Delhi chefs split on onion swaps as retail prices reach ₹55-65 a kg

Delhi kitchens are working around onion prices of ₹55-65 per kg, nearly 60% higher than last year, without necessarily changing what arrives at the table.

Chef Nishant Choubey is using dehydrated onion powder, spring onion and cabbage in some preparations, and points to tomato-cashew, cabbage-tomato, coconut, yoghurt-besan and palak gravies as alternatives to onion-heavy bases. He says dishes such as dal makhani and butter chicken need not rely on an onion base.

At a restaurant in Hauz Khas Market, founder Prriyam Chauhhan is taking the opposite view. Onions slowly cooked into birista-style gravies provide a sweetness that substitutes cannot replicate, Chauhhan says. Chef Bharat Alagh likewise says recipes where onions are central will remain unchanged, with the focus instead on procurement, yield management, portions and reducing waste.

For home cooks, the same approaches can mean using a pinch of fried heeng for aroma, spring-onion greens for freshness, or cabbage, curd-besan and tomato-cashew blends to add body to curries.