Culinary historian Pritha Sen with Gormei, a brand known for crafting ‘extraordinary’ culinary experiences by collaborating with chefs and restaurants, brought to Kolkata traditional recipes of Bengal at The High Table, a pop-up held on January 11 and 12 at The Glenburn Penthouse
All photos by Amit DattaThe menu featured specially curated dishes by Sen, taking inspiration from the traditional recipes of Zamindari and first families of Bengal. In the kitchen, Chef Shaun Kenworthy and the Glenburn team ensured smooth operations
On the guest list were Kolkata foodies including regulars at Gormei pop-ups in the city and friends of the food historian
The seven-course menu began with two starters: Kofta Shammi Kebab Mahi with Gorbho Mocha Salad, which was a freshwater fish kebab with a banana flower salad, and Telai Kebab with Adar Murabba, a tender and juicy rib chop deep fried in yoghurt batter with sweet ginger preserve
For the main course, first came a bowl of Nimona, hand-pounded fresh winter peas and green gram flavoured with fresh coriander and green chilli paste. It traces its roots to Kannauj and the recipe is found in the historical cookbook, ‘Pak-Pranali’. Accompanying the dish was Vartakur Shirazi Bhorta, a dish made of roasted and mashed eggplants, topped with cottage cheese and eggs in Persian Shirazi style. Both the dishes were served with Khamiri roti, a Mughal-style bread made with milk, wheat flour and yeast. On the vegetarian menu was masoor dal with Bandel cheese, which is not popularly used in Bengali food anymore
Up next was Mangodi Tahiri with Mutton and Buter Dal diye Hasher Qaliya. The Tahiri was made with small and aromatic rice grains, north Indian ‘vadi’ and small boneless pieces of mutton. It traces its origin to Burdwan nobility’s Lahori heritage. The accompanying Buter Dal diye Hasher Qaliya is a chickpea and duck meat curry. The main was served with a green chutney and Alabur Raita, made with bottle gourd and pomegranate, on the side
Dessert came in the form of the creamy Dudh Badamer Mohonbhog which was considered an aphrodisiac. The milk-based dessert was made by reducing milk for hours until it thickens and is flavoured with almonds and cashews. It was served with strips of candied orange and a fried ‘goyna bori’ dusted with sugar
Speaking about the menu Pritha Sen said, ‘All these recipes have been inspired from mainly three historical cookbooks — ‘Pak Rajeshwar’, ‘Pak-Pranali’ and ‘Banjon Ratnakar’. I have made a few tweaks to the recipe to make it more palatable for today’s taste buds’
Argha Sen, founder of Gormei and culinary experiences curator said, ‘The High Table at Glenburn Penthouse came alive with chef and historian Pritha Sen’s stories about how the first families of Bengal had turned gastronomy into an art form in the 18th and 19th centuries, and with her unique dishes, painstakingly transcribed from old cookbooks and historical texts’
Guests at the pop-up relished every dish after Sen explained to them the history and cooking method of each. Abeer Chakravarty, former ad man, said, ‘This (pop-up) is an experience and Pritha does it very well. It is important to know our roots and food plays a big role in it’
Actor Avijit Dutta, speaking on the importance of such pop-ups, said, ‘There are many dishes in our Bengali culture that are forgotten with time. Many recipes that our grandmothers used to make are no longer made by anyone these days. So the pop-ups and dinners like this one are important to revive those’
Couple Ashok Kumar Saigal and Rachna Saigal joined Karin Kador and her husband from Austria for dinner at the pop-up. The Indian couple guided the Austrian couple through the dishes. At the end of it, Rachna said, ‘It was a great time for us. Our daughter booked us this dinner and told us that it would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. So it was!’ Karin Kador said, ‘We loved every dish and it was all so flavourful!’
There was also a special cocktail menu curated by Bombay Sapphire featuring Royal G&T, East India Gimlet and Coochbehar Garden Mash