A Taste of India: July 20
Well-known chef introduces Cooking with Stella
by Staff
Get ready for a trip to India with the next Epicure’s Revue on Wednesday, July 20, starting at 6:30 p.m.
We’ll be screening the film Cooking with Stella, starring Toronto-based actors Don McKellar and Lisa Ray. It was directed by Dilip Mehta, who cowrote the script with his sister Deepa Mehta. McKellar plays the husband of Canadian diplomat Ray. A chef, he asks their cook Stella to teach him the art of Indian cuisine.
You’ll have a chance before the film to enjoy some samples at the cinema. So get there early. Plus, we’re thrilled to have chef Joshna Maharaj to introduce the film and answer any of your questions. She was inspired by a stay in India on an ashram to become a chef, and will discuss some of the variations in Indian food.
A regular guest on CBC’s Steven & Chris TV show, she's also a blogger for Sustain Ontario and is currently working with the Scarborough General Hospital to put more wholesome local food on patients’ plates.
Also participating is Bala Thangarajah, who has been the chef at St. Joseph's Health Centre since 2002. The Revue first heard about Bala from reports of his superb dal.
Bala says he would rather cook than speak. He will prepare hoppers, found in south Indian and Sri Lankan culinary traditions. These are bowl shaped crepes, made from fermented rice flour and coconut milk, served with a variety of toppings. Bala will be serving Chili Sambal (coconut and red chilis); Seeni Sambal (fried onion and tamarind); and chickpea curry. The chickpea curry is Bala's most popular Indian dish in St. Joe's cafeteria.
Hoppers, Bala says, originated in the south Indian state of Kerala. They can also be served with eggs. And there's a sweet version served with coconut milk inside.
Both Joshna and Bala will convey their enthusiastic appreciation of food, in general, and the cuisine of India in particular, at our Epicure’s Revue.
Participating Restaurants
At every Epicure's Revue, we encourage the audience to visit restaurants serving food themed to the movie. After Cooking with Stella, the following restaurants will be offering Indian flavours on the menu:
The Shala-Mar: The Indian restaurant on Roncesvalles across from the Revue, will be providing some samosas for people to taste at the cinema. Chef Khalid Bukhari has been serving authentic Indian food on Roncy for some 25 years.
The Curry Twist: Located at 3034 Dundas St. W. in the Junction, chef Anant Singh has been earning excellent reviews for his north Indian style of cooking for a decade. He'll be providing samosas for theatre patrons to sample.
The Chocolateria: Tim English at Roncesvalles' own chocolate shop is working on something special combining chocolate and Indian spices for The Epicure's Revue.
Tickets to Epicure’s Revue are $12 for non-members, $10 for members.