Home cooking

Veda closed about 18 months ago but many of us have fond memories of the Arbuthnot Road restaurant's refined and creative Indian cuisine.

Now, a line of prepared dishes lets diners enjoy Veda food in the comfort of their home. Veda Home was launched three weeks ago at Great in Pacific Place, Admiralty and Taste in Festival Walk, Kowloon Tong.

Owner Sarika Jhunjhnuwala says she first experimented with Veda Home about three years ago after some restaurant customers requested ready-to-eat meals. 'There was a big gap in the market,' she says. 'ParknShop used to import Waitrose ready-to-eat meals from Britain but by the time the products came to Hong Kong, they had only a two- to three-day shelf life. We thought we could fill the gap so did a trial in Great. It was successful but we were not ready for full-fledged production. Last year, when we started the food factory, we decided it was time to begin again.'

Master chef Dogar Dutt Sharma (below)makes and packages the food at production facilities on Bonham Road.

'Veda Home products can be kept [in the fridge] for seven days but if frozen, they can last a month,' says Jhunjhnuwala.

The Veda Home selection includes mixed vegetable korma with basmati rice, lamb biriyani, chicken tikka makhani, lamb rogan josh with basmati rice and dal makhani. Prices range from HK$53 to HK$60. The line also includes a tiffin box of rice, dal makhani and vegetarian or meat curry. Veda Home products will eventually be available at ParknShop outlets.