Diner sheds spotlight on traditional Anglo-Indian recipes
The Ministry of Chutneys, a restaurant exclusively dedicated to serving Anglo-Indian cuisine, has come up with a unique initiative to promote the cuisine. Lester Michael Barnett talks to DT Next about the history, relevance and importance of the cuisine
CHENNAI: Paying homage to the Anglo Indian cuisine, the Ministry of Chutney at the Radisson Blu Hotel GRT Chennai is organising a food festival, collaborating with people from that community. In an attempt to keep the cuisine alive, the restaurant is inviting Anglo-Indians to share their traditional recipes each week.
A fourth-generation Anglo Indian living in Ayanavaram, Lester Michael Barnett has lent a few age-old family recipes that are passed on to the family from his great-grandmother. “The intention behind this collaboration is to save the culture’s menu. Over the years, the size of the community has shrunk, and the traditional recipes are on the verge of extinction. Through such initiatives, we can do our part to revive the cuisine,” says the 51-year-old hotelier and entrepreneur.
Sharing the nuances of the cuisine, Lester says that dishes are dominated by whole spice, and pepper and heavy on meat, especially beef. “There are a lot of curries, which is a blend of Indian and European styles of cooking. We have now tried to recreate many dishes using chicken and lamb,” he adds. “We are on the right track and can grow Anglo-Indian food like any other popular cuisine. As the preparation takes more time, we should find an alternative for the same to make it available all the time on the menu,” he remarks.
Coming to the dishes curated by Lester, we started with the creamy and flavourful lamb trotter soup. The tenderly cooked chicken devil fry is a must-try for spice lovers. The prawn temprado was mildly spiced and delicious. In the main course, the nana fowl curry, which is basically a chicken curry and the mutton meatball curry aces the list. Both these curries, served alongside the coconut palau are wholesome. Chicken as well as the mutton is well-cooked and juicy. Both these dishes are accompanied by the super spicy devil chutney. In the veg option, the brinjal tomato curry was delectable.
The meat in the stuffed snake gourd with minced lamb was a bit tough. However, the masala was tasty. For sweet tooths, the coconut pudding was subtle and the carpet pudding was luscious.
The ongoing food festival is happening till January 31 at the Ministry of Chutney, Radisson Blu Hotel GRT Chennai, Pazhavanthangal.
