It would not be an exaggeration to say that Maharashtrian cuisine is famous all over the world. From vada pav to kanda poha, these dishes are loved by people across the globe. However, have you ever seen a British chef making Maharashtrian food? A UK-based chef, Jake Dryan, who often cooks Indian food, prepared a “Maharashtra inspired spread” for his girlfriend’s flatmate. On Wednesday, Jake shared a video featuring the entire meal prep on Instagram. The clip begins with the text, “POV: Your girlfriend’s flatmate has been asking to try your Indian food.”
Jake starts with thecha, a spicy chutney popular in Maharashtra. He heats oil in a pan and adds cumin seeds, garlic cloves, green chillies, and peanuts. After cooking, he blends everything into a thick paste. Next on Jake’s menu is batata vada. He peels and cuts potatoes, then boils them. In a separate pan, he heats oil, and adds finely chopped garlic and green chillies, turmeric, curry leaves, and the boiled potatoes. He mashes the potatoes, cooks the mixture, and transfers it into a bowl. He prepares a chickpea batter and, after forming balls of the potato mixture, dips them in the batter and fries them.
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Jake also chops green beans and beans for a sabzi. He prepares a tadka with onion and spices, then mixes it with the chopped beans. For dal, Jake chooses red masoor dal, rinses it, and boils it with green chilli, salt, and turmeric. In another pan, he heats ghee and adds chopped garlic and a red chilli, followed by chopped tomatoes. The boiled dal is then added to the mix. He separately cooks cumin and red chilli powder in hot oil and pours this tadka on top of the dal. To finish, Jake prepares quick besan chillas and a side salad. The caption read, “Made a little Maharashtra-inspired spread for a friend.”
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Of course, desis were quick to share their reactions in the comment section. A user wrote, “Bro I am from India and I can testify you know what you are doing all the food items just look perfect.” Another one added, “Can’t believe this man does all these without ever being to India.”A person said, “Omg this is insane! I’m a Maharashtrian and I feel like you created nostalgia in a plate. Batata vada, thecha.. just awesome! Your passion and effort really shows, Love it.” “Guy is more Indian than 99.9% Indians,” read a comment. Someone chimed in, saying, “Adding crushed peanuts to the beans would be a totally Marathi thing to do.”
What do you think about this video? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!
