A Greater Manchester restaurant has marked 40 years since the creation of one of the UK’s favourite curry dishes by inventing a unique rival recipe.
Balti curries are a staple on the menus of Indian restaurants throughout the UK and are enjoyed by thousands of people nationwide every week. The Balti is thought to have been first dished up in a Birmingham restaurant in 1977 (see BBC report below).
This week, another restaurant in Farnworth, Bolton, has revealed that it has created a new and unique curry recipe, which it has dubbed the ‘Bolti’ in honour of the town where they are based.
The delicious dish is based on a traditional Balti recipe, but has been enhanced with achari pickle, along with one key ingredient – Lancashire Sauce made by family firm Entwistle’s of Ramsbottom. (see details below).
The new recipe takes the Bolti to “a whole different level” in terms of flavour, the restaurant claims.
The Bolti has been developed by The Royal Balti House in Farnworth, which until recently was Greater Manchester’s No 1 Indian restaurant on Trip Advisor and has also won a series of awards.
Manager Keith Meah and chef Anwar Hossein say they have created the dish, described as ‘spicier, more tangy and aromatic’, in response to demand from regular customers who had tried everything on the menu and wanted something bigger and bolder. The Bolti has proved such a hit with locals that it is now set to be added to The Royal Balti’s regular menu.
The restaurant has also been asked to launch the dish at the Bolton Food and Drink Festival (BFDF), which takes place over the August Bank Holiday weekend (August 25 to 28).
Mr Meah said: “We’re great fans of the Balti – we specialise in them, and that’s reflected in our name! We have many regulars who want to try something that’s not on the menu and so we create new dishes for them. This one is more tangy, spicier and more aromatic than the regular Balti and our customers love it.
“To mark the 40th anniversary of the invention of the Balti in Birmingham, and the fact that we’re based in Bolton, we came up with the idea of calling our new dish the ‘Bolti’.
“We were then approached by the festival and asked to launch the dish there. We feel very honoured to be invited to take part and are greatly looking forward to sharing our new dish in August.”
Bolton Council’s Cabinet Member for Culture, Cllr John Byrne, said: “It’s fantastic that Bolton is home to a unique, new curry recipe which could rival the famous Balti.
“Perhaps the restaurant should also change its name to The Royal Bolti, in honour of the dish!”