Married and settled in London, where she jokes she works as a “corporate superbitch” in public relations, Mallika is as entertaining as her book which is directed at ambitious career women keen to experiment with Indian cuisine. “Calcutta gave me three of my personality traits — an uncontrollable motormouth, an intense hatred of housework and a real love of food,” admits Mallika, who affects sharp Austin Reed suits, diamonds and Kurt Geiger high heels when she goes into client meetings.
Her mother, Dolly, has helped with recipes but it is her businessman father, Chandan, who inspired his daughter with his passion for food. He is said to be a dab hand at making biryani as well as jangli maas (“a super-spicy dish cooked slowly with equal quantities of goat meat and dry red chilli”).
Those who lament the lack of genuine Bengali food in Indian restaurants in Britain may want to try out Mallika’s recipes. For among other dishes there’s kosha mangsho, cholar dal, chingri malai curry, doi maach, maacher chop, mutton ishtew, and, in the sweets section, narkel narus, payesh and bhapa doi. “If I can do it,” she says, “any mug can.” There is an engaging honesty about her, as for example when she talks about the time when she came bottom in a beauty contest.
Full report here Telegraph
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