Unusual spices in curry: Asafoetida

Germans call Asafoetida Teufelsdreck, which means devil’s dung, because of its extremely pungent, sulphurous smell. Its aroma and flavour can be a bit daunting to the uninitiated, but when the spice is added to hot ghee, sizzling in the pan, the oniony musky aroma is evocative of aromatic Indian cooking and Indian restaurants everywhere. In fact, just a small pinch of asafoetida will enhance the taste of any fish or vegetable dish and it’s used extensively in curries, pickles, and daals.

There are two main varieties of Asafoetida: Hing Kabuli Sufaid (milky white asafoetida) and Hing Lal (red asafoetida). The spice is a resinous gum which is obtained from the stem and roots of certain species of giant fennel tree which, in India, are grown in Kashmir and some parts of the Punjab. A greyish milky resin is collected, then dried in the sun. As the resin dries, it hardens and becomes amber in colour, darkening to red and eventually brown.

Asafoetida is most widely used in powdered or granulated form or is sometimes sold in lumps that need to be crushed. It’s usually best kept in airtight containers to avoid the strong odour infiltrating the room or cupboard.

The spice adds depth and texture to dishes, especially if used with aromatics like cumin, chillies, ginger and garlic. Best flavours are obtained by adding the asafoetida into the hot ghee, allowing it to incorporate for about 15 seconds before putting in the other spices. Once cooked the spice has a roasted garlic aroma and truffle-like flavour.

Asafoetida appears mainly in South and West Indian dishes. It’s an important ingredient in Indian vegetarian cooking, often used in dishes of the Brahmin and Jain castes where onions and garlic are forbidden.

Historically it has been used in medicines as a remedy for asthma and bronchitis and to treat impotency, mood swings and depression. In India, women sometimes eat it after childbirth mixed with ghee and rice to prevent the baby from getting colic. Added health benefits are that it can be used to enhance digestion and reduce flatulence.

Lamb Shanks with a flavour of India by Memsaab Restaurant

This recipe from Amita Sawnhey who co-owns and runs Memsaab restaurant in Nottingham, gives an exotically spiced makeover to the famous British dish of Lamb Shank.

Lamb Shank

Ingredients (Serves 4 people)

• 4         Lamb shanks
• 4 tbsp Cooking oil
• 2         Large onions, thinly sliced
• 2         Large tomatoes, diced 
• 2 tbsp Garlic paste
• 1 tbsp Ginger paste
• 2 tsp   Coriander powder
• 1 tsp   Cumin powder
• ½ tsp  Turmeric powder
• ½ tsp  Red Chilli powder
• 2 tsp   Garam Masala powder
• 100ml Single Cream

Salt to taste           

Fresh Coriander for garnish

Method

Heat the cooking oil in a heavy bottomed pan suitable for the oven and, on a medium heat, sauté the onions to a golden brown colour. Remove the onions using a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.

Blend the onions into a smooth paste adding a little water, if required. Separately blend the tomatoes, garlic and ginger pastes together, again into a smooth paste.

Heat the oil left from the frying the onions and add the onion paste. Sauté for a further 2-3 minutes. 

Then add the tomato paste and all the powdered spices. Stir and mix well.

Sauté the resulting (onion, tomato and spice) masala for about ten minutes, until the oil begins to separate from it. Then add the Lamb shank to the masala. Season with salt to taste and stir to fully coat the lamb pieces with the masala.

Sauté until the shank is browned well. Then stir in ½ cup of hot water, mixing well. Cover the pan and simmer for 10 minutes. Place the covered pan into the oven at 150 degrees. Cook for about 45 minutes until the lamb is tender.

When cooked, remove the pan from the oven and gently stir in the single cream. The ‘gravy’ should be fairly thick when done.

Remove from the pan onto a plate and garnish with chopped coriander. The lamb shanks can be served with mashed potato and blanched wild spinach leaf!

Enjoy!

Turmeric: health giving ingredient of curry

Turmeric, one of the staple ingredients of curry, has been found to have amazing health giving properties.

These stem from turmeric’s magic property of curcumin, an anti-inflammatory, active ingredient that can treat a range of diseases such as Alzheimers, diabetes, allergies and arthritis. Studies have found curcumin to be effective in treating irritable bowel syndrome and, more recently, in preventing bowel cancer.

In India and China, however, the miraculous power of turmeric has been known for over 5,000 years where it has been used first as a dye and then in traditional medicine to treat a variety of complaints including jaundice, haemorrhage, toothache, bruises, and even flatulence (parp!).

Although Arab traders introduced turmeric to Europe in the 13^th century it has only recently become common in the west – mainly because of the growing popularity of curry and Indian restaurants.

With a warm, peppery and bitter flavour, the spice comes from a very beautiful plant, Curcuma longa, a member of the ginger family. This perennial grows wild, mainly in the forests of southern India, and reaches around one metre in height with ribbed leaves, white flowers and cylindrical, aromatic rhizomes.

The spice comes from the rhizomes which are gathered annually, boiled for about 30-45 minutes and then dried in hot ovens. They are then ground into the deep yellow powder commonly used in curries, to give mustard its distinctive colour or used to make chicken soups golden. However, the whole plant is edible – even the flowers can be eaten as an exotic lettuce and the leaves can be used as a flavour imparting wrap.

Historically, turmeric was thought to have spiritual properties because of its yellow-orange colouring which was associated with the sun. Hindu monks were traditionally coloured with a yellow dye made from turmeric. It is also used throughout India in weddings and religious ceremonies. In Bangladesh the Gaye holud (literally,‘yellow on the body’) is a ceremony which takes place one or two days before a wedding. The turmeric paste is applied to the bodies of the couple by (presumably by very good friends) and is said to soften the skin as well as colouring the bride and groom yellow.

The ingredient is especially common in South Asian and Middle Eastern cooking: Iranian fried dishes consist of oil, onions and turmeric followed by other dishes. In Nepal it is widely used in vegetable and meat dishes and in Indonesia flavours the curry base of dishes such as rendang, sate padang. In Maharashtra and Goa, turmeric leaves are used to wrap and cook food, imparting a distinctive taste. The root can also be used fresh, like ginger in pickle. Although turmeric is used mainly to flavour savoury dishes it can also be used to prepare special sweets.

Photos by Peter Renfrew

The Executive Chef at the Hotel Hindustan International in Kolkata, Utpal Mondal, shares some of his favourite Nawabi recipes:  

Murgh Badami Tikka

Boneless Chicken Leg - 280 gms

Ginger Garlic Paste - 15 gms

Cashew Nut - 25gms

Almond -  25 gms

Pista - 15 gms

Amul Cheese - 25gms

Ginger Green Chilli Chopped -5 gms

Salt – To Taste

Double Cream - 25 ml

Sour Curd - 50 gms

Raw Papaya Paste - 15 gms

Butter- 25 gms

Chat Masala - 10 gms

Lemon - 2

Egg - 1

Method:

Take boneless chicken leg, slit it half, flatten. Sprinkle with salt, lemon juice, ginger, garlic paste & raw papaya paste for first marination. Keep in cool place for 1 hour.

Chop half of all nuts, mix this with grated amul cheese & chopped ginger, green chilli . Make 6 small portions, now add each portion into flattened tikka. Roll it make small cylindrical shape, keep it aside.

Now make a smooth paste of remaining nut, cheese & sour curd. Mix cream & egg white with this paste. Add this paste into nut stuffed chicken.

Keep in fridge for 15 minutes. Cook the roll in tandoor till it becomes light brown in colour. Baste with butter. Again put in tandoor for 2-3 minutes, take it out. Sprinkle chat masala on it. Serve with mint chutney.

Dahi Ke Kabab

Hung Curd - 150 gms

Grated Paneer - 50 gms

Ginger Green Chilli Chopped - 15 gms

Roasted Chana Powder - 20 gms

Salt - To Taste

Cardamom  Powder - 5 gms

Saffron - 5 gms

Amul Cheese - 5 gms

Ghee - 25 gms

Chat Masala - 5 gms

Method:

Take a flat container, mix hung curd, paneer, ginger green chilli chop & roasted chana powder together.

Now add salt, cardamom powder, mix well and transfer the mixture to fridge. Take the amul cheese, rub into a smooth paste, add saffron, make 4 small balls for stuffing.

Now, take out the mixture, make 4 equal portions, put cheese saffron stuffing into each portion, make flat patty, shallow fry with ghee in a non stick pan fry till golden brown. Serve hot with mint chutney.

Fancy something a bit spicy for breakfast?

Try Kedgeree ...

If you’re looking for an unusual weekend breakfast dish as an alternative to the ubiquitous bacon and eggs, kedgeree is the ultimate comfort food. 

The dish originated in India in the days of the British Raj and was brought to the UK by returning colonials who wanted to replicate the spicy dishes they had enjoyed on the subcontinent. 

Kedgeree reached its height of popularity in Victorian times when the dish was served at breakfast. The anglicised version traditionally involves smoked haddock but the original recipe is thought to date back to the fourteenth century when lentils and rice and (sometimes) fish were combined to make a dish known as Khichri.  This was also served at breakfast as a thrifty way of using up leftovers from the night before, accompanied by a spiced yoghurt drink.

The British version of Kedgeree can be eaten hot or cold and is deelicious …!!

Recipe for Kedgeree 

Serves Four

Ingredients:

• One medium red onion
• 1 clove garlic
• Two tomatoes
• 3 eggs
• 700gm undyed smoked haddock
• 200gm basmati rice
• Generous knob of butter (or ghee)
• Handful of chopped chives
• 2tsp grated fresh ginger
• 2 heaped tbsp curry powder
• 1 tbsp English mustard
• 1 fresh red chilli
• 1 pot sour cream 
• 2 bay leaves
• Fresh coriander
• Salt and black pepper

Method:

• Boil the eggs till hard boiled, peel and quarter.
• Put fish and bay leaves into a pan with enough water to cover.
• Bring to boil, cover and simmer for five minutes until cooked through.
• Remove from pan, reserve water and remove skin (and bones if any).
• Flake into chunks and set aside.
• Melt butter in pan.
• Stir in ginger, onion, garlic and curry powder.
• Add chopped tomatoes and cook for a while.
• Stir in rice (adding more butter if required)
• Add reserved water, bring to boil and simmer until rice is tender (about 15mins).
• When liquid has been absorbed, stir in mustard, flaked fish and lemon juice and allow to gently heat through.
• Season to taste.
• Add eggs, coriander and chilli and gently stir.
• Sprinkle with chives and place in a warm serving dish.

Mix coriander into the soured cream and serve with kedgeree.

Serve with spiced yoghurt drink (optional).

Goan King Prawns

Recipe from Mohammed Haque (Jay) of Roochi Restaurant in Forest Row

King prawns in shell, cooked in fresh spring onions, green chillies and strong aromatic spice to bring out the sizzling exotic taste of olive oil.

Ingredients:

12-15 king prawns

2 tbsp lemon juice

1½ tbsp turmeric

Salt

20 dried chillies

Fresh coconut grated

2 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tbsp cumin seeds

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 piece ginger (2.5cm peeled)

2 tbsp olive oil

Bunch spring onions, sliced

4 fresh green chillies, cut lengthways

1 tomato, chopped

Tbsp tamarind paste

Method:

• Place the prawns in a dish.  Add lemon juice, half a tbsp turmeric and salt. Leave to marinate.

• Place dried red chillies, garlic, coconut, coriander seeds, mustard seed, remaining turmeric, cumin seeds and ginger in a blender or food processor, add a little water and process to a smooth paste.

• Heat the olive oil in large, heavy based frying pan. Add spring onions and stir-fry for around four minutes until light brown.

• Add green chillies and dried chilli paste mixing well and cook over a low heat, stirring often for 20 minutes.

• Add marinated prawns and simmer until cooked through.

• Add tomato and simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

• Add tbsp of tamarind paste and check taste, adjust seasoning if necessary and serve with steamed rice.

Unusual ingredients in curry: Shatkora

The first time I came across shatkora was in India a few years ago. We were leaving for the airport one of the hotel chefs came up to us and proudly presented us with a a bag of green and knobbly looking fruit as a gift. He explained shatkora was hard to find in the UK and much more expensive. We put the bag into our suitcase but, sadly, had to ditch it later as our luggage was too heavy. Since then, shatkora has become much easier to find in the UK and features in many dishes in Indian restaurants. From the outside it certainly is not an object of beauty but, as far as flavours go, the shatkora is a veritable swan of the culinary world. A cross between grapefruit, lime and lemon, it adds a tanginess and exotic taste to curry dishes and lifts them into the sublime.

  

Otherwise known as the citrus macroptera or ‘wild orange’, the fruit is about is 6-7cm in diameter and oval in shape with pointed ends. The variant grown in Bangladesh is called annamensis and is commonly used in the area of Sylhet. It grows on thorny trees which can reach 5m in height. Although it looks and smells more like a lime, its juice is sour and bitter and tastes more like that of a grapefruit. The pith is thick and dry and the outer skin becomes yellow when the fruit is ripe.

Delicious Shatkora curry cooked by Chef Mahbub Rahman
of Dine Bangla  in Beverley.

Preparation of the fruit is tricky and requires some culinary skill. Perhaps the easiest way is to cut the shatkora in half lengthways and then cut each half into three, also along the length. Then the main fruit can be pared away from the peel and outer pith with a sharp knife.

Chefs recommend the skin is pre cooked to soften the texture. In Bangladesh the rind is eaten as a vegetable and the pulp is usually discarded because of its bitter taste. The thick rind is cut into small pieces and cooked in beef mutton, fish curries and stews whilst the fruit is often used in shatkora pickles.

Curries cooked with shatkora are now becoming more and more popular in Bangladeshi and Indian restaurants in the UK.  The fruit can now be bought in many Asian food stores that serve the Indian and Bangladeshi community. It’s also available in frozen form.

Shatkora’s beneficial values don’t stop there – as a citrus fruit, rich in Vitamin C in India and Bangladesh, it has long been known for its medicinal value. It’s very strong in antioxidants and is reputed to be a sure cure for colds and flu when cooked in curry.

Recipe for Aromatic Venison Curry with Shatkora

from The Kennington Tandoori

Haunch of roast venison slow cooked to melting tenderness with tangy citrus shatkora in a deliciously rich, juicy sauce. 

Serves 6

Preparation time: 20-30 minutes

Cooking time: approx 3 hours

Ingredients

• 3 tbs vegetable/olive oil

• Whole spices:
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 piece cinnamon bark (not quills)
• 4 green cardamom pods, bruised
• 1tsp salt

• 1 tbs garlic paste
• 1 tbs ginger paste
• 5 large shallots, very finely diced

• 1 ½ lb venison haunch, trimmed of fat and cut into 1 ½ inch chunks

• Approx 1 ½ pints water (see method)

• Ground powdered spices:
• 1 rounded tsp brown cumin powder
• 1 ½ rounded tsp coriander powder
• 1 rounded tsp chilli powder
• Scant ½ tsp turmeric powder

• 2 slices shatkora, flesh removed and cut into pieces

Method

• Warm the oil in a large heavy-bottomed pan or casserole dish.  Add the whole spices and gently heat, swirling in the oil to heat and release their flavours, adding a tsp of salt as you do so. Take care not to let the spices burn as this will make the dish taste bitter.

• Add the garlic and ginger pastes, continuing to stir on a gentle heat. (For small quantities crush garlic bulbs and grind to a paste, fresh ginger root can be grated with a fine microplane; for larger quantities it is easier to use a food processor.) Add the diced shallots, stir and cook on a medium heat until opaque and just starting to colour, but do not brown.

• Add the meat and brown all over in the spices and onion mix (approx 7-10 minutes), whilst enjoying the delicious aroma.

• Add sufficient water to fully cover the meat, stir thoroughly to deglaze the pan and to ensure nothing sticks or burns on the base. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for ½ an hour.

• Add the mixed spice powder and stir in to the curry, using a wooden spoon or spatula (not metal – to avoid cutting the meat). Cover and slow cook on a gentle bubble for 2 hours until the sauce has thickened and the meat is meltingly tender (longer if using a cheaper cut).

• About 15 minutes before the curry is ready, add shatkora and allow it to scent the dish.

The Kennington Tandoori, 313 Kennington Rd, London SE11 4QE

Aroma Spice - Hampstead's Hidden Gem

 

Mohammed Bakth and his son Karim of Aroma Spice are justly proud of their family business. For the past 16 years, Aroma Spice has been successfully satisfying diners with an appetite for fine Indian cuisine in one of London’s most affluent areas.  With a rapidly changing demographic and burgeoning local competition, Aroma Spice has not only retained its loyal customer base, it has also continued to attract new fans – including Oasis’s Liam Gallagher and self confessed curry lover and actor, Phil Daniels.

From outside the restaurant blends in well with Hampstead’s eclectic coterie of exclusive shop fronts and village atmosphere – and amazingly, there is parking right outside the door! Inside the theme is chic and urban. Black leather seats, modern paintings and crisp white linen tablecloths add to the sense of style, augmented by fresh flowers, quality dinner settings and - a nice touch - Norwegian sparkling water.

Karim, 26, tells us that Indian restaurants have always been an integral part of his life and he has vivid memories of being carried on his father’s shoulders to work when he was a young boy. “I still recall running round the restaurant, going in and out of the kitchen and the spice stores and watching the chefs cook. “From the age of five I knew that this was where I wanted to be,” he says.

Confident, engaging and somewhat snazzily dressed, Karim is an ideal front man for any business and thrives on interacting with customers. Unlike his older brother who decided to take a different path as a property developer, Karim’s ambition was to carry on the family business. After graduating from university in Business Management he seized the opportunity to join his father “with both hands and legs” realising he was very fortunate to jump straight into a running concern. “Not many people get to step on a plateau like this. It’s the only freehold restaurant in Hampstead and I would have been foolish to waste such an opportunity.”

Mohammed, understandably, prefers to take more of a sideline these days having managed restaurants for some 30-40 years including Poppadom in Belsize Park. But Karim recognises the huge debt he owes to his dad: “I think the level of experience gained by working with my father has been better than anything I could learn at school or read in any book. My father has been my copy book; you can’t top that kind of training.”

Even so you get the impression that both men have a very hands-on role in the business. “If there’s anything for us to get involved we will do,” Mohammed says. “We may look up market but we are a very unpretentious family restaurant. We like to create a warm and welcoming atmosphere here so that people feel at home and then we make them as comfortable as we can. If you come in at the weekend you’ll find grandmothers, granddad’s, parents and kids in here – that’s what I really love about this place. Our food and service is paramount and everything else is a bonus. If you don’t care about what you’re serving you shouldn’t be here.”

When they’re not raving about the cuisine, diners talk about Aroma Spice with great affection. Many original customers of Aroma Spice followed Mohammed when he came from Poppadom to run his own place. As Karim says, he’s such a lovely bloke they would happily support him anywhere.  He tells the story of one regular customer who was a competitor in the Iron Man race and whose mother visited from the US. As soon as she arrived she made a beeline for Aroma Spice, demanding to speak to the manager. When (with some trepidation) he identified himself, she thanked him profusely for looking after her son so well. Apparently he had told her all about them and she wanted to come in to thank them personally. Yes - they like to look after their customers at Aroma Spice.

They are, perhaps, fortunate in their affluent clientele, even if some have become slightly less affluent in recent years. Being in the celebrity epicentre of the UK, Aroma Spice has more than its fair share of famous guests.  These include Kate Winslet and Russell Crowe. Liam Gallagher has even given a personal recommendation via a video on the restaurant website whilst Phil Daniels of EastEnders and Blur’s Parklife fame, cited Aroma Spice as his favourite Indian restaurant ever.

The descriptive menu has some intriguing choices and chef Suhel Ahmed, who recently represented Britain at the Taste of Britain Curry Festival in Slovenia, at the helm diners are always in for a treat. Tawa dishes - a “secret family recipe passed through the generations” - are cooked on a flat, concave griddle made of cast iron. Delectable signatures such as Banaroshi Lamb: a recipe with roots in Nepal baked with garlic, fresh coriander and crushed pineapple, or Badami Gosht: tender lamb pieces in pistachios, almond and coconut milk sauce, are balanced with exotic Xacuti chicken or Kachi Biryani, mutton marinated and cooked in layers in a cooking pot with spiced basmati.

Selections of grilled meat dishes are an option for health conscious diners as is the spicy grilled Paneer salad. Tandoori mains include local trout. The Goan dish Khali Mirch Murgh draws flavours from the sun dried chillies while Kuko Koko Palu, another Nepalese dish, tempts the taste buds with tender chicken in a coconut pulp, coconut cream and almond sauce. Mohammed buys food fresh from a well respected wholesaler and he personally oversees and ensures the quality of all ingredients.

Sampling the wonderful mixed starters, chicken Tawa dish and grilled salmon, coated in a secret blend of herbs and spices, with Peshwari naan bread and side dishes, we experience a taste to remember. And despite the restaurant’s well heeled location, the prices are surprisingly modest, representing great value for money.

It’s easy to understand why diners love Aroma Spice. The warm and welcoming atmosphere created by the owners permeates the whole place. And, as locals are only too well aware, Aroma Spice is Hampstead’s hidden gem.

Aroma Spice, 98 Fleet Road, Hampstead, London NW3 2QX  Tel: 020 7485 6908 & 020 7267 0444

Heavenly fare at Bengal Paradise

 On the A1000 somewhere between Potters Bar and Hatfield, earth bound diners can find a taste of heaven. Bengal Paradise Indian restaurant is situated in the midst of sublime Herefordshire countryside with panoramic views over a pastoral idyll complete with grazing cattle, woods and greenery. The venue lives up to its name. With a cool, whitewashed exterior, the frontage looks almost tropical with exotic palm trees, lush plants and water features. Even the striking stainless steel sculpture: a bending coconut palm complete with coconut, suggests forbidden fruit from the Garden of Eden.

Arriving on a quiet Sunday lunchtime, the atmosphere is so peaceful we instantly feel the outside world and all its pressures slip away.  We take a seat in the comfortable waiting area at the bar as members of staff go quietly about their business preparing for the evening onset of customers. Our sense of relaxation only increases as co-partner Shahin Ansar Ali arrives and tells us to chill out, take our time and … enjoy. Shahin should seriously consider another career as a hypnotherapist; by the end of our three hour gastronomic session, his calming influence leaves us so relaxed we’re almost sliding off our luxurious leather chairs like two blobs of mellifluous jelly.

But perhaps Shahin should hold off the second career as he is doing just fine in his current role of master chef extraordinaire. He and his business partner Shiraz Miah (Raj) took over the premises of former Italian restaurant, Villa Rosa, just eight years ago and business has, if you’ll pardon the pun, gone skywards. 

The 100-seat plus restaurant caters for a mature and affluent clientele. With customers numbering several directors of Arsenal football team and a sprinkling of stockbrokers, Hatfield could be described as a catchment area for the well heeled and famous and the interior of the restaurant reflects this. Light, bright and airy, witty touches lift the décor from blandness – pastel colours contrast with large, chocolate, shell-shaped booths, beige, tan and rust coloured seats. Sixties style bucket seats and cheeky pop art orange seating is counter balanced by classy and elegant table settings. A conservatory area with a circular table under the octagonal skylight is especially popular with customers who vie for a seat by the windows, overlooking the acres of surrounding land owned by the Royal Veterinary College.

Shahin who lives in Stratford, has been working in the restaurant trade since 1987. None of his close family was in the restaurant business, although he did have two cousins in the trade. After working in East London, Wembley and then Kent Shah’s entrepreneurial spirit took over. “I knew I had to open a restaurant,” he said. “It was something that automatically came into my mind because I knew I could do anything I wanted in my own kitchen and, once I had gained the experience, I was confident enough to make my own mark.” Hertfordshire was a very good area for Indian restaurants with several iconic establishments in the area breeding a higher standard of cuisine than elsewhere. Shah had already run two businesses when, out of the blue, he received a call from former colleague Raj, who suggested taking on the former Villa Rosa. “This was a big gamble,” says Shah. “After his call, I left my other business to open the restaurant. Many people said it was a ghost town and that we could only survive six months but now we’ve been here for eight years.”

It was true that in the early days, the restaurant posed a bit of a challenge. In the middle of nowhere, it was run down outside, although the on-site parking was a definite plus. However, the new venture had a considerable asset in the form of Raj, a popular local with a reputation for good cuisine that preceded him.  With Shahin’s unique culinary talent and some well placed marketing, things began to take off.

“The way we did food was different,” explained Shah. “We make our own spice blends; we use good quality produce and mix our own spices and herbs which creates our distinctive flavour. We get supplies locally and support the local farmers.”  The restaurant even has its own vegetable patch with fresh herbs and oregano and tomatoes are grown. 

Now, with a star studded clientele ranging from David and Victoria Beckham (Victoria’s family lives nearby) to SimonCowell, Simon Pegg and the entire ensemble of JLS, the considerate approach of staff and customers at Bengal Paradise has turned it into something of a refuge for celebrities.

Disappointingly, Beckham is in Paris at the moment so we can’t look forward to him making a sudden appearance. But, never mind - Shahin repairs to the kitchen to personally imagine, concoct and create our meal from what he calls his “brain menu” as opposed to the one printed out in front of us. Already familiar with Shah’s cooking from the Taste of Britain Festival in Slovenia, we know that he is one of the best chefs we have had the pleasure to meet, but we can’t wait to see what he has to offer.

True to form, our starters arrive with Michelin style presentation: Shahin’s special pickles of Mango, coriander and Tamarind are fresh and delicious. We have Monk fish on a pea puree with yoghurt lamb on the bone and steamed king prawn with a coriander and homemade yoghurt and garlic sauce, also a spiced potato cutlet and artily placed vegetable spring roll. Shahin believes that first impressions are important and the number one rule is that a dish has to look good. He certainly has an artistic flair but that comes second only to the quality of the food. 

Our main courses of Bengal Supreme piece of chicken stuffed with minced lamb, garlic, ginger and royal cumin on a bed of chick peas, plus Salmon Makhoni, marinated in yoghurt, served with melted cheese and cream and a special concoction of pilau rice.  Nan breads are delicately sized, light and fluffy, rather than the usual size 10 sandal shaped pancakes of bread which are usually left finished. A full range of freshly cooked, homemade desserts is available and the pistachio kulfi icecream was one of the best in Curry Life history.

If we hadn’t partaken of the food from Shahin’s “brain menu” the table menu for diners at Bengal Paradise offers an exciting mix of old favourites and specialities. Duck Shashlik with green and red peppers, tomatoes & onions barbequed in the tandoor sounded tempting as did the Shorisha mix of assorted seafood cooked with mustard seed, fresh garlic and ginger or the fresh Tandoori trout. With a well established Five Star status for food and hygiene, and a wall full of press recommendations, the quality cuisine speaks for itself.

Live entertainment takes place around once a month with Bollywood nights or Jazz music. Shah tells us that he doesn’t usually charge customers for the music as the event itself pulls in extra customers. One thing Shahin likes to do is communicate customers and if he’s not in the kitchen, you’ll find him mingling with guests, listening to their feedback.  “If diners haven’t seen me for a while, they’ll sometimes start texting me to ask where I am,” he laughs.  In fact they’ve even been known to drag him on to the dance floor.

For us, the thought of energetic manoeuvres is vaguely disturbing. Because in the midst of green and pleasant land and after such a meal, we’re feeling distinctly mellow – in fact you could even say we’ve been transported to Paradise.

Bengal Paradise, 3 Great North Road, Brookmans Park, Hatfield, Hertfordshire AL9 6LB  Tel: 01707 651444

Shahin Ali (3rd left) with (from left to right) Mo Gherras and Dominic Chapman of Royal Oak Paley Street and Atul Kochhar of Benares