In Aragma, Small Joys of Life come in Cute Little Package
By Vijaya Pratap
Aragma, a restaurant that has been offering tasting menus and cook-along workshops in Pune has had a three day “Pop Up” in FEU – Hyderabad with a well-curated 9 course meal.
A pista green mocktail has grapes, basil and amla- an inconceivable combo that turns out to be a pleasant surprise! One after the other, the nine promised gems appears and each amazes equally. The highly innovative and elegantly presented dishes appeal to the senses and the bonus is, every ingredient is locally sourced, fresh and healthy- winning all the brownie points from the food connoisseurs.
“Every dish is a unique creation, based on inspirations from memories, travel, people and the seasons. ” says Poornima Somayaji, ex-software engineer and founder of Aragma. Aragma in Greek means “to mentally relax” or “to enjoy the small joys of life”, the philosophy on which the restaurant is based.
She continues, “The Mahua flowers foraged from a tribal village in central India are used to make a special dessert featuring Mahua mousse, passion fruit and Banana. While tasting the dessert based on Mahua flowers, guests get to mentally walk with the team in the forests of central India, picking fallen Mahua flowers that have been known to leave monkeys and sloth bears intoxicated.”
While on this epicurean journey, just before we get to taste these novel dishes, we hear the stories of where the ingredients come from and the thought behind each of them.
Plum from Kashmir, celeriac from central India and the tart is made from red rice and palm jaggery from Goa- served on a bed of dried seed coats of Tovar dal – this unique creation melts in the mouth. Those of us who had never eaten whole spinach leaves should try their “Kokum- Greens”: kale, spinach, dil, lettuce, and grapes served with a Kokum & Cashew dressing-the freshness of summer tender in the mouth. Green mango, green tomato coupled with cured fish (red snapper) creates pure magic.
Vijaya Pratap is a travel.writer and documentary film maker
Abeer Managave, Aragma’s Manager says if wheat is the king, corn is the queen, catering to human and animal consumption, covering a whole spectrum. Corn teamed with fish, served with strawberry sauce for garnish: looks colourful on the plate and tastes delicious on the palate.
It is literally Maharashtra on a plate- a pearl millet sheet that hides tiny chunks of chicken garnished with the crisp, dehydrated pearl millet sprinkled on the top. This is dunked in garlic chive green sauce with buttermilk base, spiced with Marathi masala- green, tender whole Tovar beans are strewn on the top.
In an intermingling of Fresh Turmeric and Australian Lamb, it is our desi pride, katchi haldi that is pitted against lamb brought all the way from Australia- a true global fusion! This is complemented with bread made using local culture and black garlic butter. How does one get that dark coloured butter? Poornima reveals the secret, “ By slow cooking the garlic for long hours, it turns brownish black, attains sweetness and becomes candy like.” A bright haldi yellow sauce is liberally poured against the brown lamb, creating a colourful canvas.
The three desserts are carrot citrus coupled with ice to cleanse the mouth followed by Mahua- Passion fruit, a Vidarbha delight. The culinary show concludes with “Woodapple- Frangipani”, a visual delight where the fragrance lingers on just as the memory of the pleasant epicurean experience.
Amit Ghorpade, the chef of Aragma with a ten-year experience around the globe, the creator behind the pioneering menu, appears in the end, mingles with the guests and takes the bow.
