A great night with Cyrus and his wife Parvin educating our minds and engaging our senses with Indian food. Cyrus showed how to portion and de-bone a chicken, cook perfect rice and provide twelve delicious dishes. All with locally sourced seasonal ingredients. Rich heady pork and beef dishes quickly cooked but heady with flavour.
Simple Kerala stews suffused with tumeric and garnished with fresh coriander. Apparently the only herb to travel from the west to the east.
Cyrus is deeply knowledgeable about all of his ingredients taking us across continents and providing intimate tips and historic details about all of his recipes.
He was clearly in command of the kitchen gently tucking the sharp blades of his knives under the chopping board. His attention to detail whilst making us understand each step showed an experienced hand.
We were swept away by the breadth and style of his cooking and how everything was given due consideration to the strength of flavours, the level of heat, aromatics that reduce the inevitable flatulence, medicinal properties of spices and ultimately the richness of his dishes.
Juggling hot pans to temper spices whilst maintaining just the right temperature to avoid scorching was all over seen by Parvin's eagle eye. Timing was crucial.
We were engaged, entertained and duly sated by a wonderful progression of various plates of food. For me easily the best treat was the rice. I can't remember being so delighted with what seems the simplest of dishes but cooked to perfection.
As it ended I watched Cyrus carefully place his knives and spices back in his case. A professional through and through.
I feel an Indian pot luck night coming on...
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