Today we learnt about the quintessential Indian rice dish- the Briyani. It also comes in many forms and perhaps the most famous is the Hyderabadi version. Today’s class was about that and a few other related dishes like the Paneer Tikka, Raita and the rich and delectable Sheermal bread!

First we flashfried the vegetables, marinated them with spices and yoghurt (made special spice blends for them too) and then placed them on a tray, heaped the almost cooked rice on it, added some saffron water, sealed it and into the combi oven it went to be cooked!

Next up was the Sheermal Bread. This was made with a yeasted dough that had milk, sugar, cream and ghee added to it and kneaded into a sticky dough. Like a Kheer or Payasam that has become a dough! Rest it for a while and then it was time to flatten it by hand, adding some nuts to it and baking it. Once out, it is dipped in ghee before being consumed. Unlike other breads, it is best eaten once cool. A rich and addictive bread that will make your weighing scale go off the charts.

We then made the Raita, a Paneer Tikka (marinated in a spicy yoghurt and bake) and a Makhni (Butter Masala) gravy in a slightly different style. Learn that Makhanwala, Makhni, Butter Masala dishes are all basicall the same gravy.

It was then time to eat a super late lunch at 4pm. We gulped it all down without even plating it and taking photos as we usually do ha ha- we were too hungry!

We were so full!

I have been told that one of the must haves in Winter in Mumbai is Undhiyu. Made of over 20 different kind of vegetables, it is a Gujerati specialty. Undhiyu is a Gujarati mixed vegetable dish that is a regional specialty of Surat, Gujarat, India. The name of this dish comes from the Gujarati word "undhu", which translates to upside down, since the dish is traditionally cooked upside down underground in earthen pots, termed "matlu", which are fired from above. The traditional style takes hours to cook but nowadays shorter methods are available.

One of my coursemates had brought it from home and I was able to try a little bit!

A 1 pot goodness filled with hearty vegetables and flavours. It was very tasty! With that our day came to an end!