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Here come curries from Coorg

EXOTIC FARE Chef Bala Subramanian

This cuisine is surely not too often heard of in Delhi. But that doesn't mean it has nothing exceptional to offer. In fact, connoisseurs of food have always considered Coorgi food as something really special.

Bringing a bouquet of interesting Coorgi dishes to town comes Chef Bala Subramanian to host the Coorg Food Festival at Uppal's Orchid's restaurant, Bonitos.

Having 20 years of experience in cooking Coorgi food, Chef Subramanian lays out an elaborate table with many exotic dishes with unusual aroma such as koomu curry (a spicy mushroom curry), koli curry (an aromatic chicken curry) and yarchi manga curry (lamb curry flavoured with raw mangoes). Asked about the spices used in the dishes, the chef says, "We use a lot of coconut, curry leaves, ginger, green chilli, pepper and cardamom."

Avidly interested in regional cuisines, he says he interacts quite often with housewives to take their ideas and then create his own recipes.

He even specialises in making 14 varieties of pickles, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian.

Pork is popular

Unlike other South Indian dishes that give a lot of thrust on vegetarian food, Coorgi cuisine has a very rich non-vegetarian array, and pork is an all time favourite.

A popular Coorgi dish, pandi chootad, a part of the festival, is barbecued pork chops flavoured with orange and bird's eye chilli. Yet another dish at the food festival, pandi curry is pork cubes cooked in red masala and Coorgi vinegar.

Dishes like koomu bhartad, stir-fried mushroom with green chillies, chhakai fry, sautéed raw jackfruit with spices, and sappu, a curry with peas, turnip and potatoes, are a few of the delicacies of the festival that the vegetarians would savour.Keeping in mind people who like their food less spicy, the chef gives an option to order lighter versions of his dishes.

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