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Pairing onion dishes with Krug champagne a learning experience

Currently, there are 151 Krug Ambassade Chefs from 27 different countries

Chef Prateek Sadhu
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Chef Prateek Sadhu

Krug Ambassade is a champagne company and part of a network of unique ambassadors, reflecting the spirit of the House of Krug, who are constantly inviting consumers to discover or rediscover Krug and to experience its champagnes with enthusiasm and passion. Julie Cavil, Cellar Master for Maison Krug, and Ambassade - Chef Prateek Sadhu spoke with Bizz Buzz in an exclusive interview. "The beauty of the ubiquitous yet humble onion is that it is a staple in every cuisine of the world, making this experience truly global. As we share our passion for the onion and for Krug through social media, it is really accessible to anyone," says Chef Prateek Sadhu

Could you explain about the Krug X Onion programme?

The Krug Ambassade network is a closely knit community of Krug Lover Chefs, restaurants, sommeliers and fine wine merchants that share common values with the House. Currently, there are 151Krug Ambassade Chefs from 27 different countries. In a nod to the Krug's craftsmanship, where each plot of vines, through its wine, is seen as a single ingredient in Krug Champagnes, each year the house invites a small group of these chefs on a culinary journey of discovery around a humble ingredient, after which they create unexpected Krug pairings. The adventure and the recipes are chronicled in the annual Krug Single Ingredient Book.

From Tokyo to Chicago, Mumbai or London, I joined 10 highly talented Chefs and KrugCellar Master Julie Cavil on a voyage to India's culinary backbone in the legendary Pink City of Jaipur, where we unleashed our imagination and created unique onion-inspired recipes to pair with a glass of Krug.

The oldest cultivated vegetable in history, the onion is believed to have originated on the Asian continent, which is what brought the group to India. Over a three-day immersion, we experience first-hand how the Rajasthani interact with the onion, discovering inspiring new recipes and farming techniques while building friendships along the way.


Which wines are paired with dishes prepared by the various Chefs across the world?

These 11 recipes were crafted to pair with either Krug Grande Cuvée 168ème Édition, Krug Grande Cuvée 169ème Édition, Krug Rosé 24ème Édition or Krug Rosé 25ème Édition. The Chefs selected the Champagne that best matched their onion recipes whether they sought the fullness of flavours and aromas of Krug Grande Cuvée or the surprising structure and spice of Krug Rosé. For my recipe, which was inspired by the farm in Kashmir where I grew up, as I wanted to make something from my mother's kitchen, I chose Krug Rosé 24ème Édition. The subtle spice in my dish is just enough to accentuate the palate of this Champagne.

What is the target audience for this exercise and what is the response of patrons?

The beauty of the ubiquitous yet humble onion is that it is a staple in every cuisine of the world, making this experience truly global. As we share our passion for the onion and for Krug online through social media, it is really accessible to anyone. Personally, I hope that I can contribute to awareness of India's rich culinary culture and, locally, encourage Indians to be bold with food and wine pairings, especially for spicy dishes. The response from my followers and guests at Masque has been great I have enjoyed becoming closer to them.

What were some of the important points you will keep in mind while preparing the menu based on the theme Onion?

It's easy to take certain ingredients, like the onion, for granted, especially here in India where it's often a staple part of our meals in many parts of the country. So, when putting together this dish for Krug, my focus was on making sure the onion really shone through. That doesn't necessarily mean having it front and centre on the plate; rather, I think it's a great supporting player, so to speak, in its many avatars whether sauteed, caramelized, cooked down, pickled or raw. It can be so diverse; what was important was taking advantage of all those ways in which it adds to a dish and imbuing the final product with each of those flavours.

What was the prep work required to create the menu?

The first step, of course, was to narrow down on the final dish, which was a take on one my mother would make of tripe cooked with chillies and praan (a type of onion). The majority of the prep work revolved around the onions themselves, because I was using them in a number of ways: Madras onions were slowly braised in mustard oil, lamb stock and yoghurt for the sauce; another component required fermented onion juice, for which I fermented them for five days prior to cooking; for the katlam, they had to be dehydrated overnight first, while for the finishing oil, red onions were slowly cooked till translucent, infused in oil overnight, then strained. The katlam dough also takes some time, as it's a laminated pastry made with butter blocks, similar to croissants or puff pastry.

Besides onions which were the key ingredients (meats etc) in the dishes?

Onions aside, the key ingredients were lamb tripe, spices—fennel especially and katlam, a flaky Kashmiri bread that we infused with dehydrated onions and served alongside the dish.

Vincent Fernandes
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