Tempeh for mixed company

My first encounter with mock meat was at a tiny stall in Andheri five years back. Amid the throng of kiosks selling kebabs and tikkas was Chaap ki Chhap. It looked like any of its neighbours, skewers of cubed ‘meat’ hanging over an open flame. Except this meat was actually soya. More recently, I tried another variant — pulled jackfruit served on a latke, accompanying cups of delicate sencha tea. The jackfruit felt closer to meat than the soya did, with its stringy texture and ability to hold flavour. Today the options are increasing and the conversation around alternative meats is picking up — and not just because India Protein Day (February 27) is turning the focus on plant-based sources of the macronutrient. “The pandemic has taught us how animal agriculture is not sustainable and we have to move to superior sources of protein,” says Siddharth Kothari, Chief Investment Strategist of Om Kothari Group, which invests in plant-based protein.