It is tough to impress a Bengali with mutton curry. But a chef from Mumbai managed to do that on Saturday, the first day of the nine-day pop-up experience that he brings to Shamiana at Taj City Centre in New Town.

The gravy is thick, full of texture and while the meat is succulent, half the battle to perfect the pnathar mangsher jhol was won by getting the potato cooked just right, infused with flavour. The menu calls it Sunday Mutton Curry (priced Rs 1,475). “Three whistles on the cooker,” says Kanishk Sethi, a junior sous chef at Taj Lands End, who is presenting a selection of the menu at the Mumbai hotel’s signature Punjabi restaurant Masala Bay. That, according to him, is the simple secret to cooking a simple dish that he says home cooks put together on lazy Sundays when they toss tomato, onion and mutton into the cooker.

Such a bowl of mutton cries out for luchi but Sethi has provided a suitable alternative — Makhmali naan (priced Rs 295). “It has layers like Lachcha Paratha but is softer.”

Another gravy-based meat item is Dhabewala Murgh (priced Rs 1,239). “Back in our restaurant, we stick to the roadside eatery tradition of using country chicken. Here we are using Chicken Tikka made of the softer broiler chicken. That infuses the smokiness of the tandoor charcoal into the chicken,” he said.

Makhmali Paratha served with Gilawat ke Kebab, placed on sheermal, and the zesty Aatish-e-chaap, served as part of the thali

Both items can be ordered by themselves or had as part of a non-vegetarian thali, which is priced at Rs 2,950. The thali offers Masala Chhas and Gilawat Ka Kebab (Rs 1,062 a la carte) at the start. The chef bats for the name gilawat rather than the galauti that the kebab commonly goes by. “Gilawat means tenderised. It was devised for a toothless king. Raw papaya paste is used to tenderise the lamb meat which is then minced for 10 rounds in the grinder. It is served on a piece of sheermal, to add the crispiness of the ulta tawa bread to the kebab’s melt-in-the-mouth texture,” Sethi said. Galauti could be a vulgarisation of gilawat, he
suggested.

The other kebab on the platter is Aatish-e-Chaap (priced Rs 944 a la carte). “Aatish means fireworks,” the chef warns. So there would be a fair bit of chilli flakes and black pepper along with a hint of mustard to cook the thigh pieces for the boney kebab.

A helping of Jeera Rice and Lasooni Palak also comes as part of the thali, which has a vegetarian option priced at Rs 2,596, which serves Tehedar Paneer Tikka and the green peas-based Nimona Tikki in starters, and Lahori Paneer and the dry fruits-stuffed Phaldari Kofta as sides in the main course.

The Masala Bay menu is a curation of Punjabi and Awadhi cuisine. “While the Punjabi dishes have a rustic touch, drawing from the chopped onion and tomato, Awadhi cuisine is more refined. Dishes like Phaldhari Kofta are mildly spiced and finished with elaichi and javitri powder to add floral notes to the taste,” the chef said.

The Masala Bay menu would be served at the Taj City Centre’s all-day diner Shamiana till Sunday.