Meet Chef Madhav Dayal, the Young Talent Redefining Konkani-Portuguese Food in Goa

At home, however, the 29-year-old dons a more carefree hat. In the kitchen of his rented duplex in Socorro, Dayal is brimming with excitement, preparing mulled wine for a house party later in the evening. Ingredients arrive via Instamart, minutes after we walk in. Unlike at Miguel’s, where he is both head chef and partner, there is no anxiety here. He works with what he has, baking a chocolate cake with an ease akin to muscle memory — cooking like nobody’s watching.

Chocolate cake with salted caramel ganache (Express photo by Sankhadeep Banerjee)

Perhaps, that comfort comes from the years Dayal has spent in kitchens. He was eight when his father taught him how to make caramel custard. He loved it so much that he kept making it — for family, friends, classmates. Soon after, his mother handed him a recipe book and, every few weeks, he would whip up something new.

Not particularly inclined towards academics, Dayal chose Home Science in school. “Khana khilake hi main teachers ko impress kar sakta tha (I could only impress teachers with my cooking skills),” he laughs. His Home Science teacher, Madhulika Bahadur, incidentally also taught chef Manu Chandra. At 14, an uncle who designed professional kitchens noticed his interest and asked if he wanted to cook professionally. Dayal said, ‘yes’. The uncle called chef Ritu Dalmia, who took him under her wing and remains his mentor till date.

For college, Dayal went to Cesar Ritz in Switzerland to pursue a Bachelor’s in Culinary Arts. During breaks, he worked at Victoria-Jungfrau in Interlaken and spent four months at Gaggan Anand’s eponymous restaurant in Bangkok, the year it earned its second Michelin star. In 2018, he returned to India and resumed working with Dalmia, assisting on luxury catering projects across the country alongside Michelin-starred chefs. “During the off-season, I was creating my own dishes. She gave me a free hand,” he says, whisking eggs and sugar for the coffee- and rum-soaked chocolate cake; its salted caramel and dark chocolate ganache layers a quiet nod to the caramel custard from his childhood.

Miguel’s came about almost by chance. His brother-in-law, Ankush Gujral, was opening a bar in Panjim and asked Dayal to design the kitchen and create bar nibbles. A pop-up followed at Gujral’s house, where Dayal handled food and Dhruv “Toots” Tuteja the bar. “We were in complete sync,” he says. “If I used watermelon in a dish, he would turn the leftovers into a drink.”

Dayal designed what may be one of the smallest restaurant kitchens in the city — a 140-sq-ft island kitchen, surrounded by an L-shaped bar inside a 900-sq-ft, 25-seater space. The bar nibbles became a full menu of contemporary Konkani-Portuguese food. “We begin with Vista Sul. There are acchapams, which I first learnt at Gaggan’s and even a cornetto dish that serves only the last, best bite of the ice cream,” he says.

Back in the Socorro kitchen, Dayal adds hot water to the batter “to help the cacao bloom”, pours it into a greased tin that then slides into the oven. As the cake bakes, he speaks about consciously making Miguel’s democratic. Everyone knows every dish, and a chef and a washer are treated with the same respect. “I’ve worked in kitchens where pots were thrown at me,” he recalls. “I decided that wouldn’t happen in my space.”

That ethos extends beyond the restaurant. Dayal is one of the founders of ‘Chef’s Night Goa’, a community of nearly 600 chefs who came to the state seeking a slower, more meaningful way to cook during the pandemic. The group meets a few times a year, sharing food, ideas and resources. “We started with 10 people. At the last meet-up, 200 showed up,” he says. “The idea is to make Goa a culinary destination.”

The ganache is ready. He slices the cake into three layers, brushing each with maple syrup “for moisture and flavour,” spreads the salted caramel and garnishes with figs. The cake is unfussy, much like the life Dayal intends to build. Asked if he plans to return to Delhi, he shakes his head. “Goa gives me freedom. You work but you also get to rest. I’m here for now.”
In the living room, his flatmates — a photographer and a visual artist — gather as he brings the cake out. There are ‘oohs’, ‘aahs’, cameras clicking. He cuts, they celebrate, perhaps the cake, perhaps the life taking shape around it.

Recipe for Chocolate cake with salted caramel ganache:

Method

To make the cake base, whisk eggs and sugar until fluffy. Sieve all dry ingredients and gently fold into the egg mix on low speed. Add vanilla, oil and about 30 ml warm water. The batter will be runny. Pour into a lined tin and bake at 180°C for 25 minutes. Cool completely

For salted caramel chocolate ganache, caramelise sugar till dark amber. Add salt, then carefully whisk in cream. Add butter, bring to a boil and pour over chocolate. Whisk over an ice bath until light and spreadable

To make the soaking syrup, heat together water, sugar, maple syrup and dark chocolate until melted and smooth

While assembling, slice the cake into three layers. Brush generously with soaking syrup, spread the ganache and caramel between layers and cover the cake completely with the ganache. Chill for 1 hour before slicing