Sea Change

Was this just a scotch-and-cigarette induced hallucination? Were Dilliwallahs finally beginning to discover that fruits de mer or ‘fruits of the sea’ were more than an unappetising tangle of shells and tentacles?

Being a coastal girl, I’m often supercilious about the north’s lack of enthusiasm for seafood. How tragic, I’ve always thought. These deprived souls haven’t let themselves be seduced by the wonders that are crabs, lobsters, clams. The list is endless and I’m already salivating.

Now that I’m sure I didn’t dream up last night’s vision, I set my slightly hurting head to wondering how Dilliwallahs made this quantum leap of culinary faith.

Deprivation was obviously the first and primary reason. Good, fresh seafood just didn’t seem to be either good or fresh after the long journey to Delhi. As a result, even those willing to experiment ended up rather put off. Then there were the ingredients—coconut milk and such—that are anathema to the north Indian palate.

The winds from the coast have brought in their wake not just the monsoon clouds, but a taste for the sea as well. The paaji from the plains is now amenable to eating creatures with fins and gills, instead of only those with hooves and feathers. Hallelujah!

Just the number of speciality seafood restaurants that have recently opened is proof that dining out is no longer only about kukkad and kaali dal. And the change is not just confined to starred hotels. Stand-alone restaurants, serving everything from spicy Singapore Chilli Crabs to gravlax, dot the city.

At Swagath, in Defence Colony Market, which specialises in South Indian-style seafood, the most frequent orders are for butter pepper garlic crab or lobster. Ploof, in Lodhi Colony Market, lets you select seafood and then cooks it to your taste.

Five-star hotels now routinely hold seafood festivals. The ITC Maurya Sheraton’s recent Chilli Crab Festival generated such an enthusiastic response that a repeat is in the offing.

Executive Chef G Sultan Mohideen finds the trend exciting. “When I joined the industry, I wished that chickens had four legs, just so that I could satisfy the unending orders for tangri kebabs,” he says. “Today, crumb-fried calamari (squid) and sushi are hugely popular cocktail snacks.”

The city’s major five-stars also all have oyster bars. Demand begets supply. INA market in central Delhi is a veritable fisherman’s wharf. Fresh squid, crabs, red snapper, sea sole, lobster and crayfish are stacked as far as the eye can see.

The seafood fad is not confined to restaurants and hotels. City residents are also buying fresh and frozen seafood to cook at home. Frozen brands such as Sumeru are being stocked in more and more grocery stores.

As last night’s cobwebs begin to clear and another Sunday lunch beckons, I know where I’m headed—to join a gang of born-again Dilliwallahs at old favourite Baba Ling’s Imperial Garden, to indulge, shark-like, in a feeding frenzy.

BBQ Oysters with Zesty Oriental Dipping Sauce

Although oysters are best eaten raw with a dash of Tabasco and a squeeze of lemon juice, they’re also delicious cooked. Here’s a recipe to put your barbecue or griller to good use.

INGREDIENTS
8 pcs oysters, cleaned and popped open
2 cups tomato ketchup
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 bunch spring onions, grilled

METHOD
Place oysters in their shells on the grill. Mix next eight ingredients in a bowl to make a sauce. After three to four minutes, remove top shells of oysters and spoon on prepared sauce. Let cook for one minute. Garnish with the grilled spring onions.