Raghav Narang is the Chef-owner of Kaptain’s Bakery in Vasant Vihar, a catering service, as well as an upcoming restaurant. We throw him a googly.
Question:
I’m having a housewarming party for 25 friends and their families. They belong to different age groups, have different eating preferences, and couple of them are also vegan. What should I serve them? In terms of starters, main course, dessert, beverages... I’m confused.
Answer:
Let’s start with the basics.
I would go for the regulars that people are familiar with not too fancy and easy to prepare and reheat, because we all know with such a mix bag there are always those late eaters. Here’s where to go for North Indian food.
That being said, vegetarian starters would be pita bread with Hummus, Paneer Tikka and Aloo Chaat with curd and spices, that would also work for the vegan and people on other diets. Non-vegetarian starters would be more like few Chicken Tikka, Fish Fingers and with a variety of dips such as aioli, sour cream and mint chutney.
Main course should usually be slightly homely since it’s a housewarming party – would go with Chana Kulcha, Veg Rice Pulao, Lotus Stem and potatoes in spices. For the non-vegetarian, I would have mutton dishes with paranthas. In fact, dishes of all lables work, the major factor being having something with a gravy, and a gravy finish. And that’s just pure Indian food. Given that we gravitate to more popular cuisines, sometimes it makes sense to factor in elements from other cuisines.
A lot of people think they should include other cuisines for a group of diners with different tastes; that might work for very large groups, but if you’re having an intimate party, cater to the majority. That always works. For dessert, to keep it classic, there would be Kulfi and Apple crumble with Chocolate Ganache Sauce.