Navika Kapoor & Chef Hitein Puri
Zuru Zuru means slurping sound in Japanese and it was one of those cold winter days when I really wanted to slurp on some well-made ramen. This small, unpretentious Japanese restaurant at Shahpur Jaat in Delhi has chef-owner, Hitein Puri at its helm, whose food I have tried in the past at another outlet at Gurgaon and loved it.
Before I proceed to talk about the food, it is very important to highlight Hitein’s partner in the business – Navika Kapoor. She is the brain behind all the research that has gone into this project. With the nature of my work, I have tried many Japanese restaurants in India and Japan but when this small outlet churns out a few dishes that I haven’t tried earlier or learn something new, it means I hadmade the right choice by going there. Navika is not even a trained chef but I can confidently say, she can put many chefs to shame with her knowledge and that too, without ever visiting Japan so far.
The menu is short and crisp. A few ramen, gyoza, yakitori, tempura, sides and a dessert with most dishes available in small or half portions enabling diners to try more variety. Everything is deliciously fresh. This freshness is one of the most important hallmarks of any good Japanese restaurant.
I started with atsuage (tofu and spring onion skewer), tsukune (chicken meat balls) and negima (chicken thigh). Priced around Rs150 for 2 skewers, these are the only three yakitori dishes on their menu. I requested for one piece each of negima and tsukune, while my vegetarian friend took a full portion. Negima taste was enhanced with a little squeeze of lemon while the meat balls were to be dipped in shoyu zuke ranou which was a soy sauce marinated egg yolk. This egg yolk was still raw. Since it was marinated in soy sauce for a few days, the texture resembled a soft boiled egg. I even used this shoyu zuke ranou as a dip for chashu fries (braised pork belly with fries sprinkled with togarashi. Zuru Zuru doesn’t import their pork but it certainly is one of the best quality available in India. At Rs350 for the pork fries, it was again a well priced dish.
While I enjoyed the non veg starters, my friend loved the exotic mushrooms in yuzu sauce. With king mushroom, oysters and other interesting varieties from shroomery, this plate at just Rs150 was interestingly paired with a kind of Japanese lemon pickle. Not sure what the pickle is actually called.
Finally we ordered the thing that we had gone for – The Ramen. I asked for half a portion of Chicken Paitan (Rs500). Paitan is a thick creamy soup without any addition of cream. The creaminess in this soup comes from boiling the bones for along time which helps in releasing collagen. I am sure you know about the health benefits of collagen and I won’t delve into it. Loaded with chicken chashu (a take on pork chashu), spring onion, thinly sliced bamboo shoots and this beautiful soft boiled egg marinated in sweetened soy sauce. A good cook will make this egg so perfect to get that jammy yolk which is still soft but not runny. And yes, the ramen there had handmade buckwheat noodles for another healthy touch.
This delicious meal ended with the signature dessert of Chef Hitein – The Cloud Pudding (Rs270). Made with tender coconut, this is the only non-authentic Japanese dish on their menu. Hitein says that idea came from various puddings in the Japanese menu that he thought of introducing this dessert. Paired with bites of honey comb candy, I guarantee that each one of you will ask for their individual portion, just like we did.
If you aren’t too fussy over a fine dining set up and can travel for good food, Zuru Zuru should be the next spot in your go to list.
Ratings (Out of 5):
Food: 4.25 | Drinks: Did not try | Service: 4.0 | Ambience: 3.0 | Overall: 4.0
Address: Zuru Zuru, Shop number 1, 1st Floor DDA market, Shahpur Jat, New Delhi, Delhi 110049 | Phone: 8920293585
Timings: 1pm-4pm and 7pm-10.30pm, Tuesday Closed.
