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When the old khansama at the rundown Dak-bungalow in the remote hill town wanted to know if it would be alright if he cooked ishtoo for dinner, the query brought back myriad memories of this tantalising delicacy savoured at dozens of places over the years. The Flora restaurant
nestling under the shadow of the majestic Jama Masjid in Delhi used to
serve a fabulous ishtoo some four decades ago. This became the venue of
all celebratory feasts in the student days ever since Shahid Miyan
introduced us to the eatery. Alas! the place has ceased to be and only
the memory lingers. Karim does serve a passable ishtew but takes
greater pride in its qormas.
Then came Shafiq Bhai from Bhopal, who hotly contested Delhi’s claim to fine dining, and insisted that the Bhopali version of ishtoo was far superior. He cooked a mean stew indeed — simple but sizzling. Years later, we discovered Jamil in old Bhopal, a small hole in the wall eatery that dishes out lip-smacking food. The ishtoo is never ready before 1 o’clock and is not available after 1.45 p.m. or so and with good reason. It is draped in a sauce like gravy of light emerald hue, redolent with coriander, mint and spring onions with a pleasant pungency imparted by fresh green chillies and a subtle suggestion of ginger and garlic. The red chillies, so beloved to Shafiq Bhai, are here for ornamental purposes only. You will never be the same after you have tasted this with a morsel of khamiri roti. The origins of the ishtoo are not hard to guess. Descent is claimed from the English stew-meat slow cooked in its own juices — but there is no evident trace of any shared genetic trait from the European parent. Also, what is known as ishtoo in Delhi and Bhopal is identified more readily with khare masale ka or kate masale ka gosht in Lucknow and Hyderabad. One must confess though that even the die-hard Lakhnavi have started making compromises to popular taste — you can order an ishtoo in that city of nawabs and no one will bat an eyelid. There is also a Kerala
stew that is the standard accompaniment of the divine appam but
that delicacy belongs to another genre — a flavourful, aromatic curry
that can be enjoyed both in vegetarian and non-vegetarian avatar.
Only purists like Shafiq Miyan insist that nothing should adulterate the
good old ishtoo — no spices or aromatics — just the meat on
bones, onions, chillies and salt. |
From English stew-meat,
Ishtoo has evolved into a culinary delight with a flavour of its own.
Its variations depend on regional tastes, writes Pushpesh
Pant