Aussie chef Adam D’Sylva is adding fruits and salads to pani puri and serving fresh wasabi with rice poppadoms at his famous Melbourne restaurant to offer his guests a unique experience of things Indian. He chats with Divya Kaushik
As a child growing up on a staple diet of hand-rolled pastas and South Indian curries, Adam D’Sylva had immense opportunities to learn the nuances of Indian and Italian cooking from his Indian father and Italian mother. So it is no wonder that at one of his famous restaurants in Australia, Tonka, this renowned Australian chef is serving most things Indian but with a global twist.
Here’s an example. Tuna tartare, rice poppadom, pomegranate, ginger and fresh wasabi, Madras crusted scallop, verbena pickled pear and fennel, soft shell crab pakora with pickled cucumber, lemon, chilli and mint, Goan curry with barramundi, spring bay mussels, mooloolaba prawns and Kashmiri chilli and golden maharaja vegetable curry with tandoori cauliflower, pumpkin and crispy eggs are some of the dishes listed in the menu. And there’s pani puri and samosa, too. “There are also some Rajasthani dishes in the menu.
Unlike many other restaurants serving Indian abroad, we do not compromise with authenticity of the dishes, when it comes to preparation. In fact, we are sourcing most of our spices from India, even puffed rice and gram flour, too. I strongly believe that it is the use of fresh ingredients that add to the flavours of the dishes, so local produce should be used in the cooking. I even encourage people to pick up stuff from their backyards for their cooking and anything that they come up with, will turn out to be delicious,” said the chef who won The Age 2008 Good Food Guide’s Young Chef of the Year while working as head chef under the much awarded and respected Geoff lindsay at Pearl Restaurant.
We met the chef while he was at Australian High Commission recently. He curated the menu for the gala dinner that showcased the best of Australian wine and food. He was in India for the third time but he shared that he hasn’t got an opportunity to explore the regional food in India. “I have mostly travelled to Delhi and Mumbai and eaten at hotels. I am really looking forward to visit Rajasthan as I have heard so much about the spicy curries of the place. I also want to learn more about the different cooking techniques the people use there,” he said. Adam is in love with lamb biryani. “We do a lot of chicken biryani in Melbourne but it is nowhere close to the lamb biryani,” he added.
A look at Adam’s menus will reveal that he is not much of a modernist who would delve into molecular gastronomy to trick his guests. “I am not into foams and gels, but I definitely try out new things. I believe that whatever additions or changes you do to the dish should ultimately please the palate. There is no point in creating an exotic or interesting dish if the flavours are all mixed up. It is only good food that decides the fate of any restaurant. Many people ask me what makes my restaurants so successful in little time. I tell them that it is combination of things, but most important is good food. Guests would only return to a restaurant when they know it will serve them something that they would not get anywhere else,” he shared.
