Inspirational Shipra Khanna: Winner of MasterChef India

Namita Nayyar

Share the recipe in detail that led on to your final win in the MasterChef season 2. Where did the ideas land and the support of your fans?

Shipra Khanna

As they say each drop fills in to make the ocean, so there were many wins to reach the finals on MasterChef, so here is my winning recipe !! I am truly grateful to all the people, fans, friends, family who have supported me and helped me get where I am today ,so I try and do my best to never disappoint them ! 

Shipra’s MasterChef Winner Recipe

Bahara Nasheen
(Amritsari Smoked Salmon)

Ingredients:

For the Marinade

• 1 piece Salmon (cut into a rectangular fillet)
• To taste Salt
• ½ tsp Red Chilli powder
• ½ tsp Garlic paste
• ½ tsp Ginger paste
• 1 nos. Lemon (juice extracted)
• 1 tbsp Oil
• ¼ tsp Ajwain
• For the Creamed Potatoes
• 1 cup Fresh Cream
• To taste Salt
• 1 tbsp Kasuri Methi (lightly roasted)
• 4 cloves Garlic (crushed)
• 1 tbsp Butter
• 2 nos. Potatoes (peeled & sliced)
• ½ cup Processed Cheese (grated)
• ½ cup Parmesan Cheese (grated)
• 1/3 cup Breadcrumbs

For Smoking

• 1 piece Charcoal
• 2 cloves Garlic (crushed)
• 2 tbsp Oil
• For the Crust
• 2 tbsp Parmesan Cheese (grated)
• 1 tbsp Parsley (finely chopped)
• 2 tbsp Breadcrumbs
• For the Vegetables
• 1 nos. Green Zucchini (cut into triangles & blanched)
• 1 nos. Yellow Zucchini (cut into triangles & blanched)
• 1 tbsp Butter
• To taste Salt
• To taste Black Pepper powder
• For the Beurre Blanc sauce
• 1 tbsp Butter
• 1 nos. Onion (sliced)
• 1 clove Garlic (crushed)
• 1 cup Fish Stock
• ½ cup White Wine
• 2 tbsp Butter (chilled)
• A few strands Saffron (lightly roasted)
• 2 tbsp Pine Nuts (toasted & finely chopped)
• 2 tbsp Fresh Cream
• For the Oven-dried Tomatoes
• 2 nos. Tomatoes (quartered)
• 1 tbsp Oil
• To taste Salt
• To taste Black Pepper powder

For Garnish

• 1 nos. Red Capsicum (julienned & soaked in ice water)
• 1 nos. Yellow Capsicum (julienned & soaked in ice water)
• 1 nos. Green Capsicum (julienned & soaked in ice water)

Instructions:

1. In a mixing bowl, combine salmon with marinade ingredients and keep aside to marinate.
2. In another mixing bowl, whisk together the cream, salt, kasoori methi and garlic. Grease a baking tray/ casserole with butter. Preheat an oven to 200ºC.
3. In the greased baking tray/casserole, arrange half the potato slices in an even layer. Spoon half the cream mixture over this and sprinkle over with half the processed cheese and half the parmesan cheese. Top with remaining potatoes and cream mixture. Combine the remaining processed and parmesan cheese with breadcrumbs and sprinkle over the top. Bake in the preheated oven till done.
4. For smoking, heat the charcoal on a flame till red hot and place in a small bowl. Place the bowl in the centre of the bowl containing marinated fish. Put the crushed garlic on the coal, spoon over with a few drops of oil and when coal smokes, immediately cover the bowl and keep aside for 10 minutes.
5. Heat remaining oil in a frying pan and pan-sear the marinated smoked fish, turning regularly till half done. Remove from flame and keep aside.
6. In a small bowl, combine the parmesan with parsley and breadcrumbs for crust. Dab the pan-seared fish with this mixture, place on a greased baking tray and bake in the same oven for 3 minutes till crust
   becomes crisp and golden. When done, remove and keep aside.
7. Heat butter in a frying pan, add blanched green and yellow zucchini with salt and pepper and sauté on a high flame till zucchini is hot. Remove from flame and keep aside.
8. Heat 1 tbsp butter in a frying pan, add onions and garlic and sauté till onion turns translucent. Add in fish stock and white wine and boil the mixture till it reduces to half.
9. When sauce reduces to half, remove from flame, add chilled butter and stir till butter dissolves and sauce becomes thick and creamy. Also mix in saffron, pine nuts and cream and keep aside.
10. In a mixing bowl, combine quartered tomatoes with oil, salt and pepper. Spread out on a greased baking tray and bake in the same oven for 5 to 7 minutes till tomatoes have dried a bit. When done, remove from oven and peel off the skin.
11. To serve, spoon some creamed potatoes in the centre of a round dinner plate. Place a few pieces of oven-dried tomatoes on it and top with a piece of fish. Mix the red, yellow and green capsicum juliennes
    and place some on top of the fish. Pour the sauce into a Chinese soup spoon and place next to the fish. Spoon the tossed zucchini on the other side and serve hot.

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