Guwahati, April 8: Those eating out this Rongali Bihu can add something new, something “royal” to their menu — Awadhi food, with a vegetarian twist.
Come Thursday, there will be a spread of over 30 dishes to pick from at Daawat-e-Awadh, a weeklong Awadhi food festival at Hotel Rajmahal here.
From starters such as paneer nasheman tikka, aloo nikuti (stuffed potato marinated in curd) and galouti kebab (chick peas and soya as ingredients) to gilafi kulcha and parda biryani to melt-in-the mouth desserts like shahi tukda and matka kulfi — there is some serious binge eating on the cards.
“This will be a first in Guwahati. The idea is to add something new to the menu of those eating out this Bihu. Since we serve only vegetarian dishes, we have tweaked the concept of the festival to suit what we offer. So all the dishes will be vegetarian,” Bhrigu Das, operations manager of the hotel, said.
The dishes, ranging from Rs 120 to Rs 300 per plate, will be served a la carte.
Executive chef Sudip Haldar said the taste of the dishes would be same as the non-vegetarian dishes. “The spices and the gravy are the same minus the meat. So, the dishes would be as sumptuous as the items that one associates with Awadhi food that is known for its taste, softness and aroma,” Haldar, who has 14 years of culinary experience in the royal kitchens of Hyderabad, said.
Awadh, a region in central Uttar Pradesh, was before Independence known as the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. The bawarchis and rakabdars of Awadh gave birth to the dum style of cooking or the art of cooking over a slow fire.