Akuri

-Brian Mendonca

Looking for a recipe this Sunday for breakfast, I decided I'd try Akuri - the Parsi version of scrambled eggs. I surfed a couple of sites on YouTube. One that made an impression was Akuri being made by Ms. Nina Wadia. She was being interviewed at the same time by the anchor of the show Simon Rimmer (who also helped in chopping the onions).  One of the statements she made was that there were only about 150 thousand Parsis left. That galvanized me into doing justice to the dish.

For the more practical component I waded into Gulrukh Irani's no-nonsense recipe of Akuri (I quite liked her Parsi head gear). Chef Kayzad stresses cumin powder as the definitive ingredient of a Bharuchi Akuri (where it all started). According to Roxanne Bamboat the preparation needs to be a little runny - or else it qualifies as anda burji. She also recommends adding sambhar powder. Prashant Thakkar offers a less spicy version with finely chopped tender coconut and cashew nuts. Here is how my preparation went (sort of):

[As on Sunday, 23 August 2020]

PREP TIME: 20 minutes

COOK TIME: 20 minutes

TO SERVE: 3

INGREDIENTS

Butter

Eggs: 5 

Onions: 3 large

Tomatoes: 4 medium

Coriander (green): handful

Chilly (green): 2

Chilly powder: 1 spoon

Coriander powder: 1 spoon

Cumin powder (Jeera): 1 spoon

Turmeric powder: sprinkle

Sambhar masala: 2 pinches  

Salt to taste

Ginger garlic paste - two teaspoons

Lemon - a dash

METHOD

Place a generous helping of butter in the pan on a slow fire. Add the onions and saute till light brown. Put the chilly. Put in the chilly powder, turmeric, coriander powder, cumin powder and ginger-garlic paste and sambhar powder. Stir well. Add the chopped tomato. Break the eggs in a bowl and beat till frothy. Once the masalas are cooked in the pan, add the eggs evenly over the pan. Keep breaking the egg mixture in small pieces so it does not form into an omelette. Keep stirring the mixture as it dries and thickens to the consistency desired. Garnish with fresh coriander and lemon. Switch off the flame. Put a lid on the skillet. Allow to heat. Eat with hot rotis or pao. 

TASTE

It tasted very nice. The flavour was pleasing and in the right proportion. The quantity was sufficient. Dwayne asked for sausage. So I'll chop some for him separately next time.

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Pix by Brian Mendonca of anda-burji on 25 August 2020. Updated 23 August 2020.