I hooked up with adopted Brummie Steve Heap who has a large following on You Tube for his culinary exploits  and also provides a private cheffing service. Now whilst Steve has had more than a few Baltis, he had never been behind the scenes to see one cooked so what better person to show him than Zaf Hussain, the head chef and owner of the legendary Shababs in the Balti Triangle.

Not realising Steve was a pescatarian, I had brought in some loin of venison bought from the local farmer’s market. This meant that I ‘unfortunately’ had it all to myself but luckily Zaf saved the day by cooking a superb Balti Tarka Dal. Both Baltis mopped up with some quite superb doughy naans.

Apart from his You Tube exploits https://youtube.com/@stevenheaprecipes if you wanted to find more about both the cookery classes he runs and his cheffing services, visit Steve on www.privatechefsteve.co.uk

This well-known and, to some, notorious food critic has been scathing in some of their reviews of genuine Baltihouses. Although I may disagree with much of that criticism at last they have visited a Baltihouse that we both agree on … Shababs in the Balti Triangle.

Piping hot Baltis fast cooked and served in a proper Balti Bowl with that unique slightly sweet flavour that the caramelisation over a high flame brings to the table.

 A sight to behold and a joy to taste!

There has been quite a bit of newsprint recently about the tug of war between Germany and Turkey about who invented the Doner Kebab and who has the right of applying for protected food status under the EU. Maybe there could be a future argument on who invented the Sheekh kebab …. Afghanistan, Pakistan or India?

Either way it appears that the new UK (Labour) government regime have decided that the process in joining the UNESCO Cultural Heritage Initiative (including the food category) should continue which hopefully will be good news in the longer term for the unique dish that is the Birmingham Balti!

For those who like railways or Portillo but not necessarily both(!), it is worth keeping an eye out for Michael Portillo’s latest visit to Birmingham when he samples an authentic balti for the first time at the legendary Shababs.

The search for genuine baltihouses outside the Balti Triangle goes on and my latest mission took me to Shabar on the Coventry Road, Sheldon, just a stone’s throw from the airport. 

Although it was a Friday night it was good to see it buzzing with hardly a table to spare in what was a large restaurant.

A range of dips and several poppadoms kicked things off and starters were chicken tikka, lamb tikka and onion bhaji between us. All were were well presented, freshly cooked and tasty.

Mains included balti chicken and mushroom , a spicy balti chicken pathia and by special request (not normally on the menu) a balti saag paneer … all accompanied by two excellent fluffy, and garlicky naans.  Baltis were served up in the traditional  blackened bowls and portions were ample. Service was efficient and friendly throughout.

All round an excellent ‘Balti experience’ although BYO is not allowed as the restaurant is licensed.

Apart from Highgate Brewery’s respectful nod to Birmingham’s famous dish, there is one slightly less well known drink also celebrating the Balti .

In the nineties, a drink called the ‘Balti Bite’ was all the rage which was a potent mix of 7.5 per cent Barley Wine and Cider … seemed like the ideal foil for a Balti Chicken Vindaloo!

Some tactless comments from MP Paul Scully about Sparkhill, part of the Balti Triangle hit the headlines when he suggested the area was a ‘no go’ zone.

This area  is one I know well as not only was I born and bred in the area but one I have visited for over forty years to enjoy Birmingham’s iconic dish.

Never in that time have I felt threatened or had my car vandalised and Scully does this area no favours with his tactless and racist comments. I particularly say racist as he could equally pick on areas with minimal Muslim populations where as often happens a minority of young people have a phase of doing a few stupid things often due to lack of parental control and guidance … something which is rarer in a community of practising Muslims bound by the code of religious ethics. 

Luckily Mr. Scully has been called out for his ill-timed comments which could well have had a negative effect on businesses in the area.

Interesting to see a book entitled from ‘Bombay to Britain‘ brought out to celebrate National Curry Week. However, it was noticeable that in featuring ‘flagship’ restaurants, apart from City centre based Pushkar, no sign of any other Brum restaurant from Opheems and Lasan to Shababs. 

Yet again a Brum deal for Brum although as Millwall’s notorious fans used to sing ‘Nobody likes us but we don’t care!’