Fiesta Time

Ashvina Vakil

Anyone assigned a cooking task for a PGC meet faces the meal with some trepidation, lest the Grand Master (aka Sangria Shankar, a little birdie tells us) disapproves of one’s culinary efforts. Of course, by the end of the meal, one has usually had enough wine to have forgotten all one’s initial fears and all is well till the inevitable post mortem! This time however, Shankar had a benign smile on his face throughout the Spanish feast, and the post mortem that followed was almost equally kind.

So, let’s raise a glass to that before we relive that wonderful meal. Salud!

Having said that, PGC members didn’t really have much to do this time, except for soup, salad, and some tapas. Shekhar & Ketaki Pimpalkhare’s ‘Bohemian’ restaurant, and his team led by Chef Dinesh, took on the major tasks, leaving PGC members to enjoy their meal in a pleasant wine-induced haze. Ravi Gurnani of York Winery and his team are to be thanked for that happy circumstance; they ensured that the wine kept flowing.

The Chenin and Sauvignon Blanc were already being quaffed by the time the tapas were brought to the table, and the attractive array momentarily stopped conversation. Team Bohemian’s Patatas Bravas (oven baked potatoes in a spicy tomato sauce) and Chorizo (sausage) Braised in Red Wine set a lively tempo that was offset by the Salt Baked Fish (Muriel Pinto, Rohan Thacker) and mildly flavoured Chickpeas and Spinach (Rohan Mankani, Mrunmayee Kulkarni, Sangita Jagtap, Parag Sane, and Sushama Kulkarni).

Salmorejo, a cold tomato and bread based soup from Cordoba followed (Ashvina Vakil, Rohit Arora, Pradnya Pradhan, and Ilena Ashish). Thanks to Rohit’s enterprise we were treated to a choice of garnishes, ranging from Serrano ham, to tuna, and hard boiled eggs, and they definitely added bite to the soup. The lazier ones among us had only bothered to slip in some capsicum and onion with our soup contribution!

The Orange and Red Onion Salad (Namrata Agarwal, Dipti Desai, Vikas Kumar, and Vinita Mohoni) with its scattering of nuts, sunflower seeds and raisins was a great way to freshen the palate before we got to the serious business of the Valencia Style Seafood Paella. Replete with mussels, jumbo prawns and calamari rings, and boasting a suitably burnt bottom, the paella filled up every crevice in already full stomachs, which was unfortunate because there was still more on the menu to get through! With a little help from the Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz Reserves, we managed to appreciate the fragrant Caldereta de Cordero (Moorish influenced lamb stew), albeit in mini doses.

Special mention must be made of the assorted country style breads and flavoured butters created by Team Bohemian, which had everyone nibbling away between sips and courses. The sangria was eminently forgettable – obviously our Grand Master had neglected to lend his magic touch, distracted as he was by all the wonderful food!

As always, the crowning glory of any PGC meal is dessert and Shankar’s French Vanilla Ice Cream, made from vanilla beans sourced all the way from Kochi, was the perfect companion to Bohemian’s Zurracapote, dried apricots and prunes simmered in sweetened, spiced red wine. Some of us managed to sneak in second helpings, obviously reluctant to end a delightful meal that had already stretched to over three hours!

As they say in Spain, Olé! to a great experience! And many thanks to all who made it happen.

To view all pictures of the meet, click here

Sunday Cookout - March 2011

Sunday Cookout

After a long hiatus of 5 months, a PGC meet - the first in 2011- was organised on Sunday, March 6, 2011 on the tree shaded lawns of Anu and Kaspar Tideman’s bungalow.

This time I decided on an afternoon cookout since the weather was still pleasant in the shade. The theme was simple - BBQ and wine. Members and guests were told to bring whatever they wanted to barbecue plus one extra portion. Three barbecues were set up, the wines were chilled in tubs and everything was ready to go by 1:30pm. The tables sagged under the weight of a variety of breads, salads, all kinds of meat – chicken, fish and mutton – and vegetables.

It was great to see members steered clear of Indian marinations. There was no paneer or chicken tikka masala. Instead, we had delicacies like chicken breasts stuffed with goat’s cheese and olives (Shanth Mannige), yellow bell pepers stuffed with mushrooms (Parag Sane), hand made burgers on brioche using Gordon Ramsey’s recipe (Rohan Thacker), chicken breasts stuffed with cheese (Sandeep Chowdhuri & Rohan), mesquite lime chicken fillets (Shankar), Cajun potato wedges (Candy Dugal), fillet of fish (Ponappas) and sausages (Arjun Chowdhry). Ilena and Sangita both did mutton chops -0ne with Cajun spices other with Jamaican jerk seasoning. Rohit Arora was innovative with an apple sauce chicken. Sundar grilled humungous chicken breasts with fresh rosemary. The skin caught fire and some even reached out for a fire extinguisher!! As always members were generous to a fault with the portions. Everyone had brought tons of food and there was plenty to go around.

The wines - a mix of reds, rosés and whites - ranged from Chateau d’Ori’s newest Chardonnay to Grover’s Viognier and La Reserve.

This meet was attended by many new members and their enthusiasm was evident. They lent a hand in everything from shopping for wines to organising the barbecue and wrapping up after the event.

2011 augurs well for PGC. The next meet is planned for April.

Bohemian Lunch

From the first time I met Ketaki and Shekhar Pimpalkhare, owners of Bohemian, the chemistry just clicked. Their enthusiasm for good food and great service is reflected in all three essential of a successful restaurant.

The setting - white textured walls contrasting the dark wooden rafters, works of art hanging on C channels, designer crockery on the tables, well spaced finely crafted rosewood coloured furniture, a nicely set bar and glass windows overlooking the pool. An unforgettable ambience. In another time the guest of honour at PGC's lunch meet at Bohemian on Sunday June 27, 2010 would have been Anais Nin. It would have been wonderful to make her acquaintance in a setting so perfectly suited to the indulgence of the senses.The service staff was headed by Puspendu Kayal- friendly and smiling, eager to please and assist. The kitchen - under the command of Chef Ketan rose to every challenge I posed them - from getting the Umm Ali right to the Zather grilled bread. The cleanliness of the kitchen and service was second to none - allowances being made for serving a sit down meal for 50!

The menu - Cuisine from the Mediterranean Coast - was a cooperative cooking venture with Bohemian's chef. PGC members made some of the items at home and brought 'em over and Chef Ketan prepared some dishes from his own recipes and others given by PGC. This system pioneered by PGC has yielded excellent results. Chefs get the opportunity to experiment and innovate and members revel in the joy of cooking.

Anoop and Raji Kumar, entrusted with the task of making Dolmades - a Greek delicacy - drove to a winery, collected fresh grape leaves (and tasted some wines in the process!), came back home, washed, blanched, cooked and stuffed 120 pcs of grape leaves with an extraordinary rice pilaf. Such is the dedication of PGC members to the cause of creating great food! Aditee Rele opted for mindnumbingly expensive Parma ham in creating the Italian Saltimbocca whereas I chose the less expensive option of using Sri Lankan ham. Result - Aditee's scored way above in taste and texture. Chef Ketan and his pastry chef Ramashray Singh did not bat an eyelid when I threw a few words like Zather, Lehmi, Umm Ali at them. They had never heard of these dishes but just said - send us the recipe and we'll make it. And make it they did, much to everyone's delight. Shekhar did not stint on the ingredients - pine nuts were not substituted with peanuts, Zather was bought at Rs. 1,000 a kg and Umm Ali was made with filo pastry repeatedly till it was perfect. I think PGC has met its partner in creating a gastronomic experience.

What is gourmet food without a wine to match? Good Earth Winery who sponsored the wines were out in full strength - from Nandita Khaire, their branding expert to master winemaker Dr. Rajesh Rasal, marketing honcho Navin Shankaranarayan and the willowy Sonal - doing their best to ensure everyone's glass was full. Navin offered Aarohi, their excellent Sauvignon Blanc with the starter course which consisted of two salads - Lebanese Tabbouleh made by Nilesh Kale and Catalonian Chickepeas Salad Picada created by Rohan Thacker - and an appetizer platter consisting of Moroccon Berber grilled chicken on skewers by Bohemian, Syrian Kibbeh by Naazneen Kothavala and Greek Dolmades with Tzatziki by Anoop and Raji Kumar. Bohemian presented appetizers from the coastal areas of Israel, Lebanon and Syria - spinach Fatayer, grilled flatbread with choice of two toppings - one with olive oil and zather and the other with minced lamb and pinenuts. For the vegetarians, chef Ketan served up an Italian Polenta sandwich and Bruschetta Caponata.

As the plates were cleared and the chefs began toiling over the main course, Navin introduced their new red wine - Antaraa - a Cabernet Shiraz. Bottle aged for just one month, the wine opened up nicely upon airing. It got smoother and more bouquetious (just dreamed up this word) by the passing minute. It paired beautifully with the piece de resistance of the day - Chef Ketan's Moroccon lamb tagine served on a bed of couscous accompanied by the Italian chicken saltimbocca and a sinful European style olive and chicken salami loaf by Sheela Narayan. The vegetarians had a vegetarian tagine and an excellent pan sauteed Zucchini stuffed with spinach and walnut and topped wth pomodoro sauce. The wine had everything going for it. Aroma, body, lightly tannic yet smooth on the palate with a nice finish. Wonderful with the main course. A wine to watch when it hits the stores in a month or two.

Dessert was an absolute delight. Umm Ali, an Egyptian speciality made of milk, cream, nuts and dried fruit with filo pastry is one dish that blends the moistness of a pudding with crisply baked filo sheets so adroitly that each spoonful will have crunchy flaky filo amidst milky and nutty mass of pudding. A perfect balance of flavours. It's a dessert not very easy to get right. Full marks to master baker Chef Ramashray Singh for such an excellent effort.

Bohemian owners Ketaki and Shekhar with their guests were at hand to enjoy the food and wine and mingle with PGC members.

Thanks to Umeed Kothavala for recording the event for posterity.

A big THANK YOU to Good Earth Winery for sponsoring the wines, Ketaki and Shekhar and the entire team at Bohemian headed by Chef Ketan, Chef Ramashray Singh and Puspendu Kayal for a wonderful time. Hope to dine more often at Bohemian.