Meat Free Mowgli: Simple & Delicious Plant-Based Indian Meals

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The mad thing is my favourite food is sushi. It’s the subversiveness in me: you’d never have raw fish in India, there’s no way. I like the really good, filthy, proper sushi, like sea urchin – the weirder the better, frankly. Environmentalists are calling for us to reduce our meat intake and Indian cuisine, being naturally healthy, flavoursome and meat-free, is fast becoming the go-to cuisine for modern families. Use a sharp knife to make deep cuts in the entire surface of the cauliflower. Add the cauliflower to the marinade and use your hands to rub the marinade all over. Cover, then leave to marinate in the refrigerator overnight.

Season with lemon juice and garnish with the chopped coriander before serving. Baked Rose Yogurt (SERVES 4) Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Bring a kettle of water to the boil. In a jug, mix together the Greek yogurt and condensed milk until well combined without any lumps, then add the rose syrup and vanilla extract. Heat the remaining oil until hot, then pour it over the chillies in the jar until they are submerged. Stir in the lemon juice, seal and leave to cool. Store in the refrigerator for up to 6 weeks. Once the chillies have really softened, remove from the heat, stir in the ground panch phoron and transfer to a sterilized jar. Recipes from Jess Elliot Dennison, who's appearing at Spot on my Apples festival in the East Neuk of FifePlace 4 ovenproof ramekins in a baking dish, then carefully divide the yogurt mixture among them. Pour enough boiling water into the baking dish to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins, then cover the dish tightly with kitchen foil. Bake in the oven for 20–25 minutes, or until set, then remove from the oven and let cool. Meat Free Mowgil also has a section called The Mowgli Spice Box where Nisha has put together a list of key spices that bring instant, bold flavour to dishes. These Mowgil spices are used in the various recipes in this cookbook, and Nisha has explained how to use them and when to add them to dishes to maximise flavours. You’ll come across all the Mowgil spices you’d expect to find in Indian cuisine like cumin seeds, cardamom and ground coriander, but there are also less common spices like amchur (dried green mango powder) and asafoetida (a gum from a variety of giant fennel). When cool, place in the fridge and leave to set for at least 2 hours, or ideally overnight. Serve decorated with the chopped pistachios and dried rose petals.

We bring a selection of exciting competition opportunities to our readers online and hope you enjoy getting involved. Lay each roti out on a flat work surface, then spread a tablespoon of the Mowgli chutney down the middle of each. Spoon equal amounts of the fried potatoes onto the Mowgli chutney, then carefully roll each roti tightly. Using a sharp knife cut each chip butty in half, then serve with the remaining fried potatoes. I’m such a fan of Nisha Katona’s recipes, so was delighted to learn that she has another new book. Meat Free Mowgli was published at the end of last year, and I thought January the perfect time to tell you about it, as so many of us are trying to cut down on our meat consumption – and quite a few are vegetarian already and/or perhaps following Veganuary. As Nisha herself says in the introduction of the book: “ Indian food is the perfect go-to cuisine for the modern family who want to eat less meat. And thus, the idea for Meat Free Mowgli was born – a collection of simple, plant-based meals in the Mowgli style we know and love. ” And many Ind ian recipes are vegan anyway, but not necessarily by design. Meat Free Mowgli Stir in the kale until wilted, then add the lemon juice and garam masala. Before serving, taste for seasoning, adding salt or sugar, as needed. Add more water if it’s looking a bit dry. I want salt to be seen as extraordinary. To be perceived as so much more than a cheap commodity and instead be seen as an essential gourmet ingredient that is as important as a chef’s knife, as vital to cooking as using a hot pan. I want salt to be something you are excited about, not a last resort that is sprinkled over bland food to try and improve it as it’s served.

Mowgli Soya Keema Pau

This is a typical Bengali dessert. Baked yogurt is gently sweetened with a light tang and has a firm texture rather like cheesecake. For a pretty pink colour, try to find a genuine Indian rose syrup (in the Asian aisles of supermarkets or in Indian grocers). Other rose syrups will not give such a depth of colour, but will still taste wonderful. You can either make this in a large dish or in individual dishes. Either way, it is the perfect dessert for entertaining as it can be made ahead of time and is super easy.” Place 4 ovenproof ramekins in a baking dish, then carefully divide the yogurt mixture among them. Pour enough boiling water into the baking dish to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins, then cover the dish tightly with kitchen foil.

Add the lentils, plus their soaking liquid, and 350ml/12fl oz/scant 11/2 cups of the boiling water to the pan. Cover and simmer for a further 10–15 minutes, or until the lentils and vegetables are cooked and soft. Keep an eye on the water level and don’t let it get too dry.Following the success of the Mowgli restaurants, Nisha released a cookbook called ‘ Mowgli Street Food: Stories and Recipes from Mowgli Street Food Restaurant’. Published in 2018, the cookbook features some of her favourite and most successful recipes from the restaurant’s menus, as well as personal stories from Nisha’s journey as a restaurateur. Stir-fry for 1–2 minutes to brown the veg slightly and take on the spicy kimchi flavours. Serve sprinkled with the toasted seeds, chopped coriander and lime wedges on the side. Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels. The extra pani puri can be put in an airtight container and stored for up to five days.

Preheat your grill/broiler. Mix together the grated cheese, ground coriander, ground cumin and fresh coriander and set aside. Toss the drained potatoes with the chat masala, then add to the tamarind treacle sauce and toss vigorously until fully coated. The potatoes should have a glossy sheen. Unroll the pastry sheet and place on a lined baking sheet (you can use the paper the pastry came wrapped in for lining the sheet). Spread the cooled filling mixture over the surface of the pastry sheet, leaving a gap of about 2.5cm/lin around the edges. Sprinkle over the coriander and red chilli. To create a pretty effect, score the edges of the pastry sheet and brush with a little milk. In a jug, mix together the Greek yogurt and condensed milk until well combined without any lumps, then add the rose syrup and vanilla extract. Add the vinegar, sugar, bay and spices. Stir well to dissolve the salt. Cover the pan and leave for as much time as you have available, ideally 4–6 hours. The longer you pre-salt the cauli florets for, the more tender they will be when you grill them.No Indian would fry potatoes without first rubbing them with turmeric. Turmeric is a deep earthy flavoured root, ground to make a golden yellow powder. This spice adds to the earthiness of potatoes, which makes them taste sweeter and richer. I add fenugreek as it lifts them to another spicy level. This is how I cook my roast potatoes at home too, but with a sprinkling of brown sugar and garlic purée. This is basically the Mowgli Angry Bird, but plant-based. There’s something luxurious about serving up a whole, roasted cauliflower that has drunk in the hot, spicy marinade to become soft and yielding, but fiery in colour and flavour. You could serve it with some turmeric-rubbed roast potatoes and my Indian Green Chopped Salad. It’s also lovely served with a simple lemon-dressed green salad and a raita. If you wanted to make this an even more hearty dish, you could serve it on a bed of warm whole grains. It’s very versatile, so make it your own. Nisha is a self-described “ curry evangelist“. Inspired by “how Indians eat at home and on their streets”, she infuses her food with bright flavours and healthy ingredients, to delight tasters. After initially training and working as a barrister Nisha changed careers after identifying a gap in the market for the Mowgli offering and wanted to share her love of everyday Indian cooking with the public. Having first opened in Liverpool in 2014, Mowgli has gone on to enjoy incredible success and critical acclaim and has now grown to 15 restaurants in 8 years, with more to follow. Nisha’s previous books include Pimp My Rice, Mowgli Street Food, The Spice Tree and 30 Minute Mowgli. Add the chopped ginger, garlic and green chilli, cook for 2–3 minutes, then add the ground spices, chilli powder, salt and sugar. Put the cauli florets into a saucepan. Measure/weigh how much water it takes to cover the cauliflower florets in the pan and then add 4 per cent of this weight (of the water) in salt to the water (so if you are using 500mlof water, you’ll need to add 20gof salt).