The Tiger of Punjab is waiting for you

Dining at the Sher-e-Punjab

by Ambrosia

Don’t worry, it’s not a real tiger. It’s a relatively new Indian Restaurant called the Sher-e-Punjab, which means Tiger of Punjab. The owner, Harinder Pal Singh, “Benny”, named his restaurant after the last king of, at that time still united, Punjab, who reigned at the end of the last century. Maharaja Ranjit Singh, better known as the ‘Tiger of Punjab’ was recognized for his bravery when fighting the English conquerors. Harinder Pal Singh has no intention to do so, just the opposite - he’d like to wine and dine them.
The restaurant is air-conditioned with typical Indian decorations, very comfortable lighting and the interior is set in the colors of blue and white, giving it a cozy ambiance. A big terrace in front of the restaurant with lots of plants is an alternative for those who like to sit in the fresh air and enjoy dinner without distracting traffic noise as in so many other places. Adjoining the restaurant is a big bar for those who’d like to have draft beer or drinks only.
The menu offers a wide range of Indian, Mughlai and Inter-national cuisine. Many of you might not know what Mughlai food is. During the 15th Century invaders from Persia came into North-India and they were called Mugh-lais. As usual, invaders always believe they are of a higher class than the conquered nation, these invaders called themselves ‘Royal’ and their cuisine was adapted as ‘Royal food’.
My non-royal companions and I started with typical Papad Dum, very thin, crispy bread, with Chatane dip. None of us had soup since we all knew Indian food to be quite heavy and we didn’t want to be filled up too soon. Instead we chose Vegetable- and Mutton Samosas. Nice and crispy outside, soft and tasty inside. A Vegetable Pakora and a Prawn Pakora followed.
Indians sometimes prepare their food with lots of oil, but all that we ate was far from being oily or greasy. The next dish we ordered was a mixture of Chicken, Mutton and Fish Tikka Masali, prepared Tandoori style, which is the famous Indian clay-oven. All the meat was very tender and still crispy on the outside. A special salad, prepared only for us, rounded out the meal perfectly.
After all those entrees, we went into ‘heavier’ fare, like Cheese Pagora, small pieces of home made cheese and fried, a Shish Kebab, a pot with Dal, which are baked lentils and quite tasty, a rich chicken curry Muslim style and finally a mutton curry. We refused rice and ate instead Nan, a very soft and typical Indian bread. One of my companions, the youngest of our group, managed to eat seven (!) big pieces of it.
She-e Punjab also offers special desserts, but we simply had to refuse for there was absolutely no space left in our stomachs.
This restaurant is highly recommended for all those who love to eat spicy yet healthy Indian food in a nice, quiet and comfortable atmosphere. The price range is very medium and, different than many other Indian Restaurants, all kinds of drinks including wines and champagnes are available.
Sher-e-Punjab is to be found at South Pattaya Beach Road between Nang Nual and Siam Bayshore and has, for those who come with their own car, a big parking lot in it’s back yard.

Recipe

One of my South African cookbooks suggests that “Pienang” made from fish or meat is so named after Penang island were many Malay slaves were supposed to come from. This is very unlikely as the island of Penang was quite unknown until 1786, when Francis Light, in some shady deal with the Sultan of Kedah, acquired the island for the British East India Company. The name “Pienang” comes from the Malay or rather Javanese word “Pindang” which is a kind of curry or spicy soup, usually made without coconut milk. One of the most popular “Pindangs” in Indonesia is made with beef and called:
PIENDANG SERANI
Take 700 grams of beef with some gristle and cut it in small pieces. Pound in a mortar:
a few slices of Galanga (Kah); a small piece of turmeric (Kamin); one stalk of lemon grass (Takry); one teaspoon of toasted shrimp paste (Kapi); ten toasted small red onions, sliced; four sliced toasted red chillies (or more) and three to four cloves of garlic.
When fine fry this mixture in two tablespoons of vegetable oil and add the meat. Mix well and add a glass of water plus two to three “Makrut” leaves. Also add a little tamarind water made from “Makram Peeak” and salt to taste. Let this simmer until the meat is very well done. Remove the leaves and serve with the rice.
“Baje Lekker!!”