Rendezvous with Persian food

Chef Gopal Krishnan, the man heading the famous Persian Terrace restaurant at Sheraton Grand Bangalore is at Westin Hyderabad Mindspace. And he has conjured up an enormous menu that will be served for dinners at the beautiful Mediterranean lounge Casbah and during the buffets at the coffee shop, Seasonal Tastes.

A cuisine that is historically influenced many a cuisines, and that includes the Indian cuisine is in itself a confluence of cultures and rich ingredients - the flavours of the Middle East like saffron, cinnamon, parsley, uses fresh herbs, fruits like plums, berries, pomegranate, prunes, apricots and raisins, and olives and cheeses, and so on.

Chef began the Persian rendezvous with the colourful assortment of salads – the uniquely Lebanese Cold Mezze that included the not to be missed Hummus- the simple and extremely delicious chickpea dip with the flavouring of garlic, lemon juice, olive oil and sesame paste; the distinctly smoky Babaganush; the Muhammara with a sweet tinge thanks to its ingredients made using walnut, sundried tomato, pomegranate along with Turkish chilli paste; and the tangy and grainy Tabouleh with an assortment of Pita breads.

The hearty and exotic sounding Ash-e-Sabzi, which is, in fact, the traditional vegetarian soup made with green lentil, spinach, parsley, coriander, leeks and served with noodles is soul enriching – which is the true quality of a soup – fulfilling to the palette and enriching to the taste buds. The thick and creamy Soup-e-Murgh was interesting too.

The appetisers menu is undoubtedly the most exciting part of the cuisine from this land of kebabs. Chef, in addition to the Falafel, Sambousek and Spinach Fatayer served the marinated fish fillet – Mahi-e-Kebab; the boneless baby chicken leg properly marinated in Turkish chilli paste before it gets into the grill - Shish taouk; the popularly Persian – the mildly saffron infused Joojeh kebab; and then came the special minced lamb kebab, Chello Kebab. The buffet at Seasonal Tastes will feature the Shawarma too.

While the Persian Mezze and kebabs have gained in popularity across the food streets of India, the stews on the main course are something else. They are mostly mild in spice and quite varied in their flavours. The likes of vegetable Solona, Khosresht Fesenja (braised chicken with onion and walnut is pemgranata – now that is some amazing mix of ingredients that makes this gravy quite a sweet sour delight) and Khorecht bamia (Iranian chicken and okra stew) can be had with rice preparations like the berry and saffron flavoured zershk rice.

Chef Gopala Krishnan has on the menu an enticing selection of desserts that includes the crunchy and juicy Baklava and the Ummali – that mark a sweet ending to this otherwise long and exciting cruise through the myriad flavours of a Persian meal that can be savoured at the hotel until March 26.

By Rajeshwari Kalyanam