Chef Arun Sundararaj’s Hyderabadi menu for Taj Mansingh adheres to the traditions and norms of Nawabi cuisine. Shrabasti Mallik discovers his unique way of fermenting yoghurt with fresh culture and bacteria
The setting was that of a royal banquet — silverware, sparkling chandeliers and live qawwali by Nizami brothers. The place was buzzing with anticipation as to what Arun Sundararaj, the new executive chef of Taj Mansingh hotel, had in store for us. “You are in for a wonderful trip of traditional Hyderabadi food,” Sundararaj promised us. With the mention of Hyderabadi food, biryani is the first dish that comes to mind. The chef stopped our thoughts mid-way, “Hyderabadi cuisine is not just about biryani, it’s about flavours. You will be able to enjoy different flavours in the food that will be served.”
Sundararaj has crafted the Hyderabadi menu for the hotel to introduce his expertise over the cuisine. Dahi ke kebab, which he served us first, were made from fresh yoghurt. He told us that he gets fresh cultures and bacteria to set the yoghurt. “It is normal in Indian household to use the yoghurt that was set a day ago into cooking and also to ferment a new batch. But I get fresh cultures and bacteria for the fermentation process. That way, the yoghurt is not too sour and has longer shelf-life,” he explained. The kebabs made from hung yoghurt were succulent, rich with flavours of cardamom, green chillies and fennel.
Marinating is one of the many traditions of Hyderabadi cuisine. The next dish that he served us was escalopes of lamb, marinated for over 48 hours and cooked over a hot granite stone. It was called pathar ke gosht. It was accompanied with a Shikampuri kebab (pan-fried ground lamb patties with yoghurt filling). The chef said, “People have such varied taste buds now that I wanted to present something simple yet traditional.” Sundararaj carefully selected dishes for his vegetarian guests as well. He prepared jimmikand Shikampuri kebab (pan-fried ground yam patties with yoghurt filling) along with bharwan paneer tikka (cottage cheese with south Indian spices and ginger). He said, “I am a Malayali. I grew up in Kerala, the region which is famous for spices. So I know which spice compliments what.” Hyderabad is also famous for food cooked during Ramzan. The chef presented us with the traditional Ramzan mutton and vegetable haleem. It was accompanied with wheat cooked with spices. “I have tried to keep thehaleem less spicy and light,” said the chef.
For the main course, Sundararaj had lined for us a grand feast of dum ki nalli gosht (lamb shanks pot roasted in gravy), pista murg ka salan (chicken with a stuffing of raw mango pickle with flavours of pistachio and green chilli), Nizami handi (vegetable in traditional yoghurt gravy scented with caraway seeds),khatti dal anddakhni saag (spinach and scallions cooked with south Indian spices). Then there was biryani — Hyderabadi kacchi biryani (overnight marinated lamb and rice cooked in a sealed pot) and subz gulezar biryani. “Marinated mutton oozes out flavours of every spice into the rice during the cooking process and there is rich mix of flavours. Plus cooked mutton also has its own distinct scent that adds to the taste of the biryani,” said the chef with over 23 years of experience with the Taj Group of hotels. His vast and intimate knowledge of Hyderabadi food comes from the time he spent at Taj Falaknuma Palace in Hyderabad.
His choice of dessert was very different. He chose to serve us three delicacies in a single platter —gil e firdous (rose scented kheer), double ka meetha (bread pudding) and khubani ka meetha. “I believe in keeping the dessert simple and traditional. Anyone can make these sweet dishes, they are so easy,” he said.
Although he will not be making any new additions to the existing menu, chef Sundararaj is looking forward to incorporating some of the dishes from the Hyderabadi menu to an existing one.
“This menu will be part of the weekend brunch at the hotel’s restaurant, Machan, till June. We will note the feedback of people and decide about the dishes to be incorporates in the main menu,” he concluded.