Episodes

  • Is Chicken Just Non-Veg Paneer?

    Is Chicken Just Non-Veg Paneer?

    The Real Food Podcast Season 2, Episode 14
    Aug 19 2019
    Chicken is easy to cook, cheap, widely available and forbidden by no major religious belief system. So its popularity across India is unsurprising. However, the reality is often distasteful, as battery farmed chickens are raised in terrible conditions, and pumped with hormones and antibiotics. In this episode of The Real Food Podcast, Vikram Doctor finds out how we can access better chicken and speaks to legendary chef Ananda Solomon on a successful experiment he ran to get superior quality chickens. Music credit: Josh Woodward
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    18 mins
  • (Indian) Vegetarians Vs. The World.

    (Indian) Vegetarians Vs. The World.

    The Real Food Podcast Season 2, Episode 13
    Aug 19 2019
    The winter holiday season is upon us. More Indians are travelling abroad with great regularity. As a lot of these people are vegetarians and it is difficult for them to find food that is suitable for them. Many travellers come up with ingenious ways to deal with the situation and a whole industry is developing to cater to their needs. In this episode Vikram Doctor sheds light on how vegetarians manage in places that are not particularly vegetarian friendly. Music Credit: Josh Woodward
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    14 mins
  • Pao-Er To The People

    Pao-Er To The People

    The Real Food Podcast Season 2, Episode 12
    Aug 19 2019
    In some regions of India, bread is an important part of the local cuisine. Mumbai’s most iconic street foods are vada pao and pao bhaji. In both Goa and Kashmir, locally baked fresh bread is a daily staple. When Chef Floyd Cardoz from Mumbai, a partner at the fantastic Bombay Canteen, set up a new restaurant in New York, he called it Paowalla. But often, the bread in our homes is not traditional bread but factory-made and pumped with preservatives to make it last longer and look whiter. In this episode of The Real Food Podcast, Vikram Doctor talks about the need to return to traditional forms of baking, which produce much healthier and tastier bread. Music Credit: Josh Woodward
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    16 mins
  • Gur - The Original Candy

    Gur - The Original Candy

    The Real Food Podcast Season 2, Episode 11
    Aug 19 2019
    Seen as old fashioned and rustic, jaggery is fast becoming a forgotten product. It survives mostly as a health food recommended by Ayurveda experts or as a nostalgic throwback to the yesteryears in middle class homes. In this episode, Vikram Doctor tells us about India’s long connection with jaggery in an attempt to revive our love for it. But the problem is not just the falling demand; even the production of jaggery has become increasingly difficult due to a lack of water and skilled labour. Music Credit: Josh Woodward
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    14 mins
  • Cakes - From Birthday Parties To Political Parties

    Cakes - From Birthday Parties To Political Parties

    The Real Food Podcast Season 2, Episode 10
    Aug 19 2019
    From giant customised cakes for politicians’ birthdays to wedding cakes for not just Christian weddings, logo shaped cakes to celebrate a team’s win to heart shaped cupcakes on Valentine’s Day, cakes once seen as ‘western’ have now become a norm at Indian celebrations. With eggless cakes, cakes that don’t need an oven and even cakes made using idli batter, adapting to local conditions has played a major role in this change. Music Credit: Josh Woodward
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    15 mins
  • Fighting The War On Waste With Leftovers

    Fighting The War On Waste With Leftovers

    The Real Food Podcast Season 2, Episode 9
    Aug 19 2019
    Creating something new out of what is in your fridge from previous days can be a fine art. With a little creativity in the kitchen, leftovers from last night’s dinner can be magically transformed into something delicious and unrecognisable the next day. In this episode Vikram Doctor speaks to chefs who have been creating iconic dishes from leftovers and argues that neither our prejudices nor our ability to afford not to should get in the way of recycling food, a delicate art that we might lose in our hurry to throw away what we believe we don’t need any more. Music Credit: Josh Woodward
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    14 mins
  • The Billion Packs A Month Biscuit

    The Billion Packs A Month Biscuit

    The Real Food Podcast Season 2, Episode 8
    Aug 19 2019
    Parle G is not only the largest selling biscuit in the world but is also synonymous with the category it represents. It is an affordable snack for the poorest, a weaning food for small babies and a dessert base for those looking for a nostalgia fix. Parle G was the unchallenged hero of the biscuit business and Britannia had to enlist the help of a super-villain to take on its might. In this episode of The Real Food Podcast, Vikram Doctor tells us the story of India’s most iconic biscuit brand. Music Credits: Josh Woodward
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    17 mins
  • No #Acchedin For Gin?

    No #Acchedin For Gin?

    The Real Food Podcast Season 2, Episode 7
    Aug 19 2019
    Gin is one of the smoothest of all alcoholic drinks and supposedly the easiest to make. In India we have a history with gin since it was a favourite of the British Raj (which also led to the quinine infused tonic water, to help them fight malaria). However gin has never quite caught on in contemporary India, either because of its perception as a ‘ladies drink’ or due to a sheer lack of options. In this episode, Vikram Doctor traces the history of gin and looks at its possible renaissance as a ‘hipster drink’. Music Credit: Josh Woodword
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    15 mins