Hyderabadi Fest At Kandahar

EH&C Staff - Mumbai

Nizamshahi had a brief resurrection at Kandahar, the Indian specialty restaurant as The Oberoi Mumbai. The 10-day Hyderabadi Food Festival held recently showcased the royal cuisine of the Nizams.

Chef Habib Pasha who trained in the royal kitchen of the Nizam of Hyderabad was invited specially for the festival. Teaming up with chef Anish Padgaonkar of Oberoi, the duo created a menu comprising of popular dishes like haleem, pathar ka ghost, tandoori bhuna paneer, a real gastronomical treat.

However the highlight of the festival were the signature dishes of Chef Pasha like shikampur-kebab of lamb with aromatic spices stuffed with yogurt cheese, mint, onion, pepper and griddled; paya zaban ki nahari-lamb trotters and tongue simmered overnight on slow fire with aromatic spices, khus roots and rose petals and azam shahi-sliced bread cooked in milk and sugar topped with rabdi and pineapple.

According to Chef Padgaonkar, an exponent on Indian foods and instrumental in creating the distinct recipes on Kandahar’s menu, Hyderabadi cuisine raises cooking to an art form. The Nizams were famous as passionate connoisseurs of food and according to folklore the royal banquets of Nizam Mir Osman Ali comprised 26 different varieties of biryani.