A hotel celebrated pochishey Baisakh by serving food from the Tagore kitchen. Those who stepped into Sand, the restaurant of De Sovrani hotel, got to sample dishes cooked in Jorasanko Thakurbari. “The Tagore kitchen was a space for experimentation. Since Rabindranath travelled a lot, dishes from foreign lands too found entry there,” said executive chef Baridbaran Sau, who drew up a menu based on Thakurbarir Ranna by Purnima Tagore.
Rabindranath’s favourite niece Indira Devi Choudhurani, the daughter of Debendranath’s second son Satyendranath Tagore, had maintained an exercise book of recipes. The khata was inherited by Purnima Tagore, daughter of Debendranath’s eldest grandson Dwipendranath’s daughter Nalini Devi and wife of Satyendranath’s descendant Subirendranath.
The menu had quite a few eye-popping choices. Traditional vegetarian items like Sukto and Begun pora turned non-vegetarian in Machher Sukto and Sol Begun respectively. Again, a non-vegetarian item got a vegetarian twist in Mochar Paturi, wrapped in banana leaf. The non-vegetarian avatar of the paturi was made not of the hilsa but of shrimps. The dhoka, usually made of lentil, in the Tagorean version is made of green pea.
“I included Baked Macaroni Paneer Diye from Purnima Tagore’s book and the traditional Irish Stew to highlight the continental element in the family’s food habits,” Sau said.
The warm reception of the special menu has made the hotel authorities want to make it an annual affair.
“There was keen competition among the wives. That’s why in Purnima Tagore’s book there is no mention of the proportions of the ingredients. That was kept a secret,” smiled Sunando Tagore, Satyendranath’s great grandson, as he sampled the dishes at the festival.
SERVED AT THE TABLE OF THE POET
Shrimp with cucumber and coconut milk
Ingredients
Coconut: half
Shrimp: 50g
Cucumber: 2
Turmeric, coriander seeds, cumin seeds
Onion: one, minced
Ginger
Garlic: a few cloves
Chilli: 3
Salt: to taste
Method
Wash the shrimps well. Shred the coconut pulp. Put water on the boil and then add the shredded pulp in the hot water. Set aside to cool and then squeeze the milk out. Dice the cucumbers. Grind the coriander seeds and the turmeric and add the paste to the coconut milk. Collect the finely grated onion, chilli, cumin seeds, garlic slice, diced cucumber and shrimp and add to the milk. Cover the container and cook on slow fire for half an hour. Now add thick coconut milk, remove the cover and keep it on the fire. The dish is ready when the shrimp is cooked.
Shol Begun
Method
Roast and skin the brinjal. Boil the fish and crush it with your hands. Temper the ghee or oil with garam masala and fry garlic, onion, turmeric and chilli paste. Add the fish. When it is deep fried, add the roasted brinjal. Season it with salt, sugar and chilli. Stir till the consistency is a thick paste. Sprinkle fried onions on it and the dish is ready.
(Source: Thakurbarir Ranna by Purnima Tagore)
IRISH STEW
Ingredients
Lamb (boneless) 400g (cut into cube chunks)
Onions 1 big (finely chopped)
Garlic chopped 2tbsp
Butter or olive oil 2tbsp
Black peppercorns 1tsp (freshly ground)
Carrot 100g (cut into chunks)
Baby potato 100g (peeled)
Baby onion 8 (peeled)
Chopped parsley 1tbsp
Water 5 cups (or as per requirement)
Salt to taste
Method
Heat butter or oil over medium heat in a thick stock pot. Add the chopped onion and saute for a while. Then add chopped garlic and again saute for some more time. After that add lamb and cook till it gets a little colour.
After that, add water and cook till the meat is tender up to 85 per cent.
Meanwhile, in a pan saute the carrot chunks, baby potato and baby onions. Then add some water to it and cook till it get 50 per cent cooked.
Finally add the vegetables in the meat and ground black pepper, and cook till the potato and the carrot are cooked but still retain shape. Add the chopped parsley to get the flavour of the stew.
Add salt as the final seasoning as per your taste.
The stew is ready to eat. Serve it hot.
(Recipe: Executive chef Baridbaran Sau)
