Dumplings get fun makeovers with innovative flavours

Mint

6 days ago

Chef Sameer Taneja's earliest memories of growing up in a small village called Bairava in Nepal, is devouring steaming hot momos on the streets. 'In fact, such was my obsession that I would gobble up sixteen of them at one go when I was only 5-years- old," remembers the executive chef of the Michelin-starred London restaurant Benares. Taneja continues his love affair with momos creating gourmet versions with truffle and even foie gras.
Be it momos, wontons or dim sums, these steamed delights are undergoing a thrilling transformation in the urban foodscape. Chefs are reinventing the all-time classic by incorporating unexpected ingredients and flavours, and presenting them with contemporary flair.
At Veronica's, a sandwich shop and café owned by Hunger Inc. Hospitality, executive chef Hussain Shahzad wraps up the favourite breakfast items in one delicious bite. Think sausages, eggs, cheese and caramelised onions, all tucked inside a momo. A side of chilli crisp brings a whisper of heat, while a dusting of parmesan lends that unmistakable sharpness. Meanwhile at Avatara, the vegetarian fine dining Indian restaurant, head chef Sanket Joshi offers a contemporary style of dim sum with modak-shaped parcels filled with artichoke on a kokum-kissed Malwani curry. A dehydrated okra stuffed with thecha adds texture and extra oomph.
Also read: Samosa tartlets and chikoo ice-cream at this British-Indian pop-up
What makes dim sums a hotbed of creativity for chefs? 'They are the perfect vessel for flavour. A dumpling is small. So, every element needs to be delivered in one mouthful. That's a creative challenge I love. Plus, dumplings are universal. Every culture has its version, and that makes them such a fun playground to reimagine," explains Shahzad.
Sara Jacob Nair, the executive chef and co-founder of Nair on Fire, a cloud kitchen offering homestyle Kerala cuisine in Mumbai, says, 'I believe ada (flat rice flour packets stuffed with coconut and jaggery) and koi katta, our Malayali version of the Maharashtrian modak, could be the earliest forms of dumplings in our culture. My mom would use the leftover rice batter from these items to smartly wrap up leftover beef, fish or vegetable, steam it and present it to us as a snack when we returned from school in the evening. But it never had the finesse of the dumpling we eat today," remembers Nair, who makes a similar dumpling with pork or prawns cooked in Kerala style. 'Our filling is spicy, and doesn't need a chutney or sauce on the side. I have also cracked the code of making the rice casing really thin so the dumpling actually melts in the mouth," she adds.
Innovating on the classic dim sum takes a mix of science and art, a combination that Taneja has mastered. For the Indian Accent and Benares pop-ups in Delhi and Mumbai recently, the chef presented gyoza filled with prawn and foie gras in a bold bone marrow curry. Think gyozas bathing in nihari.
'I spent my early childhood in a small village in Nepal, where monks were a familiar sight, and nearly every restaurant served momos. I grew up eating them, and now they're a favourite with my kids too," says Taneja, adding since he is fond of nihari, he wanted to combine it with momos. He created a nihari using prawn shells, and stuffed the momo with prawns and foie gras, since the former does not have fat. The foie gras gave it fattiness, he informs. He also used herb oil for another layer of fat. 'A great momo is all about the perfect balance between protein and pastry. It's the fat in the momo that makes all the difference."
How about a smoky flavour in a dim sum? That's something chef-partner Vardaan Marwah has nailed at Farro, a new eatery in Pune's Koregaon Park. The buff manti here (Turkish dumplings) is cooked over charcoal, similar to the Bihari litti, and sent out with a garlic toum, and a broth inspired by rasam. The perfectly-charred dumplings with a filling of juicy buff hold up beautifully against the bold broth. But behind the perfect dumplings are a series of failed attempts. 'It started as a ravioli, before moving closer to Turkish manti. The idea clicked when we unexpectedly paired it with a rasam that my sous chef had made. It brought the dish alive. From there, we refined it to what it is today," explains Marwah.
Unexpected fillings are also finding their way into dumplings. At Pune's 3 Spices restaurant at DoubleTree By Hilton Hotel, chef Rakesh Jadhav fills dumplings with drumstick flowers, lentils and coconut and serves them alongside an asparagus chutney. He also experiments with a sweet and sour wood apple filling. 'I see what's around and ask, 'can this go inside a dumpling?'" he explains, embracing a no-rules approach to texture and filling.
Chef Karishma Sakhrani, the culinary and operations director of Acme Hospitality in Mumbai, takes seared gyozas a step further. She tosses them in a nuoc cham dressing with crisp vegetables and fragrant fried shallots to create a delicious mouthful.
Beyond innovative fillings, the dim sum casing itself is being reimagined. While chef Jadhav infuses the dough with spinach, turmeric and even moringa, chef Ananya Banerjee crafts gluten-free versions using sago or sabudana.
With so much to offer when it comes to everyone's favourite dumplings, chefs are excited to tease and surprise diners with creative takes, one bite at a time.
Also read: Reviving old family recipes for fine dining menus
Nivedita Jayaram Pawar is a Mumbai-based food writer