Review - For The Love Of Sea-Food At Asia Live, Avari Towers!

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Last time I went there to try their yummy Arabic Food. The experience at Avari Towers’ restaurant Asia Live was so excellent that I decided to go there once again. However, this time, it was not a food festival but a regular themed night dinner. Yes, Asia Live offers distinctive theme buffet nights with a vast variety of delectable cuisines.

In my previous blog, I have already written about the cozy ambience of Asia Live. The restaurant's staff will welcome you with a friendly gesture. They will escort you to your desired table. The thoroughly professional team is very cooperative and helpful. The impeccable ambience is perfect place for a delightful evening as it provides an absolute leisure atmosphere so that you can fully relish your meal.

Read our review An Insider's Guide To Arabic Food Festival At Asia Live, Avari Towers!

Coming back to their creative themed dinners, the seafood nights happen every Friday at Asia Live Restaurant. I must say that through its themed dinner nights, restaurant is not only offering masterfully prepared scrumptious food but also raising the bar for fine dining. The idea to add a theme to dinner is to make it more enjoyable. 

So, the last Friday, I went there to experience another wonderful dinner comprised of seafood. I was expecting some unusual dishes as part of seafood. But to my surprise the buffet menu was well-chosen while keeping in mind the food-lovers’ typical choice and tastes.

The menu was an amalgamation of culinary flare, unique flavor and diversity of seafood. It included fish and crab based dishes along with pasta, vegetable, Japanese savors, fried, tikka and the yummy fish pilaf. The huge range of appetizing salads, pickles, and desserts was another feature of the buffet dinner.

One of the most attractive feature of the seafood theme night was Live Fish Cooking. There was a variety of raw fishes available that one can select and order to be cooked as per taste. The chefs would prepare your desired fish dish and serves you right from the stove. This is an amazing side of Asia Live restaurant that keeps it on top of other eatery places. 

I started my dinner with a crab soup. It was prepared as restaurant’s own specialty. The taste was fine and well balanced. After this, I tried Tilapia fish with Thermidor sauce, Crab in bonne femme sauce, Red Snapper teppenyaki, Tuna fish pulao, Bekti tikka, and Pasta Marinara.

I loved the crunchy taste of Bekti tikka and spicy flavors of Tuna fish pilaf. Both dishes were cooked in a pure eastern way and gives a BBQ and biryani style aromatic flavors. The Crab in Bonne Femme sauce was prepared in a white creamy textured sauce and tastes very good. The meat was well cooked. The Pasta Marinara was another great dish with slight red colour and peppery taste.

I finished my dinner by tasting the sweet treats including jelly with pine-apple, fruity trifle, brownies, soft custard, and the famous king of sweet dishes the Gulab Jaman dipped in sugary sauce.

Verdict

If you are a true sea-food lover and want to enjoy some aromatic dishes, some creamy flavors and diverse desserts, then I would highly recommend that you should try the menu of Asia Live’s themed nights with your family, friends, and colleagues. It will cost you Pakistan Rupees 2300+tax per head.

Ratings

I would give it following stars;

Food – 4/5

Ambience – 4.5/5

Service – 4/5  

Opening Times

Friday – 19:30pm to 23:30pm

For any query or reservation of your table, visit the official website Avari Towers.

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Review - An Insider's Guide To Arabic Food Festival At Asia Live, Avari Towers!

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Asia Live is a casual dining area of the Avari Towers Hotel Karachi, with a conventional baron elegant leitmotif. The restaurant has gained a reputation of a terminus for organizing extravagant food festivals, serving exotic recipes from Far East, Europe and Middle Eastern domains.

Recently, I went to Asia Live restaurant for a food festival; the Arabic Food Festival. It is a 3 day long fiesta from 26^th to 28^th October 2018. I would like to suggest that any person who wants to be acquainted with mouthwatering Arabic cuisine, should visit this restaurant’s festival and enjoy the wide range of starter – mezza, more than 8 dishes of main course and of course the last but not the least; the famous desserts that no one can resist.

The Ambience

As soon as you walk through the door, the smiling face friendly staff will greet and guide you through the tables to your desired space. The warm, appealing dining room is flawless spacious hall for a delightful eating experience; the flavorful meal at a comfy table. The pleasing ambience will convey a sense of relaxation while you enjoy your incomparable cuisine. Moreover, the scrumptious cuisine along with distinct live music will gear-up your frame of mind to an impressive Arabic ambience.

The Food

Now let me tell you more elaborately about my experience. I started my dinner with starter – mezza, including all the true Middle Eastern salads such as Babaghanooj (an Eggplant dip), Hummos (the famous chickpea dip), Tabbooleh, Fattoosh, Samboosek, Keshkeh, Khoboz Araby (the Arabic bread) served with pita bread. However, the Mahammara, a blended rich dip made of redpeppers, walnuts, oliveoil and pomegranate molasses, was the main attraction of this category. I tried it with everything from the meaty dishes to rice with dry fruits.

Me and my friends requested the concerned person to meet the creator of the menu. We were introduced to Chef Naim who later briefed us about each and every dish that was served. He has a vast experience in his field and knows very well how to create a quality aromatic dish with a twist of seasonal ingredients to give you an array of flavours. What I understand from his way of explanation is that he along with his team maintains a special emphasize on high quality, cleanness, freshness and the taste. It all reflected in their delectable creations.

After talking to chef, we started our main course that was comprised of a mixture of BBQ, grilled meat, rice, and vegetable based menu. It included Makloobet Betenjan (an eggplants and rice dish), the moist and juicy Lamb Chops, Rez Bel Ja (chicken and rice dish), Shiekh Elmehshi (a dish prepared with Zucchini and Yogurt), Koosa Mehshi (a dish comprised of stuffed Zucchini), and the two most famous dishes from middle east; yes here I am talking about the Shawarma Chicken Kabseh and the Mesakan Chicken kabab, most commonly known as Shish Tawook. Every dish was cautiously prepared and seasoned with sporadic Middle Eastern spices.

At the end of the dinner, I tried the selective desserts including the Kushta (a homemade Arabic cream), Baklawa Pastry, Basboosah (Hareeseh), Katayef and the most delicious sweet treat Umm Ali.

Verdict

If you are a Arabic food lover, then I would recommend that you along with your family and friends, should drop in for this 3 day long Arabic Food Festival and enjoy not only an intimate Arabic meal but also an Arabic Night full of traditional Arabic music and performances; all in a wholly Arabic ambience.

Ratings

I would definitely give it following rating;

Food – 4.5/5

Ambience – 4/5

Service – 4/5   

Opening Times

Fri, Sat, Sun – 19:30pm to 23:30pm

For any query or reservation of your table, visit the official website Avari Towers. 

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Review - Paramount Fine Foods Brings Lebanese Food To Pakistan

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Whenever a new restaurant comes to town, we all love to visit it with our family and friends to taste its new cuisine. A few months back, an international food chain Paramount Fine Foods has opened its restaurant in Karachi. The food chain already has its outlets in Canada and USA. Its specialty is offering authentic and remarkable Lebanese and Middle Eastern food in a cozy atmosphere.

One fine afternoon, we visited this new restaurant with our friends for lunch. The decision to try the food of Paramount Fine Foods was turned into an amazing experience because we liked the comfortable atmosphere and enjoyed a super yumlicious lunch.

Let’s have a look at the menu of Paramount Fine Foods. The Hummus and Pita bread was really a great starter to warm up for some great Middle Eastern dishes and desserts. Hummus is very popular recipe around the world and Paramount has added more taste to it by combining it with fresh Pita bread that enhances the flavor of hummus.

The Zaatar Manakeesh was another flavorsome dish. This was very different and unique taste. It is a thin crispy dough with the combination of different herbs. 

The highlight of the menu was mixed Grilled Platter. There were many tasty things arranged on platter, for example, the BBQ beef and chicken, falafel, Kafta, Sheesh-tawouk with salad and Tahini sauce. It was the best grilled meat that we have ever tasted.  

The Saj wrap and potato fries with fresh salad garnishing was one delicious dish that we liked the most. The marinated and grilled shrimps were also very tasty, you must order it for lunch or dinner. 

Paramount Fine Foods has a vast variety of desserts. You will fall in love with the wide range of tempting sweets like Baklawa and Kinafe, all displaying in glass showcases. The taste of different Baklawas is unique and the accurate amount of sweetness made them simply outstanding.

The menu also includes hot beverages like tea, coffee, cappuccino, café lattee and cold beverages includes mango juice, cocktail juice, strawberry juice and paramount special. We ordered plain water bottles because “Paramount Water Bottles” has some incentive of charity, with each order of water bottle Rs 5 is donated to Dar –Ul-Sukoon.

We would recommend that you should visit Paramount Fine Foods with your family and friends for the fresh delicious and healthy food. 

Rating:

There is no doubt that this Paramount Fine Foods is a must-go restaurant, so we are giving it 5/5. 

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Recipe - Hot And Spicy Red Kidney Beans Curry (Rajma Masala)

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Every recipe of beans is different depending on the taste and likeness of the people. In our family red kidney beans curry is one of the favorite dishes. We call it Rajma Masala. Rajma is the word for beans while Masala means mixture of spices. So, Rajma Masala is actually “Spicy Beans”.

This curry is usually has some saucy consistency but in our home we like to have it almost in a thick paste style, means no watery effect. This recipe is very spicy but if you want a mild version of it, just cut down the quantity of red and green chillies.

Let’s start our recipe of hot and spicy red kidney beans curry.

Ingredients:

Onion 1

Tomato 2

Ginger 1 tsp

Garlic 1 tsp

Cumin ½ tsp

Black pepper 6

Red Chilli powder 2 tsp

Turmeric powder ½ tsp

Coriander powder 1tbsp

Salt to taste

Oil 6 tbsp

Red Kidney beans 1 cup

Green Chillies 4

Method:

Soak kidney beans for 6 hours.

Fry cumin and black pepper in oil.

Add sliced onion and fry till light brown.

Add chopped ginger and garlic in onion and fry for three minutes.

Add chopped tomatoes and stir fry it.

As the tomatoes become soft, add all the spices.

Stir fry it for five minutes.

Add soaked kidney beans with 4 cups water.

Cover and let it simmer for thirty minutes.

If after thirty minutes, beans are still hard then add some more water and simmer for another ten to fifteen minutes till they become tender.

When beans become soft and tender, evaporate all water till oil separates.

In the end add chopped green chillies and coriander leaves. Cook  for two minutes.

Serve it with boiled rice or chappati. 

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Recipe - Yummy Chicken Karahi

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Photo: Oh Lady Mania

Karahi is a local term used for cooking utensil "wok". The traditional dish Karahi is a recipe that mostly cooked in a deep wok, hence the name has word 'Karahi' (wok) in the recipe.

Karahi can be made from beef, mutton, chicken, fish and prawns with the addition of yogurt, tomatoes and green chilies. It is an easy to make recipe with just few spices.

Let's check out our recipe of home made Chicken Karahi.

Ingredients

Chicken pieces 1 kg
Tomatoes 500 gms
Ginger Garlic Paste 2 tbsp
Red Chili powder 2 tsp
Turmeric powder 1/4 tsp
Salt as per taste
Fenugreek seeds 1/2 tsp
Yogurt 1/2 cup
Oil 1/2 cup
All Spice powder 1 tsp
Green Chilies 5
Coriander leaves for garnishing

Method

Heat oil in a wok.
Add ginger garlic paste and fry it till aroma comes out.
Add chicken pieces in it and cook till colour changes.
When chicken meat changes its colour, add chopped tomatoes and cook well.
Also add salt, turmeric and red chili powder in it.
After tomatoes are cooked well, add yogurt and fenugreek seeds.
Let it cook till oil separates.
When oil separates, add green chilies and all spice powder.
Cover the wok and cook for a minute.
Remove from flame.
Dish out Chicken Karahi and garnish it with coriander leaves and ginger thin stripes.
Serve it with Chapati or rice.

If you like very spicy food, adjust the spices as per your taste.      



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Happy Independence Day!

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Pakistan Flag

Dear Friends,

Let us introduce our beloved country to all of you. We would not go into the details but will tell you very briefly. This introduction will make you understand a little bit about our homeland Pakistan.

Today is 14th August, the day our country Pakistan became an independent state in 1947. Our independence is the result of determination, hard work and great struggle under the dynamic leadership of Mr. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan. 

Muhammad Ali Jinnah

Muhammad Ali Jinnah in his first speech to the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan said:

"You are free; you are free to go to your temples, you are free to go to your mosques or to any other place or worship in this State of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion or caste or creed – that has nothing to do with the business of the State."

State emblem of Pakistan

Pakistan is a cradle of civilizations including the great Indus Valley Civilization. It has a rich ethnic and linguistic culture. The national dress for both genders is Shalwar Kameez, however, trousers, Jeans, and shirts are also popular among people. 

Pakistan's food is mostly meat based with lots of spices. Some of the famous gravy and rice dishes are Biryani, Pilaf, Qorma, Nihari, Haleem, BBQ, Sajji, Saag, Paya Masala etc. The famous sweet-dishes are Kheer, Gulab Jamun, Zarda etc.

web photo

Checkout the following to know something about our country,

Our Mother of the Nation is Fatima Jinnah and the National poet is Doctor Muhammad Iqbal.

Fatima Jinnah and Doctor Muhammad Iqbal

National language is Urdu

National flower is Jasmine

National fruit is Mango

National tree is Himalayan cedar

National sport is Hockey

National monuments are Mazar-e-Quaid, Minar-e-Pakistan (Tower of Pakistan), Bab-e-Pakistan (Gateway of Pakistan) and Pakistan Monument.

Minar-e-Pakistan (Tower of Pakistan)

Mazar-e-Quaid

Pakistan Monument

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Recipe - Aromatic Butter Chicken

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Oh Lady Mania Photo

Last week we went to a restaurant for family dinner. The restaurant is famous for its Pakistani Cuisine. We ordered our food including different gravy based dishes and rice. One particular dish was extra ordinary tasty and it became an instant hit. It was the Butter Chicken that attracted us most.

Upon our family's demand, we tried Butter Chicken recipe at home and it turned out very delicious and aromatic dish. So, we are sharing our own recipe with you all.

Let's start our recipe:

Ingredients

Chicken boneless 750 gms
Lemon juice 2tbsp
Garlic paste 1tsp
Red chili powder 1tsp
Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
Salt 1/2 tsp
Oil 1tsp

Onion chopped 1 medium
Ginger garlic paste 1tbsp
Tomato puree 1 cup
Yogurt 4tbsp
Red chili powder 2tsp
Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
Garam masala powder 1tsp
Cumin powder 1/2tsp
Fenugreek dried leaves 1tsp
Salt (according to your taste)
Fresh cream 1cup
Butter 2tbsp
Coriander chopped 4tbsp

Method

Marinate boneless chicken pieces with lemon juice, garlic, red chili powder, turmeric powder, salt and oil. Keep it in fridge for 2 hours.

After 2 hours, fry above marinated chicken in 2tbsp oil. The color should not be dark nor white but light golden. Remove on to a plate.

In a pot, heat butter and add onions, fry till light golden color.

Add ginger garlic paste, cook 1 minute. Add tomato puree and cook till water dries.

Add all the remaining dry spices and keep stirring for 5 minutes.

Add yogurt in it, cook 4 minutes.

Now add above cooked chicken pieces. Cook 2 minutes.

Add fresh cream, coriander leaves and mix it in the gravy and chicken, cook for 2 minutes.

Delicious Aromatic Butter Chicken is ready to dish out. Garnish it with chopped coriander leaves and ginger.

Serve it with naan or rice.



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Recipe - Fried Fish With Rice

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Fried Fish With Rice. Photo: Oh, Lady Mania!

 Almost everyone loves to eat fish based dishes. It may be the simple curry or tempura pieces or spicy fried fillets, fish is essential part of food for many of us. 

In our home, we usually like to cook fish with our own home made "Masala" (spice mixture). However, for this recipe me and my sister decided to try some locally available packet masala. 

Photo: Oh, Lady Mania!

From wide range of packets, we selected "Shan Fried Fish". Shan's spice mixture is available in 50 gm packaging, it is enough for 750 gm to 1 kg fish. We mostly like to have boneless fish dishes. Hence, for this recipe we used boneless fish fillets. You can use boneless pieces or whatever you want. 

Photo: Oh, Lady Mania!

Recipe:

We followed the recipe instructions step by step printed on the packet. The easy steps are as follows:

Add 3 tbsp lemon juice in raw fish and leave it for 10 minutes then rinse it with tap water and pat dry each fish piece with kitchen tissue.

Mix garlic paste, Shan fried fish masala and oil in fish as per packet instructions.

Leave marinated fish for 2 hours.

For Batter:

Take 1 cup gram flour (baisan) in a bowl, add 1 egg in it and mix.

Add water in above mixture to make smooth - thin paste. 

Dip marinated fish in this batter and deep fry till golden color.


We served this delicious crispy fried fish with Chickpea Pulao. It was very yummy with a totally different taste. Shan spice mixture is balanced in its ingredients and enhanced the flavor of fish fillets. 







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Aromatic Daal Makhani

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Daal Makhani with Boiled Rice

Daal Makhani is very much different from the routine daal (lentil) recipes that we usually make at homes. It has very strong aroma and smooth creamy texture that will allure your family.

It is quick to cook as there is no need to go to market to buy extra ordinary ingredients.  All the basic ingredients required to make this special daal can be found in your kitchen cabinets and in your fridge.

Let's start our Aromatic Makhani Daal recipe:

Ingredients:

Moong daal 1 Cup
Masoor daal 1 Cup
Red chili powder 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
Cumin whole 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves 7_8
Mustard seeds 1/2 tsp
Red pepper whole 5
Ginger paste 1/2 tsp
garlic paste 1/2 tsp
Tomatoes 1 medium  chopped
Onion 2 t chopped
Green chilies 3 chopped
Fresh Cream 3 tbsp
Green coriander 2 tbsp chopped
Salt to taste
Oil 3 tbsp
Butter 1 tbsp

Method:

Wash and Soak both lentils for 30 minutes.
In a pot add your soaked lentils along with water. Water level should be above the lentils.
Add red chili powder, turmeric powder, cumin whole in lentils. Mix well.
Cook till lentils become tender and water evaporates.
To adjust desired consistency add water and bring it to boil.
Add salt as per taste. Mix well

For Tempering:

Heat Pan .
Add Oil. Add butter.
Add curry leaves and mustard seeds. Saute
Add ginger paste and garlic paste. Saute till light golden.
Add chopped onion. Saute till light golden.
Add dried red chilies broken in pieces. Saute
Add chopped tomatoes.Saute.
Add finely chopped green chilies.

Now pour this tempering in your pre-boiled daal. Mix it well.
Add cream and mix it well so that Daal becomes thick in texture.
Dish out in a bowl and garnish with coriander leaves and cream.
Serve it with boiled rice or naan.





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Spicy Chicken Makhani

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Photo: Oh Lady Mania

Are you getting bored of eating Chicken Qorma, Chicken Karahi and other regular Chicken gravies, if yes, than go for something unique in taste.

Chicken Makhani can be a fun to cook and it will rejuvenate your taste buds by giving a blend of spices and flavour of butter and cream.

Lets start cooking Spicy Chicken Makhani

Ingredients:

500 gms Chicken boneless
1/2 cup Oil
4-5 Tomatoes chopped
2 tbsp Ginger Garlic paste
4 tbsp Onion finely chopped
1 tbsp Red chili powder
1 tsp Turmeric powder
1/2 tsp Black pepper powder
2 Cinnamon sticks
4 Cloves
4 Black pepper whole
Salt To taste
3/4 Cup yogurt
3 tbsp Butter
1/2 Cup Fresh cream
4 tbsp coriander chopped
4 Green chilies roughly chopped
1 tbsp Ginger Julian


 Method: 

In a big bowl, mix chicken pieces with salt, red chili powder, turmeric powder, black pepper powder and half quantity of mentioned yogurt.

Leave the marinated chicken for 15-20 minutes.

In a pot, heat oil and saute onion on medium flame.

Add ginger garlic paste, whole cloves, cinnamon, black pepper and fry for 2 minutes.

Add the marinated chicken and cook for another 6 minutes.

Now add tomatoes and green chilies.

Cook till chicken and tomatoes becomes tender.

Add remaining yogurt and cook till water evaporates.

Add butter and stir continuously till oil separates.

Now turn heat on low flame and add cream. Stir continuously till oil separates.

Dish out in a serving bowl and garnish with coriander an ginger.

Serve it with naan or boiled rice.






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