat in silence, just gazing upon the décor. Dishoom menu highlights Finally, and perhaps most importantly, we hope you will be replete with recipes and stories to share with all who come to your table. There is nothing that we love more than feeding you all in our restaurants, and we are extremely happy to be sharing our Dishoom recipes, so that you can cook them in your own kitchen. For me, the Irani cafés are a significant part of this seduction. Once liberally sprinkled across the city, only twenty-five or so remain, all of them old, comfortable and worn. All who know them well seem to have fond memories of them – as places for bunking off school, or debating politics and philosophy with the idealistic energy of youth, or for escaping, deeply, into a book, all accompanied by chai. The Irani cafés were places for growing up, and for growing old, whoever you were.

These shared spaces and this cosmopolitan culture were extremely valuable. Shared spaces beget shared experiences and shared experiences mean that people are more likely to tolerate each other’s differences, less likely to hate and less likely to explode into violence towards one another. A beautiful book that will transport your palate straight to the Irani cafés of Bombay.” – Susan Low We hope that this beautiful cookery book will transport you to our most treasured corners of Bombay. Read it, and you will find yourself replete with recipes and stories to share with all who come to your table.

Seasonal Gifting

This book is dedicated to the late, great Rashmi Thakrar who passed away, too soon, in 2017. He was Shamil’s father, Kavi’s uncle and the first Dishoom person that Naved ever met. He was (until the very end) our most joyful cheerleader, and tireless finder-in-chief of obscure nuggets to turn into fully formed ideas. He’s the reason why Dishoom is so full of stories. In fact, this very park was once home to one of Bombay’s most loved Irani cafés. Café Naaz used to sit up here on Malabar Hill, enjoying the same view that you are now enjoying. Many a Bombay teenager went on a shy or secretive date here. If they really wanted to impress, they could pay a little extra for the best views of the bay. But after wrangles over an expired lease, the café closed, and the space is being redeveloped. Cafés like Naaz are now gradually disappearing from the collective memory of the city. Put the dal into a large bowl, cover with water and whisk for 10 seconds. Let the dal settle, then pour out the water. Repeat three or four times, until the water is clear. Tip the dal into a large saucepan and pour in at least four litres of cold water. Bring to a boil and cook steadily for two to three hours. Skim off any impurities that rise to the surface, and add more boiling water as required to keep the grains well covered. The dal grains need to become completely soft, with the skins coming away from the white grain. When pressed, the white part should be creamy, rather than crumbly. When cooked, turn off the heat and set aside for 15 minutes.

As you learn to cook the Dishoom menu, you will also be taken on a day-long tour of south Bombay, peppered with much eating and drinking. You'll discover the simple joy of early chai and omelette at Kyani and Co., of dawdling in Horniman Circle on a lazy morning, of eating your fill on Mohammed Ali Road, of strolling on the sands at Chowpatty at sunset or taking the air at Nariman Point at night.A simple side dish with outstanding results. Adjust the spices to suit your own palate and serve as part of an Indian-inspired feast. You can also make Dishoom’s special masala spice mix here. In a bowl, mix the garlic and ginger pastes, tomato puree, salt, chilli powder and garam masala into a paste. Once you have found your places of refuge, Bombay first becomes human and then – without you noticing exactly when – it completes the seduction and becomes delightful.

A gorgeous book that delves into the history and flavours of Mumbai's Irani cafes, so evocative that I can smell the keema pau even before I’ve started cooking. And like Dishoom itself, it’s fun and accessible.” – Xanthe ClayThis beautiful cookery book and its equally beautiful photography will transport you to Dishoom's most treasured corners of an eccentric and charming Bombay. Read it, and you will find yourself replete with recipes and stories to share with all who come to your table. PDF / EPUB File Name: Dishoom_From_Bombay_with_Love_-_Shamil_Thakrar.pdf, Dishoom_From_Bombay_with_Love_-_Shamil_Thakrar.epub Cut the potatoes into bite-sized pieces, add to a pan of boiling, salted water and cook until almost tender. Drain and pat dry, then set aside.