Festival brings to town flavours of royal Indian estates

New Delhi : Food connoisseurs are in for a royal treat, thanks to the 'Dining with the Maharajas' festival by the Leela Ambience Convention Hotel here.

The festival promises to take food lovers on a journey across the subcontinent, as they relish some of the sumptuous dishes from the royal estates of India.The first junction in the festival was Mahmoodabad, one of the largest feudal estates in the erstwhile kingdom of Awadh.

Chef de Cuisine Ashwani Kumar Singh from the hotel, travelled all the way to holy city of Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh, to acquaint himself with the quintessential flavours, and recreated not just the royal cuisine of the estate, but also the popular street food.

The elaborate Dastarkhwan -- the meticulously laid-out ceremonial dining spread -- comprised of flavoursome Mahmoodabad specialities such as Murgh Mussallam, Gosht Makhana Kurma, Matter Latpata, Paneer Hazrat Mahal, Laab- i- Mashooq and much more.

"Laden with the finest and the most varied repertoire of the khansamas (chefs), the Dastarkhwan of the raeis (the rich) were called Khasa (special)."Richness of the cuisine of Awadh (now Lucknow) is the result of the continuous experimentation of Nawabs in their royal kitchens," Chef Ashwani said.

From the diverse kebab platter, both vegetarian -- Subz kakori, Kathal ki shammi, Mewe ka samosa, and non-vegetarian -- Gole kebab, Kebab miyanpuri, Shammi kebab, to the 'live counter' serving treats from the streets -- Aloo tikki/Dahi bara, Khasta, Kharche-ka-anda, Khade masala ka keema, the dishes were hard to miss.

Explaining what 'Kharche-ka-anda' was, the chef explained, "It's a deep fried egg. Crispy on the outside and is very fluffy on the inside with a soft yolk."The main course was a delight to meat lovers, who could choose from an array of meats -- mutton, fish, chicken, lamb and prawns -- in a variety of preparations like qorma, kalia or salan.

Vegetarians were not disappointed either, with unique dishes like Lazeez lauki, Dhingri Shabnam Rakhaochey, Dabi arvi ka salan, and Dum aloo Lucknowi.The complementing rice and bread options were plenty.They could choose from Noor-Mahli Pulao, Zardha, Kathal Pulao, to Gilafi Kulcha, Sheermal Bhaqarkhani, Ananas ke paranthe, Nawabi Paratha, Khamiri naan and Khamiri roti.

The meal was brought to a close with an assortment of sweet dishes typically popular in the region -- Seviyan Ka Muzzafar, Dhood ki burfi, Hari man bhari, Shahi tukra, Imerti rabri lacha, Kali jam, Chane ka halwa and Shahi tukra.The following stops in the food festival include the royal estates of Hyderabad, and Mewar among others.