A thoughtfully curated menu where authentic Thai and Chinese flavours meet contemporary culinary techniques welcomed us at Art of Asian Flavours, a special culinary pop-up at Zega, Sheraton, featuring acclaimed chef Santanu Ray. Showcasing the chef’s signature creations crafted with fresh ingredients, house-made sauces and time-honoured recipes, the multi-course menu had both hits and misses.
Explaining the menu, the chef says, “We are primarily focusing on Asian cuisine, particularly Chinese and Thai. The menu is based on what we serve at Vintage Asia at JW Marriott Kolkata, and we wanted to bring that experience to Hyderabad. One of the dishes is Home Style Belgium Pork Belly, which involves a cooking process of around eight hours. Then we have our Hot and Sour Soup. Our Hot and Sour Soup also does not use additional oil. The only oil comes from the Tobanjian sauce itself. We use white pepper powder, but instead of the white vinegar that is commonly used in Hot and Sour Soup, we use malt vinegar. These small changes make a difference to the flavour.”
We started with the soup, and it was exactly what the chef had promised. Among the appetisers, we tasted Corn Curd Wild Pepper, which was a delicious paste of corn kernels fritter cooked in butter. Next came the chef’s special Home Style Belgium Pork Belly — tender, fried and stewed belly slices wok-tossed with fragrant chilli and preserved beans. Our pick, however, was the Burnt Garlic Chicken, with crispy fried boneless chicken leg wok-tossed with lantern chilli. The Thai Spiced Chicken Dim Sum was another winner. The juicy chicken mince, pounded with coriander, scallion, bird’s-eye chilli and homemade chilli oil, had our palate tingling.
The main course brought a beautiful amalgamation of vegetarian and non-vegetarian delicacies. Surprisingly, the vegetarian options fared much better than their non-vegetarian counterparts and that’s something coming from a hardcore non-vegetarian! Mofu Tofu was a decent traditional tofu dish prepared Sichuan-style. What blew our minds, though, was Naam Prik Potato, where diced potato in Thai homemade pepper sauce with kaffir lime delivered just the right punch.
XO Tiger Prawn, Chilli Basil Chicken and Fragrant Chilli Udon Noodles were nice. Another interesting offering from the chef’s kitchen was Olive Fried Rice. Stir-fried jasmine rice with Japanese olive paste, accompanied by a hint of golden garlic and buttered vegetables, made for a flavourful bite.
Dessert took a delightful turn with the introduction of Lemongrass Chocolate Tart, Passionfruit Cheesecake and Coconut and Honey Ice Cream. All three sweet indulgences were not only distinct from each other but seemed to outdo one another, leaving us equally tempted to go back for second helpings.