Around Asia in Seven Plates

Shizusan, Mumbai’s newest eatery borrows inspirations from lesser-known locales around Southeast Asia. Inspired by her own travels and memories, co-founder Deepti Dadlani creates a food trail exclusively for Verve. She talks about seven unique dishes that feature on the menu and their backstories.

“We do satays with large chunky cucumbers, just the way you’d get it at the stalls in Malaysia.

“The kung pao red pumpkin is influenced by the large Buddhist community in China.”

“The Korean buri bop is rice cooked at the table in a hot metal bowl. Mandoos of tofu or pulled pork with kimchi are lesser known dumplings.”

“Piss alley cat is a cocktail named after the Piss Alley street in Tokyo. Just like the area, there is a hint of spice in the drink and is completely different from what you would expect.”

“I grew up eating the Hainanese rice and mai fun noodles on the streets of Singapore. Recently, a Michelin star was awarded to a Hainanese food stall — Lio Fan, at Singapore’s Chinatown.”

“Adobo is extremely famous in the Philippines. Early Filipinos cooked meat by immersing it in vinegar and salt, most likely as a means of preservation, just like we have tandoori in India.”

“Bananas are so easily available in all of Asia, and the locals understand how to use every part of the fruit. I took a baking class in Vietnam, where I learned that because the country was under the French colonial rule, they incorporate that style of cooking. While making this mousse cake, they substitute butter for margarine and use chocolate-candied bananas.”

Read the Shizusan food review here. 

Shizusan is located next to Lifestyle at High Street Phoenix, Lower Parel.