Appetizers

Chef Nilesh Limaye's Crisp Fried Eggplant Dredged with Peanuts is a Pan-Asian dish with a twist of red wine and Demerara (brown) sugar. The crunch factor is everything here, and it comes from crispy eggplant slices fried at the right temperature and good quality roasted peanuts.

This recipe is by Chef Suriya Phusirimongkhonchai who heads Spices, a South-East Asian restaurant at the JW Mariott, Mumbai. This dish packs in all the typical Thai flavours and was served by him at the Thai Street Food festival, where we interviewed him about the lesser known aspects of Thai cuisine. Watch the video here.

Chef Suriya, who actually specialises in Thai desserts, has shared two other recipes - the quintessential Thai Yellow Curry and the delicately crunchy Tako, a dessert made with water chestnut, coconut milk and rice flour. 

Image courtesy: JW Mariott, Mumbai

Satiate your fried potato craving minus the calories! This makes for a great snack, appetizer or even a side dish. This recipe is very versatile - try it with sweet potatoes too. Adjust the seasoning as you please.

Oven-roasted potatoes have a lovely crispiness without being high in calories. They  taste best when just out of the oven. If it sits too long after baking it loses its crispiness. If pressed for time, roast the potatoes in the oven until half-done and then re-roast before serving till you get the desired texture. Adjust the amount of lemon in the dressing depending on how tart you like your sauce.

A delectable Sicilian-inspired tart recipe by TV personality and Senior Executive Chef at Novotel, Chef Ranveer Brar.