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Raji cooks up a fusion cuisine book

Mabel Fernandes

Hyderabadi biryani is justly famous.

But have you heard of Hyderabadi biryani made with tea-smoked quail?

And to the millions of Americans who savor veal, here is a question: Ever tasted veal medallions in lotus leaf?

You might have enjoyed fettucine with white truffles at continental restaurants. Ever wondered what would happen if you added curry leaves to the dish?

And, by the way, ever tried antelope chop with blackberry-ginger chutney and anise-flavored chocolate meringues?

If the answer is "no," it is to time to encounter Raji Jallepalli -- or make a reservation at her restaurant in Memphis, Tennessee. Which, we assure you, isn't always easy to come by.

For several years at the trendy Restaurant Raji, chef-owner Jallepalli has been fusing French and Indian flavors and offering diners such delicacies as breast of duck in a caramelized curry sauce on a nest of sweet potatoes, and fillet of salmon topped by mango-ginger dressing. After she got wide publicity in such publications as Gourmet and was offered positions as chef consultant, she wondered if she shouldn't publish a book.

Now Raji, one of the most respected of American chefs and whose influence is undeniably felt at Surya, one of New York's best-rated restaurant that is also big with the Hollywood set, is an author. Her book, Raji Cuisine: Indian Flavors, French Passion, is slowly climbing into 10 most popular cookbooks in several states.

'While mastering the art of French cooking,' Jallepalli writes in the introduction to her cookbook, 'one learns to embrace the finesse, formality, control, and order of the classic restaurant cuisine that has evolved primarily through the hands of male chefs.'

'In Indian cooking, you will find simple and quite ancient kitchen traditions laced with spontaneity, intense bouquets, and a very basic approach to preparing inviting meals that has evolved through the hands of women in the home kitchen.'

The book reflects the food served at Restaurant Raji.

"In my kitchen," Jallepalli, a native of Hyderabad, who has made America her home for over two decades, explains, "I retain the basic principles and balance of French cuisine while introducing the profound bouquets of Indian cooking."

Jallepalli assures skeptics that Indian-French fusion is not a giddy combination of fois gras and curry, emphasizing instead a spice-accented symmetry of complementary flavors.

For instance, she points out that cilantro, tamarind, turmeric, ginger, cumin, cardamom, lend an exotic but firm sensibility to such French classics as Tamarind Consommé or Baby Lamb Racks with Curry Leaf-Black Pepper Crust and Curried Blackberry Sauce.

Raji Jallepalli wonders at times what her family in India would think of her passion for cooking, running a restaurant and writing on food.

When she was a child, she loved to sneak into the kitchen to watch the cook and ask questions about food. She would volunteer to help.

But her parents discouraged such behavior -- they had enough servants and cooks who did not need her assistance, and she was expected to study and excel at school. But she would never forget her passion for food.

Even as she studied microbiology, and started a career as a scientist, she dreamt of food and restaurants.

Years later, she visited France and fell in love with French food and wine. On first tasting the food she thought, "This is nice, but it could use some of the assertive flavors of my homeland as well as some lightening up."

The self-taught chef took her passion even more seriously as her marriage became troubled.

She taught herself to be courageous and enterprising.

While it doesn't take a big deal to open an Indian restaurant in a big cosmopolitan city, she ventured to start a trendy, unusual Indian restaurant in Memphis, known for its conservative eating scene.

But her restaurant clicked -- and how.

Restaurant Raji was nominated for a James Beard Award in 1996 and 1997 and that helped establish Raji as one of this country's hottest culinary stars. She has been called 'a major player' by The New York Times and her restaurant was dubbed 'one of the most exciting in America' by Food & Wine.

EARLIER FEATURE:
The Decade Of Fusion Cooking

Next: Asians at UIC demand courses in Asian studies

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