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| The wholegrain truth |
| Abhilasha Ojha / New Delhi Nov 01, 2009, 00:25 IST |
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Chef Patrick Verre goes microbiotic in search of “food energy”.
What is microbiotic cooking?” That’s the one question on my mind when I meet chef Patrick Verre. He is busy teaching a group of ladies recipes specifically geared towards microbiotic cooking. “Microbiotic living is a way of life and basically it means eating in a healthy and balanced way,” he says, then adds: “Sadly, because of the nature of this diet, the food may look quite boring.”
With over 25 years of experience as a chef, Verre’s personal interest in “living a healthy life” led him to specialise in microbiotic cooking. His current lifestyle — he has lived in a village near Mangalore for the past eight months — is just a pointer towards how much he enjoys leading a quiet, serene life. From France to the USA (“I worked in a restaurant located inside the Twin Towers,” he says) to, now, India, Verre is has studied not just food but “food energy, really”. No wonder, he says, “my cooking style, too, has evolved over the years”.
We’re witnessing the frenetic pace of a five-star kitchen in New Delhi’s Metropolitan Nikko. It’s where the chef will rustle up some dishes for us. Because they’re fairly simple and quick to prepare, Verre enthusiastically creates a multitude of dishes for us to sample, including salads, rice and kidney-bean curry.
“Macrobiotics emphasises a wholegrain-based diet, and when we talk about rice,” he says, busily chopping broccoli, “we really mean unpolished brown rice. Breads, in microbiotic cooking, mean unsifted, unbleached flour ground from whole wheat and other whole grain kernels.”
While other cooks watch intently, Verre explains that the goal of microbiotic cooking is to provide the body with all essential nutrients so as to minimise toxin levels in the body. “Think of a traditional Indian diet; wholegrain, unpolished rice, beans, several vegetable dishes and curd (or even pickle). That’s what is microbiotic eating!” says Verre, who plans to launch a programme that will include the age-old system of Ayurveda and its diet.
His recipe list, not surprisingly, is extensive, from fenugreek boiled salad to miso soup to a variety of pickles to desserts like “coconut treats”, as he calls them, to apple compote. Verre’s enthusiasm for the healthy way of cooking is infectious.
For someone who has worked all over the world in leading restaurants, including in Miami, Florida, Belgium and other destinations, Verre’s tryst with India, he says, has been truly warming. What’s more, he’s consciously decided to slow down the pace and “enjoy all that life has to offer”. He has still not forgotten the horror of 9/11 (“I wasn’t there, but I had all my friends who…” his voice trails off) and perhaps that’s why he is someone who “loves to enjoy every moment that comes along”.
Along with good food, Verre is clearly showing us a slice of good living.
FAVOURITE RECIPES
APPLE COMPOTE
3 apples, cored and diced into ½ cm pieces
1 tsp lemon zest, minced
2 tbsp fresh orange juice
1 tsp fresh ginger, minced
¼ tsp sea salt
¼ tsp cinnamon powder
Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the flame and cook until the apples are soft. Increase the flame and reduce the liquid, but not completely. Serve warm or at room temperature. You might also want to pour this over vanilla ice cream.
GHERKIN PICKLE
300 gm gherkins, cut lengthwise
12 cups filtered water
1/3 cup sea salt
3-4 sprigs fresh/dry dill
1 large onion, halved and then quartered
1 tbsp fennel seeds
1 tbsp mustard seeds
Combine water and salt. Bring to a boil and simmer till salt dissolves. Allow to cool. Keep aside. In a dry skillet, on low flame, combine fennel and mustard seeds. Once they pop, transfer into a bowl and keep aside. Place gherkins, fennel and mustard seeds, dill and sliced onions in a large glass/ceramic jar and pour the salted water over it. Allow to sit for three days in a dry, cool place. Then transfer to a refrigerator, where it shouldn’t be touched for three more days. Consume afterwards. The pickle can be refrigerated for a month.
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