Salva Mubarak Senior Features Writer

If you’re planning to flex your culinary skills this Independence Day long weekend, what better way to do it than trying out tricoloured recipes from experts helming the kitchens of some of the best restaurants in the country? If you have an Independence Day-themed get-together planned, these recipes can be perfect to impress your guests. From the main course to drinks as well as a scrumptious dessert recipe, we’ve got you sorted!

Tricolour Recipes To Try This Independence Day

Meen Moilee

By Chef Roshan Tadadikar, Executive Chef at Novotel, Mumbai International Airport

©Novotel

Ingredients

• 500g fish fillets (any firm fish like cod, tilapia, or snapper)
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2-3 green chilies, slit lengthwise
• 1 teaspoon ginger paste
• 1 teaspoon garlic paste
• 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon chilli powder (adjust to your spice preference)
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• ½ teaspoon fenugreek seeds
• ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
• Curry leaves (a handful)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• Salt to taste
• Fresh coriander leaves for garnish

Method

1. Clean and wash the fish fillets. Marinate them with a pinch of turmeric and salt. Set aside for 15-20 minutes.
2. In a pan or a pot, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat. Add mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. Once they start to splutter, add chopped onions and sauté until they become translucent.
3. Add ginger-garlic paste and green chillies, and cook for a couple of minutes until the raw smell disappears.
4. Reduce the heat to low and add turmeric powder, chilli powder, and coriander powder. Stir well to mix the spices with the onion mixture.
5. Pour in the coconut milk and bring it to a gentle simmer. Let it cook for about 5 minutes on low heat.
6. Now, carefully place the marinated fish fillets into the simmering coconut milk. Be gentle to avoid breaking the fillets.
7. Add curry leaves and salt to taste. Cover the pot and cook on low heat for about 10-15 minutes or until the fish is fully cooked and the flavours have melded together.
8. Once done, turn off the heat and let the curry rest for a few minutes before serving.
9. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves before serving. Meen Moilee goes well with steamed rice or appam (South Indian rice pancakes).

Tiranga Yakhni Pulao

By Chef Prashant Rao, Intercontinental Marine Drive, Mumbai

©Intercontinental Marine Drive

Ingredients

(For mutton)

• 1kg mutton (cut into pieces)
• 1gm saffron
• 1 big onion, finely sliced
• 2 pieces ginger, chopped
• 12 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 4-5 green cardamoms
• 2 tbsp Kashmiri chilli paste
• 2-3 Mace, whole
• 6-7 Cloves
• 2 tbsp fried onion
• 2 cups curd, beaten
• 3-4 tbsp desi ghee
• 2 cups mutton stock or water

(For pulao)

• 2 tbsp desi ghee
• 2 cups Basmati rice
• 4 cups mutton stock
• Salt to taste

Method

1. Heat the ghee and add all the whole garam masalas, bay leaf, cardamom, mace and cloves. Once the masala starts to splatter, add the chopped ginger and chopped garlic. As the ginger and garlic starts to get golden brown, add the sliced onion and cook till it is translucent and soft. Add the beaten curd and cook till all the water from the curd has evaporated.
2. Add the mutton and saute it for five to seven minutes, add salt and saffron, and close the lid of the cooker. Generally, it takes around four to five whistles of the Pressure cooker for mutton to cook. Meanwhile, we can start with the Pulao, wash and drain the basmati rice, and keep the mutton stock on heat till it comes to a boil. Take a heavy bottom pot with a tight lid, heat it on low flame and add the ghee to the pot.
3. Add the washed basmati rice and stir it slowly without breaking the rice. Once it is slightly coated with fat, add the boiling mutton stock and close the lid and let it cook on low heat. Meanwhile, we will make the mint drizzle in a blender jar, add the mint oil, salt, and sugar and blend it into as fine a paste as possible and leave it aside.
4. When the rice is almost 80% cooked, switch off the gas. Once the Mutton is cooked, top it up with the rice and fried onion, continue to cook till the rice is well cooked. Serve it hot with a drizzle of mint drizzle on top and accompanied by any raita of your choice.

Tricolour Risotto

By Chef Avinash Nalawade, Chef de Cuisine at Courtyard by Marriott, Navi Mumbai

©Courtyard by Mariott

Ingredients

(For the Spinach Risotto)

• 60 gm Arborio rice
• 120 ml veg stock
• 60 gm spinach paste
• 30 gm coriander paste
• 15 ml olive oil
• 15 gm onion
• 10 gm garlic
• 3 gm thyme
• 30 gm butter
• 40 gm parmesan cheese
• 20 ml fresh cream
• 2 gm microgreens

(For the Cheesy Risotto)

• 60 gm Arborio rice
• 120 ml veg stock
• 15 ml olive oil
• 15 gm onion
• 10 gm garlic
• 3 gm thyme
• 30 gm butter
• 60 gm parmesan cheese
• 20 ml fresh cream
• 2 gm green olives

(For the Saffron Risotto)

• 60 gm Arborio rice
• 120 ml veg stock
• 1 gm saffron
• 15 ml olive oil
• 15 gm onion
• 10 gm garlic
• 3 gm thyme
• 30 gm butter
• 60 gm parmesan cheese
• 20 ml fresh cream
• 2 gm green olives

Method

1. Take a non-stick pan and add oil, onion and garlic to it. Add risotto, saute well and then pour in the veg stock, little by little.
2. Make basic risotto rice by adding thyme and butter to it.
3. Finish risotto with cream and parmesan cheese.
4. Divide risotto into three equal parts.
5. In one part, add spinach and coriander paste. In the second part, add saffron and add extra cheese to the third part.
6. Arrange the risotto on a plate. Garnish with microgreens, olives and parmesan slivers.

Freedom Slurpee

By Chef Anurag Godbole, Wine Sommelier and Bar Manager at Nksha Restaurant, Mumbai

©Nksha

Ingredients

• Vetiver roots (soaked overnight)
• 30 ml coconut cream
• 1 tsp cardamom powder
• 200 gm Passion fruit pulp
• 20 gm sugar

Method

(For the cardamom and coconut infusion)

Blend cardamom powder and coconut cream and blitz it to make light and foamy.

(For the Vetiver syrup)

Soak vetiver roots overnight and then make a syrup using 1:1 proportion of sugar and water.

(For the passion fruit infusion)

Cook the fresh passion fruit pulp with some sugar on low heat. Don’t forget to strain the seeds.

(Assembling the drink)

1. Fill crushed iced in a martini glass
2. Pour Vetiver syrup on the ice.
3. Now top it with cardamom coconut cream and finish it up with passion fruit infusion to make a nice cold slurpee drink

Trio Frozen Margarita

By Abraham Roman Manbhat, mixologist at Kokum Bar and Lounge, Mumbai

©Kokum Bar and Lounge

Ingredients

• 60 ml Tequila
• 20 ml Peach crush
• 20 ml Kiwi crush
• 30 ml lime juice
• 20 ml sugar syrup

Method

1. Blend kiwi crush with 20 ml tequila. Now, pour it in margarita glass.
2. Blend 20 ml lime juice with 20 ml tequila. Pour into the same margarita glass and make a second layer.
3. For the third layer, blend peach crush with 20 ml tequila and pour it into the same glass with a lime slice and garnish with mint.

Tricolour Cake

By Chef Sidharth Sharma, Nush Mush, Gurugram

©Nush Mush

Ingredients

(For the orange sponge cake)

• 1.5 tbsp butter
• ¼ cup castor sugar
• 1 egg
• ½ tbsp edible flower orange colour
• 3 tbsp curd
• ⅓ cup refined flour
• ½ apple vinegar
• ¼ baking soda

(For the green cake sponge)

• ½ tbsp butter
• ¼ castor sugar
• 1 egg
• ½ tbsp edible flower green colour
• 3 tbsp curd
• ⅓ cup refined flour
• ½ apple vinegar
• ¼ baking soda
• White Cake Sponge
• 1.5 tbsp butter
• ¼ cup castor sugar
• 1 egg
• 3 tbsp curd
• ⅓ cup refined flour
• ½ apple vinegar
• ¼ baking soda

(For the buttercream)

• 1 egg
• ¼ tsp vanilla essence
• ½ cup castor sugar
• ½ cup unsalted butter
• (For layering)
• 1 cup buttercream
• ½ cup cream cheese
• 240 gm fondant

Method

(To prepare the buttercream)

1. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites.
2. Beat the egg whites, divide the sugar into smaller batches, then add slowly. Continue beating until soft peaks.
3. While the eggs are getting whipped, keep the remaining sugar and cup of water on medium-low heat. Stir until sugar melts and becomes clear, reaching a temperature of 235-240F.
4. Drizzle the sugar. At this point, the meringue should be at the soft peak stage.
5. Do not stop the mixer until the meringue is cool.
6. Add the room temperature butter into the mixer one tablespoon at a time. Add vanilla essence and beat until butter is combined to a silky consistency.

(To prepare the sponge)

1. Whip eggs in a stand mixer until foamy, gradually add sugar and continue whipping until the mixture falls off the whisk in the form of a thick ribbon (This should take about 20 minutes).
2. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350F. Line a round cake pan with foil. Brush the inside of the pan with softened butter and dust with flour. Shake out excess.
3. Sieve the dry ingredients (flour & baking soda).
4. Combine all wet ingredients (melted butter, water, vanilla, curd, vanilla/ edible flower colour).
5. Fold the dry ingredients in halves forming a number 8 with movements.
6. Fold in the wet ingredients.
7. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
8. Bake the cake for about 30 minutes.
9. Remove from the oven, let cool for 5 minutes, then invert onto a cooling rack and cool completely.

(Final steps of assembly)

1. Keep a mix of buttercream & cream cheese aside, and divide the mix in a ratio of 2:2:1 (base/middle/top layer).
2. Layer all three multi-colour sponges with the mix of buttercream & cream cheese in a specified ratio.
3. Cover it with a fondant sheet.
4. Garnish with tri-colour fondant flowers.

Which recipe are you trying first?