Heritage Walk by G.H. Munn and the Lalit Great Eastern

With the excellence of G.H. Munn champagne an unforgettable walk through one of the most iconic building The Lalit Great Eastern, Kolkata, was synchronized with a synergy of a perfect blend of colonial heritage and historically celebrated G.H. Munn Champagne on December the fifth two thousand and fourteen. 

G.H. Munn, one of the oldest champagne houses from France in association with the Lalit Great Eastern organized Heritage Walk for select guests with the idea to bring two legendary brands together with a history dating back almost two centuries. 

The unique heritage walk offered up close and personal experience of classic,timeless elegance of the past while appreciating the subtlety of fine champagne- G.H. Munn paired with a well curated menu that the Lalit Great Eastern is known for. 

The walk commenced by taking the guests through the Legacy Lounge where both the legacy of the G.H. Munn Champagne and Lalit Great Eastern was showcased. 

This was followed by the glorious looking swimming pool at the center of the palatal hotel coincided by the overlooking full moon which made the evening more exquisite in ambiance and also in mood. The Jacob's Creek Reserve Chardonnay offered a perfect melody.

The walk to the third location was reserved at the Gazebo which was surrounded by majestic and historic architecture creating a perfect ambiance to experience and savour the finest Jacob's Creek Reserve Shiraz.

The walk ended at the Bakery House at the Heritage Block II reflecting the Victorian era where Jacob's Creek Classic and Jacob's Creek Reserve wines were served along with the finest options of the open menu the the Lalit Great Eastern is known for.

The Lalit Great Eastern Hotel stands today as an amalgamation of three styles of different eras of history- Victorian, Edwardian and Contemporary that is reflected in three different blocks respectively, making it one of the finest luxury hotels in Asia. Conversely, G.H. Munn, a prestige Champagne House, has been blending the finest vintages since 1827. It is the number one international champagne brand in France and the third best selling selling Champagne in the world. G.H. Munn has been a story based on traditions, expertise and excellence. 

The tour itself is a memorable experience offering a visual and gastronomical delight to everyone passing through the old world charms across the splendid hotel. 

Vishal & AmritaTupper

Sachertorte

I have been missing on daring the challenges at the Daring Bakers but have never failed to check on them every month. For the month of October we were challenged to put our hands on an Austrian Sachertorte by Korena. The moment I saw the challenge I knew I had to kick my off late lazy self and make this beauty. After all who can ever say a no to a chocolate cake.

Sachertorte is one elegant cake which is filled with apricot jam and is covered with a fudge like chocolate glaze and has the word 'Sacher' written across it. Ideally served with a generous dollop of schlag (unsweetened whipped cream), this cake is on every baker's must-try list. 

The Sachertorte was first created in Austria when Prince Metternich requested for a fancy dessert for his guests. With the pastry chef being ill that night, the task fell on an apprentice called Franz Sacher who created the historical cake. Franz's son later opened the Sacher hotel in Vienna where the closely guarded secret recipe of the cake is served to this day. 

With its amazing history and world wide repertoire, there was no way I could miss attempting this cake in my humble kitchen and there was no other occasion befitting for it than my Sweet day today. Vaanya turns 3 1/2 years today. This month had also blessed us with a baby boy in my brothers house. There is someone smaller than Vaanya now :) It is such a joy to relive those moments and cherish the time when she was this small and would fit in our arms. A time when every piece of clothing was still big for her. A time when she had no hair on her head and I would wait for them to grow. A time when I would wait for her to speak to me and demand little things from me. 

Time flies and today I have a new set of wishes for her. Parenting is such a never ending thing and such a joy. 

Recipe source : Korena from Korena in the kitchen

Ingredients : 

Cake : 

• 60 gms butter, softened
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 3 eggs, separated
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 90 gms dark chocolate, chopped
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour

Apricot glaze : 

• 15 dried apricots, soaked in water overnight
• 3 tbsp sugar

Chocolate glaze : 

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 50 gms chopped dark chocolate

Writing chocolate : 

• 2 tbsp chopped chocolate
• 1/2 tsp vegetable oil

Procedure : 

Cake : 

Preheat oven to 190 degree Celsius.

Grease and line a 7" square baking tray.

Melt chocolate on a double boiler or in the microwave and set aside to cool.

Take butter in a large bowl and beat till creamy and light.

Add powdered sugar and beat.

Beat in the egg yolks, one at a time.

Add in the cooled chocolate and vanilla extract.

In another clean bowl, beat the egg whites with a tbsp of granulated sugar. Gradually add in the rest of the sugar and continue beating till they form shiny peaks. 

Now stir in 1/3 of the egg whites mixture into the chocolate mixture. Gradually mix in the remaining. 

Sift flour and add in the mixture in two additions with gentle hands.

Spread the batter in the prepared pan and bake for 35-45 minutes or till a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool completely and cut in two even layers.

Apricot glaze : 

Deseed the apricots that have plumped with overnight soaking and reserve the flesh.

Put the apricots in a pan and cook over medium heat with sugar till it thickens. 

Keep mashing the mixture with a spoon and add a little water in between. 

In about 20-25 minutes you will have a thick jam consistency.

Remove from heat and cool.

Strain the mixture through a sieve to achieve a smooth consistency.

Spread this glaze in between the cake layer and spread on top and sides too.

Chocolate glaze : 

Place sugar and water in a heavy bottomed pan over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Cook for 5 minutes or till you get a one string consistency i.e. when you take a drop of the sugar in between your thumb and index finger and pull apart, it should make a single thread.

Remove from heat and whisk in the chopped chocolate.

Pour immediately over the cake which should be placed on a wire mesh to collect all the excess chocolate glaze.

Allow to set.

Writing chocolate : 

Melt chocolate and mix in the vegetable oil.

Put in a piping bag and snip of the end.

Write the word Sacher on the cake or decorate as you like.

Slice and serve.

Notes : 

• If you have apricot jam or preserve, boil 1 cup of it with 2 tbsp of rum or water over medium heat and cook till mixture thickens for about 2-3 minutes.
• You may use a round shaped pan which is how ideally this cake is served.
• You can substitute this recipe of chocolate glaze with a simple chocolate ganache recipe if you do not like very sweet frostings. 

Farmer's Market by Karen Anand at the Taj Bengal Kolkata

Along with the Kolkata Food Bloggers I had an amazing opportunity to interact exclusively with Karen Anand prior to her visionary Farmer's Market exibition here in Kolkata on Sunday 6th November 2014 11 am to 7 pm.

With the General Manager of Taj Bengal, K Mohunchandran and the Executive Chef Vikas Miloutra, this was a meet specifically designed to have an exclusive session on the Farmer's Market which has been a happening sensation since it started.

Fresh Avacado from the garden

From the stable of Karen Anand. 

The Farmer's Market is a pioneering whole food and lifestyle initiative by Karen Anand. In the age of home gourmets, culinary adventures and a return to natural foods, finally a lifestyle market which is a source of Indian produce. Kolkata Farmer's Market on Sunday 16th November will see curated culinary experiences in fluting cookery demonstrations by Master Chefs, a fresh and novel array of exhibitors who will showcase their artisan produce from across the country.

The Desserts

The cold meat read at the Hub, Taj Bengal

Exhibitors from the diverse spaces such as cheese, home chefs, masalas,  boutique food manufacturers, teas and fresh vegetables and startup vendors will come together to offer a Gourmet shopping experience.

After 16 successful Farmer's Market across the country with more than 80 local restaurants, chefs, dozens of avid home bakers and amateur chefs, wineries and 100000 plus visitors Karen Anand and her Team are back with the Farmer's Market.

The Farmer's Market is scheduled to take place in the following cities.

9th November at the West in Lawns, Pune
16th November at the Taj Bengal, Kolkata
22nd and 23rd November at High Street Phoenix Mall, Mumbai
7th December at the Westin Garden  City, Mumbai
14th Dec at the Grand Hyatt,  Goa
21st December at the Westin Gurgaon

You can also follow Pune Farmer's Market on Facebook :www.facebook.com/Pune Farmer's Market
Website www.punefarmersmaket.com
Twitter @PFM_India

Vishal & Amrita Tupper

Yakhni Pulao-Amma's recipe

Amma's recipes have always been a hit in our amateur kitchen. 

When I got married to Vishal, I had absolutely no knowledge or interest in cooking. My only experiments were in the oven where I would occasionally bake my Mum's cake recipe. The one that I love to call Comfort cake because that is one recipe I love to fall to which always yields the best and the most yummiest cake. 

Coming back to my non-cooking days, (you see I always get carried away when it comes to Baking) I was presented a handwritten register by my very sweet Amma (mother-in-law) who wrote down some selected recipes. That register has some simple and easy recipes which comes out exceedingly well. Amma had written a note of encouragement for me where she asked me to enjoy cooking and not be afraid of it as cooking is no rocket science. These lines have lived with me through all these years and encourage me to experiment and enjoy cooking/baking. 

Amma has such a treasure of simple, tried and tested recipes that often me and Vishal call her up for suggestions. Her simple instructions and easy to follow steps yield a winner recipe each time. So when we received a call from Zee Khana Khazana, Ab har koi chef, we simply called up Amma and asked her for a recipe with rice. Yakhni Pulao was thus experimented in our kitchen which, if I may say so, was lip smacking good in our maiden attempt.

We did enjoy 3-4 attempts of the recipe before we had to appear for the show and each time relished this simple and such flavourful dish.

Yakhni is basically a word for the flavourful stock that is prepared from meat which is then used to cook the rice. The usage of fennel seeds which is predominant in Kashmiri cuisine brings out an aromatic and delicious dish. The tender meat pieces along with the stock enriched rice makes a beautiful and delicious pair. 

Ingredients - Equal amount of rice and mutton is to be used.

• 500gms of Mutton (preferably chest portions having little fat or from front raan or combination of both)
• 500 gms of rice (Basmati rice)
• 1 inch ginger
• 7 garlic cloves
• 4 tbsp coriander seeds
• 3 tbsp of fennel seeds
• Onion 4 Medium 1 Finely diced and three sliced (to fry and garnish)
• Mint Leaves (to garnish)
• Ghee 4 tbsp
• Dalchini 1” (Cinnamon stick)
• Bay leaf (Tez patta) 2 medium size
• 5 green cardamoms
• Zeera 1 tsp
• 2 whole dry red chilies
• Salt to taste

Procedure

Wash mutton pieces well.

Soak rice in water for about half an hour.

In a pan fry the sliced onions and keep it aside on a paper napkin (to be used to garnish at the end)

In a pressure cooker take water little over 1 liter and put mutton pieces in. Put salt to taste (about 2-3tbsp)

Roughly crush and break garlic and ginger using a knife

Run Coriander seeds and fennel seeds in a mixer for three to four seconds to roughly break the seeds and release the flavor.

Mix the crushed Ginger & Garlic with the roughly blended coriander and fennel seeds and tie them in a muslin cloth.

Place the muslin cloth in the pressure cooker with mutton.

After one whistle over high flame simmer and let it cook for another 10-12 min.

Strain and retain the water.

Remove the muslin cloth.

In another pressure cooker put 4 tbsp of ghee and heat.

Put the combined Zeera, Bay Leaf, Daalchini, green cardamoms, dry red chilies for few seconds till they release their flavor.

Put finely diced onions and stir till the onions just about caramelizes.

Put in the mutton cooked in the pressure cooker earlier and mix gently for a couple of minutes.

Put in the rice which was soaked in water.

Gently fold the rice and the mutton pieces together.

Pour in the retained liquid from the pressure cooker cooked with mutton earlier. Ensure that the stock liquid is twice as much as the rice quantity.

Close the lid and after the first whistle simmer and cook for 5 minutes.

Let the pressure cooker rest till the remaining steam escapes in due time.

Serve in a dish of your choice and garnish with fried onions and mint leaves.

Happy indulging

Amrita

Eggless Choco lava cupcakes

I have been wanting to try my hands on the eggless version of a cake/cupcake for the longest time but being an egg eater I have never gathered enough courage or reason to try one. I mean after all a cake is meant to have eggs. How can any substitute work as good as eggs. Therefore I have been procrastinating the entire idea again and again.

With my recent jump in baking professionally, I realized the need to experiment with eggless baking.

I personally am not fond of the eggless milkmaid cakes so I jumped upon this eggless chocolate cake recipe which uses vinegar and baking soda to react and make the cake rise. 

With Diwali as an occasion where people like to indulge in eggless bakes, I realized the perfect opportunity and the required push. I decided to go chocolate all the way and made the easy batter which went into the cute mini cupcakes and got baked. All through I had my fingers crossed and had several questions in the head. When I finally saw them rise and baked, I was happy and surprised to see the softness of it. It tasted more clumpy to me as I am not used to eggless cakes but once I filled them with some runny chocolate ganache and dressed them with some whipped chocolate cream, they looked adorable and tasted yum. 

These mini cupcakes were placed on little diyas to match the festivity.
With my Sweet day falling tomorrow, I add this recipe to the list celebrating another month of the endless joy that our daughter brings into our lives. 

Ingredients : Yields 6-7 mini cupcakes

• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup sugar, powdered
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• pinch of salt
• 3 tbsp melted butter
• 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
• 1/2 tbsp vinegar
• 1/2 cup boiling water

Chocolate Ganache : 

• 1/4 cup chopped dark chocolate
• 2-3 tbsp cream (I used Amul)

Procedure : 

Preheat oven at 180 degree Celsius

In a bowl, mix all purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. 

Make a well in the center and add melted butter, vanilla essence, vinegar. Mix well.

Add boiling water little by little and keep mixing till you get a cake batter like consistency. You might not need the entire quantity of water.

Pour the batter till 3/4 into the cupcake liners and bake for 20 minutes or till a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean

Allow to cool.

With the help of a knife make holes in the cupcake and fill them with chocolate ganache which can be made by melting chocolate on a double boiler and adding cream to it and mixing it well. 

Decorate with some chocolate whipped cream and chocolate rice. 

Wishing all our readers a very Happy and joyous Diwali. May the festival of light bring you luck, prosperity and happiness.

Happy Diwali

Amrita

Rose sandesh

Its time of the year when Calcutta gets transformed big time and gets illuminated with lights and adorned with beautiful & intricate pandals to worship Ma Durga who descends from heaven on Earth. 

Its the perfect time of the year to see the zest and enthusiasm in the inhabitants of this city irrespective of any religion. I remember as children we would visit pandals from the south of Calcutta to the north often walking for hours together. Eating out is a big part of the Pujas and we would indulge in everything from Biryanis, rolls, chaats to mishti. 

Growing up in Calcutta is perhaps synonymous to having a sweet tooth, at least for me. I have seen my Sikh family gorge on sandesh, rasagullas and mishti doi on most occasions. 

For us Indians, any festival means sweets so for this Puja, I decided to try my hands on some simple Rose sandesh. I wanted to try and achieve an ombre effect and thus the layering in this sandesh. Well, the effect is not prominent and this gives me another chance to experiment on an ombre sandesh. How cool that sounds, right?

Since we have been busy lately with the Zee Khana Khazana episode, I have missed on sharing a recipe for my Sweet day dedicated for my sweetheart and therefore this one gets added there. 

Ingredients : Yields 4 pieces

• 500 ml cow's milk (or full cream milk)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice/a pinch of citric acid
• 2 tbsp powdered sugar (or more as per taste)
• a drop of red food colour
• a drop of rose essence 
• rose petals for garnish

Procedure : 

Take milk in a pan and bring it to a rolling boil. 

Add lemon juice/citric acid and stir in the milk.

The milk will start curdling soon. Switch off the flame and wait till the milk curdles and the whey has separated well. 

Strain this through a muslin cloth into a bowl to collect the chenna. 

Reserve the whey to use in dal, curries or for kneading chapati dough. 

Tie the muslin cloth for the remaining water to drain for about 20-30 minutes.

Take the chenna in a plate and start kneading it with the heel of your palm. Keep spreading it with your palm till it becomes soft and comes together like a dough. This can take about 10 minutes. 

Divide the dough in two parts.

To one add 1 tbsp sugar and mix it well.

Take a plate and spread this part in the shape of a square. 

To the other part add a drop of the red colour and the rose essence and mix well. 

Spread this part on top of the white layer.

Take little water on a finger and spread on top of the pink layer and start arranging the rose petals on top.

Refrigerate for 15-20 minutes for the sandesh to set.

Cut in squares and serve.  

Happy Sandesh indulging

Amrita

From letters to blogging - Our love story on Zee Khana Khazana

Year : 1998

Place : The iconic-St. Paul's Cathedral, Calcutta

Two schoolgirls after attending a fair which was held opposite St Paul's Cathedral decided to visit the cathedral to fulfill their long standing wish of seeing a church from inside. Little did they know that the church has timings and is not open for public throughout the day. It was the winters of 1998, the day was about to set and darkness had started to descend upon Earth when these girls were literally drawn to a beautiful chorus which was being sung by a group of young boys and girls sitting on the cathedral staircase. These two girls, me and my friend Priya were introduced to this young group who happened to be part of the church's youth team. We were warmly greeted by their entire team and it was there that Vishal and me exchanged out first hellos. 

We were invited by them next Saturday to get to see the church from inside and it was from that day onwards that I remember this extremely amiable, helpful, courteous boy called Vishal Tupper. After that very soon I had to go to Mangalore to study my Bachelor of Physiotherapy and Vishal and I exchanged our addresses and began our pen friendship. The lonely days of hostel life used to get livened up with his letters. Slowly we started understanding each other to call ourselves best friends. He discussed his girl friends with me and I my lonely hostel life. This continued 4 years and then suddenly one day I get a letter from Vishal where he expresses his likeness towards me.  The initial reaction was a big no. I reasoned how could he even think like that. We had too many differences. I tried to make him understand and advised him to move on with life. But knowing the kind of person he is made me fall in love with him. I still knew in my heart it was a useless battle, my parents would never agree. After all we are Sikh and he a Christian. It was truly mission impossible. 

Well, years went by, I was back to my city, Calcutta, working in a hospital still unsure of our future but very sure of my choice in him. With a lot of courage, I disclosed my likeness for Vishal to my parents who were obviously taken aback. I was explained the differences and the problems I will have to face and that it is not the custom of our family. 

Years went by, and my parents like all other parents were looking for a suitable match for me. Now if you believe in God, and you know what it is to put your trust and believe that he will set things right, you will understand what happened next. 

My friend Afsana from Mumbai called up my mother and suggested to get Vishal and me married. This was obviously answered by another No. Then my mother in law, my Amma called up and talked to my father and convinced him to meet up with them. They came from Allahabad to have a word with my parents and that is exactly where God changed hearts. I was made to go to the kitchen to make tea (filmi style) and with a thudding heart, unsure of what is going on in that room, I managed to hear voices which were discussing our marriage date. I was astonished at what was happening. This is certainly not what I expected. I was expecting more arguments, more 'this does not happen in our families'...etc God really changed hearts. Our marriage date was decided upon 14 Feb which also happens to be my In-laws marriage anniversary. 

Sikh marriages are usually kept on a Sunday because our rituals take place daytime and hence it is easier for people to attend on a holiday. That year, in 2010, 14 Feb happened to be a Sunday! 

The entry shoot

Exchange of greetings

Vishal and I have been of the opinion that there is always more to discover in each other and that marriage does not end knowing one other. After marriage we discovered our common passion for cooking and experimenting. Soon we were blessed with an angel, our daughter Vaanya. Now a full time homemaker, I had more time to experiment and innovate dishes. We decided to start a blog to share our passion and our experiments with the world and in turn learn more about cooking/baking. 

Sweet'n'Savoury continues to be that extension of our love where we keep sharing our new found passion. 

The cameras at work

Recently we were invited by team Zee Khana Khazana to be a part of their famous show Ab har koi chef where along with one of our favourite recipe, handed down by Amma, we discussed our love journey with Chef Gautam Mehrishi. 

With loads of anxiety we reached Mumbai with our 3 year old daughter Vaanya and were greeted ever so warmly with their entire production team. It was an experience which will remain special in our hearts for a long time. Every little detail was handled so professionally from the makeup, the lights, the set, the numerous cameras and the best part was the way they made us feel  comfortable. Meeting in person with chef Gautam Mehrishi and cooking along side was an amazing experience and he made us feel very relaxed and helped us at each stage. The surprise question answer round had us in splits where me and Vishal had to answer things regarding each other.

Chef Gautam Mehrishi-humble and helpful

Non stop fun on the set

I wish I could personally thank each person on the set from the cook backstage who took care of everything to the various cameramen who were capturing each angle, from the make up people to the people who took care that everything looked good on screen. 

Make up room

Harshad Potdar-the creative director in a pensive mood

Me and Vishal feel extremely humbled to have been a part of this show not only because of its popularity but because of the experience we took back meeting and being a part of such a passionate team. Ab har koi chef is a show that I have personally followed very closely from the time it started with Chef Jolly and it is a show which is followed by both my Mother and my Amma and by millions of other people. The hard work that the production team puts can not be really described in few words. We feel really amazing to connect with such wonderful people who are humble and very patient. 

Chef waiting for the shoot to begin

Lights, Camera, Action!

The team that came to our house for the home shoot equally bowled us over with their hard work and patience. The nitty gritty's that they take care of while shooting goes unappreciated on screen. The 3-4 minute video showing the contestant at home requires an entire day's shoot and buckets of sweat (literally)

Shooting at our home

The team that visited our house

Our show will be telecasted on 29 September, 2014 at 10:30 am on Zee Khana Khazana and we anxiously await it. 

From those years of exchanging letters to blogging together, our love for each other continues to grow each day. We feel blessed to have our parents on our side who keep showering us with endless love and wishes and we also feel blessed to have our little angel Vaanya in our lives who continues to teach us about unconditional love. 

Vaanya entertaining herself with themocol at the shoot

Receiving certificate of participation

and the gift!

Our heartfelt thanks to the entire unit of Ab har koi chef, Zee khana Khazana. Thank you for giving us memories to cherish for a lifetime. 
Our recipe Yakhni Pulao can be viewed here. 

Thank you all for supporting us

Amrita and Vishal

New Menu launch at Pan Asian, ITC Sonar

Celebrated as India's finest East Asian Restaurant, Pan Asian introduced an award winning repertoire of culinary traditions from Across East and South East Asia to Kolkata.

Along with Team Kolkata Food Bloggers I was immensely looking forward to the invitation to the launch of the New menu at the ITC Sonar, Pan Asian Restaurant.

The East and South-East Asian Cuisine in the offer at the Pan Asian is generally an assortment of dishes from regions of China, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand and Philippines. The East Asian regions also brings flavours footprints from Mongolia, Macau, Korea and Tibet etc.

The East Asian Cuisine by large is very versatile in nature and generally tends to adopt the local flavours of the countries where the cuisine has traveled to. I was particularly looking forward to get the authentic flavours of the dishes from the regions that they were derived from and the chefs who were specially flown in for this very purpose, having tremendous expertise in the same, exhibited the true art and soul of the East Asian Cuisine.

Non-Vegetarian Starters

 The Non Vegetarian starters comprised of dishes like Lemongrass Fish (Stir fried fish essenced with lemongrass), Kushikastu (deep fried crumbed chicken skewers) and Yam moo (Traditional Thai pork salad). The lemongrass fish won the hearts of everyone as it displayed a perfect blend of flavours that represented a true Cuisine of South East Asian culture. 

The deep fried chicken crumbed skewers were very delicately put together with chunks of chicken spaced with bell peppers and onion wedges and perfectly deep fried in batter to form a light yet crisp coat.

The pork salad lean, soft and succulent meat was dressed with a sublime hint of chili dressing that gave the dish a beautiful mildly spiced salad outlook with fresh vegetables. 

  

Vegetarian Starters

The vegetarian starters consisted of Chongqing crispy fried lotus stem, Yam woon sen phak (glass noodles salad with vegetables) and Chao Shao qie zi (Stir fried eggplant in Chinese barbecue sauce). 

The deep fried lotus stem was certainly a very interesting dish. Little bit more strongly spiced it is traditionally derived from a colder parts of China where the exaggerated usage of spices is generally done to combat the harsh cold climate. The glass noodle salad sure did give a very different outlook to noodles as it is generally known around the world with its very attractive glass like look with the addition of fresh vegetables and light chili dressing. The stir fried eggplant was very crisp and light in texture.

  

Sumashi (Japanese Seafood Soup) was very dramatic having sea fish, prawn and squid. The sea food ingredients and the sea food broth was served differently. The soup was asked to be mixed to the bowl having the sea food ingredients, giving it a very dramatic experience.

The Main Course spread was as elaborate as the starters. 

Non-veg main course spread

The main course non-vegetarian dish consisted of steamed prawns and glass noodles, Muxu Chicken (stir fried slices of chicken with white fungus and cucumber), black pepper pork spare ribs and Nasi Goreng which is the Malaysian version of famous rice preparation with prawn, chicken and dried shrimp paste.

The black pepper pork spare ribs was very soft and had a beautiful presentation and a subtle pepper flavour that was not over powering. 

Vegetarian Main Course Spread

The Vegetarian main course had Stir fried pokchoy,mushrooms in soybean sauce,  Asparagus and garlic glazed bell peppers and Babycorn with spicy tomato, water chestnut and onions. 

Both the asparagus and the baby corn dishes wore a wonderful presentation of thinly sliced mix of bell peppers. The mushroom in soy bean sauce was again wonderful in presentation but the soy bean sauce was a bit more intense for my liking.  

Coconut Ice Cream

The icing on the cake was the dessert which was Ice cream Kati Sod which was homemade young coconut ice cream served in shells with coconut jelly. The extremely beautiful presentation was coupled with a very natural coconut ice cream with coconut jelly.   

  
The East and South East Asian New Menu Launch at the Pan Asian ITC Sonar was indeed one of the finest dining experience in the field of their respective regional cuisines. The true authenticity represented the ethnic character of the East Asian cuisine without the dilution of the evolved spices that usually comes with the local markets. This indeed makes Pan Asian the destination to relish the best of the combined East Asian Cuisines.

Hours- On weekends, Lunch- 12:30 PM to 2:45 PM.
            Through the week - Dinner 7 PM to 11:45 PM

Vishal 

Disclaimer: The views presented above are solely the unbiased perspective of the writer. The writer was invited for the launch of the event and was not paid monetarily or otherwise.