Hyderabad-based chef Thimma Reddy is a believer of ‘you are what you eat’. An advocate of a fit lifestyle, Thimma prefers moderate eating over following a strict diet. “For a relatively healthy person, I don’t think it’s practical or necessary to completely give up on all their favourite dishes. I’d rather suggest they limit quantities and practice gym-ing or running to stay fit,” says the executive chef of The Park, Hyderabad. Running a marathon once in a couple of months and one hour of gym daily is a must for the 38-year-old Chef. It’s no wonder that when asked for a recipe, he created a salad especially for us. “With the summer season setting in, it’s important we stay hydrated and choose our meal carefully. A mix of yoghurt, tomatoes and pumpkin makes this salad a must-try this summer,” he adds.
Ingredients:
Pumpkin 200 gms | Eggplant 100 gms | Roma tomato 4 no | Olive oil 25 ml | Salt to taste | Onion seeds 5 gms | Parsley 10 gms | Basil 2 gms | Black pepper 5 gms | Multigrain crispbread 2 no
| Balsamic vinegar 20 ml | Micro greens for garnish | Pumpkin leaf 1 no
Method:
Pumpkin salad
■ Scoop out the butternut pumpkin and blanch them in salted turmeric water.
■ Drain the excess moisture and toss in olive oil.
■ Season with salt and pepper and finish with onion seeds.
Tomato consommé
■ Blend a few pieces of Roma Tomatoes with ice cubes and strain through a muslin cloth.
■ Season with salt and add three drops of honey and black salt, depending on one’s tastes.
Smoked eggplant and yoghurt mash
■ Smoke a large-sized eggplant on a BBQ plate/tandoor/ open flame.
■ Peel the skin and mash up with a whisk.
■ Add garlic, hung yoghurt, salt, white pepper powder, chopped Italian parsley and virgin olive oil.
■ Arrange all the components together and garnish with micro greens, multigrain crispbread, balsamic vinegar and pumpkin.