Food Review: iChef simplifies cooking complicated dishes

Does the thought of stocking up on a long list of gourmet food items, only to experiment with one dish that caught your fancy, make you want to drop the idea altogether?

Check out ichef.in, a website that allows you to order ingredients according to the dish you pick from their menu. I've always wanted to try cooking a risotto at home, but was not sure if I wanted to buy an entire packet of Arborio rice, mushrooms and the like, for just one attempt.

The Risotto with Spinach-Basil Pesto and Sweet Potato recipe kit by ichef.in seemed like a tempting option. The kit comes with pre-measured ingredients — in this case the Arborio rice, baby spinach, vegetable broth, button mushrooms, sweet potato and onion, olive oil, grated parmesan cheese, butter, basil, walnuts and garlic cloves in little cups and packets.

All I had to do was follow the recipe instructions and have enough risotto for two ready in 30 minutes. I didn't have to worry about the excess ingredients... since there were none. As for the risotto, it turned out pretty well.

iChef also has recipe kits for Pineapple Chicken Teriyaki, Lamb Sliders, Kung Pao Chicken Tacos, Green Coconut Curry and Tofu Fajitas – all at Rs 250. Each kit serves two.

Website: www.i-chef.in;

Price: Rs 250