For a foodie, the best thing about Indian summers is mangoes – won’t you agree? Anyhow, even though I am not an expert on mangoes or food, but as a seasoned mango-lover I can recommend you a fabulous mango-inspired meal at Pluck, Pullman New Delhi. Believe me; you’ll come back thanking me for this extraordinary play on the platter that has been curated for this season especially.
When it comes to food, one doesn’t have to be a connoisseur to understand good taste as it’s a subjective matter. Chef Ashish Dhar (Culinary Chief Designer at Pullman New Delhi), who created a special mango-themed menu for Pluck – hotel’s Modern Indian and European contemporary outlet – spoke to us about revamping the flavours of mango for his guests.
He says, “At the hotel, we take special pride in using fresh green ingredients that we grow in our premises. For curating the mango menu it took me a few months to decide on how much quantity of mango should be fused with the food because this fruit has a very strong flavour and if used in excess it could get heavy on the stomach. For every dish, we used five to ten percent of mango content and the rest was not tempered much. For the plating and garnish, we used edible flowers and plants that made every dish absolutely Instagram-able.”
Speaking of social media, the best thing about eating a good looking dish is that it makes for a great picture and at this fancy mango festival all the items in the set menu are planned that way. The playfulness of mango juices mix with some unthinkable ingredients such as cheddar, tuna, snapper and avocado that we don’t commonly see happening on a day-to-day basis.
When I sat down to sample the lunch menu, I was offered a salad serving made of the greens grown in-house along with a multi-flavoured butter cube that came with the bread basket. It was quite yummy and went perfectly with my pina colada that absolutely makes me happy on a hot summer day.
My mangolicious meal started with a tasty mix of bhelpuri (puffed rice) served with ripe mango bites – who could have thought the combination would be heavenly! And chicken tikka served with mango salsa that was simply outstanding.
Next, we moved to a cold coup served as a Mango Gazpacho with Avacado Cheddar Ice Cream and Mint Spaghetti. Now before I tell you about this one, I want you to imagine a peculiar after-taste of cheddar combined with completely opposite notes of mango. The tinge of avocado and mint definitely adds to this mélange of gastronomical outburst in your mouth and you’ll be left wondering about how to decode what this soup!
For the next course, we had a Tartare of Tuna served with puffed rice with bites of compressed radish, seaweed, Alphonso Mango and ponzu. Whereas, my fellow mates enjoyed a fresh couscous salad with green vegetables and mangoes. Both the dishes were tempting, but I was surprised to see how the chef combined tuna and mangoes together, as this was certainly a delicious attempt that made my mind clear of never-tired-before food combinations.
Next was a spicy Snapper Fillet with curried cauliflower and mango chipotle salsa that was just too yummy and I finished all of it without any help. And, now the favourite my part of a meal – dessert. Dollops of a bright canary yellow Mango Parfait with Coconut sorbet was just the perfect end to a gorgeous meal that I would remember for long. Oh, the best part was that even after eating so much I wasn’t feeling stuffed which is why I wanted to recommend it to all the light-eaters in the house.
The mango festival is on at the PLUCK, Pullman Hotel New Delhi for the entire summer season; make sure you make the most of it.
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