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.
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.
More of Amrita's experience here
The chef presented the most favorite dishes of Sindhi people distributed into three categories to cater everyone's tastebud - a Veg thali, a Non-veg. thali and a Sea-food thali on this festival. While all the thalis include the Crispy, crunchy vegetable Fritters(Sanna Pakora), Sindhi Kadi, which is tastewise very similar to South Indian Rasam with the tempering of curry leaves still has distinctive Sindhi taste, a perfectly spiced mixed dal(Tri Dali dal) and a sweet-sour Tomato relish(Tamatan ji Chutney). The Veg thali includes some more vegetarian delicacies like Sindhi Sai bhaji(Spinach and chana dal preperation), Aloo wadi matar and the famous Suran ka Kofta(Yum dumplings in curry) and many more.
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| Chef Haresh Keswani |
Non-veg thali similarly includes a chicken, a lamb and a fish delicacy along with above mentioned dishes. Similarly, sea-food thali includes two types of fish and Prawn specialities. All the thalis will also accompany a rice speciality, Bhuga Chawaran, where rice cooked with caramelised onions, garam masala and chilli powder with diced vegetables is just the right to accompany all the side dishes. and how can I forget, the small, Sindhi Masala parathas, Koki Masale wari, which was just extraordinarily tasty. All the dishes I tasted was so perfectly balanced with minimal uses of oil and spices that it will left you asking for more and more.
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