The words Ghee Roast always evokes a mouth-watering warmth as the aroma of crispiness wafts through the air, curling up to your nose and settles in, filling your soul with the comforting bliss of the morning dosa prepared by your mother ever so lovingly. It sure is a delicious trip down the memory lane of simpler times and placid mornings.
The most sought-after Mangalorean delicacy is the Ghee Roast - the dish looks fiery red in colour, spicy yet slightly tangy.
The way in which the ghee roast is made is a very slow and interesting process. That said, the apparent invention story of this mouth-watering delicacy explains why Julia Child said “In cooking you’ve got to have a what-the-hell attitude”.
And that is exactly how the ghee roast was invented, when Padmavathi the mother of a hotel owner who experiments on dishes, happened to discover this recipe as recently as 50 years ago at Shetty Lunch Home, a legendary restaurant in Kundapur.
How the ghee roast was invented, when Padmavathi the mother of a hotel owner who experiments on dishes, happened to discover this recipe as recently as 50 years ago at Shetty Lunch Home, a legendary restaurant in Kundapur.
Although the recipe is a famed family secret, every restaurant and household in Mangalore have their own version of this delicacy.
What can be said with consistency is that the cooking process includes a blend of dry spices which are individually slow roasted like coffee beans till the fragrance fills the air, increasing the urgency to devour the dish, but patience is key.
This blend is then powdered and fried alongside the onions in ghee. Boiled eggs, cooked duck, chicken or prawn is then tossed into the masala and cooked till quite dry.
While the masala looks like it’s about to set your mouth on fire, it has the flavour of bountiful ghee roasted with spices giving your palate a whole new experience in the world of Ghee. Just as Milky Mist brings in pure ghee made from natural cow's milk which is a delicious dose of taste and nutrition.
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