As chef Satish Kumar coaxes us to try some more of the sweet treats on offer, while narrating stories and instances of how and when they are eaten, he points to the goja (a sweetend Indian puff pastry) and says: “Even when this gets basi (stale) and the sugar crystallises, we make a dish out of that — called pagal goja ,” and laughs. Satish explains, “That is just a a colloquial name; actually the name is a derivative from the process it undergoes after the sugar crystallises. After boiling milk to a thick consistency called paag in Hindi, the gojas are crumbled and dropped in the thickened milk. From the word paag comes pagal goja .
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The Magadh food fest at Sheraton unravels many such tales around the dishes prepared, especially if you catch chef Satish in action. The food fest is an honest attempt to showcase simple cuisine from the west-central Bihar region where several large kingdoms ruled between the 6th and 8th century.
“Bihari food is much more than sattu and litti chokka,” we are told, and offered little glasses of sattu sherbet. If you don’t gulp it all in one go, you will need to stir it between sips to mix the sattu that settles at the bottom of the glass. The popular poor man’s drink is not only rich in proteins but is also an awesome cooling drink during summer.
The next round, among many others, was a plate full of yummy non-veg kebabs comprising Kathi chicken kebab, chicken chop, mutton chop and machli fry. The ghee used for basting the kathi chicken kebab lends its unique taste. The kebabs are mild in spice but high on taste. For spice intolerant diners, the chicken chop is a win-win with the flavours of raw fresh ingredients appropriately complimenting the meat patties.
A few dishes from The Magadh food fest
By the time I got to the litti choka, I was feeling pretty full. However, as the chef poured spoonful of the melted desi ghee to the litti chokka that he had assembled, I decided to shift my stance from ‘I am full’ to ‘I can still eat some.’ Litti chokka is a meal in itself, so if you plan to do more than try the food, go slow on these Indian roasted protein dumplings.
Then came the main course! I prayed for temptations to stay away from me. So when I heard there was khichdi I thought my prayers were answered. Served myself a spoonful of khichdi made with whole unpeeled red lentil and put a spoon in my mouth disinterestedly. My prayers went for a toss as the khichdi (which I normally avoid) turned out to be several notches over tasty, while still being mild.
Chicken kati kebab
As we tucked in little of everything that came to our table, chefs talk about the use of spices, time to be eaten and occasions to be relished kept us company. Kalaunji baigan is how I would want to have baigan from now on. Ahuna gosht has to be the most brilliant and non-fussy method to prepare lamb; the meat is marinated with fresh raw spices and mustard oil and put over charcoal in a sealed clay pot for a few hours. The outcome is a mind-blowing yummy lamb curry that can be eaten with paratha, rice and, in my case, khichdi as well.
Ever heard of laukjaur ? This dish is made by cooking rice and club gourd in milk and then tempered with seasoning and salt. Tasted it out of curiosity and wouldn’t mind eating it at all.
For desserts there was an array of sweets treats. Bihari sweets are mostly home made and dry, using a lot of flour and sugar syrup. But then there is kheer and dal puri , so why look at anything else?
If you love mildly spiced food, here is your chance to go for an epic level face stuffing.
