A TV actress winning a national award? Not a regular phenomenon. But Parekh, popular for her role of Gulaal in Star Plus’ Zindagi Ka Har Rang…Gulaal and Maya in Sumit Sambhal Lega, has achieved this feat. She won the National Film Award for Best Actress in 2024 for her portrayal of Monghi in the film Kutch Express. Exploring food with Manasi Parekh, who says, “I am a very good cook.’
The first thing I have when I wake up: Hot water, soaked almonds and walnuts.
My breakfast is: ABC juice and fresh fruit. I don’t have breakfast—only juice and fruits.
My lunch is: Roti, sabzi, dal, salad, pickle and buttermilk.
My evening snack is: Fruit or chaat.
My dinner is: A bowl of soup and salad, Thai curry with rice or chilla and chutney. Basically anything light.
My favourite desserts are: Tiramisu, dark chocolate with fresh strawberry, and Natural tadgola ice cream.
My fitness regime: I alternate between gym and yoga every morning.
Post-workout I have: Threptin biscuits.
Foods I consciously have: A lot of raw fruits and veggies with nuts for my gut health.
Foods I consciously avoid: I avoid chili sauce or preservatives in food, and also avoid fried and spicy food.
My favourite restaurants are: Yauatcha, Ram Ashray, Konkan Cafe, Wagamama and Hundo Pizza.
My favourite cuisines are: Asian, Italian and South Indian.
My childhood memories of food are: My mom making huge quantities of undhiyo and the whole family coming together to have it with puri and shrikhand. All my playdates would be with mom making extremely yummy snacks with thick shakes. Also, waking up at 6 am to have hot idli and filter coffee at Ram Ashray.
I can cook: Yes, I can make a mean Gujarati meal. I also cook amazing Asian and Italian food. I am a really good cook.
My daughter and husband’s favourite from my cooking repertoire: They both love Thai curry rice, Pad Thai noodles, and pizza. Parthiv loves dal khichadi, Mexican tacos, burritos, and toasties made by me too.
My favourite cooks in my family are: My mom is the best cook in the world. She literally makes everything amazing. From cooking a full South Indian spread on a banana leaf to undhiyo, handvo, dhokla, Mexican—my mom cooks it all. And my grandfather makes the best dal fry, jeera aloo, and egg burji.
My idea of a romantic meal is: A fresh, hot home-cooked meal, with candles and music on the terrace.
The weirdest food or combination of food I have ever had: Pineapple, cheese, and ice cream sandwich in Manek Chowk in Ahmedabad.
My favourite beverage and drink: I love hot honey ginger lemon drink. I even like the vegan protein mix with 7 grains and millets from Isha Yoga called Sanjeevani.
Recipe of Vegetarian Dhansak
Recipe of Vegetarian Dhansak
Ingredients:
1 cup tur dal
3 onions (sliced)
3 tomatoes (chopped)
3 potatoes (cut into cubes)
1 doodhi (cut into cubes)
1 medium-sized brinjal (cut into cubes)
1 cup methi leaves (washed well and chopped)
2-3 tablespoons ghee
Ingredients to be ground:
1 cup coriander leaves
6 cloves garlic
1 medium-sized cinnamon stick
4 to 5 cloves
2 to 3 tablespoons whole coriander seeds
6 black peppercorns
2 tablespoons red chili powder
1 tablespoon jeera (cumin seeds)
Little water to make the paste
Method:
Wash and soak the tur dal for 30 to 40 minutes. In a pressure cooker, add the dal and chopped vegetables with some water. Cook on a medium flame until done. Keep aside. Grind coriander leaves, garlic, coriander seeds, cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, jeera, and red chili powder to a fine paste. In a heavy-bottomed vessel, lightly heat ghee. Add the ground paste. Sauté on a low flame until the ghee separates. Add the vegetable purée, and add some water if required. Bring to a boil until the ground paste is mixed well with the vegetable and dal purée. Serve hot with rice and onion kachumbar.
