Eateries all over the country have their special recipes. Jesse Mulligan asked you what recipe you would like from your favourite cafe - and on your behalf invited them onto the show to share their secret.
This week it's Chicken Delhi Dhaiwala from Planet Spice in Wellington's Newtown.
Chicken Dehli Dahiwal Photo: Planet Spice
Way back in 1997 the owners, Govind and Hasu Patel established Planet Spice with the aim of spicing up the local food scene by giving Newtown its first Indian restaurant.
A traditional clay tandoori oven and professional chefs were brought in from India and the recipes were passed on to them. To this day many of those original recipes are still used, originating from both north and south India.
Husband and wife duo Hasu and Govid Patel already had a flair for business and when they were introduced to the world of hospitality they discovered their passion for food.
Before Planet Spice they had established their own takeaway and after a few months found that Hasu’s Indian cooking was the most popular item on the menu.
Govind Patel tells Jesse Mulligan the 20-year restaurant has a very good customer base and its location close to both Wellington Airport and the hospital helps keep them busy, with doctors and nurses going for their signature dish, the chicken delhi dhaiwala.
“We do have some customers who especially come for that. They’ve been eating this curry for six to seven years, they come and they don’t change or have any other type of curry, they always go with this one,” he says.
The fresh herbs are fried up into a paste and then left or four hours or overnight, to develop a good texture. The yogurt is then added and stirred in together well to make the base, which is then added in with the chicken. You can find the Chicken Delhi Dhaiwala recipe here.
