By Sourish Bhattacharya
Last updated at 11:19 AM on 3rd February 2012
India is the land of a billion kitchens, but we really don’t get to taste this superabundance of food outside the Punjabified fare that gets dished up at Dilli Haat or at places like Swagath – the state bhawans are the nearest we get to savouring this cornucopia of palateticklers.
This weekend therefore is special, for it comes with the promise of whetting our appetite. Four regional food festivals are on in the Capital (and Gurgaon) – and none borders on the familiar.
Fire, The Park, Parliament Street; Average Price for Two (minus alcohol): Rs 3,000 + VAT.
On till February 11. Rating:
Vikram Singh, the flag-bearer of the royal family of Sailana, a little Madhya Pradesh town that borders the Banswara district of Rajasthan, has joined forces with The Park to present a sampler of the recipes his grandfather, Raja Dalip Singh, started collecting at the turn of the last century.
Sailana’s pride: The grandfather of Vikram Singh (pictured right) and Sharad Dewan (pictured left) of The Park. Sailana’s Raja Dalip Singh, was a passionate collector of recipes from royal kitchens and common folk
From the Banjari Dal that the king had discovered at a camp set up by itinerant Banjaras, to the Shikampur Kebab whose recipe was shared by Maharaja Hari Singh of Kashmir (unlike the Hyderabadi original, it is stuffed with silken malai, not yoghurt and minced green chillies; Rs 795), the Sailana repertoire has the best of disparate worlds.
And it’s loaded with surprises such as the Mutton Dahibara (Rs895), Shalgam Kebab (Rs 425) and the Mutton Reshmi Biryani (Rs 675), which acquires a delectably different taste profile because of the addition of lentil dumplings.
The master chef: Author of The East Indian Kitchen and Masterchef India