Dal is the most humble dish in an Indian thaali. But a bowl of pulses can be much more than boiled lentils topped with tadka.
At the launch of Pratibha Karan’s The Book of Dals at Delhi’s posh Olive Bar & Kitchen on 4 February, it was easy to feel out of place. Amid the glitz of the who’s who gossiping and socialising in their best attires, the simple peeli dal had no place — the event was all about making dal cosmopolitan and that too in an average Indian kitchen. Listing various domestic and foreign dal recipes, the book launch attracted an audience that thronged the cafe to know more about the unassuming dish.
Waiters dished out snacks such as Le Puy lentils—crusted lotus root kibbe with harissa tahini sauce. One realises that dal isn’t just a bland protein source for vegetarians. It can be snazzy, jazzy, and even snobby. Forget buttermilk. At the event, dal was paired up with gin, tonics, and whiskey sours.
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A family affair
It was a family affair at Olive Bar & Kitchen.
Pratibha Karan was present with her grandson Aizan, who was the emcee at the event. Her son Gaurav was the organiser. Raja Vijay Karan, Pratibha’s husband and former director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), sat at a corner rooting for his wife.
One of the guests of honour was Vir Sanghvi — who infused an elite enthusiasm into the discussion. He was accompanied by former US ambassador to the United Nations Peter Burleigh and Milee Aishwarya of Penguin Random House.
All of them narrated stories about the lip-smacking food they had had from Pratibha’s kitchen. “She makes the most fabulous food I’ve ever tasted,” said Sanghvi.
Throughout the launch, the family kept cracking persclose friends that only close friends could decipher. Anyone outside of the bureaucratic-cum-elite circle would have felt like they barged into the wrong event.
The book launch attracted nearly 40 people who pushed and shoved each other just to know more about dal. From children and journalists to publishers and diplomats, as well as smokers hiding in a corner, the audience was diverse and colourful, just like a good old cup of mixed dal.
Rooted in ‘home’
Pratibha is a former civil servant, a Punjabi who fell in love with a Hyderabadi and Hyderabadi food. Her previous books include Princely Legacy and Biryani.
Described as the ‘queen of nawabicuisine’ by The Indian Express, Pratibha is a vegetarian who has mastered cooking delicacies that appeal to meat lovers too. And she learnt it all after she got married in Hyderabad — home of the biryani.
According to Pratibha, cooking was about nurturing your loved ones. That was the inspiration behind writing The Book of Dals. It explores the different ways dal could be prepared in an average Indian home, including vegetarian and meatrecipes from across the continent — Sri Lanka, Sindh (Pakistan), and Nepal as well. Among the Indian dishes, some popular ones include payasam from Tamil Nadu, kuju from Karnataka, and katachi amti from Maharashtra.
“From my school days in Bilaspur, I have the fondest memories of my mother making udad dal pinnis that were full of ghee,” Pratibha said nostalgically. “Dals are an intrinsic part of everyday Indian meals. Cooking for family, nurturing them through it, gives me the utmost pleasure and joy,” she said.
Olive Bar & Kitchen took special care to ensure the flavour of the occasion was intact. Chef Dhruv Oberoi curated dishes made with lentils. On the menu were split chickpea lentil falafel for vegetarians and roasted chicken with lentil ras el hanout crunch and various pizzas with lentil-based crusts for meat eaters.
“It was good to experiment and make lentil-based dishes. It helps us innovate our menu too, which we’re aiming to make completely gluten-free,” Oberoi told ThePrint.
(Edited by Humra Laeeq)