I don’t know what is it about Indian food that always draws me to it than its global counterparts. Maybe, the familiarity? The vibrancy? The flavours? Maybe all of it. I find it hard to stay away when the aromas of a freshly done tadka on a dal, or that of hot chapatis on the tawa keep calling out to me. I’ve attended myriad global food festivals and yet after the tastings I am always glad to see the Indian food counter offering something as basic as curd rice or dal-chawal.
Funny how familiarity works even in terms of food, no?
I was recently invited to The Westin Mumbai Garden City for a tasting session which was too hard to say no to, at their signature Indian restaurant – Kangan. It was tasting session over lunch and conversation with the new Chef De Cuisine – Chef Mohamed Danish, as he presented some of his alluring and most appetising signature dishes.
As I spoke to Chef Danish through my lunch courses, we came to the agreement that Indian food is mostly too heavy on the palate and usually leaves people with a slightly uncomfortable feeling of heaviness, post the meal; and this is where Chef Danish has improvised where the core of the cuisine itself – the masalas are now grounded in house, which helps in reducing the heaviness of the food. Chef has also changed 95% of the menu and trimmed it down to only signature dishes. A great step I’d say!
Hailing from Lucknow, Chef Danish’s culinary roots are deeply entrenched in Awadhi cuisine. This brings an enhanced aura to Kangan along with his culinary experience and leadership skills. Along with Kangan’s signature classics such as Dal Kangan, Kakori Kebab and Nalli Nihari, Chef has magnified the menu with his signature dishes like Kormey ki chaap, Tulsi wali pomfret, Murgh rezala kofta, Martaban ka lahori gosht, Papad sev ka paratha amongst many others.
Here’s a glimpse at our meal:
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