CaLDRON February 2014 - Valentine's Day Special | Page 21

REVIEWS - MUMBAI The meat virtually melted off the Rogan Josh. called Vastawaza and his team of wazas, revealed Chef Abbas, who is also the Executive Chef at RK Sarovar Portico in Srinagar. Since this is often organized during weddings, people wrongly presume that Wazwan cooking is limited to marriages alone. is rarely revealed to anyone beyond blood relations. This has made certain waza families very prominent within and outside Kashmir,” Chef Abbas added. these mildly spiced tiny patties because the minced mutton meat did not overpower the chana dal. The subtle flavors of the mint enhanced this combination. A Meal from Heaven on Earth Before we embarked on our culinary journey, Chef Himanshu Taneja, Executive Chef of JW Marriott Mumbai warned us that the food would be extremely spicy and added that Kashmiri food had three major ingredients – ghee, ghee and more ghee! Concerned about our digestive tract, we decided to just nibble on the food and drink a lot of the ‘Rose Milk Sherbet’. The ‘Fried Rainbow Trout’, a fish native to Kashmir’s cold rivers, was butterflied and marinated in ground mustard seeds and later shallow fried. The fish had a crispy exterior but the meat inside was perfectly flaky. Served without any fanfare or accompaniments, this would go best with an ice-cold beer. During a Wazwan banquet, guests sit in groups of four and the meal begins with a symbolic washing of hands with water poured from tasht-nari jug. A large dish called trami is heaped with rice and quartered by ‘Seekh Kebab’. Traditionally, 36 dishes are served during a Wazwan meal, while guests drink copious amount of steaming kahwa, to cleanse their palate.“The culinary art of Wazas is The first dish we hesitatingly tasted was ‘Shammi Kebab’. We enjoyed passed down the generations and CaLDRON February 2014 The ‘Lyodar Chaman’ was an afterthought that the chef whipped up for vegetarians on our table. Though we enjoyed the soft, creamy and slightly fiery tikka immensely, its 21