In what seemed to be the best way to break off cloudy afternoon blues, Indulge went over to explore the limited edition Dragon Boat Festival Delights menu at Yauatcha at Quest Mall. Saptarshi Ghosh, manager at Yauatcha mentions, “This is the third edition of the Dragon Boat Festival at Yauatcha. The menu is inspired by the celebrations in China and has always featured experiments with sticky rice.” For those expecting momo-like dumplings, this menu offers sticky rice dumplings with various fillings which are wrapped inside lotus leaves and steamed.
We began with the Black Truffle and Porcini Mushroom Zongzi Dumpling This was an apt meal for vegetarians filled with assorted mushrooms which along with the truffle oil lent a non-spicy but savoury flavour to the sticky rice. Ideally, when consumed with accompaniments like pickled carrots and cucumbers or chilli oil, the taste is enhanced.
The Chicken and Prawn Zongzi Dumpling was next. Although the prawn, chicken pieces, and shiitake mushrooms were chunky to bite into, the sticky rice, on the whole, was rather flavourless.
The pairing of water chestnuts and prawns in the Prawn Zongzi Dumpling was unique. Made with the in-house imperial sauce, the crunchy water chestnuts and chewy prawn made a delightful combination. The sauce also lent a distinct sweet and savoury flavour to the sticky rice making the dish quite enjoyable, on the whole.
Perhaps the star of the menu was the Braised Pork Belly Zongzi Dumpling with its large chunks of braised pork filling and perfectly steamed sticky rice. The filling was made with pork belly reduction in whole spices which lent the rice its unique flavour and brownish colouring.
We wrapped up the menu with soft Cantonese Steamed Custard Buns. If you have a sweet tooth, then this is a must-try. A rather generous filling of custard inside a soft steamed bun, it tasted equally delicious whether hot or cold.
The Dragon Boat Festival Menu experiments with different textures, flavours in the fillings of the sticky rice dumplings, and shapes like a cone or a square. The menu also offers several cocktails which can be paired with them.
On till July 12
Price for two (approx): Rs 1200 +
Pics: Pritam Sarkar