A team of chefs from an Indian naval vessel presented traditional dishes at the annual Fleet Week cooking contest in New York on Sunday.
Crew members of the INS Tarangini, a tall-ship training vessel, prepared an appetiser, an entree, and a dessert. They were up against the culinary treats of a team of chefs from a US Army fort and other ships in port for New York City's annual Fleet Week gala.
The Tarangini chefs -- Mahesh Singh of Bihar, R A Mourya of Kerala and A P Prajeesh of Uttar Pradesh -- prepared dahi wada, a yoghurt appetiser, potato bread entree paau-hhaaji, and gaajar ka halwa, a rich carrot dessert cooked in milk for four hours.
Though the Tarangini's table did not win the contest, the training ship's crew was happy and proud nonetheless.
"This has been a really good experience," said Cadet Ashish Dutta, referring to the ship's participation in the festivities. "We're happy to visit New York," he added.
The competition was judged by a group of celebrity chefs. The US Army's 77th Regional Command of Fort Totten in Queens won the 'Best Entree' and 'Best Overall' categories.
The competition was held at the Intrepid Sea Air Space Museum on the Hudson River. Apart from the Tarangini and the US Army teams, there were entries from Canada, and the United Kingdom too.
The Tarangini is in the midst of a challenging circumnavigation of the globe, Cadet Dutta said. The 54-meter vessel, commissioned in 1997, sailed from its home port of Kochi in January.
Captained by Commander S Shaukat Ali, the Tarangini has a crew complement of six officers, 27 sailors, and about 30 cadets. She will visit more than 30 ports in almost 20 countries.
One highly anticipated stop, Dutta said, is Ohio, where in July the Tarangini will participate in tall-ship races at the Huntington Cleveland Harborfest.
