Sindhi Food Festival, Taj Bengal, Kolkata

An invite to a Sindhi Food festival at Taj Bengal, Kolkata, made me sit and wonder about my knowledge of their food. After all I am a Sikh, and Sindh (now in Pakistan) was once a province of undivided Punjab. Therefore, their food must be very similar to ours. At least that's what I thought before I began my quest to understand the intricacies of a cuisine which has influences from the invasions of Mughals, Arabs and Turkhans. 

My early memory of hearing the word Sindhi in relation to food was from my Grandmother which was for a vegetable variation of Kadhi. Punjabi Kadhi is more full bodied with onion and besan Pakodas in it while the Sindhi Kadhi which we used to eat was a lighter version with a variety of vegetables in it. Another dish I grew up knowing as a part of Sindhi food was their delectable breakfast dish called Dal pakwan. I would simply love the crispy pakwans paired less with the dal and more with the tamarind chutney my aunt would serve it with. And who can miss hearing a word or two about their Sai Bhaji. But that was just about it, my knowledge of Sindhi cuisine.

With invites like these it is naturally more of a learning experience for food lovers like us and I was happy to be there representing Kolkata Food Bloggers. 

The beautiful rural and rustic interiors of Sonargaon, the Indian restaurant at Taj Bengal makes you transport back to a village setting. The walls have been given a mud look, the vessels used are traditional and there is even a faux well which adds to the grand charm of dining there. 

While we waited for Chef Haresh Keswani who is a master in Sindhi cuisine, we were served a light and refreshing drink called Matho which is basically buttermilk with boondi. As I was telling my mom later on, basically a thin liquid version of a boondi raita. Drinks like these are very common in that part basically to beat the harsh heat. 

Out tables were soon adorned with huge and beautiful Thali's which were showcasing the choicest of dishes representing Sindhi food. Sindhi food as we learnt from the chef himself is basically very simple food with minimal spices.
For starters we relished on a simple Sindhi Fish fry and Sanna Pakora which was basically crispy vegetable fritters. 
Our vegetarian fare had stars dishes like the famous Sindhi Kadhi which personally disappointed me as it was nothing like the kadhi I have been eating. Chef Haresh enlightened us by telling that original Sindhi Kadhi is not curd based and is made only with besan. The Sindhi Sai Bhaji was a clear winner as I could see most of us finishing it off from our plates. This was a seemingly simple dal and spinach preparation. Another dish usually cooked as part of homely meals was the Tri dali Dal. 
Our Non-vegetarian dishes were the Handi Murg which to me was like a very homely cooked onion based Punjabi chicken dish. The Phote bhugal gosht was lamb meat cooked in a rich gravy and flavoured with cardamom. 
To pair the dishes we had Bhuga Chawaran which was rice cooked in caramelized onions giving it that lovely light brown colour. In the bread section we had Koki masale wari which was parantha with Sindhi masala. 
The Tamatan ji chutney (sour tomato chutney) was a lovely accompaniment with the dishes. 
For Desserts, we were served Baata jo Seero which is a broken wheat halwa with assorted nuts. Also served were Nariyal ji mithai and Moong dal halwa. 

On display were the mainstays of the Sindhi cuisine-dals, papads, wadis, makhane etc

Chef  Haresh Keswani

You can relish Sindhi food at Sonargaon, Taj Bengal as a part of their ongoing festival till the 13th September, 2015 as Lunch and Dinner.  

The vegetarian Thali is priced at Rs 1700/ + taxes

Non vegetarian Thali at Rs 2100/ + taxes

Sea Food Thali at Rs 2400/ + taxes

Amrita

Taj Bengal - Wednesday Wine O'Clock at the Junction.

'TGIW'-Thank God Its Wednesday 'Wine O'Clock' at Taj Bengal Kolkata. Party-goers and professionals do not need to wait till Friday any longer with The Kolkata Taj Bengal breaking barriers yet again with their Wednesday Wine O'Clock, Wine by the Glass overdrive. 

Taj Bengal has opened up their cellars in a way that has made wine sampling very enjoyable, affordable and available to people at large.

The brilliant idea behind the concept is to take a midweek stress buster time out from one's heavy work schedule and indulge in a moderate midweek pamper that would refresh you to go on for the rest of the second half of the week. It is for this reason that the Taj has designed this Wednesday Wine O'Clock where one can sample wine by the glass from a selection of more than twenty five Indian and International wines ranging from Champagnes and Sparkling Wine to various types of White and Red Wines. Whats more, the wines has been priced so aggressively that it makes more sense to make a bee-line at the Taj Bengal Junction than any other popular joints in the city where wine is generally served more by the bottle.

The effect, if not the after effect, of Wednesday Wine O clock was instant on me as that happened to be one of my busiest day and with the blogger team from Kolkata Food Bloggers invited in the first Wednesday launch, I was running against time to be there.  Exactly as the concept visualized, the evening after that stress filled day was truly very reviving and rejuvenating.

chips and peanuts

Selection from the cheese platter- English Cheddar Cheese and Gouda Cheese to go with wine.

With Vinod Pandey of Taj Bengal

As a food blogger I love to write about food and at the same time it intrigues me to know about the people behind that food or programme which would normally go unnoticed.  

I had a great opportunity to interact with Mr. Vinod Pandey, Executive Assistant Manager Food & Beverage of Taj Bengal. During an exclusive casual interaction with him I found him having a sea of knowledge about wine and has been an appreciator himself for over many years. He helped me to understand and know the story and history of the selection of wines in the offering. He also happens to be an avid collector of numerous wine cork openers, something that I had never heard or have come across before.

The knowledge of wine was reflected in the rest of the staff as well who were very courteous and helpful to select wine and food.

Mr Jaydeep Biswas, Manager Junction Bar was also full of indepth understanding about all the wines in the offering and chatted a great deal about the enthusiasm about Taj Bengal's Wine O'Clock drive.     

The Soave Allegrini DOC ''Corte Giara'' Pagus from Garganega was a very crisp young wine for all occasion casual drinking and a great one for beginners.

The experience of the G H Mumm Cordon Rouge champagne was as magical as experiencing a podium finish at a Formula One Grand Prix. You can pamper yourself with this champagne by the glass and again at a very affordable price.

Ebeia Riberia Del Duero DOC made from Tempranillo grapes from Spain was again a full bodied red wine.

The Oxford Landing, full bodied wine from Australia goes extremely well with red meats such as steak and chops. 

The Wednesday Wine O'Clock at the Junction Taj Bengal will be an ongoing campaign and you can sample from a range of twenty five wines. The carte of twenty five wines would keep changing from time to time to roll more options. The idea of twenty five wines is to celebrate the 25 Years of Taj Bengal. 

The range of wine by the glass is very aggressively priced from Rs 250 to Rs 1000 and for ac compliments you can choose from their range of exotic starters to pair the wine of your choice.  Truly now you can say 'Thank God Its Wednesday'.

Cheers

Vishal & Amrita Tupper

Disclaimer: The views presented above are solely individualistic and was not influenced or paid monetarily. The consumption of alcohol can be injurious to health. Individual's desecration is required.    

French Culinary experience with Chef Marc Thuet at Taj Bengal

Chef Marc Thuet with his wife Biana Zorich

I had a glimpse of the man in action, his arm and forearm full of various tattoos and black shades on his blonde hair, at the International Vine and Food festival held at Taj Bengal and immediately recognized him as the famous gourmet chef Marc Thuet who has flown in from Toronto to treat the people of Kolkata to an unforgettable French culinary experience. Kolkata Food Bloggers had the fortuity to be invited by Taj Bengal to sample the Chef's creations. 

Chef Marc Thuet, born in Alsace, France,  is a fourth generation chef and started his stint with food at the young age of 12. Along with his beautiful and charismatic wife Biana Zorich who is also his business partner,  they are called Toronto's Culinary Power couple. With a growing chain of gourmet bakeries called Petite Thuets serving the likes of Ritz Carlton and running an empire of critically acclaimed food with a clientele of the likes of Musician Prince and Actor Sylvester Stallone, Marc Thuet believes in steadfast styling and use of organic produce. He has also appeared in reality television series called 'Conviction Kitchen' where he trains ex-conmans to run a restaurant and  has completed two seasons.

We started our culinary journey with Chef Marc with a 'Cold Cucumber soup with Goat cheese and sun dried tomato'. Chef tells us that once he reached Kolkata he had to make changes to his menu to suit the climate and food preferences. This cold cucumber soup is just perfect for our humid weather and is blended with curd and mint and served with chunks of salty Goat cheese and slices of sun dried tomatoes. It comes with a generous drizzle of olive oil.

We were served Baguette which is a sourdough bread with a bowl of olive oil and were told by Biana that the bread is supposed to be dipped in the oil and eaten. The yeast for Baguette is cultured by them and was brought all the way from Canada. The bread was crisp from outside and soft like cotton from inside. A treat for our taste buds to devour an authentic Baguette.

  

For main course we had 'Cured Quebec Duck magret, sweet water prawns, black cumin caramel and mango'. The duck magret is a special variety fed to plump and its breast is then cured for 3-4 days with sea salt and a special rub made with 14 ground spices. The meat is then hung for a week. The cured duck was brought all the way from Canada by the chef. 

The duck was served with prawns in a creamy sauce with pickled ginger and fresh slices of mango. The chef informs us that he loves to pair seafood with fresh mango. 

For my prawn allergic friends, Biana was very sweet to ask for a plate of cured duck which came with Parmesan shavings and fresh rocket leaves.

Our next dish for main course was Gremolata crusted lamb rack, basil and goat cheese mashed potatoes

The meat was cooked medium and came with a lovely reduction which the chef tell us is reduced three times and has fragrant herbs like rosemary and thyme. The goat cheese and mashed potatoes were an excellent pair with the lamb rack along with baby carrot, mushroom, asparagus and sun dried tomato. 

Next came 'Wild Mushroom risotto with Parmesan shavings'. The rice was al-dente and had generous bits of Shitake mushrooms which gave it the smoky flavour and chopped truffles. The creamy risotto was a dish that was loved by all and was over in no time.

My favourite course, desserts, was served with two very stunning dishes. 

'Saffron tartlet with golden peach and alphonso compote, maple syrup and walnut crumble' had an amazingly crisp and buttery tart shell. I love fresh fruit desserts and this was such a winner with peaches and alphonso chunks in it. 

'Chocolate caramel mousse verrine with sea salt crumble' was the most amazing and delicious mousse I have had for a long time. Biana tells us that they have used chocolates available locally and we were blown away with the richness, smoothness and silkiness texture of the mousse. The sea salt crumble on top added a wonderful salty touch to the bittersweet chocolate mousse.

The French culinary experience 'Le Thuet' at The Hub, Taj Bengal, Kolkata is on till the 18th April, 2014 and is open for both Lunch and Dinner priced at INR 2500 +taxes for two.

Amrita

Disclaimer : The opinions shared here are my own and have not been influenced monetarily or otherwise.

For more reviews, read here : 

Manjari

International Vine and Food Experience at Taj Bengal

Probably this particular post will clear the clouds of a special 'soft corner' that I have developed over past few years for the Four Seasons Wine brand without taking away the credit, contribution, accomplishments and market standing of other prominent wine brands in India. For me, however, it was the Four Seasons that first introduced and unlocked the mysteries of wine to me in their ongoing efforts to educate Indian public at large of the wonders of wine through their wine trail events. Ever since, my culinary world has taken a higher dimension with the addition of wine pairing.

The International Vine and Food Experience at Taj Bengal was the very first of its kind in Kolkata and in such a huge scale where numerous Indian and International wine brands came together under a single roof. You could sample from a range of more than hundred Indian and International wines. I wish to sincerely thank the Four Seasons for inviting me to cover their participation in this event. 

The range of wine from Four Seasons

The Four Season's station had all their range of wines to be sampled, which they harvest and process in Maharashtra. The range included Viognier, Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Blush, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon etc and my personal favourite the Barrique Reserve Cabrenet Sauvignon and Barrique Reserve Shiraz.

Master Class by Abhay Kewadkar "In the Barrel"

The reserve wines are matured in the oak barrels and to explain the art of barrel aging we had a master class from none other than Mr Abhay Kewadkar himself, Chief Wine Maker of Four Seasons, who shared deep insights in the subject. He covered points such as

subtle flavours are imparted to wine as it ages in barrels,

different types of oaks used,

the subtle changes that the wine goes through as it matures in the barrel resulting in greater complexity and softening of tannins and flavours present at the end of fermentation,

flavour notes from Barrel

Origin of Oak, choosing the barrel etc

No wonder that the Barrique Reserve from Four Season is truly a result of such intricate art of wine making where the oak barrels are imported from France itself and wines are matured for months at a time which gives an infusion of a beautiful woody vanilla flavours and other complexities to pamper our taste buds. 

With Peter Mitter and Abhay Kewadkar of the Four Seasons

International Brands.

I enjoyed the company of very charismatic F. Javier Perez Bernal of Grupo Faustino representing the Gusto brand. He shared with me a very special Faustino V Reserve from the region of Rioja in Spain.

With F. Javier Perez Bernal of Grupo Faustino

  

 The evening was marked with many prominent chefs displaying their culinary expertise. It was truly a great combination of great wine and great food.

 

I believe that the appreciation for wine in India is perfectly poised to take off at a remarkable rate and events such as this would contribute to spreading the awareness and go on to build a strong base for people to be educated. Certainly with the explosion of the food industry it is only a matter of time when India sees itself as a major consumer of wine. 

I wish to thank Four Seasons Wine again for their cordial invite as a part of their team to cover their participation and also congratulate all the wine brands and Taj Bengal as a whole for organizing such an event.

Vishal Tupper

Read about Kamalika's experience of this event here.

Disclaimer: Views expressed above is purely individualistic and without any monetary compensation. 

Mediterranean Experience at Souk - Taj Bengal

As a part of the Kolkata Food Bloggers we had the opportunity not only to be invited by the Taj Bengal, Kolkata, to their flagship Restaurant, Souk, to sample their range of Mediterranean spreads but also the fortuity to dine with the General Manager, Mr. K. Mohanchandran and the Executive Chef Sujan Mukherjee of Taj Bengal alongside exclusively. After a brief exchange of introductory salutation it didn't take long to bridge the culinary affinity that was crescendo-ed  by the ceaseless draw of Mediterranean delicacies intricately prepared by the Executive Chef.

General Manager K. Mohanchandran and Executive Chef Sujan Mukherjee of the Taj Bengal, Kolkata

The Souk experience did enhance the understanding of the authentic flavours from regions around Turkey, Greece, Lebanon, Egypt, Syria serving as a one stop place to indulge in a range of authentic Mediterranean dishes. A souk is a traditional middle eastern market place and the Souk of Taj Bengal definitely represents those culinary traditions. 

WATERMELON AND FETA CHEESE WITH FRESH MINT

The Mezze consisted of a Hummus Turki, Hummus Bil Lahm, Felafil, Lahm Kibbe and Swada Dijaj and Tabbouleh served with assorted Pita.

MEZZE PLATTER

I was exposed to the authentic middle eastern flavours for the first time and I must admit it was a thrilling experience.

As a food blogger I love to write about food because of my passion for it and I am sure that it is a singular subject that draws the whole humanity together, from its very need for survival and existence to the relishing adventures that takes you places and experiment new cuisine. As boundless as this subject is I have realized that there are a lot of cuisines and dishes I don't have much knowledge about and there is always the 'first time'. However, being a cook (not a chef as many people lovingly call me) there are some cuisines and dishes about which I can speak a little more in terms of intricacies, techniques and flavours. The real enjoyment comes from acknowledging the fact that knowing everything is not possible and it is not possible to know everything. Therefore I have learnt to discover food as and when opportunities arise and dining at the Souk was one such contrasting experience as I can believe that the enormous culinary expertise in Executive Chef Sujan, and the General Manager himself, backed by years of experience and exposure in the industry and first hand travels world wide was met with the like of myself having very little idea about the Mediterranean food tradition. However, that afternoon at the Taj, it was the common passion for food that translated the extreme spectrum of expert and novice into a series of platter that uttered an elevated culinary sedation.  

Hummus Turki and Hummus Lahm was very interesting. It was based on chickpea puree with Tahina. The Turki had chopped piri piri olives and the Bil Lahm had crisp fried morsels of lamb. The interesting part was that for a person like me having the dish for the first time in life (and thankfully not having the need to travel to Turkey just for Hummus) I thought it to be more on a cookie texture with my first glance at it. In contrast to my perception the Hummus was exceptionally soft,  like a puree, that just melted in the mouth. 

I recollect the chef explaining the Hummus first as the platter came in but my eyes was stilled on the Lahm Kibbe (I learnt the name later). Lahm Kibbe was again an exceptional dish with cracked wheat with lamb stuffed with meat and pine nuts. 

PLATTER OF MIXED GRILLS

Grills Izgarlick Karides (Prawn from Egypt), Adana Kebab (lahm from Adana), Tavuk Yogurtulu Bitlis (chicken from Bitlis) and Samak Meshwi (Fish from Turkey)

It is believed that grilling originated from the Mediterranean region. With that note it was such a treat to be sampling the range of the Mediterranean grills. I love to grill myself over the charcoal fire and I realized the spices used were so very different.

Samak Meshwi was my pick of the evening having mesmerizing flavours. The prawn was another master dish which left me spellbound. It was soft, perfectly cooked and had amazing flavours.

LAMB TAGINE

For the main course we were served Lahm tagine.

Lahm tangine was the softest lamb that I had ever laid my hands on. The pickled lime in the dish gave a beautiful tangy touch to the dish. The grain made along with the lamb was something I had for the first time and it gave a very complimenting filler addition to the lamb.

SAMAK MORROCCAN

Pan fried fish with pickled lemon, cayenne pepper, parsley and onion had a beautiful tangy touch to it. 

TRUFFLE PILAF

The trufle rice was really exceptional. The rice was flavoured in trufle oil and berries and complimented the rest of the spread exceptionally well.

PASTA

MOUSSAKA

Again a first time dish, Moussaka consisted of layered Aubergine, zucchini, yellow squash with buttered burghul. This is a traditional Greek specialty. 

ROSE PETAL ICE CREAM, BAKLAVA AND OMALI

The Dessert Platter was unique in its own way. The rose petal ice cream was made with real rose petals and was served on a cookie. The Omali was a dessert very new to our palate which was basically baked fillo with condensed milk. 

MOROCCAN MINT TEA

 After the expanse of the never ending Mediterranean platters we were served with the Moroccan mint tea which was extremely light and appetizing in nature. A perfect way to end a fabulous afternoon which would always be special in many ways. The Mediterranean Cuisine has certainly open up a whole new foodie world for us and there is no better place in the city than the Souk at Taj Bengal.  

Happy Mediterranean

Vishal & Amrita

TEAM KFB WITH CHEF SUJAN AND GM K. MOHANCHANDRAN

Mexican Food Festival-Taj Bengal

Let me begin on a honest note and confront that my understanding of Mexican cuisine is limited to Tacos, Nachos and Burritos and I only have the Fast food culture to blame on my lame knowledge. When Kolkata Food Bloggers received an invitation from Taj Bengal to attend their ongoing Mexican Food Festival with chef Eduardo Perez, I was pleasantly surprised to go back home with a whole new understanding of this vibrant cuisine. 

We had the privilege of  having the Chef himself take us through a beautiful journey of understanding the Mexican cuisine. The important pillars of this cuisine are Corn, Black beans and Chilly pepper. There are about 100 varieties of chillies, with heat levels ranging from mild to very hot, used in this cuisine and Chef Eduardo cited it as a main ingredient in his creations. Tortillas, a staple in Mexican cooking is made with a special kind of corn flour called Masa. We also learned  that their basic medium of cooking is in Corn oil. Mexican cuisine can also be very complex with a simple dish such as Mole sauce(a traditional sauce) which can have more than 30 ingredients which includes chocolate and chillies.

Amongst the many differences in the ingredients and cooking techniques, Chef Eduardo enlightened us with some of the similarities it has with Indian cuisine. He told us about a cheese called Panela which is very similar to our Cottage cheese but has salt in it unlike our bland one. A number of their desserts include reducing Goats milk to a thicker consistency much like our Rabdi. 

This only proves the fact that Food is universal and is a beautiful medium to enrich our understanding of each other. Taj Bengal has taken the wonderful initiative to bring authentic Mexican flavours to treat our taste buds. This festival is on till 2 February, 2014 and is open for both Buffet and A La carte, Lunch/Dinner. The menu served to us was part of the A la Carte which will cost for Rs 3000/- inclusive of taxes for two.

Chef Eduardo Perez

We were warmly greeted by the team of Taj Bengal over some fresh Orange juice and were soon joined by the company of the chef himself who very patiently explained us the components of each dishes and answered all our queries.

Our tryst with the Mexican cuisine started with a warm bowl of soup called Sopa Azteca. This was basically a tomato soup spiced with a chilly called Chipotle and had chicken in it along with fried tortilla. The chipotle according to Chef was used three times lesser than what they use in Mexico. For my taste buds, the soup was already spicy enough with the one-third use of chipotle. The fried tortilla strips in the soup was obviously soggy  and hence  I liked the tortilla strips served with it which added a nice crunch. A dollop of sour cream was suggested to minimize the spiciness which tasted refreshing.

For starters, we were served the famous Chimchangas to which the Chef had added an obvious Indian touch by stuffing Flour Tortilla with mashed and spiced potatoes. The dish reminded me of the Churmur we have with fresh chopped onions, tomatoes and coriander leaves topped with generous lemon juice. Chef Eduardo suggested us to pair it with Sour cream and a fresh Salsa. This dish was a perfect fusion between the Mexican technique and Indian flavours and was enjoyed by all.

Next to come was Chicken Fajitas, another popular Mexican dish which is a flour tortilla with mexican spiced grilled chicken and cheese. This dish was well balanced in flavours.

 
For the main course we were served the traditional Mole Con Pollo which is Chicken with sweet Mexican sauce. Chef told us that the mole sauce was made with more than 15 ingredients which included spices like cinnamon and ingredients like peanuts, chocolate and chilly. The dish was served with Mexican rice which had kidney beans in it.

The main course ended with Enfrijoladas which is basically corn tortilla stuffed with sweet corn and cottage cheese served with a kidney bean sauce. I found this dish to my liking and loved the flavours in it.

Pic courtesy Kamalika Chakrabarty

My affair with the Mexican cuisine got strengthened with the dessert served for the day which was Churros. Served with tender Coconut Ice cream and hot chocolate sauce, it was truly the cherry on my cake. Rolled with cinnamon and sugar, these deep-fried pastry doughs took my heart away. Crunchy on the outside but soft inside, these were on my list for some time and I am glad to have tasted the finest.

I thank the staff of Taj Bengal for inviting us over and enriching our experience of global food and chef Eduardo Perez for very patiently and passionately guiding us through understanding this remarkable cuisine. 

Kolkata Food Bloggers with Chef Eduardo Perez

Disclaimer : The opinions shared here our my own and are not influenced monetarily or otherwise.

Check out my friends Kamalika and Archita's experience.

Amrita