Burma Burma, the pan-India restaurant chain, which is steeped in culture, tradition and flavours from the land of the Irrawaddy, has introduced a new small plates menu. This menu is an experimental take on giving a contemporary twist to Burmese flavours.
The idea originated from Head Chef Ansab Khan’s holiday in Australia. While travelling through Australia, according to chef Ansab, he met with ‘incredible chefs who are driven by passion’ and witnessed ‘their diverse approach towards cooking’. “What struck me the most of was this simple appreciation of ingredients and the ingredient focused approach they all had in common. Since I have been back, I wanted to combine this approach to my learnings of Burmese cuisine and bring out a menu that celebrated Burmese food,” said chef in a social media post.
To start with, the chef has introduced new ingredients, such as jackfruit, banana flower, nokeh (homemade Burmese cheese), stone flower, hemp seeds, etc. to the small plates menu.
Recently, we got a chance to sample the menu at Burma Burma Kolkata.
To a Bengali, long used to the ‘mochar chop’, the panko crusted banana flower and sweet potato croquette with sour kokum cream was an interesting presentation. It is an experimental take on the banana flower fritters made in Burmese homes. Did you know that Bengalis have been using jackfruit as mock meat for ages? In this vegetarian only restaurant too jackfruit came handy. Steamed roundels of pulled jackfruit flavoured with five spice and light soy was served with pickled chilli sauce, lemongrass oil and aged radish. It was the Malar Sauce which heightened the taste of the sunflower seed crusted broccoli with smoked Nokkeh cheese combine.
Rice is a staple food in Myanmar (formerly Burma). So there were steamed rice paper parcels – steamed broccoli wrapped in rice paper parcels with a liberal dash of hemp seeds and quinoa furikake seasoning – with warm, charred vegetable dashi (soup) on the side. Another widely grown and used ingredient from Myanmar, the taro made an innovative entry into the menu – crisp taro shells (more like a taco) were filled with sweet chilli, black bean, coconut cream, and smashed avocado.
The Pyajo Curry was a truly Burma meets India dish – where masala chana and potato was topped with yoghurt, lentil fritters, crisp and samosa shards, and sprinkled with the restaurant’s specially prepared Burmese spice mix.
What and where: Small plates menu from Burma Burma, 18 M, Ground Floor, Stephen Court, Park Street, Kolkata 700071; tel: 7506061460/9920240097. Time: 12:30 – 4:00 pm and 6:30 – 10:30 pm (Monday – Friday); it opens half an hour early for lunch on Saturdays and Sundays. Cost for two: Rs. 1,500 plus tax. They have vegan and gluten free options for most dishes.
