Any Bengali festival is intricately and unapologetically linked with gastronomic pleasures and Poila Baisakh is no exception either. But if cooking elaborate traditional meals at home is not your kind of thing to usher in the Bengali New Year, head out for a gourmet trail at any of the Bengali fine diners around the city offering painstakingly cooked dishes that have otherwise become obsolete in the busy, urban kitchens. And when it comes to having something that's tasty, light and makes you proud of your culinary heritage, Peerless Inn's Aaheli has most definitely outdone the rest this year with an array of carefully curated Bengali entrees that offers a fine balance between traditional and post-modern cooking.
To check out the same, we called on executive Chef Debdip Ghatak at their newest standalone outlet on Sarat Bose Road. The resplendent 40-seater diner has been aesthetically done up with traditional Bengali props including beautiful kantha stitched paintings, low hanging bell metal ceiling lamps, hand-stitched table clothes and cane mat wall covers.
"This year, we have tried to retain a few very traditional dishes besides introducing some innovative ones. Since the summer season has already kicked in, we worked around hyper-local seasonal produce including pointed gourds, raw mango and Gondhoraj lime (often mistaken with Kaffir lime)," says Chef Ghatak, and we must admit, the result was lip-smacking.
Laid out in bell metal utensils the wholesome fare arrived at our table and we began with the nicely plated deep-fried croquets made of spicy mashed jackfruit filler between oven-cooked bread. We also tasted the crispy Gondhoraj Murgi Bhaja -- hand-rolled chicken sausages soaked infused with Gondhoraj zest and deep fried with bread crumbs. We recommend this starter for its texture and balance of taste and it went extremely well with the accompanying Aam Porar Sherbet (a coolant made with roasted raw mango pulp).
The grand feast that followed took us on a guilty binge trip. We started off with Jhinge Dinglar Paturi, a delicious mash of pumpkin and ridged gourd smoked inside banana leaves with mustard, poppy seeds and coconut paste, which we found tastier than the usual Bekti preparation.
Debdip, has also done magic with the plain Chanar Dalna by stuffing the soft cottage cheese balls with minced dates, Aam Shatwo, green chillies and ginger that resulted in a burst of multiple flavours.
The chicken entree too was a different version with Aam Ada (mango ginger) being the main spice that Chef Ghatak experimented it with. "With the Mutton Kosha, I have kept the item traditional and just added some burnt raw mango pieces for a refreshing tang to the meat," says the chef and the result was delectable. We had the dish with fluffy Bengali luchis before tasting the much-anticipated Tel Ilish. Cooked with onion, ginger and garlic, the smoky pieces of hilsa must be savoured with steamed rice. We also tried the jumbo prawns cooked in coconut and poppy seed paste and a sumptuous bekti entremet cooked with curd.
Aaheli also has an interesting list of kitchen-made desserts and the special conch-shell-shaped Roso Madhuri is a flavourful take on the typical Ras Malai. Try out their toothsome Malai Sandesh made with full-cream milk redux, saffron, pistachio and cardamom for a fitting end to a royal fare. And if you are too lazy, call for the delivery of the complete thali at home.
Meal for two: Rs 1,800+