Chef Rehman Mujeebur Interview: What makes the cuisine of Murshidabad unique

Chef Rehman Mujeebur is an expert in royal cuisines, and his latest project, — the cuisine of Murshidabad, —was showcased recently in Bengaluru.
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The Hindu

Subziyon ke tahiri at the pop-up in Shangri-La Bengaluru

When one thinks of royal cuisines of India, we always picture Awadh or the North west. There is a hidden gem in the cuisine of Murshidabad, one that is more delicate and complex. Chef Rehman Mujeebur is an expert in royal cuisines, and his latest project, the cuisine of Murshidabad, was showcased recently in Bengaluru. He was hosted by Shangri-La Bengaluru for a food festival at the restaurant Ssaffron. Over lunch, I learn more about history and the diverse communities that influence these dishes.

Murshidabad, located on the banks of the Bhagirathi River in West Bengal, is a historic city. In 1702, the Nawab of Bengal, Murshid Quli Khan founded this city and named it after himself. Jains from Rajasthan were brought in to take care of finances, foreign traders from Europe came for business, and the Mughal style of life thrived there. And hence even today, the cuisine of Murshidabad is a mix of Jain flavours, Mughal sensibilities and local Bengali ingredients. 

Chef Rehman Mujeebur is an expert in royal cuisines of India

“I have researched on the cuisines of Hyderabad, Rampur, Northwest, Kashmir and many others. Last year I started work on Murshidabad,” says the chef who holds a doctorate in culinary arts, and is descended from khansamas of Lucknow. “Nobody has done work in this cuisine. I went there, I read through archives and documents, met elders from the community and the khansamas there. I called them to my kitchen and learnt from them.” Notes of mustard, mustard oil, rose water and potatoes set this cuisine apart.

Sandalwood dust and seafood

Being located near the river, Murshidabad has a lot of seafood dishes. The pop up has a special seafood menu, with dishes such as jheenga jangli pudina shorba, a prawn soup finished with wild mint dust. The salmon peelimirch tikka is made with mustard flavoured Norwegian salmon, and yellow chillies; this dish is bright and flavourful. The kekra kebab is made with crab meat and sandalwood dust. “They use sandalwood dust in their cooking to hide the odor of the seafood,” Rehman explains. Lagan ka lobster, a highlight of the meal, was a slow cooked sand lobster cooked with pomegranate paste and spiced with cardamom powder and Kashmiri chilli. The pomegranate gives it a tart flavour. 

The Sheherwali Jains

The menu has a lot of vegetarian dishes because of the prominent Jain community. “The Sheherwali Jains in Murshidabad still host a heritage festival every year”.

The delicate jao badam ka shorba, is a roasted almond soup. Creamy and rich, it is finished with pearl barley for texture. Muttar heeng ke ashfari is a cutlet made of grated potatoes and stuffed with whole green peas. Biting into the peas within the cutlet is a pleasant surprise. One dish that stays with me for long after is the Mughlai baingan bharta. The roasted eggplant is simmered in a light gravy made of onion, mustard and cumin. 

Kolkata Gosht biryani has potatoes in it, once a novelty ingredient in India

The mystery behind potatoes in biryani

The meat dishes are reminiscent of other cuisines, yet different in their own ways. The nalli nihari here is made in ghee and the gravy is strained so that it is silky and smooth. Rehman claims that the idea of adding potatoes to Biryani originated at the same time, around this region. “At the time, potatoes were a new introduction in India bought over by the Portuguese. It was not as common as it is today. To make the biryani special, they added this ingredient. Like today if you want to make anything lavish, you add saffron or nuts, as a novelty. At that time it was potato.”  The Kolkata gosht biryani is made with lamb, potatoes, saffron and rose. 

Adds Rehman, “This cuisine showcases the real diversity of India and its culture. That is why I wanted to take it to the rest of the country.”