There is a slight chill in the Mumbai air since the past two weeks. It is truly a pleasant change from the humidity and heat that this city is know for. Suddenly instead of complaining about potholes and rain, people are complaining about potholes and the their lack of winter clothing. Even though they know fully well that by the time they go buy said clothing, winter will disappear from Mumbai.

What I like about Mumbai is that when it comes to the food scene, it doesn’t actually matter when a particular season starts. The moment it is November, Parsis will start having Vasanu – doesn’t matter that the temperature is still at 36 degrees. And, the moment it is April we go hunting for Mangoes to make Keri ma Gosht, who cares whether summer has really set in or not?

I am guilty of this behaviour too. I had my first singora, or water chestnuts from the vendor long before there was even a breeze in the air and my daily routine to work now involves stopping at the local vendor below my office to grab fresh saunf (fennel) and some masala peru (chilli guava).

These days many ice-cream shops in India sell a Chili Guava flavoured ice-cream in the winters but I still prefer the real deal mainly because it reminds me of my school days when I used to religiously spend ₹5 of my pocket money on a guava after school every day of December. Last week, while thumbing through an old Parsi cookbook and nibbling on my Peru, I came across a recipe called Guava ni Curry. My first instinct was ewww.

Who wants to put fruit in their main course? Sure, Masterchef has taught me that pork and apples do go well together, but guava? Really?

However, my curiosity was piqued. Here was a Parsi main dish that was inherently vegetarian and did not feature potato or egg. Always worth a try in my books. Yes, I did end up adding mutton to it eventually but vegetarians you can make this knowing that this curry was once-upon-a-time made just for you.