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Indian Express
28-04-2025
- General
- Indian Express
Why Tamil Nadu banned mayonnaise, and its strange Madras connection
You've probably heard that Tamil Nadu has banned mayonnaise made using raw eggs, because it is giving people a stomach bug. What you probably don't know is that there is a close relationship between Madras – the old name for Chennai – and mayonnaise. The two came together in 1953, thanks to a luncheon held at the Great Hall at Westminster School in London for Queen Elizabeth II. It was to honour her coronation later that year. The task of feeding the Queen and some 350 international dignitaries fell on Constance Spry and Rosemary Hume, the principals of the London branch of the prestigious French cookery school, Le Cordon Bleu. Among the various Frenchified delicacies served at the luncheon, one stood out. It was a chicken salad that Spry and Hume christened 'Poulet Reine Elizabeth'. What was unique about it was that it was held together with a mixture of thick mayonnaise and Madras Curry Powder. Okay, the Madras Curry Powder bit is probably untrue. What is true, though, is that Poulet Reine Elizabeth, later known as Coronation Chicken, spread like wild spicy fire across pubs and restaurants in London, where Madras Curry Powder was the most commonly used spice blend. Indeed, across the pond, in the US, delis began selling a Coronation Chicken-style salad and called it Madras Chicken Salad, or a Madras Curry Chicken Salad. Its main ingredients were smoked chicken, tomato ketchup, apricots, raisins, spring onions, coriander leaves, and mayonnaise laced with Madras Curry Powder. It might not be that popular anymore, but you can still find the recipe on the interwebs and YouTube. Mayo, on its own, has been around for centuries. One story says it derives its name from Port Mahon, in the island of Menorca in Spain, which was captured by the French from the British in 1756. The French chefs ran short of cream for their sauces and devised a way to mimic it by whisking together egg yolks and oil. The resulting sauce came to be known as ' mahonnaise,' and later as 'mayonnaise.' Other origin stories locate it in the French town of Bayonne, where the egg and oil emulsion was supposedly first created. From Bayonne came ' bayonnaise ', which gradually morphed into mayonnaise. Another French theory is that the term comes from ' moyen ', an old French word for egg yolk – hence moyennaise, and then mayonnaise. The mayonnaise in India In India, mayo was mostly eaten by the Westernised elites, in colonial clubs and their post-independence copycat restaurants. Its ubiquitous presence in street food is something entirely new. Now, every hawker has a bottle of mayonnaise, which they squeeze over anything and everything – from sandwich and kathi roll filling, to veg momo and paneer tikka. In the northern states, where eateries have to cater to vegetarians, the mayo served is almost always eggless. In the South, where eating eggs is much more common, the roadside mayonnaise is likely to be an original recipe, using raw egg yolks, or even entire raw eggs. That, as any food scientist will tell you, is a recipe for disaster in hot climates. Eggs can carry Salmonella bacteria, which can cause stomach infections, resulting in diarrhoea, fever, and dehydration. In extreme cases, patients might even have to be hospitalised. Salmonella is killed when eggs are heated beyond 160°f for 30 seconds. The other way to make them safe to eat is to pasteurise them by holding eggs at 140- 145°f for three-and-a-half minutes. Neither of these is done in traditional mayonnaise recipes. So, when a raw egg-based mayo is kept on the countertop next to a stove, out in the hot sun, it acts as a day on the beach for bacteria of all kinds. They multiply and contaminate every food item that has been blessed with a shower of mayo. In fact, traditional recipes for homemade mayonnaise, meant for Western home cooks, stipulate that it should be refrigerated and consumed within a week. Even in colder climes, mayonnaise is considered a delicate, slightly risky condiment. Then why use raw egg yolks at all? The reason is that yolks contain an emulsifier called egg lecithin. It is made of molecules having a fat-attracting tail and a water-attracting head. When an emulsifier is added to oil and water, which would normally not mix, the tails hold onto fat droplets, and the heads attach themselves to water droplets. This is how an emulsifier, like a lecithin, holds oil and water droplets together to create a smooth, creamy emulsion. At the same time, the heads repel the fat droplets, keeping them apart, so that they don't separate into large masses of fat, and stay evenly suspended in the water base. In the case of mayonnaise, the egg yolk holds together vinegar and oil when all three are whisked together. The method is to first slowly emulsify the oil by whisking it into the egg yolk, drop by drop. According to the celebrated chef, Heston Blumenthal, one egg yolk can emulsify two kilograms of oil, but a standard recipe uses one yolk for every 115-150 grams (125-165 ml) of oil. Commercially sold eggless, or vegan, mayonnaise usually contains soy lecithin, the most commonly used vegetarian emulsifier. You will find it in chocolates, ice cream, sliced bread, biscuits, and hundreds of other packaged foods sold in India. It is often mentioned in the ingredients as E 322 and INS 4150. Soy lecithin (or lecithins of sunflower seeds) works in the same way as egg yolks do in traditional mayo recipes. However, anyone who has tasted both kinds of mayonnaise will agree that the vegan 'eggless' mayos lack the rich umami flavours and the mouthfeel of a true egg yolk-based mayonnaise. But there can be no doubt that eggless mayonnaise is much safer to use in hot climates. Here are two easy recipes – one for traditional egg-based mayo, and the other eggless. The eggless mayonnaise uses soya milk, which has a small amount of soy lecithin. The egg-based mayo can be easily made with a normal balloon whisk. You will need a mixer-grinder or a hand-held stick blender to make the eggless mayo, because it needs much higher levels of whisking power. Method: · Place the egg yolks in a large bowl and mix in the mustard sauce. · Use a balloon whisk to slowly whisk in the oil drop by drop. · Once you have added 80-100 ml of the oil and the mixture has thickened, add the remaining oil in a slow steady stream while whisking it constantly. · Once all the oil has been incorporated, whisk in the vinegar. · Add the salt and red chilli powder (if using) and mix well. · Taste and adjust the seasoning. · Remove the mayonnaise into an airtight container and refrigerate. · Use within 5-7 days. Method: · Chill the soya milk, vinegar, and oil for at least an hour. You can keep the oil in the freezer to make it as cold as possible. · Pour the soya milk, vinegar, and mustard sauce in the tall container of a hand-blender or in a mixer jar. Mix well till the ingredients have blended together. · Now gradually add the oil, drop by drop, and blend. If you are using a mixer-grinder, then mix the oil in short bursts. · Once one-third of the oil has got incorporated, you can pour the rest in a steady thin stream, while continuously mixing with the hand blender. · If you are using a mixer-grinder, give one-minute breaks after every minute of blending, so that the emulsion doesn't heat up too much. · Keep blending till the mayonnaise reaches a 'soft peak' stage. Do not overbeat, otherwise the mayonnaise will break and curdle. · Set aside for an hour. Then remove to an airtight container and refrigerate.
Daily Maverick
22-04-2025
- General
- Daily Maverick
Coronation Chicken, the perfect sequel to leftover roast chicken
When you cooked for the late and esteemed Queen Elizabeth II, you went lightly on the spices, as she was famously timid of palate. Surprising, then, that the dish most famously associated with Her Majesty is a curried salad. On the eve of the coronation of her son Charles, let's add Coronation Chicken to our repertoire; it's even making a comeback in a canapé at his coronation on Saturday. The spicing of the original dish for Queen Elizabeth's coronation luncheon in London's Guildhall on the 12th of June 1953 must have been very light. When cooking one meal for many guests the wise host caters for the broader palate, but when cooking for the queen you are really cooking for her palate alone. It is well known that if you were dining in her company, you ate what she ate and the way she liked it. There is no tradition of 'this one's for Her Majesty, the others all have garlic and more spice'. In fact, there would be no garlic in anything at all. It was ingredient-non-grata in her palace kitchens. If you wanted to please the queen, you might have cooked her a nice lunch of grilled chicken with a simple salad, or a piece of Dover sole grilled and served with plain wilted spinach or courgettes. Darren McGrady, who worked for years in the royal households, wrote in his book Eating Royally: Recipes and Remembrances from a Palace Kitchen that Her Majesty loved potted Morecambe Bay shrimp on hot buttered toast, and fish and chips on a Friday. Her idea of extravagance was more in the vein of roast partridge, pheasant or grouse for Sunday lunch, and she loved venison, but never rare, and fancied a mushroom, whiskey and cream sauce with her well-done meat. So it would be unkind to presume that, because her palate was not adventurous as such, she did not appreciate fine fare. Some of those are very fine indeed. But she was no foodie, as McGrady has said; unlike her late husband the late Prince Phillip, she ate to live, he lived to eat. And never, ever garlic. So then. Her Maj and I were not quite on the same page of the recipe book regarding spices and garlic. I have always admired her, however, so I hope she would forgive me if my recipe wandered away a tad from the original one that Constance Spry and Rosemary Hume created for the Guildhall lunch in June 1953, two years before yours truly arrived on the planet screaming for milk and garlic with a hint of masala. That famous coronation will be 70 years old only one month from now. But we're cooking it for us commoners, out here on the wrong side of the Buckingham Palace gates, where we peer in wondering what it must be like inside, and what he'd say if you hopped over, walked up to him and yelled 'Hello!' while his minders bundled you into a van and took you away. Followed, in short shrift, by the tabloids sharpening their pens and you selling your story to Hello! magazine. Since we're cooking for us, and not actually dining in royal company, we can choose to adapt the now classic recipe to the less timid palate. And it's no insult to her or to the original recipe, for this is the kind of recipe that tastes 'right' despite the strength of the spicing. It's the basic formula that is important, and that is the threesome of cold chicken, mayonnaise, and curry spices. That really is the heart of it; it's that simple. And it's quick and easy to make. What else goes into it? Let's start with Spry and Hume's original recipe. Other than chicken and mayonnaise, it contained curry paste, tomato purée, red wine, onion, apricot halves, bay leaf, lemon juice, and cream. I approached the recipe with a background of the cuisine and spices of the Cape, so my first thought was to use dried apricots, and the second was to add golden sultanas. This is because I think the dish benefits by having more of the sweet fruitiness that they both bring, and the texture of the sultanas in particular is pleasing. Apricots are essential, although some recipes for it leave them out, which is a shame; if you're moving that far away from the original it ceases to be Coronation Chicken at all. We can add to it rather than subtract from it; that's the key. For the spicing, I went straight to my Durban Curry masala mix, because it would seem churlish to leave the old Natal colony out. Another change in my recipe is the addition of chutney. It seems obvious to me that chutney is the perfect way to complete the flavour profile of Coronation Chicken. It underscores the sweetness by balancing it with sour, and enhances the spices just as it does when served with a hot curry. But there's one element of the original that I left out: cream. I chose instead to go heavier on the mayonnaise, so it doesn't really become a lighter dish as such, but I can't say cream does anything more than increase the richness of a dish that is already rich enough. Add cream by all means, but I liked the flavour and texture of the dish as written here. Finally, the meat needs simply to be cooked chicken, so leftover breast meat from a roast is perfect. I planned it this way: I bought a really plump chicken and roasted it, then served us the thighs, drumsticks and wings for supper and kept the two breasts in the fridge overnight. That was the perfect quantity for Coronation Chicken. The recipe is made in two stages. First, onion is simmered in oil until softened, then spices, bay leaf, tomato purée and red wine are added for it to saute until the liquid has reduced. Then it is cooled before mayonnaise and other ingredients are stirred in. Ingredients 600 g cooked chicken 1 tbsp vegetable oil 1 small onion, finely chopped 1 bay leaf 1 red chilli, chopped 1 tbsp curry powder/ Durban masala or similar 1 tbsp tomato purée 50 ml dry red wine 2 Tbsp peach chutney 4 pieces of dried apricot, diced small 2 Tbsp golden sultanas 200 ml mayonnaise Salt and pepper Method Simmer chopped onion with the bay leaf in cooking oil until softened but not caramelised. Add the chilli, masala, tomato purée and red wine and simmer until much of the liquid has cooked away. Leave it to cool, then stir in the chutney, tiny pieces of dried apricot, sultanas, and mayonnaise, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Finally, add the chicken and fold in with a wooden spoon until everything is coated in the sauce. Serve with a simple green salad, and no garlic please. Let's give the memory of Her Majesty that much. DM/TGIFood
Web Release
25-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Web Release
Huom Culinary Canvas and Le Cordon Bleu Bring Exclusive Gourmet Experiences to Dubai
By Editor_wr Last updated Mar 24, 2025 Get ready for an unforgettable culinary experience. Huom Culinary Canvas has teamed up with Le Cordon Bleu, the globally renowned institution for culinary and hospitality education, to bring a series of exclusive events to Dubai from April 11-12, 2025. Think hands-on workshops, live demos, and a special open house—all designed to spark your passion for food and cooking. Take A Culinary Journey with a Master Chef The two-day event kicks off with an immersive workshop led by Le Cordon Bleu Master Chef Fabrice Monperrus. Participants will get a sneak-peak behind the artistry of the iconic 'Poulet Reine Elizabeth' (Coronation Chicken), originally created by the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu London institute for Queen Elizabeth II's coronation in 1953. The event offers participants a chance to refine their cooking skills while learning from one of the industry's finest chefs. Later that evening, Chef Fabrice will host a Black Cherry Soufflé demonstration, where participants can gain exclusive knowledge of French pâtisserie techniques and learn how they can influence their culinary careers. Learn More About Pursuing Your Culinary Dreams On April 12, Huom Culinary Canvas is giving aspiring chefs and culinary enthusiasts an exclusive look at their facility and culinary courses at Le Cordon Bleu. This event will highlight the diverse opportunities available at Le Cordon Bleu, known for its world-class education in classical French and modern cuisine. The event will feature demonstrations and an in-depth look at Le Cordon Bleu's renowned programmes, including their Higher Education degree offerings. Events' Details April 11, 2025: The Coronation Chicken Workshop Time: 10:00 AM Location: Shop 52, Block 13, Wasl Square, Dubai Limited to 12 participants Black Cherry Soufflé Demonstration Time: 5:30 PM Location: Shop 53, Wasl Square, Dubai Limited to 30 seats April 12, 2025: Le Cordon Bleu Open House – Celebrating 130 Years of Excellence Time: 10:45 AM Location: Shop 53, Block 13, Wasl Square, Dubai Limited to 30 seats For more information on this upcoming event, please visit Find Huom on Instagram @ Comments are closed.
Mid East Info
24-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Mid East Info
Huom Culinary Canvas and Le Cordon Bleu Bring Exclusive Gourmet Experiences to Dubai - Middle East Business News and Information
Get ready for an unforgettable culinary experience. Huom Culinary Canvas has teamed up with Le Cordon Bleu, the globally renowned institution for culinary and hospitality education, to bring a series of exclusive events to Dubai from April 11-12, 2025. Think hands-on workshops, live demos, and a special open house—all designed to spark your passion for food and cooking. Take A Culinary Journey with a Master Chef The two-day event kicks off with an immersive workshop led by Le Cordon Bleu Master Chef Fabrice Monperrus. Participants will get a sneak-peak behind the artistry of the iconic 'Poulet Reine Elizabeth' (Coronation Chicken), originally created by the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu London institute for Queen Elizabeth II's coronation in 1953. The event offers participants a chance to refine their cooking skills while learning from one of the industry's finest chefs. Later that evening, Chef Fabrice will host a Black Cherry Soufflé demonstration, where participants can gain exclusive knowledge of French pâtisserie techniques and learn how they can influence their culinary careers. Learn More About Pursuing Your Culinary Dreams On April 12, Huom Culinary Canvas is giving aspiring chefs and culinary enthusiasts an exclusive look at their facility and culinary courses at Le Cordon Bleu. This event will highlight the diverse opportunities available at Le Cordon Bleu, known for its world-class education in classical French and modern cuisine. The event will feature demonstrations and an in-depth look at Le Cordon Bleu's renowned programmes, including their Higher Education degree offerings. Events' Details April 11, 2025: The Coronation Chicken Workshop Time: 10:00 AM Location: Shop 52, Block 13, Wasl Square, Dubai Limited to 12 participants Black Cherry Soufflé Demonstration Time: 5:30 PM Location: Shop 53, Wasl Square, Dubai Limited to 30 seats April 12, 2025: Le Cordon Bleu Open House – Celebrating 130 Years of Excellence Time: 10:45 AM Location: Shop 53, Block 13, Wasl Square, Dubai Limited to 30 seats For more information on this upcoming event, please visit Find Huom on Instagram @
Gulf News
20-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Gulf News
Jumeirah Carlton Tower brings swinging sixties energy to London Fashion Week with Mary Quant tribute
Supplied London Fashion Week has arrived, and Jumeirah Carlton Tower is throwing it back to the era that changed everything. The Knightsbridge hotspot is paying homage to Dame Mary Quant - the queen of the miniskirt - with an exclusive lobby exhibit featuring one of her rare vintage dresses, on display until 28 February. The tribute is a full-on, immersive fashion fantasy that blends British style heritage with high-end hospitality. A flashback to swinging London Mary Quant was not just a designer - she was a movement. With her daring cuts and playful patterns, she defined the rebellious, youth-fueled energy of the 1960s. The vintage dress on display at Jumeirah Carlton Tower captures that revolutionary spirit, offering a glimpse into a time when fashion was fun, fearless, and anything but ordinary. To match the vibe, the legendary floral designers at Moyses Stevens have crafted a gorgeous installation, channeling the dress's punchy colors and bold aesthetic. Fashion you can taste and sip No fashion tribute is complete without indulgence, and Jumeirah Carlton Tower is serving it up in style. The Chinoiserie is offering a limited-edition dessert, featuring layers of vanilla and tonka, almond sponge, exotic fruit cream, and white chocolate flowers in Quant's signature purple and orange hues. The Afternoon Tea experience is a celebration of nature, craftsmanship, and sustainability. Each delicacy is crafted with precision, from the flavourful selection of savoury bites - such as the Coronation Chicken sandwich infused with aromatic spices - to the signature scones, paying tribute to British tradition with creative twists like honey and thyme sour cream. The patisseries, inspired by seasonal botanicals, highlight exquisite pairings, including the Blackcurrant Mont Blanc and Raspberry & Chocolate Cake. Complementing the menu is an expertly curated selection of teas, ranging from the delicate floral notes of Yin Zhen white tea to the rich, aged complexities of Pu-erh. Beyond the culinary artistry, the service is nothing short of impeccable. Attentive yet discreet, the staff anticipate every need with a seamless grace that enhances the experience. From the moment guests are seated, they are guided through the menu with warmth and expertise, ensuring every tea pairing is perfectly suited to individual tastes. Every detail, from the elegant table settings to the precise timing of refills, is executed with a level of care that transforms the Afternoon Tea into an unforgettable indulgence. For those looking to toast to London's most stylish week, La Maison Ani presents 'The Modette' - a cocktail as chic as its inspiration. Created by Bar Manager Matteo Corsalini, this violet-hued concoction is a mix of all that delights. Where fashion meets five-star glamour As Fashion Week takes over the city, this Mary Quant showcase is the ultimate blend of nostalgia and now - where British fashion history meets next-level hospitality. If you're in London, consider this your official invite to step into a piece of style history. For more information, visit Jumeirah Carlton Tower. Sign up for the Daily Briefing Get the latest news and updates straight to your inbox
