Whether you love cooking, have knowledge about multiple cuisines or you simply are just a foodie, one thing you couldn’t have missed out on was the Cooking Session with a very well known Bengali Chef Partha Roy. He has been flown down for 15 days from Hyatt Regency Kolkata to Mumbai. This was a one of a kind cook with Chef session where we all got a chance to get together on one platform, interact with so many similar minded people across the globe that not only treasure but also share our love for Indian Cuisines. And to top it all, we got a first hand chance to interact with Chef Partha and be a part of some interesting and lip-smacking Bengali cooking session.
The cook with Chef session was held in “Soma” restaurant of Grand Hyatt, Mumbai and they had a beautiful set-up of a kitchen counter with an adjacent seating area for us to be a part of this Bengali Cuisine cook off.
A Jhal Muri (Bengali Bhel) counter welcomes you at the entrance and you cannot miss out on this at all.
These were the three dishes, we learnt to cook from the extensive and yummilicious Bengali Cuisine – Narkeler Bada (Coconut Wadis), Murgir Patishapta (Chicken Wrap) and Betki Paturi (Steamed fish in a banana wrap). Chef Partha explained every single step of the recipes along with some really helpful and insightful tips to get the authentic flavour right for all these dishes. After every dish was ready, he would sportingly and happily get each and every dish towards us food enthusiasts and answer all our queries too, no matter how silly they would be.
I am quickly jotting down Chef Partha’s recipe for “Betki Paturi” which is an all time favourite of all the fish lovers :
Ingredients
- 180 gms – Betki Slices (4 pieces)
- To taste salt
- 4 gms Green Chilli
- 15 gms Ginger Paste
- 1 gms Onion Seeds
- 40 gms Curd
- 50 gms Mustard Paste
- 4 gms Mustard Oil
- 1 gms Banana Leaves
- Turmeric Powder
Method :
- Stone ground the mustard with green chilli paste and salt.
- Mix the paste with onion seed, turmeric, yoghurt, salt and mustard oil.
- Marinate the fish with mixture and keep aside.
- Lightly heat the banana leaf, put the marinated fish and wrap it.
- Steam for 12-15 minutes and serve with the steam rice.
I enjoyed every bit of the cook with Chef session, made so many new friends and then headed towards a gala Bengali Cuisine lunching scene. Each and every dish was carefully made under the supervision of Chef Parth. We started with an appetizer called Koraishutir chop, which is actually spicy potato cutlets stuffed with peas. And the Murgir Pathisapta, which was the softest chicken wrap I have ever had. It sort of melts in your mouth, within seconds of your bite.
Main Course consisted of Betki Paturi (recipe is above) and Kasha Mangsho, which is a traditional lamb preparation in mustard oil. Aluposto is again a hot favourite with me personally since it has poppy seed gravy and goes so well with loochi (Traditional bread). Chenar Daalna was again a must have for you cottage cheese lovers, since the dumplings in the gravy make it a lip-smacking dish teamed up with ghee bhaat (rice with ghee). We also had the mosur daal which is actually the red lentil tempered with onion and garlic. Perfect Bengali Cuisine! (Stay Tuned for a Detailed Article on the rest of the food)
Our Desserts for the Cook With Chef Session :
- Manolova Nalen Gurer Malpua – If you’re a malpua fan then you definitely are going to dig this one as these malpuas are dipped into date jaggery syrup.
- Rossogolla – Just hold these soft balls of poached cottage cheese dumplings, squeeze out the sugar syrup a little bit and pop these at once in your mouth for some serious food coma.
I want to actually go back for some more of this delicious Bengali Cuisine. Good thing that this Authentic Bengali Food Fest will be on in soma, Grand Hyatt Mumbai till 24th February 2016. So make sure to make the most of this you foodilicious folks!!
Connect with me on my Social Pages :-
