Floyd Cardoza might be credited with showing the world that upma can be fancy, but this is a secret Michelin star chef Vineet Bhatia of Ziya, (Oberoi Hotel, Nariman Point) has known for a while. Find below his recipe of the most decadent upma in town (which he serves with chicken and milk fritters) worth its weight, quite literally, in gold. Ps: They no longer serve this dish on the menu, but call a day in advance, and they'll whip it up for you!

Varqi 23 Carat Black-Spiced Chicken Tikka with Saffron Upma and Milk Fritters

Ingredients

For the saffron upma:

1 gms saffron                                   
60 gms semolina                               
100 ml milk
10 gms chopped onion                   
0.5 gms curry leaves
10 ml oil
1 gms green chilly    

For the blackened chicken:

100 gms Chicken Supreme                
15 ml squid ink                                                                  
20 ml tamarind chutney
Salt to taste

For the milk fritters:

20 gms Chenna                                   
5 gms chilly garlic sauce              
10 gms tempura flour         

Method

For the saffron upma:

Heat oil and add green chillies, onions and curry leaves. Saute gently. Warm the milk and add saffron and keep aside for half hour for it to infuse in the milk. Add 120 ml water to the sautéed mixture and boil. Add saffron milk to the boiling mixture. Add semolina and salt and cook on a slow flame till moisture evaporates. Remove all curry leaves. Serve hot!

For the Blackened Chicken:

Marinate chicken supreme with salt. Make a mixture of tamarind chutney and squid ink. Pour on the chicken supreme and keep aside for 3-4 hours. Skewer the supremes and roast in a tandoor.

For the milk fritters:

Put ice into tempura flour and make the batter. Mix chenna with chilli garlic sauce. Roll chenna into small roundels. Dip them into the batter and fry.