Pumpkin, Punjabi-style, at Badmaash
Badmaash is using pumpkins in a traditional Punjabi-style dish called kata meetha kadu.
At Badmaash, the Indian-influenced gastropub in downtown Los Angeles, you can get your pumpkin fix without having to carve up jack-o’-lanterns or go to Starbucks for a spiced pumpkin latte. Nakul Mahendro is using his pumpkins in a traditional Punjabi-style dish. Mahendro runs the restaurant with his brother and their father, Pawan, who is the chef.
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For the Record
Oct. 30, 11:44 a.m.: An earlier version of this story misspelled chef Pawan Mahendro’s first name as Nawan.
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The dish is made by cooking pumpkin in spices, aromatics and mango powder. What kind of pumpkins? Mahendro likes either Jamaican or Long Island Cheese pumpkins from Tanaka Farms in Irvine. At the restaurant, it could be served with black lentils cooked with ginger and poori. Or, really, whatever suits you: On a recent visit to Badmaash, Mahendro suggested naan and pickles, yogurt and other condiments. It’s a family-style thing.
Recipe: Badmaash’s Punjabi spiced pumpkin
“It’s really a soul-warming experience to be in Punjab in the winter,” says Mahendro. “This is the food that warms you up and sticks to the stomach. Winters in Punjab get really cold, and the homes are made of cement. Until recently, central heating hadn’t really been a thing there. So the food you prepare and eat is very important.”
Badmaash, 108 W. 2nd St., Los Angeles, (213) 221-7466, www.badmaashla.com
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