Dosa with chopped shiitake mushroom and melty Gruyere cheese.
At Flour, the Parivartan menu, Evolution Part 2 draws inspiration from 1500 AD onwards.
“The food we consume today is from the time when Persian, Arabic, Turkish and Central Asian influences entered the Indian sub-continent,” says Yogesh Upadhyay (Chef Yogi).
Served in three separate dishes, our trinity of appetisers comprised Chilli Chutney with Papadum, Almond Tart with Raita and Sun-dried Tomato, and Jalebi. The first offering of crispy papadum cracker topped with chilli chutney left our tastebuds tingling from the chutney’s fleeting burst of heat. The concentrated fruity flavour of the sun-dried tomatoes was reminiscent of candied plums. Yogesh explained that the cherry tomatoes were sun-dried for about 72 hours before being bottled up in olive oil.
The dainty morsel of Jalebi, a familiar Indian sweet came on a gluten-free wafer flecked with wasabi and lemon zest. Our tastebuds were suffused by a delightful amalgamation of sweet-savoury-spicy nuances.
While chefs in Europe are currently attempting to make and include the popular Indian bread dosa in their restaurant menus, Yogesh has already perfected his unfermented version. Paper-thin and crisp, the scrumptious Dosa we sampled had us raving over its umami-packed filling of chopped shiitake mushroom and melty Gruyere cheese.
Konju Moilee – charcoal- grilled tiger prawn dressed with coconut milk sauce and chilli.
Making our way to Rajasthan where vegetarianism rules, Yogesh highlights how the exquisite vegetarian dish of Ker Sangri is inspired by the population’s four centuries-old practice of foraging for wild berries, beans and greens. Fresh and vibrant on the palate, we enjoyed the slight crunch of blanched French beans and asparagus with tangy-sweet raspberry purée. Housemade curd flavoured with paprika, tamarind drops speckled with ground peppercorns and dried chilli powder, small diced Greek cheese and cherry tomatoes raised the dish’s flavour and textural complexity.
We then travelled to West Bengal where fresh fish was a given on the Bengali dining table. The stellar speciality of Macher Jhol, miso-marinated white cod on Dijon mustard sauce and a topping of smoked trout roe, easily reeled us in with its enticing sweet-savoury-smoky accents.
Representative of India’s west coast state of Gujarat was Dhal Dhokli, a heartwarming Arhar lentil soup with mustard seeds, curry leaves and cumin poured over soba noodles and diced scallop. The lentils’ delicate sweetness mingling with the scallop’s sea-fresh sweetness proved winsome.
Our culinary journey continued to Punjab where we encountered Mango Lassi, a sublime speciality that has taken the chef a whole year to envision and realise. A true labour of love, the ethereal creation involved hand-whisking yoghurt, sugar and fresh Harumanis mango pulp into a lusciously creamy consistency, then juxtaposing this with 60g of fine Iranian caviar.
Mango lassi with caviar.
Inspired by the northern state of Uttar Pradesh’s kebab, Chef Yogi’s mind-blowing Kebab featuring smoked poached mussels on vividly green sauce rustled up from blending yoghurt with coriander, mint and baby spinach, left us gobsmacked. Accentuated by two dollops of mustard oil and some fresh herbs, we grappled with the dish that looked nothing like a conventional kebab, yet our tastebuds unwittingly conjured up a visual of grilled kebab thanks to the artful inclusion of carefully selected spices.
Heading south to Kerala, Yogesh further tantalised us with Konju Moilee, a whole charcoal-grilled tiger prawn dressed with mustard seed-accented coconut milk sauce and flavoursome prawn shell-infused oil spiked with bird’s eye chilli. The simple yet show-stopping speciality induced us to lick the plate clean.
Our gastronomic trail went northwards to Jammu and Kashmir where the Himalayan mountains are located, to feast on Wazwan, a delectable tandoor-grilled lamb rib with a quenelle of grated white radish, walnuts and mint. Kudos to the Flour team for nailing down the lamb’s blush-pink doneness.
Hot on its heels came Rogan Josh, Kashmiri-inspired lamb loin ragout with dum aloo and pilaf. The former comprising crisp yet tender potato pavé on sorrel-fenugreek leaves-baby spinach sauce made a splendid pairing with fluffy, saffron-scented basmati rice studded with almonds, pistachios, cashews, raisins, sultanas and dried figs.
For the grand finale of Prasad, we were taken in by the dessert that looked like ice-cream. The divine treat turned out to be a heavenly confection of halwa with meringue, almond Chantilly cream, sesame praline, crushed nuts, and housemade lavender honey. It was a most befitting sweet end to our learning journey of Indian cuisine.
The degustation menu changes every five or so months and costs RM690+ per person.
Dosa with chopped shiitake mushroom and melty Gruyere cheese.
Mango lassi with caviar.
Rogan Josh, a Kashimiri-inspired lamb loin ragout with dum aloo and pilaf.
Uttar Pradesh’s kebab with fresh poached mussels.
Prasad – halwa with meringue, almond Chantilly cream and sesame praline.
Konju Moilee – charcoal- grilled tiger prawn dressed with coconut milk sauce and chilli.
Ker Sangri with French beans and asparagus.
Flour Restaurant, Chef Yogi for StarEats, November 5, 2023. — GLENN GUAN/The Star
