Sample the famed Kashmiri wazwan at a city food festival

Like the notun gur sandesh in your para sweet shop and the monkey cap on your Bengali neighbour’s head, there is another ubiquitous sight that signals the arrival of winter in Kolkata—the wandering shawlwallahs from Kashmir who add some much-needed colour to the streets of the city. They are generally followed by a faithful porter who carries bundles of exquisite shawls on their head. The average Kolkatan has always shared a genial relationship with the affable shawlwallah. Even while bargaining over the price of a pashmina, we ask him about his life in the war-torn valley, about dal lake and if you happen to be a foodie, about the famed Kashmiri wazwan (a multi course meal in Kashmiri tradition). It’s probably in the spirit of this enduring fascination that Charcoal has organized a Kashmiri food festival in Kolkata.

“People in Kolkata are well aware of Kashmiri food, thanks to its presence in the five star hotels. So most are not too unfamiliar with the rogan josh, kashmiri aloo dum, or the firun. But here the tastes that have been explored go beyond the more familiar dishes,” says Subrata Debnath, consultant chef.

So there is a Gustaba( meatballs cooked in yogurt gravy), kokur nadur, spicy chicken cooked with lotus stem; akhrot and anjeer ki kebabs, made with figs and walnuts and sigri gada, tandoor cooked betki, marinates with Kashmiri red chilli and ginger powder.

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