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On the Road: Tastes Indian Food Goes Local and Seasonal
By Josh Sens
Published: March/April 2007
VIA
When David Machado prepares Goan-style seafood curry, an aromatic southern Indian dish, he blends coconut, curry, lime, and cilantro, just as the venerable recipe dictates. But instead of adding the customary squid and shrimp, he tosses in fresh mussels from Puget Sound. "Locally grown, seasonally selected," Machado says. "We're applying the principle that people associate with California cuisine to Indian food."
As the chef-owner of Vindalho in Portland (www.vindalho.com), Machado has found himself in the midst of a boom. He's one of several chefs around the West offering a fresh take on Indian traditions. He uses hormone-free poultry for his chicken tikka, and prepares saag paneer masala, a vegetarian standard, with house-made cheese.
You'll find more new ideas at San Francisco's Dosa (www.dosasf.com), where diners can order the restaurant's namesake lentil crepes stuffed with traditional potato filling or with cheddar cheese. Less than an hour's drive south at Junnoon (www.junnoon.com) in Palo Alto, executive chef Kirti Pant, who cooked at London's upscale Cinnamon Club, pan sears duck breast lightly coated with tamarind, cashew nuts, and sesame seeds. And Origin India in Las Vegas (www.originindiarestaurant.com) presents a light, refined rendition of lahsooni jhinga, shrimp in a bold garlic sauce with handmade green papaya noodles.
Some restaurateurs attribute these changes to the West's growing Indian population and the emergence of India as a global economic power. Others point to such pioneering Indian restaurants as Vij's in Vancouver, B.C. (www.vijs.ca), where the kitchen staff spends hours each day grinding spices, and Ajanta in Berkeley, Calif. (www.ajantarestaurant.com), among the first to feature sustainably caught seafood.
Machado's cooking has gained a following, which means Vindalho is packed every night. But is this really Indian food? Machado describes it as "spice route cuisine," a fitting name for a table that blends the flavors of East and West.
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