UpperCrust, India�s numero uno food, wine and lifestyle super-glossy, endorsed its indomitable position in this arena when it unfurled an unbelievably elaborate food show at Bombay�s World Trade Centre by handpicking the best from their metier to sell and exhibit a plethora of food and lifestyle products and cuisines.

Asha Bhosle (evergreen songstress, restaurateur, and a former UpperCrust cover girl), inaugurated the fair amid much media frenzy. She lit the lamp with UpperCrust editor Farzana Contractor and took her time in walking past each stall, examining the wares on display, flashing her mint-fresh smile and signing a stream of autographs. Earlier that morning, we had the Maharaja of Udaipur himself, Arvind Singh Mewar, gracing the event. The three-day event kickstarted with a presentation by the city�s Biryani� King, Jafferbhai Mansuri of Delhi Darbar. Scores of women (seen rushing to the venue to avoid being late) were hovering around the cooking area and hastily copying the prized and tested biryani recipe being unveiled by its creator. That Bombayites have an unfailing sweet tooth was seen when Zeba Mitha Kohli of Fantasie Chocolates unleashed pandemonium by drawing a swelling mob for her chocolate-making workshop. Vithal Kamat is a fine hotelier, but Upper Crust still associates the man with Dosas and Cocktail Idlis. Like an issue that is oversubscribed thrice, Kamat�s stocks soared when a brimming crowd refused to budge from his presentation. Later that day, Christine Chang spoke about Feng Shui in the kitchen, followed by Italian cooking with Chef Dionisius Lobo for R.R.Oomerbhoy and wine-gyaan with Sanjay Menon.

On the second day, the event saw an even larger crowd flock for exquisite Dum Pukht cooking. Using a subtle medley of spices and very little fat, Dum Pukht cuisine has been resurrected by Master Chef Imtiaz Qureshi of ITC Grand Maratha. In fact, Chef Qureshi, who is a descendant of the royal chefs who instituted this culinary style, truly resembled one with his snow-white moustache and regal demeanour. Sweetly enough, Ashatai, our chief guest, returned on Saturday to watch Chef Qureshi cook magic, as did Jafferbhai of Delhi Darbar. Renowned astrologer, Bejan Daruwala educated the audience for a good part of the morning with his characteristic humour.

Prior to that, UpperCrust editor Farzana Contractor released Asha Khatau�s book Vegetarian Cuisines of India in the presence of VJ Raageshwari. Thereafter, Madhuri Ruia, nutritionist (USA), lifestyle consultant and Pilates instructor, conducted a workshop on �Building a Health Plan�. Surely, chomping chocolates wasn�t part of Madhuri�s health plan, but it certainly featured on that of the city dwellers. As if Zeba Kohli�s demo the previous day wasn�t enough, Bombayites endorsed their love for the sweet things in life, by hankering after patisserie expert Arunika Shah�s demo on chocolates. While Rashmi and Rama Das appealed to housewives keen on setting up the food business from home, Shatbhi Basu set the Saturday evening mood tizzy with a fine demo on conjuring up unique cocktails. The undisputed crowd-pullers on Saturday were Chefs Gev Desai and Sanjeev Kapoor whose demos witnessed an unprecedented attendance. Chef Desai wielded his wok magic to create some palate-overfriendly Korean cuisine, while Kapoor let the audience in on some prized recipes and tips on Indian cooking.

After going through two laborious days, we thought we�d unwind on Sunday. But Bombay�s food enthusiasts turned up in greater numbers than on Friday and Saturday, and we were up and on our feet from a.m. to p.m. Saba Gaziyani kickstarted the morning with a session on food styling, after which the courtyard turned pregnant, and expectedly enough: Nelson Wang was there to �dish out� a taste of China Garden to those who wanted to know everything about the celebrity and his celebrated restaurant. As he revealed some interesting trade secrets in the form of answers to questions, tidbits about the origin of Chicken/Vegetable Manchurian, and the wok used in his upmarket restaurant, there walked in Manisha Koirala, looking classy and ethnic in an azure blue salwar-kameez and chic silver slippers, with her London-based beau, Cecile Anthony. The cynosure of all eyes, Manisha, like an attentive student, observed Nelson create Chicken Manchurian, which Cecile and she hungrily devoured. Later in the afternoon, experts like Swati Piramal and Karen Anand got going with sessions on Diet & Nutrition and Salads respectively, and in the evening, Indigo Man Rahul Akerkar arrested the attention of innumerable youngsters and models (most of whom seem to be aspiring restaurateurs these days) on how to run a restaurant. Abhay Kewadkar�s talk on wine appreciation brought The UpperCrust Show to an end but not before Rashmi Uday Singh spoke about techniques on quick cooking.

If the food stalls and demos in the courtyard were witness to a mammoth turnout, the exhibitors in the Expo Centre weren�t less of a hit! On the ground floor, there was Kashmiri Salan and Khichda from Delhi Darbar, Khoja khana, Puran Poli, Amritsari Chole with Meerut Rotis from Fountain, and Undhiyu from Golden Star Restaurant. At the Expo Centre, UpperCrust had painstakingly worked on researching and converging a range of exhibitors, from those selling elaborate kitchenware and housewares, household appliances, cooking mediums, sauces, wines, juices and fancy dessert items, to those offering wall finishes, household accessories, garden umbrellas and even bean bags!

BREAD HALWA
Ingredients :
1 loaf of bread - 700 gm
Milk - 400 ml
Mawa - 200 gm
Cardamom - 4 to 5 pods
Nutmeg - 1 to 2 pinches
Kewda water - 1 tsp
Sugar - 250 to 300 gm
Saffron
Ghee for frying the bread
Pista, badam, chironji for garnishing Procedure:
Heat the ghee and fry the bread golden brown. Keep aside. Make a sugar syrup and pour it on the bread and cook it on a medium flame. In a vessel take milk and mawa, mix it and boil it to a pouring paste. Cover the bread with milk, this paste and garnish with pista, badam and chironji.

Melon Dosa
Ingredients:
Urad Dal - 250 gm
Rice - 500 gm
Coconut - 1
Poha - 200 gm
Water melon - 300 gm
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Sugar - 1 tsp Procedure:
Soak urad dal, rice and poha separately for 3-4 hours. Grate coconut, white of melon and keep aside. Grind all the above ingredients to a fine paste. Allow to ferment for 5 hours. Add salt and sugar. Rest the batter for 4 hours. Pour the batter with a round spoon on a heated hot plate at around 180 degrees, to make a round dosa of 2.5 inches in diameter. Sprinkle little oil, cover with lid for 1-2 minutes. Remove the lid from the Melon Dosa in just 3 seconds and serve hot with honey and Molaga Podi chutney mixed in sesame oil.

LUCKNAVI DUM KI CHAAP
Ingredients:
8 lamb chops
1 tbsp raw papaya paste
1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp cardamom mace powder
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
2 tbsps roasted almond paste
2 tbsps poppy seed paste
2 tbsps fried onion paste
2 tbsps brown garlic paste
Salt to taste
1 cup melted ghee,
1 tbsp saffron water
20 gm fresh pomegranate

Procedure:
Combine the papaya paste, ginger-garlic paste, garam masala, cardamom mace powder, red chilli powder, almond paste, poppy seed paste, fried onion paste, brown garlic paste and salt.
Mix this paste well and marinate the lamb chops well.
Allow the lamb to marinate for 2 hours.

PEACH KIWI AND STRAWBERRY GATEAU
Ingredients:
Eggs - 8, Sugar - 8 oz
Maida - 8 oz, Cream - 500 ml
Strawberry - 2 box
Peach - 1 tin
Kiwi - 2/3 pcs
Strawberry pulp - 1 box

Procedure:
Beat the eggs and sugar together till light and fluffy. Fold in the maida lightly and bake in a round mould for 25 minutes at 180 degree temperature. When baked cut it into 2 halves. Apply the pulp to the first half and then spread some beaten cream over the pulp. Put the second half over the layer which is covered with the pulp and the cream. Pour the rest of the remaining cream over the cake and even it well with a knife. Decorate with strawberries, kiwi and peaches.

BULGOGI (TENDERLOIN & PRAWN)
Ingredients:
Tenderloin - 4 pieces, 60 gm each

Marination:
50 gm red chilli paste
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 tsp sesame oil
1/2 apple, crushed
1 tsp soy sauce
Salt to taste
To garnish, fresh red chilli

Procedure:
Each tenderloin piece is to be lightly beaten to a long rectangle shape. Marinate with the rest of the ingredients and grill. Serve with Korean accompaniments.

Ingredients:
8 pieces prawn with tail,
30 gm each

Marination:
2 tsp chopped garlic
Salt to taste
Pepper powder, a pinch
2 tsp Vodka, 1 lemon juice
Spring onion, to garnish

Procedure:
Devein and clean prawn. Beat lightly with a meat hammer. Marinate with the rest of the ingredients and grill. Serve with Korean accompaniments.

FISH PAUPIETTES IN COCONUT CREAM SAUCE
Ingredients:
Fish fillets, preferably salmon
(from medium-sized fish)
1 tsp lemon juice; salt, to taste
1 tsp white pepper powder
Prawns pieces; asparagus tips
1 tsp Oil to deep fry
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1 sprig curry leaves
2 medium-sized onions, chopped
2 tbsps ginger-garlic paste
3-4 fresh red chillies, sliced
1/2 turmeric powder, 2 tbsps yogurt
2 tsps gram flour (besan)
1-1/2 cups coconut milk

Garnish:
Spinach leaves, 1 medium sized bundle
1 tsp sesame seeds

Procedure:
Clean, wash and trim fish fillets. Apply lemon juice, salt and white pepper powder and set aside. Trim and blanch asparagus tips. Wash, pat dry and thinly shred spinach leaves. Deep fry in hot oil till crisp. Keep aside for garnishing.
Clean, wash and roughly chop prawns and divide into 12 equal portions. Place one portion and blanched asparagus tips on each of the fillets and roll. Roll in silver foil pieces and set aside.
Blanch them in boiling water for a couple of minutes. Remove the foil and check that all the fillets are set and do not open up.
Mix besan, yogurt and half-a-cup of water together so that there are no lumps. Keep it aside.
Heat oil in a kadai, add mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds crackle, add curry leaves and saute for a few seconds. Add chopped onions and cook until soft and translucent. Add ginger-garlic paste, sliced red chillies and turmeric powder. Cook on high heat for half-a-minute. Stir in yogurt and besan mixture. Cook on high heat for a minute.
Add coconut milk and salt and cook covered on low heat for about ten minutes. Gently slide the fish paupiettes into the gravy and simmer further for three to four minutes.
Serve hot garnished with crisp spinach leaves topped with roasted sesame seeds.