Pallavi Joshi, who gave a sterling performance in The Kashmir Files, is not only an actor par excellence, she shares that she is a good cook too. And so is her husband, director Vivek Agnihotri, and her two kids.
I am basically: A non-vegetarian, but I prefer vegetarian fare on most days. My favourite dishes are the street food of Mumbai: pani puri, vada pav, ragda pattice, pav bhaji, and kanda bhajia.
The first thing I have when I wake up is: A glass of water.
For breakfast: I have proper food. No cereals for me. Upma, poha, eggs, or idli, high on carbs.
My lunch comprises: Green veggies and either dal or curd with bajra or nachni bhakri.
In the evening, if I am hungry: I eat fruits.
My dinner is: Salads or grilled fish.
My favorite desserts are: None.
My fitness regime: I keep walking through the day, even when I don’t have to. That way, I complete my mandatory steps.
Before and after my workouts: I have some protein like eggs or chicken.
Foods I consciously avoid: Sugar, maida, white bread, and cheese.
I try to have a correct balance of: Protein, complex carbs, and fiber.
My favourite restaurants in India and abroad: Can’t think of any. I don’t eat out that much.
My favourite cuisines: All, I love all of them.
For a romantic meal: I would like to go to the beach for sure with a bottle of Prosecco and spinach ravioli.
One thing I can cook very well: I cook most of the things well. But my favourite would be either my shami kebabs or my date and nut cake.
My husband’s favourite dish made by me: Pulao, kaddu ki sabzi, and kadhi.
My favourite cooks in my family: My entire family cooks, and all are wonderful cooks. Both my children and Vivek are fond of cooking. And they sometimes spoil me rotten.
My childhood memories of food are: Simple Maharashtrian food cooked by my mother, varan bhaat and batatyachya kachrya.
My favorite drink: Water and tea.
The weirdest food I have had: I ate a frog thinking it was chicken. I couldn’t sleep that night.
My tip on food: Always cook with the basic masala of love.
During the shooting of Kashmir Files: We shot in Dehradun, Mussoorie, and Srinagar. I remember having a mini Wazwan in Kashmir.
Date Nut Cake
Ingredients
1 cup margarine
3/4th cup ground sugar
1 1/4 cups self-raising flour
4 eggs,
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
A pinch of soda bicarb
200 gms seedless dates
100 gms walnut
1/2 teaspoon butter (to grease the mold)
Method
Soak seedless dates in warm water (half a cup) with a pinch of soda for 1/2 hour. Mix margarine, sugar, flour, and eggs. Add vanilla essence. Add the soaked dates and walnuts. The more you whip, the fluffier the cake gets. Set in a mold lined with butter and sprinkled with some flour. Bake at 180 C for 20 minutes. Check with a knife. If it doesn’t come clean, bake for another 5-10 minutes.
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