A glimpse of Food and Entertainment Summit 2012

Retailers Association of India organised a Food and Entertainment Summit 2012 on 22^nd - 23^rd August at Hyatt Regency, Mumbai.

Food and Entertainment Summit 2012 focused on aspects of the retail and food industry. This summit helped in gathering minds together to understand and improve this fast growing industry.

The key objective of this summit was to create a platform and discuss the growing importance of the synergy between Food and Entertainment when it comes to consumer’s propensity to spend within the retail industry. It included a session on important aspects around collaboration and innovation strategies between Food Retailers and FMCG companies, Packaging Companies, Service Providers, Food Service Retailers, multi-outlet Restaurant Chains, the importance of real estate in developing entertainment and food zones.

The retail industry is growing and more people are now stepping out of their homes to spend quality time with their family and friends. A mall not only contains entertainment and services but plays a large part in contributing to the food and beverage industry. An entire floor is dedicated to various options of food. This shows the expanding knowledge of food and preferences of the audience.

Chef Ajay Chopra, Executive Chef, The Westin Mumbai Garden City honored the event with an interactive live cooking session named “Enhance your Tastebuds: Experience Live Kitchen by Celebrity Chefs”. The summit aired on various TV channels like CNBC TV18, CNBC Awaaz and Food Food. Our Chef Ajay Chopra prepared a delicious dish named Teriyaki glazed asparagus with sesame mushrooms and poached egg spiced with Togarashi. He also shared his experience of the food industry and how it has matured over a period of time. 

Please Click here for more pictures of Food and Entertainment Summit 2012.

Global Indian with Chef Ajay Chaudhary

One on one with our very own Chef De Cuisine – Kangan, Ajay Chaudhary on Global Indian.

People across the world are now craving for Indian food. What is your view on this?

A lot of Indians are travelling within India and abroad thereby getting exposed to different cultures and with liberalization of the economy many foreign nationals are visiting India for business and tourism.  As a result, the awareness of Indian food has spread. The most important reasons that an expatriate gets drawn to Indian cuisine are because of the use of various spices within a particular dish that imparts flavor and vast vegetarian repertoire of recipes.

What are the main ingredients in Indian food which make it so tasty?

Spices and local abundance of ingredients. Most regional Indian cuisines rely on locally sourced ingredients. For example, coconuts are used throughout coastal recipes but souring agents vary from limes in Maharashtra to toddy vinegar in Goa to fish tamarind in Kerala etc. Indians are spoilt for choice for freshly grown and locally sustained ingredients.

The variety of spices used in India is unmatched anywhere else in the world and its pairing with other ingredients is not only meant to induce taste but also has medicinal and nutritional values. Different spices are used for different purposes. Each spice has a particular effect on the body. Cardamom has a cooling effect; turmeric has antiseptic and anti-carcinogenic properties and so forth. Almost all spices are aromatic and some even lend color to food in which it is used.

Which is your favorite Indian dish and why?

Dal Makhani. It was upon tasting Dal Makhani that I knew I had to be able to make this dish and hence decided to be a chef.

Do you believe that we need to modify traditional Indian dishes to suit the western palate?

Certainly! Indian cuisine is a riot of flavors on the palate due to use of various spice compositions coming together and creating a harmony of flavors in a particular dish. In comparison, western cuisines might just include one or two dominant flavoring ingredients that stand out.

This makes it slightly difficult for expatriates to adjust to Indian flavors initially. However, if certain spices and use of chillies and sharp flavors are toned as well the use of ghee/butter kept in check, Indian cuisine can have a wide appeal.

As a chef with focus on Indian cuisine, I would feel immensely proud if our cuisine is appreciated and sought after globally. More people eating Indian food the world over just means that its popular, affordable and easily acceptable just like Chinese food which you can get in almost any civilized country.

A tip to make delicious Indian food at home?

Keep flavors simple, use fresh ingredients. Of course having said that, nothing makes food so delicious than company of friends and dear ones and at times, a glass or two of wine or fine Scotch.

Monsoon Special – Corn with a twist

Monsoon is a time when corn is at its best! Whether it is corn on the cob or corn chat, the joy of a juicy hot corn is enjoyed most during the rains. Corn is delicious in taste and it is also rich in carbohydrates. Cooked sweet corn has significant antioxidant properties, which reduce the chances of heart disease and cancer. Folic acid and vitamin B12 present in corn help to prevent anaemia caused by the lack of these vitamins. Also, fiber content of corn helps to reduce blood sugar levels in diabetics.  We at The Westin Mumbai Garden City have given traditional corn a twist with a touch of western cuisine to create an innovative dish for you to try at home. Our Chef De Cuisine, Amit Suri shares delectable new age corn recipes.

Fresh Corn and Avocado Salad

Ingredients:

6 corns

2 cups halved cherry tomatoes

1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion

1 large avocado, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1/3 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

2 tablespoons Champagne vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Method of preparation:

1. In a large pot of boiling water, cook corn until warmed through for 3 to 5 minutes. Rinse with cold water until cool.
2. Meanwhile, combine tomatoes, onion, avocado, and basil in a large bowl. In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients to make the vinaigrette, whisking until blended.
3. Cut corn kernels off cobs and add to salad, then pour in vinaigrette and toss gently to combine.

Double - Baked Prawn Souffle with Corn

Ingredients:

Butter – soft for greasing

100g butter

100g flour

300ml warm milk

200g prawn meat – chopped

200g pureed sweetcorn

4 egg yolks

Salt and pepper

2 lemons zest and juice

5 egg whites

Breadcrumbs

1 grilled or tempura prawn per person for garnish (optional)

Method of preparation:

1. Butter 8 ramekins. Freeze and repeat 2 to 3 times.
2. Over low heat melt the butter in a saucepan and add the prawn meat. Slowly add flour to form a roux.
3. Warm the milk and add to roux to make thick sauce (Bechamel).
4. When cooked through, move to a round-bottomed bowl and add the egg yolks one-at-a-time. Check the seasoning and add zest and a little juice until you are happy with the sharpness of the lemon. Add salt to taste.
5. Whisk egg whites to soft peaks and fold into prawn mixture and pureed sweetcorn.
6. Before you put the mixture into the ramekins, coat with bread crumbs to ensure even rising.
7. When ramekins are full make sure that you tap the ramekin on a counter to get rid of any air bubbles.
8. Cook for 5min at 180ºC until risen – 12-15min.

Leek Roulade with Ricotta Corn Filling

Ingredients:

30g butter

1 medium leek, sliced

1 clove garlic, crushed

60g butter, extra

1/3 cup white plain flour

1 cup milk

4 eggs, separated

2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

For Ricotta Corn Filling

100g ricotta cheese

260g corn kernels, drained

1/3 cup chopped fresh chives

Method of preparation:

1. For Ricotta Corn Filling, beat cheese in small bowl with electric mixer until smooth, stir in corn and chives.
2. Grease 25cm x 30cm Swiss roll pan, line base with paper, grease paper.  Melt butter in medium saucepan, add leek and garlic, stir over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until leek is soft.
3. Melt extra butter in medium saucepan, stir in flour, stir over medium heat for 1 minute. Remove from heat, gradually stir in milk, stir over high heat until mixture boils and thickens. Stir in egg yolks and leek mixture, transfer mixture to large bowl.
4. Beat egg whites in medium bowl with electric mixer until soft peaks form, fold lightly into leek mixture.  Spread mixture into prepared pan.  Bake in hot oven about 12 minutes or until puffed and golden brown.  Sprinkle clean tea-towel evenly with parmesan cheese. Turn roulade onto tea-towel, carefully remove lining paper and spread roulade evenly with filling.  Holding tea-towel with both hands, gently lift and roll roulade from a wide side. Serve warm.

A recipe for a perfect day!

What can we do to make our Mother’s special day more special ?

We had the perfect solution at our Mother’s Day Brunch on Level 18, which offered a wide delectable buffet spread with surprises galore to pamper all those beautiful mothers out there.  Our team at Seasonal Tastes were well equipped to provide all the assistance required for kids to prepare surprise treats for their mothers.

There is nothing better than to express our gratitude to our dear mothers for all the delicious meals prepared for us from the time we started eating, for all the tender loving care with which these meals were prepared, it is time now for mother to sit back and enjoy our cooking. The junior chefs set out to create some mouth watering pasta along with the assistance of a couple of our culinary team members. 

As the afternoon progressed and our kids had accomplished the task of preparing the sumptuous pasta, which was personally served to their mothers, they each dedicated a written message on the Wall of Fame to their respective mothers telling them how much they loved and cherished them, there were kids from the age group of 4 years to 30 years.      

There were many more surprises which included a rejuvenating head and shoulder massage for each mother by our Heavenly Spa by Westin team, while our kids were enjoying a magic show.  Our junior artists also designed a beautiful card, in our ‘make your own’ card corner, for their mothers.

In conclusion to this sweet day, after a sumptuous brunch, each kid took home their own apron, while mummy was happy and proud with the personalized greeting card and carried with her cheerful memories of a wonderful time spent on Mother’s Day at The Westin Mumbai Garden City.

                                

                                

     

The Modernist Indian Cuisine - By Harilein Sabarwal

Take a peek at Harilein Sabarwal's views on the modernist indian cuisine at Kangan

Kangan