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Burns Night Himalayan Fling

We had an amazing and extraordinary evening on Burns Night and such a spirited gathering in the restaurant. So many people gave so generously of their time and of themselves to make this the best night we’ve ever had. The evening was a benefit for the Gurkha Welfare Trust and there are so many good souls out there who really extend themselves when it comes to helping other people.



First of all, we had a Gurkha piper, Deepak Raj, who performed magnificently – not only his playing, which was first-rate, but his entire manner and demeanour spoke volumes about the pride Gurkha soldiers take in being members of this esteemed regiment. He first played outside the restaurant to welcome guests in before piping in the bhuton, the Nepalese-recipe ‘haggis’ (more on this follows, including recipe).

Next, scriptwriter and good friend of Babur, Jimmy Gardner, smartly dressed and be-kilted, did a marvellous job of reading the Address to a Haggis. He said to us afterwards that when he cut it open, the smell of spices mixing with the offal and barley was so very appealing. Reaction throughout the restaurant was so very positive from the Scots, English and Asian guests that we feel confident in putting this bhuton on the menu as the stuffing for Nepalese momocha. The bhuton was served with a wee dram of Talisker and the smoky, peatiness of the whisky complemented the gingery spiciness of the bhuton and the tomato dipping sauce.














The raan, which had been marinated for three days in whisky and spices, was served with a gravy on strips of naan. It was meltingly fork-tender, served up with a homestyle dish of potato and okra and dal makhni, with Clos des Calipisses Carignan.

John Murtagh had been in Alloway the night before entertaining Alex Salmond and a room full of dignitaries to launch Scotland Homecoming 2009 with a piece on the life and work of Scotland’s national poet which he also wrote and directed. On the 25th itself he was performing Tam O’Shanter on horseback and flew back down to London especially to be with us. He arrived a bit frazzled but was straight up performing spontaneous poetry from his piece Third Degree Burns. A bit later on he introduced us to the world of high hypocrisy through a performance of Holy Willie’s Prayer that had the entire restaurant spellbound.




In between John’s performances, Peter McCombie MW led us through a tasting of Amrut, an Indian single malt made from barley grown in the foothills of the Himalayas and matured at 3000ft in oak casks in Bangalore. Amrut is the name of a mythical golden pot which contained the elixir of life. Peter then led us through tastings of Dalwhinnie, Singleton and Talisker.

But there was still no end of whisky as Dalwhinnie was served with a caramelised oatmeal pudding.

And finally it was time to pick raffle winners. John Murtagh kindly agreed to present the grand prize, a bottle of The Famous Grouse Robert Burns Edition, a 37-year-old blend, one of only 250 bottles made for the occasion of the Burns 250th anniversary. Our winner was Mary Sutherland, appropriately wearing a Sutherland tartan scarf.



From the dinner, raffle ticket sales and spontaneous contributions, we were able to raise £1400 for the Gurkha Welfare Trust. For this we owe thanks to the Gurkha Welfare Trust for arranging Deepak to come and play for us; to Diageo for generously donating an ample supply of Talisker, Dalwhinnie and Singleton whiskies; to Amrut for introducing all of us to the experience of Indian single malt; to The Famous Grouse for our star prize which raised so much interest; to Jimmy Gardener for playing his essential part of addressing our first-ever Nepalese ‘haggis’; to John Murtagh for giving so generously of his time and for a performance the guests who were lucky enough to present will not soon forget; to our restaurant staff, both kitchen (led by head chef Jiwan Lal, with sous chef Praveen Kumar Gupta and front of house well-led by our head waiter/wine champion Rupam Talukdar; and, of course, to all those who contributed by purchasing raffle tickets or coming to the event itself.

Now, here's the recipe for bhuton, our Nepalese 'haggis'

Bhuton (Nepalese haggis)



1 sheep’s pluck (heart, liver, kidneys, lungs, stomach, windpipe)
2 onions, peeled and chopped fine
2 cups pearl barley, pan-toasted and ground in a mortar and pestle or food processor
1 2/3 cups suet
salt & black pepper
2” piece of ginger, minced to a paste
2 tablespoons finely minced garlic
2-3 fresh green chillies
1 tablespoon garam masala – cassia, large black cardamom, star anise
50g butter or butter ghee
Chopped fresh coriander
trussing needle and fine string
Thoroughly wash the stomach bag in cold water. Turn it inside out and scald it, then scrape the surface with a knife. Soak it in cold salted water overnight. Next day remove the bag from the water and leave it on one side while preparing the filling.
Wash the pluck. Put it into a pan, with the windpipe hanging over the side into a bowl, to let out any impurities. Cover the pluck with cold water, add 1 teaspoon of salt and bring the water to a boil. Skim the surface, then simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Hold aside 1-2 cups of this cooking water.
Drain the pluck when ready and cut away the windpipe and any excess gristle. Mince the liver with the heart, lungs and kidneys, season with salt and pepper, then stir in the shredded suet and the toasted ground barley.
Melt the butter in a large pan, add the onions and sauté until translucent. Add the ginger and garlic pastes and stir for a minute or so. Now add the garam masala, stir to mix and add the pluck mixture, stirring to mix thoroughly. Moisten with as much of the pluck water as necessary to make the mixture soft.
With the rough surface of the bag outside fill it just over half full – the barley will swell during cooking - and sew the ends together with the trussing needle and fine string. Prick the bag in places with the needle. Place the haggis on a plate and put it into a pan of boiling water. Cover the pan and cook for about 3 hours, adding more boiling water when necessary to keep the haggis covered.

Raw tomato chutney
1 cup chopped fresh tomato
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 teaspoons ginger/garlic paste
1 small green chilli, finely chopped

Combine all ingredients together at least two hours before serving to allow the flavours to blend.


Pumpkin bhaji (sautéed pumpkin)

½ small pumpkin (or substitute 1 large butternut squash)
Butter for sautéing
2 teaspoons fennel seeds
Salt to taste

Peel the pumpkin or squash. Make the thinnest possible slices you can – between ¼ and 1/8 inch thick, salt the slices and let them stand a few minutes. Heat the pan, add the butter, sprinkle in the fennel seeds and brown the slices on both sides.


In the next day or two we'll also put up our recipe for raan as so many who were at the Himalayan Fling were asking for it.


Now, what shall we do for Burns Night next year?