Paisa Vasool! Bamboo shoot

Paisa Vasool!

Paisa vasool is a term that means moneys worth in India. Anything that delivers value for money would be described as "totally paisa vasool'. Tangentially this term can also have emotional overtones, for example a father who saves to buy his child a toy will feel he's got his moneys worth when his child smiles at him. There is nothing emotional about my appreciation of Bamboo shoot at Khar however, just the hearty "paisa vasool" that comes to mind whenever I think off it.

In China it is said that the best restaurants are the ones that look the worst but forgive me if I prefer a little ambiance with my dinner out. Something that Bamboo shoot delivers. It is little more than a hole in the wall, but pleasing bamboo decor and mood lighting go a long way in elevating it from restaurants of it's ilk like the more serviceable Stomach and Jim-Me's Kitchen nearby.

Service can be a moody as the lighting and beverage options are small but i will cut to the chase and get to the food which is what I go there for. The menu is a clutter, but we have eaten there enough know the winners.

The Hot and Sour soup here passes my personal taste test, striking the balance of hot i.e. spicy enough to make your eyes and nose run, sour enough to make you drool at the thought of it, salty i.e is savoury enough to carry the other flavours best. In fact it's good enough for me binge on two bowls. I never have any other soup if Hot and sour is on offer but I have it on good authority that the Sweet corn Tom Yum soups are good as well. (Although a restaurant that messes up Sweet corn should shut down!)

Starters, mains and Stuffed!

We usually order a whole lot of starters and might not bother with mains or dessert, mostly because we're stuffed. Here are our favorites on that front.

Crackling Spinach Chicken, is (and I kid you not) fried spinach and was once a speciality of Mainland China chain of restaurants. Like most Indian Chinese offerings this dish is a fast track to a coronary but share amongst 4 and you spread out the damage. But I digress, the spinach is shredded, deep fried, tossed with toasted sesame, fried chilli and sugar and at Bamboo the airy fried leaves are substantiated by boneless chunks of chicken, friend and tossed in a spicy sauce. Bamboo Shoot is heaven for a lover of dumplings.

Dumplings are the Health Quotient of our meal here. And Bamboo Shoot is heaven for a lover of dumplings. If you love dim sum with the vengeance I do, but shudder at the prices you have to fork out because you are never satisfied with the 4-6 pieces that comprise a standard serving at most restaurants then you will loooove the platter that is laid before you, complete with spicy sauce at Bamboo Shoot. And they are good too, not doughy or bland as they can sometimes get. Although they could arrive cold if the staff is PMSing.

If Dumplings balance out the deep fried stuff then the Somtam adds the essential fibre to our meal. No Thai person worth his fish sauce would recognise the Somtam salad served here but we like the masallafied version of this classic Thai offering red chilli powder and all.

The other Thai offering we love is the Mango leaf wrapped chicken. I suspect this is a spin off on Thai Pandanus leaf wrapped chicken using more accessible mango leaves. That said, unlike the pandanus leaves used in the ancestor of this dish, here, any aroma the mango leaves could contribute to the chicken is fried out long before you get your hands on them. But it's the hands on part we love, the chicken morsels, smothered in a spicy sweet sauce require unwrapping and offer a sticky, succulent bite once you get to them. It's hard to be polite and let your companions have that last piece of this one.

By this time we are usually loosening waist fastenings so we haven't sampled too much of the main course section of the menu. But if you do get to that part, tread cautiously. I do remember sampling the Red Thai curry on one occasion and it was disappointing; too thick (due to cornflour I suspect) and not spicy enough.

Just check all previously held notions about food at the door and dining at Bamboo Shoot will be total Paisa Vasool, especially when the bill is presented!

The Bamboo Shoot 8 & 9 Mangal Bhavan, Junction of 14th Road and Khar Pali Road, near Khar Gymkhana, Khar (W) (5607-3188, 2600-5476). Daily noon-11.30pm. No alcohol. All major credit cards. Dinner for two approximately Rs 275.

A Chindian meal

There is no authentic version of the Chinese food we eat in India, so do not go to China expecting to eat Manchurian, Chilli chicken, Hot and sour soup or any of the dishes that we Indians love as Chinese food. However Indian Chinese or Chindian is a delicious addictive cuisine in itself. Here is a favourite meal of ours.

Mushrooms and Chicken in Black bean sauce

Ingredients

500 gms chicken breast - cut in 1/4" strips
2 tbsp rice bran oil (I use Tandul)
500 gms mushroom - Quatered
4 tbsp black bean garlic sauce (I like Lee Kum Kee Spicy blak bean sauce best)
2 teaspoons cornflour

For the Marinade
2 tbsp soy sauce + 1 tbsp vinegar and 1 tsp sugar OR 3 Tbsp Chicken Marinade from Lee Kum Kee
1 garlic clove - minced
2 teaspoons fresh ginger root - grated
2 red chiles - thinly sliced (optional)

For the Marinade
In a bowl, combine LKK Marinade or soy sauce, vinegar and sugar with the garlic, ginger and chillies, stir well and add chicken. Leave for 1 hour. Remove chicken from the bowl with a slotted spoon and to the marinade left behind add the stock or Maggi cube mix. Stir well. Set aside.

Method
In a wok or large frying pan, heat sesame oil over high heat. Add chicken and stir fry till lightly browned (3 minutes). Add mushrooms, and allow to cook till they release juices. Continue to stirfry till juices from the mushrooms have evaporated and they are slightly brown in patches. Now add the black bean sauce and stock-marinade mix and let them warm through. In a small cup, stir the cornstarch together with a little cold water. Pour this into the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until sauce is thickened.

For a vegetarian option double mushrooms and substitute Chings secret all stir fry sauce for Chicken marinade.

Stirfry of Jullienned vegetables

Ingredients
2 tablespoons oil
1 ½ cups carrot juliennes
1 head Broccoli Florets (set florets aside and julienne stalks)
1 cup french bean juliennes

Method:Put Wok on the flame and let it get hot. Add oil, swirl once to oat the base and add in julienned carrot, beans and broccoli stalks - in that order - stirring briskly all the time. Cook for 2 minutes. Add Broccoli florets. Splash 2-3 tablespoons of water into the wok. (This should really steam up the kitchen if your wok is hot enough). Toss vegetables well. Salt just before you serve.

Celery and Spring Onion Sticky rice
Ingredients
2 cups short and fat grained rice ( I like Kolam)
5 – 6 cups water
2 tsp Massels stock owder (I imort this from Australia but you can use Maggi Chicken or vegetable stock cubes in a pinch)
1 tbsp oil
1-2 whole red fresh chillies or some Chilli oil (optional)
½ cup garlic, chopped fine
1 cup celery sliced fine
2 cups spring onion sliced fine

Method
In a large deep pan place water, rice and stock cubes. Bring to a boil and simmer until rice swells, at this point take of ¼ cup of the cooking liquid and set aside. Let rice cook till all of the water is almost absorbed and switch of flame. Cover and keep till ready to serve. In a frying pan add 1 tbsp of oil and heat, add chopped garlic and sauté for a while until the edges start to get golden, add in the celery and stir well. Add the reserved cooking liquid from the rice and the spring onion and stir well. As soon as the spring onion starts turning bright green, take pan off flame and set aside and stir in salt to taste.

To serve pack rice tightly into a large 250 gm measuring cup and ease onto the plate, spook some of the Celery spring onion mix on top of the rice and top with a couple of chillies or a drizzle of chilli oil. Arrange the other two dishes around the rice and serve.