Kashmiri Food Festival: Kashmiri Wazwan @ The Pink Poppadom, Hyatt Bangalore

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Kashmiri Wazwan is a meal crafted specially for Kashmiri weddings and celebrations. It's an extravagant affair and a feast for both the vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike. It has always been on my list of foods to try. Well, this statement holds good until a year ago when on one fine day, I got to experience the wazwan at a specially curated foodie event by Suresh Hinduja. It was love at first taste. 

Again, Suresh Hinduja the force behind wazwan in Bangalore; this time has teamed up with Chef Gautam Chaudhry of The Pink Poppadom, Hyatt Bangalore, M.G. Road to curate a fabulous Kashmiri Food Festival offering the wazwan meal. I flipped at the chance to experience this extravagance once again and only realized I loved it more that I ever did.

What makes this event special is the fact that, there are specific ingredients and dishes that are being flown down right from Kashmir to add to the authenticity of the experience. On only till the 7th of September for dinners, the food here has all the ingredients to teleport you to the magical land of Kashmir. 

Chef Gautam Chaudhry 

At 'The Pink Poppadom' it was an evening of deliciousness, excellence and interesting insights on the famous Kashmiri Wazwan by Suresh Hinduja. We took a good 2.5 hours to go over this dinner and all that is required from an individual is a serious appetite.

The start was announced with the arrival of 'Tabakh Maaz' and 'Murgh Gadh' soon to be followed by the 'Nadru Kabab' and 'Chaman Pakoda' for the vegetarians. I got to try all of them and my personal favorites were the 'Tabak Maaz' - tender ribs the meat of which melted in the mouth and the 'Nadru Kabab' that was so subtle in flavor and was enjoyed best with 'Doon Chetin' - a walnut chutney made in curds flavored with cumin seeds. What surely was a surprise was the super tender and succulent 'Murgh Gadh' but for me, its 'Tabakh Maaz' all the way for the inherit flavor of the meat itself.

In soup, it was the delicious 'Gosht Yakhini Shorba' which clearly had the wonderful flavor of the lamb broth, yogurt and hints of saffron. For vegetarians, there is a 'Khumb aur Pista ki Yakhani'.

Left: 'Khumb aur Pista ki Yakhani'; Right: 'Gosht Yakhani Shorba'

Mains, started the nontraditional way and this was done intentionally to enhance the dining experience. Normally the last of the mains to be served; 'GhushtaBa' arrived first for the sole reason that a dish as wonderful as this is best enjoyed on a nearly empty stomach rather than a point where the wazwan has our stomach and mind hitting the food wall. We were warned of the magnitude of the food yet to arrive but were so mesmerized by the 'GhushtaBa' that there was no stopping us from asking for the second helping. 

In addition to the 'GhushtaBa', mains also included the ever famous 'Roganjosh' - a classic Kashmiri preparation of lamb curry, 'Dhaniwal Murgh' for the non-vegetarians and in vegetarian it was 'Rawangan Chaman' (Paneer), 'Nadru Yakhani' (lotus stems in thin yogurt curry), 'Mutter Haddar' (whole button mushrooms and green peas), 'Dum Aloo' (in a spicy red gravy) and again the classic - 'Rahmah' (needs no introduction).

Accompanying the mains were the traditional Kashmiri breads which included the really soft and fuffy 'Gilafi Kulcha' and the fabulous 'Bakharkhani' rich in flavors of cashew and aniseed. In rice, there is steamed rice and the delicately flavored 'Kashmiri Pulao'.

For dessert it is 'Apple Firni' which is a Kashmiri twist to the classic firni and includes chunks of apple in the flavored rice pudding. A Kashmiri meal cannot end with a nice hot cup of 'Kahwa' - Kashmiri green team flavored with green cardamoms, cinnamon and of course saffron.

Priced at Rs. 1400 + taxes for non-vegetarians and Rs. 1250 + Taxes for vegetarians, the spread is possibly the best that can be experienced.

What more! At a special price of Rs. 500 get unlimited beer and at Rs. 750 its Wine.

Cheers!

Address: Hyatt Bangalore M.G. Road, 1/1 Swami Vivekanda Road, Next to MG Road, Ulsoor, Bangalore - 560008

Phone Number: +91 80 4936 1234