india's Tandoori Brentwood Archives

India’s Tandoori Brentwood’s New Authentic Bangladesh Catering Menu

July 8, 2019 Comments Off

(Gerry Furth-Sides, photos are identified)India’s Tandoori Restaurant, Brentwood is already a neighborhood favorite that includes celebrities who hold gatherings there that can last an entire evening and turn the place into one big party – like the one we were at last Sunday. It is fitting then that beloved, dedicated Chef-owner Martin Shah of //India’s Tandoori Restaurant – Brentwood would create special catering menus for such occasions on and off-site. His new one, assisted by friends Israt Jahan Irin, focuses on popular Indian dish eggplant bharta, which is already a signature. And this time he added seven more, including taro bharta and fish bharta.

Proprietor Matin Shah’s Bangladeshi dinner at India’s Tandoori in Brentwood started with a pretty, innocent that turned out to be spicy. The Bangladeshi drink, described on the menu as “tropical fruit juice with a kick” said it all, and in was green chiles, lychees, jackfruit, mangoes and oranges.

Israt explains a dish to writer Barbara Hansen

“Tropical fruit drink with a kick” at India’s Tandoori Brentwood

Bangladeshi-born and raised, Shah and Israt, prepared the special off-the-menu- bharta dishes. The meal can be ordered for groups of ten or more. Matin recommends two bharta dishes for six people, with the rest of the mean being paired dishes, such as what we were served that included lamb, chicken and fish.

According to writer and guest, Fay Levy, “Matin told us that in Bangladesh, where he was raised, bharta (also spelled bhorta) is a basic preparation that is made from many different main ingredients. He describes bharta as food mashed with flavorings–mustard oil, fresh onions, garlic, cilantro, green chilies, red chilies and salt–and served with rice. Shah considers bharta the simplest form of Bangladeshi comfort food and describes it as an easy-to-make dish that’s often prepared by peasants.”

The preparation of eggplant bharta resembles middle eastern baba ghanoush, also cooking the eggplant right over the fire, or “burnt” to give it a smokey flavor. Mustard oil and other seasonings give it a distinct Indian flavor. Two taro bhartas are on the catering menu, one using the root and one the taro stems.

Taro bhartas at India’s Tandoori Brentwood

Two fish bhartas followed–the fried fresh fish seasoned with turmeric plus traditional bharta flavorings, and a spicy one called chepa shutki bharta, which is a dried Bangladeshi fish.

Fermented fish bharta at India’s Tandoori Brentwood

Green bhartas made from Chinese long beans and from a vegetable called shim that looks like snow peas. There was also a plantain bharta made from boiled mashed green plantains.

Plantain bharta at India’s Tandoori Brentwood

India’s Tandoori Brentwood New Catering menu dinner :

Tropical fruit juice with a kick – made with jackfruit, lychees, mango and oranges, flavored with ginger, green chiles, red chile flakes and fresh mint
Mango lassi – a cooling beverage made of mango, yogurt and sugar

Eight kinds of bharta

Basmati rice with cumin seeds and bay leaves
Malai shrimp in coconut sauce -with coconut milk, ground coconut, chilies and spices
Lamb shank curry with fried onions and yogurt
Sizzling grilled chicken with mint
Hilsha caviar – The roe of hilsha fish that is fried, then cooked with fried onion, garlic-ginger paste and tomato
Carrot halwa – a dessert made of shredded carrots fried in olive oil and ghee, then cooked with milk, sugar, cashews, raisins and cardamom
Opo squash firni – a creamy dessert made of the grated squash cooked with milk, sugar and cardamom, similar to rice pudding
Chai – hot tea with milk and cardamom

Sizzling grilled chicken with mint at India’s Tandoori Brentwood

Malai shrimp in coconut sauce at India’s Tandoori Brentwood

Traditional Carrot halwa at India’s Tandoori Brentwood

How to Celebrate National Shrimp Day May 9 with Sublime Ethnic Dishes

April 29, 2019 Comments Off

Shrimp tacos (photo courtesy San Pedro Fish Market Grille)

(Gerry Furth-Sides) May 10 marks National Shrimp Day. It isn’t surprising that shrimp is the most widely served seafood in the world, and Americans eat more shrimp than any other seafood. But did you know that the word “prawn” is used loosely to describe any large shrimp, sometimes known as “jumbo shrimp.” Some countries use the word exclusively for all shrimp.

As healthy as they are tasty and textured, shrimp is low in calories and high in levels of protein, omega-3, calcium and iodine. Shrimp is also known to be considered good for the circulatory system. At the same time, shrimp and other shellfish are among the most common of food allergens. People who have this reaction, including a member of our family, can be so sensitive, as our family member is, that a washed plate that held shrimp can send a diner to the emergency room.

San Pedro Fish Market Grille is celebrating National Shrimp Day on May 10 with $1 Shrimp Tacos. San Pedro Fish Market Grille serves only the highest quality, freshest shrimp, delivered fresh daily from the San Pedro Fish Market. The mouthwatering shrimp tacos are cooked to order with San Pedro Fish Market’s signature seasoning and served grilled or fried on corn tortillas topped with fresh cabbage, onion, cilantro and signature sauce. The World Famous Shrimp Tray for two people will also be available for just $25. No coupon necessary.

All San Pedro Fish Market Grille Locations will celebrate. Harbor City: 1313 W. Sepulveda Blvd., Harbor City, CA 90501. (424) 263-5864. Rolling Hills Estates: 3 Peninsula Center, Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90274. (310) 265-2260. Wilmington: 120 West G Street, Wilmington, CA 90744. (310) 835-6671

Just an everyday divine shrimp/seafood platter at San Pedro Fish Market Grille

Working with Ocean Garden jumbo beauties at Western Research Kitchens has until now been the highlight of my own “shrimp history”. These 14-20’s (measuring how many to the pound) give an idea of the whopping big size. Ocean Garden was the name chosen by the Mexican Government, who owned the operation. They came in a thick plastic bag and I made a lot of very good friends with these as gifts.

Most recently the supermarkets have been having plump, tasty 15-20’s prwns from Indonesia on sale certain days. Sprouts has them in the counter, defrosted. Von’s has them in resealable plastic bags, limit four at $5.99 a pound! When I menterioned this to a gourmet chef, she raved about the waters that produce thee shrimp, confirming our opinion. They are my new “go –to” gourmet mix-and-match food for salads or entrees. Add greens and fresh veggies for a salad. Add baked yam fries, a green veggie and any internationally-based sauce and you have the most satisfying meal.

A philosophical contrast! grilled shrimp; corn; peas; Melissa’s peppers, and harissa sauce made from the kosher Harissa deli paste.

Preparing the shrimp for consumption usually involves the removal of the head, shell, tail and “sand vein”. There are many ways to cook shrimp. Standard methods of preparation include baking, boiling, broiling, sauteing, frying and grilling. Cooking time is delicate for shrimp, and they are at their best when not overcooked. You can see a a “tails on” version below of a Mexican dish that is also fun to eat. Our colleague, Barbara Hanson, prepared this Aquachile at home with instructions from the chef at the Villa del Palmar Restaurant in Mexico at the Islands of Loreto.

Barbara Hanson’s homemade Aquachile from the chef at the Villa del Palmar Restaurant in Mexico at the Islands of Loreto

Popular North American regional Shrimp Dishes:

Seafood Gumbo: A stew or soup that probably originated in southern Louisiana during the 18th century. Seafood gumbo typically consists of a strongly flavored stock, shrimp and crab meat (sometimes oysters), a thickener, and seasoning vegetables. Gumbo is often categorized by the type of thickener used: okra, the Choctaw spice, file powder (dried and ground sassafras leaves), or roux, the French base made of flour and fat.

Preux & Proper gumbo cooked al fresco

Shrimp in Preux & Proper’s Seafood Gumbo and sassafras leave!

Shrimp Cocktail: The Golden Gate was the first to serve this .50 cent shrimp cocktail in 1959, now considered a Las Vegas cliché, and an enormously popular one. Listed on the menu as the “Original Shrimp Cocktail” on the menu, it consists of a regular-sized sundae glass filled with small salad shrimp, topped with a dollop of cocktail sauce.

SALAZAR Chef Jonathan Aviles’s Coctel de Camarón

Even a shrimp cocktail on a eco-friendly wooden plate holds an exotic appeal.

Shrimp DeJonghe: A Chicago specialty, this appetizer or main dish casserole features whole, peeled shrimp blanketed in soft, garlic, sherry-laced bread crumbs. It originated in the late 19th or early 20th century at the DeJonghe’s Hotel and Restaurant.

Two Indian chefs at local restaurants also are inspiring. Martin Shah at India’s Tandoori Brentwood makes a soup he calls simply, “Ginger Shrimp” and it’s clear flavors ring out. Popular Bangladeshi restaurant owner, Shah, continually creates regional dishes for his patrons.

Martin Shah’s Ginger-Shrimp soup at India’s Tandoori Brentwood (Martin took the photo!)

Finally there are dishes that just call out for shrimp. Here below is eponymous Adya Restaurant chef’s pixie-radish salad.

Celebrate your favorite way to celebrate the holiday and share on #NationalShrimpDay.

Top California- Inspired Ethnic Cuisine Ambassadors

January 24, 2018 Comments Off

Chef Jet Tila, a native of Los Angeles, has been the “official Thai Food Ambassador” since 2013. We applaud him for adding his own definition to his role as Ambassador of representing Thai food and culture at food events and in media around the world. Chef Jet also believes that it means, ” rallying everyone to create an extensive community.

Jet Tila and friend, Pastry Chef Sherry Yard, who spreads the word about Czech pastry learned from her grandmother

Jet Tila with mom, Mary on the left and writer Barbara Hansen who first wrote about Jet for the LA Times

//localfoodeater.com/jet-tilas-enticing-first-cookbook-101-asian-dishes-need-cook-die/

Long-time key ambassadors of Mexican food and two of the most beloved chefs in Los Angeles history are “The Two Hot Tamales,” Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger. Owner-founder-chefs of Border Grill in Los Angeles (three locations at one time) and Las Vegas, “the girls” are among the most popular in the entire food industry for their enthusiasm and promotion of their own Mexican chefs.

The irrepressible Susan Feniger

Chef Susan Feniger at Bon Appetit Las Vegas

Chef Mary Sue Milliken insists on having a former chef in the photo, too

Community-minded, the Border Grill has participated in, and been honored at, Planned Parenthood Food Fare for 25 years. (above and below)

At Market City Cafe chef-owners, Chipper Pastron and Sal Casola, Jr., have been translating the authentic recipes of Sal’s family into consistent, appealing fare for a quarter of a century.

They have also experienced bringing authentic food from Italian – Roman square pizza, the top Italian charcuterie, cheeses and freshly made pasta to Pasadena and it was a “no-go” replaced by Jakes Burgers.

New Market City Caffe Holiday Menu Celebrates A Quarter Century

Frida Mexican Restaurant, Spaghettini, and India’s Tandoori Brentwood earn top marks for introducing California-inspired ethnic cuisines with special authentic dishes sprinkled in the menu.

Frida Mexican Restaurant: New California-inspired Menu, Old-fashioned Latino Hospitality

New Italian-Inspired Spaghettini Restaurant Cookbook and Ancient Hospitality

Last but not least the consummate host at the most popular gathering place on the westside, India’s Tandoor, Brentwood, Matin Shah is always on the lookout to please his guests and the first choice for events, such as the fundraiser below.

This is the “go-to” place where you always feel at home and know you will be treated in a special way. Nothing is too much for him to do for his customers.

Matin takes care to introduce dishes from his own region of Bangladesh to his guests. In 2017 he even created a special Off-the-menu feast of a number of these dishes. So far they have been a success.

New Special Off-Menu Feast at India’s Tandoor, Brentwood

When I thought that another restaurant owner was alone on her birthday, of course, I phoned up Matin and welcomed us over. He prepared a little dinner and dessert. And when I looked at the photo of him and the guest, I could see he had fallen asleep he was so tired!

Usually, Matin prepares or purchases a favorite cake to celebrate each and every guest he knows by name. This year he was startled to be presented with a cake of this own to celebrate his birthday!

Grover Zampa Indian Winery Reinvents Itself

January 23, 2018 Comments Off

(Gerry Furth-Sides) It was one of those spring days in Los Angeles where nothing could go wrong. The Grover Zampa wine tasting for wine writers and influencers at India’s Tandoori Brentwood hosted by owner, Matin Shah, proved it. No elevator? Guests happily took the stairs. Can’t make it for lunch? Matin laid out an equally impressive spread for dinner and one wine writer and grape grower even drove in from Temecula.

(Barbara Hansen) The wine, a Grover red blend, was surprisingly good, not sourish, like most Indians wines I had tasted. Fast forward a bundle of years, and I am tasting a Grover red blend again, not from a paper bag but at a respectable Indian restaurant in Los Angeles.

Grover has changed a lot over the years. The company is now Grover Zampa, the result of a merger, and produces quality wines that sell for as little as $9. Already exporting internationally, Grover is entering the American market starting with eight states, including California.

CEO Sumedh Singh Mandla came from India for the Los Angeles tasting, held at India’s Tandoori in Brentwood. The food was Indian, but not because Indian wines can’t stand up to other cuisines.

“We usually do tastings with international food,” Mandla said. “but Indian food is getting more refined, not as spicy, less oily, and well plated. We want to be part of that movement.”

Wine-making in India started from scratch in the 1970s, despite the conviction that wines couldn’t be produced in a tropical climate. At that time, Kanwal Grover, an Indian businessman, visited wineries in France and fell in love with what he tasted. Today, Grover vineyards are planted with French clones on American rootstock, and Kanwal Grover is regarded as the father of Indian viticulture.

The earlier wine was fine. This one, the 2012 La Réserve Cabernet Sauvignon-Shiraz was so good I would buy it by the case once it reaches Los Angeles.

The wines poured in Los Angeles were from vineyards in the Nandi Hills near Bangalore, one of three areas where the company has planted grapes, and the one that gives the best results.

In the 1990s, renowned French enologist Michel Rolland came on board as a consultant. More recently, Grover added star power by connecting with Vijay Amritraj, India’s most famous tennis player.

The two Vijay Amritraj wines are a Reserve Collection White (top right), which is a Viognier that is barrel fermented and aged on lees, and the Vijay Amritraj Reserve Collection Red (above), which blends Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Viognier. Amritraj is on the labels as he appeared in his heyday (above and at the top).

And here he is today, a surprise guest at the tasting.

The Amritraj white was paired with steamed mussels in a creamy curry-accented sauce and Chicken tikka masala (below).

Lamb seekh kebab and tandoor paneer went with La Réserve and the Vijay Amritraj red.

The other four wines were from the Art Collection, so named because each label features the work of an Indian artist, Paresh Maity, known for his tightly cropped faces.

The first wine poured was the 2013 Grover Art Collection Rosé (above), a dry, intense wine that is 100% Shiraz. Its deep salmony color resulted from skin contact with the grapes.

Paired with the rosé were potato pakoras with chickpea flour batter and spring rolls filled with noodles and vegetables.

The other Art Collection wines poured were a Sauvignon Blanc, made in the Loire style, and a Cabernet Shiraz, which was accompanied by fish or chicken tandoori.

Grover is experimenting with additional varietals. Tempranillo is giving good results, Mandla said. Others with potential are Cabernet Franc and Malbec. Merlot is less promising so far.

Syrah has done “wonderfully well,” and Mandla recommends it with Indian food, as well as Viognier. Missing from the line are Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. “The climate is not cool enough for them,” Mandla said.

Grapes are hand harvested and picked toward the evening when the temperature is lower. White wine grapes go to a cold room to relax before the wine-making process begins. The vines are young, averaging 8 to 10 years, with 15-year-old vines producing the grapes for La Réserve. Tonnage is kept low.

Grover produces 33 wines, seven of them chosen for the United States.”The trend [wine-drinking] has not really picked up in India,” Mandla said. There, spirits are more popular.

“Given the climate, rosé is good for India,” he said. The Art Collection rosé poured that day (at the right) was complex and assertive enough to be good anywhere, in my opinion.

New Special Off-Menu Feast at India’s Tandoor, Brentwood

March 20, 2017 Comments Off

(Roberta Deen with Gerry Furth-Sides ) Passionate India’s Tandoori Brentwood restaurant owner-chef Matin Shah will be offering a new “off the menu” $100.00 per person dinner family-style dinner featuring the most unusual and spectacular historic dishes of four regions of India.

Always the consummate host at the popular gathering place, Matin is always on the lookout to please his guests in new ways. He has already served the dinner to several groups of guests (some celebrity world travelers!) who “loved it.”

The dinner will start with three to four passed items – potato and pea samosa, egg roll, Kebabs and dips

Mogli Quail

Mogli Quail or Game Hen – bird pieces (halved quail or quartered game hen or standard chicken pieces) half-browned for color in a bit of olive oil and ghee (clarified butter) and set aside while the sauce is built layer upon layer. The Mogli sauce begins with onion, seeded chili serrano, and pureed ginger sauteed in a bit of olive oil. Chopped tomato is added and the contents are allowed to cook down over medium-low heat.

The Mogli Quail or Game Hen dishes are very intricate, echoing their cultural and historic evolvement over the centuries. //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quails_in_cookery First spices – cumin, garam masala, crushed green cardamom pods, stick cinnamon and powdered turmeric – are added to the tomato mixture and allowed to simmer over a very low heat for an extended time.

When significantly reduced, browned bird sections are added back into the sauce with yogurt, ginger paste, smashed garlic, cilantro and the dish again simmers for 15 minutes. The sauce becomes a rich color and texture with an inviting aroma that totally engages all the senses.

Tandoori Paneer – a colorful vegetarian dish of grilled peppers and onions with grilled squares of fresh, white Indian cheese or Paneer. It is similar in texture and taste to a farmers cheese or a compressed ricotta.

Aloo Gobi – Aloo is potato and Gobi is cauliflower. Together with the turmeric- yellowed sauce they are elevated to a flavorful marriage fully pleasing the eye and the palate.

Bhagari Jhinga

Bhagari Jhinga – Stir-fried shrimp in cream sauce – A heady coconut sauce, spiced with garam masala, cumin, cayenne, fresh cilantro, jalapeno pepper (seeds left in so this is a bit spicy), lemon juice and coconut milk is used to simmer cleaned shrimp that have been sauteed for a moment with black mustard seed and garlic. To finish the dish a slurry of cornstarch and water thickens the sauce to make it creamy.

Steamed Long-grained Basmati Rice – fragrant and alluring

Laccha Paratha – A hearty, hand-made, flaky flatbread made with wheat and whole wheat flours