A Parsi Food Festival is going on at the Made in India restaurant of Radisson Blu Hotel, Noida and a special bloggers meet was organised for the launch of the same.
The menu for this ten day long culinary festival has been specially curated by Master Chef Kaizad Patel, with some of the most authentic and traditional signature dishes from the Parsi kitchen, including a great mix of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian delights, like Bhujeli Kaleji, Kid Gosht and Chapat, amongst many others mouth-watering delicacies. Parsi food has its roots in Persian and Gujarati cuisines and much of the food is a meat-lover’s dream come true.
Commenting on the Parsi cuisine and the special menu for the Parsi Food Festival, Master Chef Kaizad Patel said, “Parsi cuisine is a mélange of different flavors and has an eclectic mix of hot and sweet, sour and spice. This delectable cuisine is deeply influenced by various parts of the country that the community has travelled to and its soul lies in the ingredients used to make the mouth-watering delicacies. We are delighted to bring back the traditional recipes and recreate the authentic flavors at the Parsi Food Festival at the Made In India restaurant in Radisson Blu MBD Hotel Noida”.
Chef Kaizad Patel held a Parsi cuisine Masterclass also at the event, where he shared his experiences and also the recipes for mouth watering Parsi Dishes. Chicken Farcha made in a tomato based gravy with special Parsi masalas and the ever popular Patra nu Paneer or Paneer cooked in Banana leaves were the highlights.
Being brought up in a Parsi Caterers family, Chef Kaizad says he always knew someday he would always take up this family business. He have always had a different approach on views and always wanted to exceed expectations. This has been his drive and what keeps him going.
Upon completing catering college, He joined the Ratan Tata Institute, Mumbai, as he wanted to broaden his horizon on Parsi food. He came across interesting people who shared their views on Parsi food. After completing almost a year; He joined the Oberoi Hotel’s, Mumbai and worked his way up the hierarchy. After his 3 ½ year employment with the Oberoi Hotel’s, he decided to go and study further in Culinary Arts. He joined the Scottsdale Culinary Institute, which is affiliated with “ Le Cordon Bleu”. He joined the Ritz Carlton, San Francisco as an intern and upon completing his internship, he was hired and trained by the Ritz Carlton values, which changed his life, truly.
On his return to India he decided to take over his family business as he felt the need to revamp the image of the business without changing the core values of the community and the business, which were instilled into him. He always looks at a glass full and not the other way around. He has just begun his journey as a Caterer (for the last 10 years) and has a long way to go…..
After the masterclass, the journey of exploring Parsi Cuisine started with Murghi Na Farcha, really crisp outer with succulent chicken within, this was an absolute winner.
The next on the menu was Bhujeli Kaleji absolutely soft and delicious. The Makai Cheese Na Pattice, a cutlet made from cheese and corn was an absolute delight as was the Kera nu Cutlets, made from banana.Both very crisp and absolutely delicious.
The main course consisted of Tarapori Prawn Patio, shrimps in a gravy.
Salli Jardaloo Murghi was another delightful chicken creation garnished with crisp n thin slices of Jardaloo.
Then there was Wafer per Eedu, an egg dish made with wafers, coriander and green chilles fried till golden brown and it turned out to be a really delicious dish.
To accompany this was the ever so delicious Patra nu Paneer an absolute delightful dish.
Then there was the Bhindi Sambhariya, crisp thin Bhindi deep fried and made with special Parsi sambhar spice.
The almost mashed brinjals in a light gravy was another mouth watering dish.
The above were accompanied with some crisp breads.
There was also the Vegetable Pulao Dal for the rice eaters.
The food all in all was good but slightly on the sweeter side to my liking.
For dessert there was the Chapat with Parsi Peg Ice Cream which was really out of this world. Then there was the Lagan nu Custard another winner.
All in all a very satisfying experience and strongly recommended. Really worth a visit. To indulge in an eclectic mix of hot and sweet, nice and spice, which sums up the Parsi cuisine, make sure you head to ‘Made In India’ restaurant, the home grown name popular for being the pioneers of traditional cuisines and reviving cultural heritage through the medium of culinary art.
What: Parsi Food Festival
Where: Made in India, Radisson Blu Hotel, Noida
When: 14th-23rd October
