Darpan Recipes: The Art of Abhishek Roy

A new spin on traditional appies served at wedding events

Chef extraordinaire Abhishek Roy shares an innovative, unique dish that will have your guests buzzing during the reception. His advice, “step outside of the box and think about incorporating new dishes” that will not only be a surprise for your guests, but they get the opportunity to indulge their palates in diverse flavours. Roy, an award-winning chef and owner of the restaurant Atithi (“honoured guest”) highlights home-style cooking by keeping things simple while using fresh, local ingredients and Ocean Wise seafood. He has worked in India, the United States and now calls Vancouver home.

Wild Halibut Cheeks in Bengali Mustard Curry accompanied with Pineapple Chutney

Marinate
1 tsp of mustard paste
½ tsp of lemon juice
1 pinch of black pepper
1 pinch of turmeric
Salt to taste
(for 1 lb of halibut cheeks)

Marinate halibut cheeks for 4 hours.

Bengali Mustard Curry
2 Tbsp of tomato puree
1 tsp of ginger paste
Few onion seeds
¼ cup of coconut milk
½ tsp cumin powder
One medium-sized chopped onion
1 pinch of turmeric powder
2 tsp of mustard paste
3 Tbsp cooking oil

Heat the oil and start with onion seeds and chopped onion. Add the ginger paste when onion starts to turn golden brown. Let the ginger get cooked, then add turmeric, cumin powder and tomato puree. Put the flame down and sauté the mixture for 2-3 minutes, then add ½ cup of water and coconut milk. Bring it to a boil and lastly add mustard paste. Add salt to taste and make the curry thick consistently by simmering it.

Pineapple Chutney
This can be stored and will go with anything like a spicy curry
1 chopped pineapple
½ cup of sugar
2 cinnamon sticks
1/8 tsp of chilli flakes
1 pinch of salt

Boil the pineapple for 10-15 minutes with salt. Drain water and keep it aside. Just sprinkle little water over sugar in a saucepan and let it simmer to syrup. Add cinnamon and flakes to the syrup. While the sugar syrup is hot, add pineapple and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Let it cool down.

To Serve:
Grill the halibut cheeks at 350 °F. Add the curry on top and serve with pineapple chutney. You can skewer the halibut with bamboo sticks, which are biodegradable. Serves 4