After interacting with the band I walked towards the busiest corner of the ground with the biggest possible smile. A make shift kitchen. I was in my comfort zone. This was it! The amazing smell of spices filled the air. Once again, the chefs working in that kitchen were as friendly as the musicians.
The head chef
The head chef a humble man, requested me to take pictures of his team who were totally having fun cooking those massive quantities of food for the evening.
Spices laid out and the super soft paneer (cottage cheese) getting prepped.
Mattar paneer aloo masala (Green peas, cottage cheese and potatoes simmered in a spicy gravy ) is almost ready
The dish is carefully transferred and ready to be served.
On the other side puris (crispy fried bread) are being prepared. As you can see the team of ladies roll out the puris which are then deep fried.
Once golden brown it is then transferred to a basket. Along with some jokes ofcourse!:D
No Indian wedding feast is complete without THE Dal. Dal (Lentils) is mandatory to any sort of meal.
Just making sure those lentils are cooked to perfection
Moving on to the dessert station where the chef was garnishing that gorgeous Gajar halwa (Carrot halwa) with a generous sprinkle of chopped pistachios.
And sliced almonds
Ladies and gentleman – The ultimate Gajar halwa!
Now this method of making kheer (milk pudding) took me by surprise
One old man stirring a very large pot of milk pudding over a wooden fire.
He was moving around the pot and constantly stirring it to avoid the khoya (milk solids) and other ingredients in the pudding from sticking to the bottom .
He had a wooden plank to stand on to reach the bottom of the giant iron wok.
Trust me , that place was hot and filled with heavy smoke from the wooden fire. I had a tough time standing there for 5 minutes. This man had to do this task for 2 to 3 hrs at a stretch and he still kept smiling.
Hence forth if anyone complains to me about the kitchen air con, I will be showing them this picture 🙂
The audience.
