I woke up in the morning knowing that I had said something very profound about food last evening. People had clapped. Someone said that this was why she apparently read my blog everyday. Someone else disagreed and said that I didn’t write like this ‘everyday’. I remembered it all through the percussion beats on my head. But not what I said. It was blog worthy. And I had no frigging idea. What I did clearly remember however was the taste of the soft and juicy, seductive Coorgi pork. A pleasure to bite into. This was meat tamed to perfection. Followed by an exuberant heat rush of green chillies.
Then there was the sharp and stinging Goan sausage. Balanced by perfectly cooked potatoes and the intoxicating sweetness of sautéed onions. “My husband’s recipe” she said like a demure Bengali bride. Having tried to cook Goan sausages once, rather unsuccessfully, I know that it is not everyone who can bring the right balance and consistency to this blend of passionate and stormy meat, cold and frigid raw potatoes and tear inducing onions. You need to be a sorceress to get it right. Kainaz is. As was our hostess.
“I hope its not an early dinner”, I asked her. And then I mopped up the meaty ambrosia straight from the pan with bits of soft, bouncy pao while the others nursed their drinks. A sign that the food could be purloined despite my earlier diktat to the contrary. “Wait let me get plates” she said while we chunked our pieces of bread straight into the pans. Except Milo, who jumped and snatched the pao and sausage out of my hands.
Someone asked me whether I went to an exotic destination or a five star for our anniversary dinner last night Well, I was at a dinner at Agent Green Glass, and her husband, the lead singer of Beginner’s Luck’s house. The most tastefully designed house I have been to which would give many a five star a run for their money. Designed by AGG herself, lovingly put together by the couple. The food definitely set your taste buds on fire the way no five star could do. Exotic? Well AGG’s blog, a rivetting read, is politically incorrect, has references to body parts and body functions and profanities which leave the Bengali bhodrolok in me blushing. It is cutting in its humour and yet can often strike a chord deep inside.
She hosted the dinner after Mr Beginner’s Luck whipped up a Tuscan eggplant pasta and pan seared chicken for us followed by an Oriental melange by me a few weekends later. The dinner was preceded by characteristic self deprecating humour from AGG where the invites included references to home delivery menus and antacid pills. Sample this paraphrased text: “Hola you great gamblers. An evening of pork and pao awaits you …. Come prepared to feast or fast. I will also bring some home delivery menu sin case of a crisis”. She screamed and shrieked about how she was psyched about cooking for her hubby and me. Making two very docile Bengali men seem like food Nazis.
Then came the food. And yes, the jury approved. The ‘pressure test’ was a cake walk. For the chef. And her subjects.
The photos that follow were taken by Jyotika Purwar or Curry Spice who blogs at Follow My Recipe. Noone makes my food look as good as she does. I have decided to make her my official photo stylist. Feels incomplete to cook without her around to photograph what I make. When I heard that she would be there yesterday then I didn’t even bother to bring my camera. Here’s a glimpse of the many great photos that she took. You will have to wait for her blog post to see all of them.
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| AGG’s stormy Goan sausages, mopped with soft pao, paired with Teachers |
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| Coorgi pork, meat tamed to perfection |
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| AGG de-selling her food before the judging begun |
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| An exuberant AGG after she passes the pressure test with the Baking Goddess Gia and The Knife as judges |
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| Baking Goddess Gia’s cake comes to the party. She skipped the Master Class as the students would rather dive into the cake |
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| Banu’s chicken shammi kebabs. I’d got extra mince for the dinner. Yet the silly girl made only enough for me |
