The unique flavour of spicy biryanis and kebabs and other exotic aromas would meander through the kitchen and dining of the Fortune Pandiyan Hotel from today (Friday).
Using traditional spices like potli masala, poppy seeds, betel and Kashmiri chilli, the Hyderabadi fest will kickstart the culinary journey with ‘shikampuri aloo tikkis’ –spicy potato cutlets with finely chopped and pounded vegetables. A perfect starter, it goes well with tricolour chutneys –chilli, mint and garlic.
‘Tandoori pomfret’ and ‘dakshin murgh’ – these kebabs are marinated with hung curd and potli masala. This muslin potli has aromatic herbs and spices. “The hung curd not only binds the kebabs, but also minimises the use of lime juice as marinade.” says Executive Chef Bala Subramanian. The combined flavours of curd and masala put the proverbial ‘chaar chand’ into these starters. The main course will have the tasty and spicy Hyderabadi biryanis.
The Farsi flatbread beams of ghee and saffron that has mild sweet and salty tastes gels wells with both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. ‘Bagara Baingan’ and spinach made with cream is a perfect combo with the typical Hyderabadi haleem – a salty porridge of broken wheat and mutton. A strong flavour of mutton, derived after slow tempering, is spiked with a sprinkling of lime juice.
The dessert section is all set to have Hyderabad’s traditional sweet dishes like Kubani Ka meetha, Kaalaa jaamun, Firni and Gulkund. And of course, kulfis – strawberry, pistachio and saffron are part of the menu.
Chef Bala Subramanian says that the hotel has planned to display different varieties of food items unique to Hyderabad in the 10-day food festival. “We will not repeat the menu during the festival,” he assures.
The perfect blending and mixing of ingredients will make the plethora of wide ranging dishes hard to resist.
The food fest is on at the Orchid Restaurant, Fortune Pandiyan Hotel, from September 7 to 16. On weekends, buffet is available for lunch and dinner and on weekdays, only the dinner. The buffet is charged at Rs.550 for adults and Rs.300 for children. For reservation enquiries contact 9952424420 and 9791410101.
