Derived from the Sanskrit word ‘Sakara’, the word sugar was first called sucre in French, sucker in Arabic and Persian and finally became known as sugar in English. Its origins lie in South East Asia, New Guinea in particular where people just chewed sugarcane for its sweetness. It was first chemically refined in India some 2500 years ago and spread East, eventually across the world. Paying homage to its origins and recreating its journey across the world, Sakare is a Dessert Dining Concept which was inspired from the experiences of M Jenny Clinta's journey as a chef and her journey from from a tiny island in the Andamans to the countryside of France in Normandy.
The cuisine in Andaman and Nicobar Islands are a blend of different Indian societies that formed the union. From native clans like the Andamanese, Onge, and Nicobarese, to South Indian, Bengali, Punjabi, and even Burmese influences, the culinary traditions of the mainland are a sum of all their parts. The values the team at Sakare bring through its food is also similar where they try to blend the flavours of the islands with the techniques of French patisserie. The mindfully curated menu of 5 courses of dessert changes every month at Sarkare. It starts with a bread course - foccacia with hummus and a tomato jam, that was inspired from the aperitif that Jenny served at the restaurant in Normandy.
The next dessert is an apple tarte tatin. Normandy, famous for its apples, is known for its apple-based desserts. Sakare gives this a twist of their own with some jaggery white chocolate caramel and the apple being poached in a cinnamon sugar served with a cinnamon and vanilla bean ice cream. The highlight being the cinnamon which gives a farm to table experience since the cinnamon is procured from the forests of Andamans.
The 3rd course is a palette cleanser offering vibrant and tropical flavors, with some pickled cucumbers , lemon cream, a cucumber granita and some kiwi, creating a perfect balance between the courses.The star of the event, however, is Black Forest revisited which taps into nostalgia with a dark chocolate sponge and chocolate cremeux made from Rakaudella’s chocolates, a homegrown brand that sources their ingredients from farms in Idukki. The dessert is topped with a tangy cream cheese vanilla frosting and some Meringue. Some Hibiscus cinnamon honey tea paired with mini desserts ends the course.
Growing up in the Andamans, Jenny was used to making dishes from scratch since the islands did not have access to all the ingredients. She started baking when she was 13. Her experimentations with desserts began after noting down recipes from TLC whenever she came to the mainland because the islands didn’t have internet access until 2020. Although the chef initially pursued a law degree, she knew that baking was her calling. This compelled her to start a home baking business in the Andamans during the pandemic. With Sakare, Jenny aims to craft tropical flavours using seasonal ingredients like vanilla, cocoa and spices that are grown on the islands. Her mission is to put the Andamans on the global culinary map, one curated menu at a time.
Follow Sakare here.
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