Soon after Proppadoms’ launch, Mudhar pitched on TV’s Dragon’s Den. He came away without investment, which he believes would not have been the case had the brand already secured the listings it later achieved. Papads are the thin lentil discs needed to make poppadoms. They are available at almost all Asian grocers. I’ve even seen them sold at some supermarkets. What he did was visit the small crisps factory that fries the mini poppadoms and asked if it was possible to season poppadoms the way crisps are flavoured. The easiest method is simply a mix of plain yogurt, prepared mint sauce from the store and some sugar. Adding a few spices such as cumin can change this up a little.

When I first started cooking I spent ages learning how to make chutney. My version is a worthy contender for any restaurant these days. Currently I'm experimenting with the mint sauce you can dip poppers into. When I eat at my local Indian restaurant they always serve you poppadoms and chutney while you wait for your main meal. I tend to eat so many that I lose my appetite! What I’ve been hearing is that, since the pandemic, people are looking for things that are new, that aren’t available in every single retailer,” he adds. “They want small, challenger brands that offer quality.” These were pretty unique, and we predominantly targeted travel because we thought it would be a fantastic travel product,” says Mudhar.

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I was looking for Indian food recipes when I found this article. I like reading about food and the roles it plays in our lives, and the poppadom is much more versatile than I had imagined. Nope. Frying them like you do in this recipe is the way it would be done at Indian restaurant. You could also cook them in a microwave for about 30 – 40 seconds and watch as they become crispy. It was the idea of a ‘family secret’ recipe that prompted Mudhar and his wife, Harmeet, to launch a range of seven sauces low in fat, salt and sugar and free from artificial preservatives or colours. The discs are made by preparing a dough and then flattening small balls of the dough before drying them. Purchasing papads is a lot easier.

What I really like about poppadoms is that they are quite light in calories. Each one has about 65, and if you team them with a nice cucumber dip like raita you can indulge without guilt. You might when you see how easy they are to make. In India, poppadoms are served not just as starters. They love their flavours and textures in India and they crispy poppadoms are so good served with a curry. What exactly are papads? The brand is now listed with wholesalers and has gone into WH Smith in 50 airport locations across 10 countries. Proppadoms also recently started selling online through Holland & Barrett with a view to going into stores in the coming months. Talks are ongoing with supermarkets and travel operators. Poppadoms are real money makers for restaurants because the papads are dirt cheap yet they can charge quite a lot for them and nobody seems to complain. I didn’t want to go to a big production company. It just wasn’t what we are about. But they set up to produce larger quantities if we need them.”The inspiration for the sauces was a globetrotting honeymoon about five years ago. “You end up meeting people, making friends and getting invited to dinner parties and beach parties,” he explains. “People would be cooking these amazing dishes and would say that this is their grandma’s recipe that has been passed on.”