There’s something about the sound of meat hitting heat that instinctively I turn to. It is rather primal and perhaps embarrassingly so, but the heady aroma of smoke and char hits me then, and automatically, my next move is to wait patiently till the plate hits my table, and if it passes by and goes to someone else, be disappointed, rather comically so when I am full and still wanting, my gluttonous soul craving the burnt crunchy bits that stick to the edge of the hot sizzler plate, and ignoring the fact that the heat from the plate almost always leave me with a searing need to drink water afterwards.
It is perhaps this habit that takes me to a place like Baan Thai for their sizzler festival, where chicken, pork sausages, prawns, beef and vegetables come to your table sizzling for attention, and you’re spoilt for choices. The sizzlers come accompanied with a platter of sauces chiefly from the South East, although there’s a rather surprising portion of a rather smoky Sepen, the Tibetan hot sauce with roasted tomatoes and hot red chillies, that surprisingly makes its own space amongst the peanut sauce and the chillies and garlic soaked in a good bit of fish sauce.
The vegetable sizzler hits the table first, with chunks of broccoli, a generous helping of edamame, cabbage, and other vegetables, and I am struck by how well it works – the tender edamame gets a lovely char from the hot plate and there’s a touch of soy that brings every thing together.
The minced prawn sizzler is inspired from the streets of Thailand, but of course, rather than disappointing, gluggy balls of prawn-flavoured sticky flour, here, finely minced prawns are flavoured delicately with lemongrass and piled on top of the sizzler plate with Thai chillies and pepper. I am not enamoured of the Pork Sausages, that, despite the tangy, peanut sauce, and good quality sausages, is strictly okay.
My surprise favourite from the lot is the chicken sizzler, that’s dark from sweet soy and hints of five spice, that I dip into a rather interesting sauce that pairs together chillies, sweetness and garlic, and then chase down with a couple of pieces of green chillies soaked in fish sauce and vinegar.
Then, well-fed and content, I wish to God all of these sizzlers would be a part of Baan Thai’s permanent menu, and not just a part of their sizzler festival, and the Chef de Cuisine, Klae Somsuay, would make that happen in the near or distant future.
Oh well, once more next time around!
Disclaimer: Poorna Banerjee was invited to the sizzler festival by the management of The Oberoi Grand.
