The magic of slow cooking....

"We are now living in the Mcdonaldised Society"
My college professor said this, during our final year classes. Actually, we had a subject on "McDonaldisation" in our final year classes, versus "De-McDonaldisation". Actually it was quite opposed to what we were taught than what the concept of McDonaldised society is..a movement started by Carlo Petrini, popularly known as "Slow Food Movement".
It was the concept of how fast food chains are conquering [or ruining] our palates whilst restaurant--fine dining, casual dining, speciality restaurants are losing their charm. Since, F&B was not my interest[though it was a major], little do I remember about what we were taught. Truly, the fast food restaurants have exploited our appetite with some fried patty, some french fries & some condiments in a couple of seconds. Its tasty, it gives satiety to stomach..& for sometime...you are no more hungry.
I remember trying McDonald's in the year 2001, that too in Delhi [Unfortunately, McDonald could not enter Kolkata-The city of Joy before 2007, due to strict Anti-American Communist regime!!!] & I was blown away that I had one more...

Not drifting from our topic of the day, these fast foods have done more damage than it did any good.On the other hand, slow cooking has been forgotten by many patrons who are admirers of fast foods[Burgers, Sandwiches & so on & so forth]. Now you will find many people queueing in any fast food restaurant than any casual dining or speciality restaurant. Of course, who has been praising slow cooked food for long, will remain to be the loyal consumer [and there are exceptions to it].

Mutton is a meat that I learnt to cook with utmost reverence. Reasons, being its tough connective tissues, which makes it difficult to cook. In spite of having pressure cooker at home, I preferred cooking in slow temperature, especially in an oven. The advantage of cooking in the oven is that you can graduate the temperature, which is a little difficult in stovetop. The end result??Of course melt in the mouth. Another example of slow cooking is our very own Mutton Biryani.

Now slow cooking, is definitely applicable for tough cuts--I am yet to learn any slow cooking recipe of tenderloin or rib-eye steak--the only exception being sous-vide however. Slow cooking methods like braising, stewing can be applicable for beef cuts like chuck,short ribs, flank, shank. Cuts of Lamb like shank, blade etc & similarly stew meats from pork, veal. However, shank of all the meats receive equal treatment, i.e. braising.Another of the pork cut, which I always prefer to braise for at least 2-3 hours, is Pork belly--unless, I am cooking in sous vide process for about 8-10 hours at a regulated temperature of about 72.2 Deg C.

But today, I am going to share a favorite recipe of mine, the last lamb I cooked at home.It is Lamb Shank. Well, there are two types of Lamb Shank you can get from one lamb--the hind one & the fore one. Generally, what you get in your supermarket is the fore shank.As with any cheap, inexpensive cut, like lamb shank the basic procedure remains the same--sear in a hot pan, after seasoning, with some oil until nicely browned. Once well browned, saute the basic mirepoix in the same pan, add some flour[adding flour is completely optional--when I cook, I rarely add any!!]& allow it to brown for sometime[an important part of caramelisation, as once it will simmer, it will release all its flavours to the braising liquid] followed by addition of braising liquid[generally a flavourful stock--try not to use just hot water]& cook slowly for about 2-3 hours, to get a tender meat, with a quite pronounced flavour of the meat[In this case, it being Lamb].Keep the meat aside, while you can strain & finish the sauce with the addition of lemon zest, garlic and parsley[yes, the gremolata seasoning goes well with any braised meat--not limited to only osso bucco!!] & serve with some root vegetables--pearl onions, potato, parsnip & always the classical accompaniment for lamb--beans & peas!!!
Here is the recipe...
Braised Lamb Shank[for 1 portion]
Ingredients:
Lamb Shank-1 no.
Seasoning- to taste, a sprig of rosemary & thyme
Lamb Stock-300 ml[preferably, homemade]
Shallots-50 gm(chopped fine)
Garlic-2 cloves(chopped fine)+4 garlic cloves, roasted & then peeled & roasted
Carrot-100 gm(chopped fine)
Olive Oil-25 ml
Bouquet Garni- 1
Butter-10 gm, chilled
Gremolata seasoning- zest of 1/2 lemon, 1/2 clove garlic chopped and 5 gm of chopped parsley
Method:
1. Season the lamb shank with thyme, rosemary & also salt-pepper. Heat a pan, when it is fairly hot enough & add in the olive oil until very hot. Sear the lamb shank on all sides, until well-browned. Once done, keep it aside in a colander and reserve the juices & drippings.Set the oven temperature to 160 Deg C.
2. In the same pan, saute the shallots, garlic, carrot until nicely browned. Deglaze with the lamb stock & add in the lamb shank & any drippings/juices from the shank & bring it to a boil. Once it comes to a boil,add the bouquet garni cover & cook in the oven for about 1 hour. After 1 hour, remove the bouquet garni & add in the pureed roasted garlic & cook for a further 1.5 hour. Check the doneness, by trying to pull the meat or pierce with a fork--if it is easy to pierce or pull the meat, it is done!!Another method--check if the meat has pulled away from the bone. If it is, then it is done. Once done, remove the shank from the liquid & reduce the liquid in the stove top, until it is of syrupy consistency.
3. Strain the sauce, check the seasoning & add in the gremolata & pour the sauce over the lamb shank. Serve with assorted root vegetables--pearl onions, parsnip, carrot. Alternatively, blue potato puree, sauted beans & peas are good combinations too...


Bon appetit!!!

Too-sweet Arabic sweets...and Arabic Food

Part I
Okk..you know that I am in middle-east for almost 2 years now, Dubai to be exact & have been trying the Arabic foods..which is again controversial. Turks will claim that all arabic food actually originated in Turkey[do they still believe that entire middle east is under the Ottoman empire?], whilst Greeks also have similar food[cold mezze especially] and a growing disputes amongst arabics too--this is lebanese or syrian..that is from Saudi arabia or palestine & so on & so forth...but I don't care as long as I have food to eat, provided its good.

Caveat: When I came here, I was a little taken aback by the arabic [namesake] food. If someone would ask me, if I liked arabic food or not, I never took time to think--the answer was straight, "No, it doesn't appeal my palate."

But now things have changed, when I just tried to taste---instead of rejecting something outright, why not try?If it is unpalatable, well, that is another thing. Gradually I developed a taste for Arabic foods, but again I am selective. I love the fried mezze[kebbeh, sambousek], hommous, moutabel[and I honestly, dont like Labneh]. I am being selective on Lentil soup...since, I cannot eat all lentils!! And if you talk about main course, bring on as long as you make sure they are good--though mostly meat--Lamb Chops, Lamb Kofta[kind of Indian Sheekh kabab], Shish Kebab[okk..Arabic version of Chicken Tikka, but with Beef], & Shish Tawook[Arabic version of Chicken tikka, except Indian spices], or the grilled seafood--Sabream[i.e. Sea Bream], Sultan Ibrahim[threadfin seabream, like a baby red-snapper], Sultan Hedi[i.e., Red Mullet] or can be other local fishes like Hammour[a local grouper] or Shrimps. But there is more arabic food than what has met my eye & now I have developed a keen interest to make arabic food....is it possible to take it to the next level?Or it is best in its rustic form??



Okk...you know that I love sweets too...sweets of all kind from any corner of the world, provided it is upto my palate.Years before, when I saw Baklawa being made, in one the television channels, especially when hot honey was being poured over the freshly baked filo pastry...it was really appealing. Well, honey is good..isn't it?I always used to ask myself, "When will I be able to taste Baklawa?", since, I could never make filo pastry--the excuse being it is difficult to make at home, so I was waiting for the day to come...the day I would be in middle east or to some Greek islands or even Turkey, to taste this heavenly sweets.
So now I am in Dubai & tasted at least 4-5 types of Baklawa[well, there are many types, if you dont know that]--from excellent to disaster. Baklawa, a little crisp on outside & inside sublimely soft & delicious--the making of it is more than what meets the eye...for those, who think that buying a packet of filo pastry from the supermarket freezers & then making the Baklawa is just like a five-minute handjob, again, you will be very wrong my friend--unless, you are an expert.Another favorite of late, is the Umm Ali pudding- a variation of bread pudding, but on a lighter note, since it is solely based on milk[to make more exquisite, use camel or goat milk] and/or cream...and some nuts, but puff pastry is used instead of breads. And then baked!!!

For over the past few weeks, I was craving for some Baklawa & ultimately, I made one...the result was good..and the taste was getting better over time. So, today, I will share with you a recipe...no...two recipes. One is Shish Tawook [Chicken Kebab] & another being my favorite, "Baklawa", with assorted dry fruits.
For the time being, Baklawa for you...
1 lb package phyllo dough, defrosted
3 sticks (12 oz) butter or 1 1/4 cups ghee
2 1/2 cups nuts (walnuts, pine nuts, pistachios, cashews)
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon each rose and orange blossom water

1. Clarify the butter: melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Let it boil gently without stirring just until a layer of foam has risen to the surface and the white solids have sunk to the bottom (do not let the solids brown). Remove from the heat and skim off the foam as best you can. Then carefully pour the golden liquid into another container, leaving the solids behind (I normally strain it through a cheesecloth while doing this). Discard the solids. Skip this step if using ghee.
2. Make the syrup: Place the sugar, water, lemon, and blossom water in a pan and bring to a boil so that the sugar dissolves. Let boil 5-10 minutes until syruppy. Set aside to cool.
3. Preheat the oven to 350F. Place the nuts, sugar, and cinnamon in a food processor and grind until they form a coarse meal.
4.Brush the pan with clarified butter or ghee & put a sheet of phyllo, trimming off the edges to the fit the pan. Brush with ghee or clarified butter & put another sheet of phyllo, brushing the top with ghee/clarified butter. Continue doing this, until you put 8 sheets of phyllo pastry. Add in the crushed nuts in an even layer. Top with a phyllo sheet and again brush with ghee/clarified butter & do like this, until you top it off with at least 4 sheets.Using a very sharp knife  score the top of the phyllo in a square or diamond pattern.
5. Place in the oven and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, until deeply golden and crisp but not overly browned. Remove from the oven and immediately pour the cool syrup over the hot baklava. Set aside to cool and absorb completely.Use a knife to cut all the way through the score marks to the bottom of the pan. It is really best if you let it sit overnight, covered with foil, before serving.This will stay fine upto 3 weeks
 

The Trauma

The Trauma
Part II
The Trauma of Four Months...

I remember it was December 25, 2008. I was busy at home, cooking for a festive menu for my mom & bro. In the midst of the cooking in the evening, I called up ACE employment services, a career consultant in Mumbai [I was in Kolkata then] to follow up about the date of joining[and also an update on the visa status] for Atlantis, in Palm Jumeirah, Dubai--since I was supposed to join there. I dont remember the person's name I spoke to, however, the news I got from the agent was disappointing, "Sorry Gaurav, Atlantis is no longer in a position to hire people--due to recession in Dubai. Like you, applications of many people have been cancelled." I was speechless for sometime...
I told my mom about it. I dont remember what she said, but she didn't react to it. It was so expected, I felt from the way she behaved. Well, I left Mumbai on October 26th, 2008, for Kolkata for two reasons-1)to fix my passport, which was valid through only till December that year & for applying visa, the passport has to be  valid for the next 6 months and 2)to meet my family members--I was missing them so much.

After coming back to Kolkata, I headed to the passport office & applied for the re-issue of my damaged passport....although after initial hassles & the reluctance of the officials there, it was fixed in a couple of weeks & I sent the new passport copy to the agent[Fortunately, the agent never charged me money!!!] and I was eagerly waiting for a reply from them.... "Do you have any update on my visa?", & the immediate answer would be, "Nothing as of now". In the meantime, I clearly remember, Atlantis had a grand opening & we saw that in the television. It was fascinating to see such a grand opening in the middle of crisis & then what happened, you all know that....

Almost all hotels are busy around Christmas & New year's time, so knocking their doors for a job that time, would be futile. Some would suggest me "Send us an email with your CV" & then never revert back whilst others would reject my plea outright, "We dont have any opening right now". I was getting frustrated..though my mother could understand my emotions & feelings..being jobless !!!

Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai & other cities, where I can get a job, at least a good job!!!That's all I wanted & when things improve, I can try abroad again, I used to tell myself. Finally, there were rays of hope & it was in Chennai....and then one in Vizag. Don't forget, I was almost penny less since almost my savings were spent & I was living on my parents' contribution, which means, I will have to minimise my expenses, to accommodate my needs. No going out with friends [even if they asked me], eating less outside, more at home & no more luxury cooking on weekends, rather eat what is being cooked at home.

***

The first call was from ITC Chola Sheraton, first property of ITC in India looking for a Kitchen Associate but what suprised them[and still people me ask me that same question when they look at my CV], "Why such a short tenure in Grand Hyatt, Mumbai?", I could say nothing else than personal reasons, until I really came to Dubai & revealed the real reason, which I wrote before.  Anyways, coming back to our discussion & after some 30 minutes interview over the phone, with the Executive chef, he called me to Chennai for a food trial. It was good...I made a warm pasta salad, a mushroom soup, grilled fish with pomme de terre ecrasse, asparagus & pomegranate jus & for dessert, white chocolate pannacotta with glazed strawberries. He liked my presentation [which was still disastrous those days!!!] & asked me when can I join? I was a little perplexed since, I could make it & I said, "Only after 1 month,", which meant not before March 3, 2009. I was almost starving till 5 pm..since I had only a cup of tea in the morning, around 9 am!!!

I went out...informed my mom & had some food...and wrote in a friends' networking website, "At least Sun has risen in the South", which was confusing, since Sun rises in the east.

The Park, located in Vishakhapatnam[Vizag in short] also accepted my application for a position but as a Kitchen Assistant & my food trial was good, which was again their menu, a simple grilled chicken with mashed potato & pepper sauce. I was offered that job also. But less salary...so I had to judge which one to go for...the one in Chennai was giving better salary & also accommodation[which I needed anywhere else than in Kolkata], whilst Vizag was disastrous--less salary & that city is expensive to live in.

So finally, I decided to settle in Chennai for the time being....

Yes, another dark spot in my CV for having no job for four months..those four months have been traumatic...God, I dont want such setbacks again in my life....and later I used to think, "Are all these incidents, actually a lesson/blessing in disguise???

Fish & seafood...once again

As I said before in one of my postings that I love to cook [and eat too] Salmon, and this time, I am cooking[and ate thereafter] some Norwegian Salmon, which I brought yesterday. And yes, one more recipe for you, the oyster ravioli I cooked last week.
So the menu for you, will be :

Oyster Ravioli

Fin de clair oysters, seaweed caviar

-

Panfried Salmon

Orange braised Fennel, Tartare of confit tomato & mustard beurre blanc

First we come to talk about the oyster ravioli:-
I wrote somewhere before, about a menu for your date, where I advised scallops & oysters for ravioli & this time, I am making it without any scallops. Just poaching the oysters in fish stock for only 30 seconds & then stuffing them in thin pasta sheets. Traditionally, oysters in their very raw form is eaten with few drops of lemon juice---squeezed freshly[though, purists will have it as it is].So the for the accompaniments for this pasta, that is the sauce is lemony, but without any tartness from the lemons/lime. I am using a reduction of cream, fish stock, the juices from the oysters[which was reserved after shucking the oysters] & all these have been infused with lemon & lime zest...interesting..isn't it?
Oysters & caviar are considered to be good partner & signs of luxury[hell, both are aphrodisiacs too!!!]. A little touch of mock caviar around the white creamy sauce & the ravioli looks good ain't it? A couple of parsley sprig or chervil here and there..makes it simple & sexy!!!



Panfried Salmon 
I was really craving to have salmon, since I dont remember when was the last time, I had a proper cooked salmon[I think it was in February this year, even that was cooked by me]. So this was the time, when I wanted to have salmon badly, accompanied by three key ingredients-fennel, tomato & mustard which I felt, should go well together, alongwith the salmon. The salmon was usually panfried with olive oil & then basted with butter. Fennel got a classical treatment--braised with orange juice, honey & star anise. I made a tomato confit & then chopped it up to make a tartare, mixed with balsamic vinegar & some chopped shallots--seasoned of course. For the sauce, it was beurre blanc with some dijon mustard. Whoever said that mustard is a good accompaniment to fish, I must say that he is bloody correct about it. In Bengal, we cook fish with mustard paste albeit, mustard oil is the cooking medium...dont we? Fennel is definitely, a sweet compliment to any fish.

Recipes????Send me mail :)

Bienvenue au French Cuisine

Bienvenue au French Cuisine


Date: Some unrecorded date of December, 2010
Place: Kitchen, in some anonymous hotel
Time: Around 2000 hours

The Chef was teaching me how to make a proper wild mushroom soup, since my previous attempt was disastrous & was intimidating to him. He was sautéing the porcini mushrooms in a pan & after sautéing them, he was deglazing the pan with chicken stock & was reserving them separately. “Once you deglaze the pan, you get the juices, bits left behind in the pan & you don’t lose any flavor”, he was telling me. Well, kind of flashback for me, since this is what we learnt in culinary college; “deglaze” with wine, stock or water or whatever, one of the many basics in the French cuisine. The same thing perhaps we do at home, specially using the same pan or wok, when my mother makes the fish curry, after frying the fish. And yes, I thought, I should revisit all the basics of French cuisine. In college, we made all those classical French cuisine [or haute cuisine] “Poulet sauté champignon” or “Tournedos ala portugaise” or simply, the “Poisson meuniere” [substitute of the most popular Sole Meuniere, since Sole is difficult to procure in India].

However, in between the cuisine of Italy seemed to be more attractive & simple than the complex haute French cuisine, when I’d satisfy myself with pasta, risotto, antipasti & all Italian desserts, tiramisu & pannacotta primarily, for example.
But The Chef’s training just reminded me, why I should start focusing again in French cuisine & for the time being, stay separate from la cucina italiana. All the good things in French Cuisine – foie gras [which I have eaten more than I have sliced], butter [And I love a good, buttery mashed potato], fruits de mer [and I love seafood], demiglace, the tenderloin, croissant and dozens of other French cuisine essentials.

Seeing Anthony Bourdain:No reservations & its 1st & 100th episode [both being shot in Paris, by the way], just evoked the feelings of cooking French, not necessarily, haute cuisine, but putting the old ones in a new way, in a simpler way, using different ingredients, substituting fresh tomatoes with sundried ones or cherry tomatoes, for example or the simple button mushroom with some Chinese black mushrooms or shitake mushrooms. I remember once cooking poulet sauté chasseur [i.e. hunter’s style] in one my employment in India, when I used to handle the western kichen, alone for 15 hours a day & sometimes for 16 hours!!!There we needed to cook for 60 reservations for the lunch & dinner buffet, apart from the ala carte orders. Preparing two vegetarian options & two non-vegetarian options apart from the soup[ either veg or non-veg, after consulting with the Chinese kitchen], was really a pain in the ass…sometimes, cooking the same old & boring “crumb-fried fish”, or vegetables in thai red or green curry & sometimes, when time permitted tried cooking the French classics in my way. Poulet sauté chasseur, also known as “Pollo cacciatore” in its Italian form, is a chicken dish, cooked with white wine, shallots, mushrooms, tomatoes & the demiglace of course[i.e. components of Chasseur sauce]. So I changed the form of mushrooms & tomatoes in this case-I used Chinese shitake mushrooms, which gives a meaty & earthy flavour, compared to the less fragrant button mushroom. I used sundried tomatoes in this case, instead of fresh tomatoes, per se. Well, the results…even the executive chef was wondering what was I upto but he couldn’t say anything else. Yes, it was good & better than what I expected..it was robust!!!
Again, mostly French foods are named as per their garnishes, for example, Poisson clamart, where clamart stands for green peas or printanier, which are spring vegetables; thus giving you scope with names & putting the vegetables or sides accordingly. I remember once cooking at home, “Poulet Roti Forestiere”, here forestiere stands for the bounty of forests, primarily mushrooms and potatoes [ideally parmentier potatoes, small dices of potatoes, by the way], bacon apart from that. But, I was a little flexible with potato-- I used pureed potatoes, mushroom ragout & bacon bits.
And that few days before I made a classic, typical from Provence [South France], Marseille to be exact. And it was Bouillabaisse, commonly known as the Mediterranean fish soup with saffron. The fish used is rock fish, rascasse or known as “scorpion fish” is the ideal fish for making this soup, but if I don’t have access to this fish, can’t I enjoy having other fishes from the Mediterranean, which are also added? I will not get into details how it is made in Marseilles, but I will tell my way I made it & here is the recipe. But make sure, you have enough baguette & rouille to finish up the soup. Don’t make it small portions, make at least 4-5 portions & entertain your guests with this soup—no guests??? Well, freeze it then & consume within a month, the way I do…



My Bouillabaisse [For 6]

Ingredients:

For the basic broth

Assorted Mediterranean small fishes- 1.5 kg [I used baby sea bass, large prawns, red mullet & seabream—you can use John Dory, turbot, monkfish tail, if you get]

Olive Oil -200 ml

Leek-1, white part only, thinly sliced

Onion-200 gm, roughly chopped

Garlic- 6 cloves, crushed

Fennel Bulb- 1 whole, roughly chopped

Very ripe Tomatoes- 400 gm, roughly chopped

Bouquet Garni- 1

Fish Stock- 3 liter

For the Soup:

Assorted fishes, the same ones used to make the broth- 1 kg

Garlic-1 clove, finely chopped

Basil- 1 sprig, finely chopped

Tomato – 2 pieces, peeled, deseeded & chopped

Saffron- 1 generous pinch, soaked in 1 tbsp hot water

Olive Oil- 100 ml

Fennel bulb- ½ bulb, finely chopped

Seasoning- to taste

Cayenne Pepper- to taste

Rouille- as required

Baguette- as required



Method:-

The Basic Broth:

1. Gut the fishes, clean & chop them roughly. Devein the prawns but don’t peel. Keep the heads intact of all the fishes, but remove the gills.

2. Heat the oil in a stockpot & sauté the leek, onion, fennel, garlic until lightly colored. Add in the chopped tomatoes, followed by the fish & sweat the vegetables & fish for about 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently.

3. Add the fish stock, bring to a boil & then lower the heat & simmer for about 40-45 minutes. Remove from the heat & leave it to stand for 20 minutes to allow the flavours to infuse.

4. Pass the fish through a foodmill/ mouli or through a drum sieve, rubbing with the back of a ladle. Discard the bones & other debris. If you want to make it more refine, pass it through a fine sieve. Now this is the broth or the base for making the soup, which will carry quite sweet flavour. If you want to have it as it is, you may or finish with a touch of cream. For the Soup, see the next step.

The Soup:

1. Clean the soup for garnishes-cut them into fillets, deboned & cut into bite sized chunks.

2. Heat all but 25 ml of olive oil & sauté garlic, tomato, fennel until lightly colored & add in the broth & bring it to a boil. Add in the reserved fish chunks, saffron & season and simmer for 5-6 minutes until the fishes are cooked.

3. Serve with the reserved olive oil, drizzled on top & with enough baguette & rouille[mayonnaise with garlic, cayenne pepper & saffron] sauce on side.



In Marseille, also known as the fishermen’s stew/soup, since they made the stew out of the fishes they couldn’t sell [the ugly scorpion fish being the typical addition] is served in two ways—the broth in one bowl & the fish chunks on the other, but I deviated from it. Former Chef Marco Pierre White went a step further---he reduced the broth further & named it as “Bouillabaisse sauce”…isn’t that creative??

[Note to Self: Make plans to visit France—this year or next year, especially Paris, Lyon & Provence.]

There are more to come..and for the time being Bon Appétit…

Fish & Seafood

Let me be honest with you here. I love to cook fish & sometimes I am afraid when I am told to cook fish. Fish—the easiest thing to cook & “overcook” at the same time,and that’s why I am afraid to cook. Sometimes, I am afraid…if I undercook.



Since I hail from Kolkata, Eastern part of India with river Ganges flowing through, fish plays an important part of any Bengali family[and our family too]. From marriage to death…it’s all about fish. As a matter of fact, Bengalis are famous for having fish in their diet & the unapologetic & the tastiest “Bengali Fish curry” or in a bengali’s lingo, “Maacher Jhol”. I am sure there are at least of dozens of variations of this famous curry from its thin version, which is being cooked for daily meal to the thick version, meant for a festive occasion & mostly thickened with mustard paste—making it a little pungent & spicy.



But this is what I like now, never before..when I was a child. I used to loathe fish curry—if it contains any bony fish. That’s why Hilsa, a bengali’s favorite never made it to my favorites. I always preferred fish like bekti/baramundi [a freshwater version of seabass], pomfret & later Rohu, a fresh water carp. So I used to indulge mostly into crumb fried fish, made at home by my mother. My father used to buy the prized fillets of Bekti in the morning & mostly on every evening of monsoons, I used to savour those freshly made fish fries with a little tomato ketchup. A mouthful of heaven….



There is yet another Bengali fish preparation, perhaps rendered from the Parsee Cooking, “Patrani Macchi”, & renamed in Bengali as “Maacher Paturi”. In its simplest form, it is a fish marinated with mustard & other spices & then wrapped in banana leaf [like the pate en croute, banana leaf in this case??]& then steamed till done.





Going out of Kolkata was a blessing in disguise in some way as I had the opportunity to try more & more seafood & fishes. Ok, I cleaned a lot of octopus when I was in Kolkata, but I never tried any[ when I was a simple trainee..back then!!] or may be cut the squids or calamari. I did marinate a lot of lobsters but failed to taste, how they taste like!



My first point was Mumbai, when I was working in a five star deluxe hotel. Which means, access to the world of seafood, especially if they have a restaurant serving high end clientele. If anyone asks me my favorite fish, I may say “Salmon” without a single thought, despite it being fatty & for lean fish, it can be as simple & as prized as “Sea bass”.

Well…then I tried squid, especially its deep fried version coated with semolina & served with saffron mayonnaise and one early morning savored Lobster curry & in spite of sitting in a room with low temperature started feeling the heat & believed that why seafood are often referred to as “aphrodisiacs”.



Dubai…perhaps here, I tried the oysters first in my life. Though, I am being picky about my food..I had to try oysters. With my eyes closed and when I put it in my mouth, it just reminds me of sea. Even, the very smell of the sea…it reminds me of oysters …and then octopus & then a hell lot of seafood—snails, scallops [my favorite], mussels [the least favorite], clams, langoustine aka Dublin bay prawns & more and more lobsters. Didn’t I tell you why I love seafood risotto so much?



You call it King of all fish stews or soups, but I was being moved by bouillabaisse for over a while, until I made it at home & had for my dinner..just few days before. The recipe recommends using rascasse or scorpionfish, but what if I don’t have any?Wont I be able to make without that one? …Well, I used seabream, sea bass, red mullet—expensive fishes & also prawns for the sweetness & when I was having it some baguette & rouille, I was wondering then..which is the best fish stew or soup???Is it the Bengali fish curry or Bouillabaise? Perhaps both are best in their own right..

Pasta..fatta

Pasta....


I recollect my first pasta making & eating too, thereafter. It was some evening during summer of 1998, when I had nothing to do. In the morning, I already saw how to make pasta in one of the shows aired by the then “Discovery Channel” & the program was intimate escapes—a show I tried not to miss. The host, a lady was travelling across Italy & in one of the shows, there was a sneak-a-pick showing how to make a pasta.

Voila…I had everything in the kitchen—flour, eggs, salt, oil, garlic & the notorious tomato ketchup. So I started with an assumption of 100 g of flour & 1 egg. I was not too happy with the result since the pasta was tough. I gave up…

Once I joined the hospitality institute & in the same time, the pasta craze came up with the introduction of “pasta treat” by Sunfeast—a cheap imitation just like Maggi, but I savored it well…until, La Cucina Italiano [i.e. the Italian cuisine] came up. It was a craze for me, when I couldn’t think of any other kitchen but Italian. The language, the eating habits and almost everything was backed by passion for Italian food. Pasta, desserts, mains, appetizers [antipasti in their lingo]—I am not a bigtime fan of pizza by the way, unless, it is thin crust & topped with loads of pork cold cuts!!


Perhaps the most challenging work was convincing a friend who disliked mushrooms, that it is a good combination of mushrooms & fusilli. Yes, he liked it...to the extent that he also left me a thank you note & a note of praise in Orkut [a social networking site by Google].



“This pasta is too dry…add some sauce,” a friend told me long back, when I was cooking pasta for a guest. Come on dear…let the guest taste the pasta. He is not spending some 70 AED for goddamn pasta loaded with sauces & sauces [quite natural when cooking for an Indian palate]. The sauces [which can be from simple butter & sage sauce to the elaborate ragout of Bologna] actually, are meant to complement the pasta, should not be overpowering itself. “No. put some more stock,” came a calling from another colleague. I was telling myself, “Ok…but when I become the boss; I will cook the real way.”
What is my favorite pasta, if I am asked? Well. It’s hard to say. I like fettuccine [more if it is fresh/homemade], fusilli, penne, spaghetti [but never with Bolognese!!!]. I am a fan of Lasagna also [About which I will write separately].Sauces? I am a fan of the meat ragu [I wrote about it before, In search of the perfect Bolognese—please go through the archives]…Alfredo sauce, with some wild mushroom popped in, Carbonara sauce..but my least favorite is “Tomato Basil Sauce”.