If it’s not ‘chatpata’, it doesn’t feel quite right; that’s the usual feedback we get,” says chef Akanksha Deshpande during a meal at Sheraton, Saket. So, if chatpata is the default position of the Indian palate, the new menu at the 120-seater Yi Jing restaurant serving Chinese cuisine across the Cantonese-Sichuan spectrum at the hotel should do well. At Yi Jing, the motto is contemporary and classic; by classic what is meant, the chef clarifies, is the use of elements of homestyle cooking, ultimately relying on presentation for the contemporary twist.
Chef Peng who is from Xi’an, the last stop in the Silk Road’s eastern end, and which was home to many of the Chinese dynasties, is supervising the curation. “Chinese cuisine is actually quite rustic unless there are imperial dishes from Beijing, which was the capital of the dynasties. We have, therefore, kept it simple, but with a strong emphasis on presentation, plus keeping the sauces authentic and a flavour profile that will cater to Indian tastes,” says Deshpande.
This menu is now being standardised across all ITC hotels, she adds.
What have been crowd favourites since the restaurant unveiled the new menu last month? The Cantonese style Lotus Stem in Sweet Chilli Sauce, the water chestnut starters and the Cha Sui Dimsum and the Seafood Tobico Dumplings from the new menu are doing well. For desserts, people are trying the Yuzu Mascarpone Cheesecake. “Dairy is not a prominent feature of Chinese cuisine but in India, people in general love cheesecakes, so having it on the menu is always a plus,” says the chef. Its plating with hibiscus-scented pears and mango compote have been added, keeping the restaurant’s classic-contemporary motto in mind. Our notes from sampling a tasting menu focusing on the contemporary and the classic:
Radish, Edamame Dumplings
Shaped like an endamame or a pea pod, the dumpling mix is of the endamame flavoured with truffle oil. The three little balls placed beside the crystal wrapper are a delight and a tempting sight. Even non-vegetarians will love this.
Seafood Tobico Dumplings
This is a classic. The dumpling filling is a mixture of Chilean sea bass and prawn and the tobico is essentially the flying fish roe used for garnish—the orange fish roe on one side complements the green roe on the other.
BBQ Pork Ribs
This American-Chinese dish is a ‘classic’ with a contemporary plating. The meat is well done, though they could step down on the sweetness in the sweet-and-sour sauce. Celery is used in the presentation to give the dish a contemporary twist.
Stir-Fried Water Chestnuts
Though water chestnut harks back to Chinese cuisine, it is not a common dish. Here, much like the sweet-and-sour pork, the water chestnuts have been fried crisp in a golden batter with a distinct airiness present from its first bite. It caters to the ‘chatpata’ demand of the Indian palate for sure.
Beijing Duck
Made in a 40-hour-long process, the duck comes plated with Hoisin sauce. The duck felt dry at first but a dip of the duck pancake in the chilli sauce stirred things up a bit.
Pan Fried Prawns with pickled vegetables
This is another dish done keeping in mind Indian flavour profiles. Made in chilli bean sauce with a good hit of garlic and Sichuan pepper, this is a good dish and the feedback is that most guests have found it “compelling”.
Twice Cooked Pork Stir
Served with fried Jasmine rice with burnt garlic, this is my favourite. The pork belly braised with an inhouse garlic oil is moist, fiery and flavourful.
How is the new menu keeping the food weather-appropriate? Sunday brunch buffets have been introduced with a cold food counter for example. “The concept of salads in Chinese food is also not very prevalent because they do not prefer consuming a lot of foods, vegetables mainly, raw. So, sometimes they cook their food and then consume it cold as well,” says Deshpande.
“Our Liang Cai counter is our summer food counter if you will, where some of the dishes such as Steamed Eggplants with Lao Gan Ma Chili Sauce and Tangcu Prawns are basically hot and steamed food that have been cooled down. The cold preparations are the Sichuan Style
Cucumber and Liang Ban Tofu.”
Meal for two (without drinks): Rs 3,400 approx.