Headline: Meet Shaurya Veer Kapoor, The Young Chef Behind Gola Sizzlers
Strap: We caught up with this young Culinary Institute of America grad for a chat and got him to share a few sizzler recipes too

Shaurya Veer Kapoor grew up in a household that was always drawn to cooking and the desire to create and curate new and unique dishes, beverages, and desserts. From a young age, he surprised his family and friends with his take on fusion cuisine. He began his culinary journey by assisting his father and grandfather in the kitchen at their company, where he developed his passion for cooking and learned how to run an F&B outlet.

Kapoor created dishes with fresh new flavours for Gola Sizzlers as a Culinary Institute of America graduate. And his passion for food and fresh ideas have advanced the family business.

Here are excerpts from our chat.

What inspired you to pursue culinary arts as your career?

Being in the food industry for a long time, I have been around food since childhood. I always saw my grandfather, Mr Naresh Kapoor, a chef, in the kitchen and saw how he ensured every dish was made perfectly and even taught me how to cook. I felt connected with the food and started my professional journey by pursuing culinary arts as my career.

Has travelling influenced your cooking style? Please share an anecdote with us.

Travelling abroad guided me to play with various flavours in my cooking style. For instance, I introduced a new way of serving a simple dish like Dahi Kabab by adding interesting elements like beetroot raita, chunky onion-tomato-green chilli-cilantro salsa, sriracha chilli aioli and noodle crisps (an amalgamation of Indian, south-east Asian, and Mexican in one dish).

What is the one trend in the global culinary scenario that you wish India to embrace?

Although the beauty of our Indian cuisine is in its unique blend of so many flavours with a beautiful but complex mix of spices, somehow, the wish may get simpler one day.

Please share a few effective tips for home cooks.

Always work toward reaching your goals. Everything is achievable if you have the right intent to execute your work. Patience and practice is the key to perfection.

What is your favourite Indian food and your favourite international cuisine?

Being a Punjabi, my favourite is north Indian food. My favourite international cuisines are Indian, Italian, and Korean. Apart from Indian, other cuisines became my favourite due to my work and my travels abroad.

What is the trick behind a perfect sizzler?

The key behind the perfect sizzler is the freshness and right mix of all ingredients with the right cooking method.

Sizzlers are a Western concept. How have you modified it around the Indian palate?

Since I like playing with different flavours, I introduced an Italian prawns sizzler, Béchamel mustards prawn sizzler, Two for One Chicken Sizzler, Hong Kong Chicken Sizzler, Peri-Peri Chicken sizzler, Peri Paneer sizzler, Thai Curry sizzlers  the list is endless. I made sauces and spices and mixed blends which would be acceptable to the Indian palate, with a twist.

Why are sizzlers so popular among Indians?

We Indians like to have our food piping hot, and sizzlers do the needful, so it is quite popular among Indians.

Lamb Chop Sizzler

Ingredients

New Zealand lamb chops 200 gms

Seasoning

Sea Salt – To taste
Fresh Crushed Black pepper – 2 gms
Rosemary 1 teaspoon
Cooking method: Sear the lamb chops and bake in the oven.

Sizzler’s Vegetables
Zucchini-20 gms
Peas- 20 gms
Greens Beans-20 gms
Broccoli Floret-20 gms
Carrots-20 gms
Sweet Corn-20 gms
Braised Red Cabbage-20 gms
Cooking method: Cut and blanch the vegetables and tossed them in a pan with butter, garlic and black pepper

Mash Potato – for 20gms
Potato-2 potatoes
Butter-20 gms
Cream-20 ml
Salt-To taste
White Pepper Powder-1/2 teaspoon
Nutmeg-1/4 teaspoon
Cooking method: Cut the potato into cubes and boil it in salted water till it gets soft. Using a potato masher, mash the potatoes. In a separate pot, heat the butter on a low flame, cream, salt, white pepper powder and nutmeg. Add this mixture to the mashed potatoes and mix it well.

Mushroom Sauce- for 200 ml
Lamb Stock-250 ml
Flour-50 gms
Rosemary-1 tablespoon
Tomato Puree-15 gms
Onions-50 gms
Carrots-25 gms
Celery-25 gms
Salt-To taste
Black Pepper-1 tablespoon
Mushroom-25 gms
Butter-100 gms

Cooking method: Heat the pan, add the butter, add onions, carrots, and celery and cook until it gets little brown then add tomato puree, and cook it for a while. Add the lamb stock, and cook for an hour. Strain it after cooling. You will get the nice smooth base sauce. To make the mushroom sauce, heat a pan, add chopped mushrooms and flour (in an equal quantity of butter), and keep tossing till it gets lightly golden brown. Add lamb stock and rosemary, stir it gently to avoid lumps. Add salt and pepper to season it.

Method
Heat the Sizzler Pan on high flame for two minutes. Make a layer of blanched cabbage. Arrange butter-tossed sizzler vegetables. Put a big scoop of mashed potato. Arrange lamb chops. Pour over mushroom sauce gently. Garnish with Fresh rosemary sprig and cherry tomatoes.

Veg Shashlik Sizzler

Ingredients
Cottage Cheese Cubes-(1inch by 1 inch) – 9 pieces in a portion
Bell pepper Cubes-(1inch by 1 inch) – 9 pieces in a portion
Tomato cubes (seedless) (1inch by 1 inch) -9 pieces in a portion

Marination Mix
Ginger and garlic paste – 2 tablespoon
Red Chilli Paste -1 teaspoon
Deghi Mirch -1 tablespoon
Oregano – 1 tablespoon
Ketchup – 1- tablespoon
Black Pepper – 1 teaspoon
Salt – To taste

Cooking Method: Marinate the cottage cheese, peppers and tomato cubes, put them in a skewer and pan grill.

Sizzler’s Vegetables
Zucchini-20 gms
Peas- 20 gms
Greens Beans-20 gms
Broccoli Floret-20 gms
Carrots-20 gms
Sweet Corn-20 gms
Braised Red cabbage-20 gms

Cooking method: Cut and blanch the vegetables and tossed them in a pan with butter, garlic and black pepper.

Fried Rice
Steamed Rice-50 gms
Chopped garlic- 1 tablespoon
Chopped cabbage, carrots, beans- 20 gms
Soy sauce- 1 tablespoon
Chilli sauce- 1 teaspoon
Vinegar- 1 teaspoon
Salt – To taste
White pepper- ½ teaspoon

Noodles
Boiled noodles- 50 gms
Chopped garlic- 1 tablespoon
Shredded cabbage, carrots & Capsicum julienne- 20 gms
Soy sauce-1 tablespoon
Chilli sauce- 1 teaspoon
Vinegar- 1 teaspoon
Salt- To taste
White pepper- ½ teaspoon

Cacciatore Sauce – for 200 ml
Oil- 50 ml
Water- 250 ml
Onions- 50 gms
Ginger n garlic- 2 tablespoon
Tomatoes- 50 gms
Oregano- 1 tablespoon
Salt- To taste
Black pepper- 1 tablespoon
Ketchup- 2 tablespoon
Vinegar- 1 tablespoon
Chilli paste- 1 teaspoon

Heat a pan, add oil, onions and, ginger n garlic, tomatoes, oregano, Salt, black pepper, ketchup, vinegar; sauté them all for around 5-7 minutes and add water and boil it for half an hour till it gets cooked. Cool it, blend it and strain it.

Method

Heat the Sizzler Pan on high flame for two minutes. Make a layer of blanched cabbage. Arrange butter-tossed sizzler vegetables. Put a bowlful of fried rice or noodles per the guest’s choice. Arrange veg shashlik. Pour Cacciatore sauce gently. Garnish with cherry tomatoes and black olives