Bhubaneswar: The nutrient millet which is a gift to the world from India has found a place in the menu of the White House, Washington.
According to sources, marinated millet has been included in the first course of the menu for the state dinner being hosted in honour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the specially decorated south lawn of the White House. PM Modi is on a four day state visit to USA on the invitation of US President Joe Bidden and the First Lady.
The First Lady, Jill Biden is personally supervising Chef Nina Curtis to create a stunning vegetarian menu for PM Modi, who is a devout vegetarian. The menu also includes green corn kernel salad, stuffed pertobello mushroom and rose and cardamom infused strawberry short cake for dessert. There will be around 400 guests during the dinner being hosted by President Biden.
The guests would also have the option to include fish in their main course.
Have a look at the menu:
First course: Marinated millet, grilled corn kernel salad, compressed watermelon, tangy avocado sauce.
Main course: Stuffed portobello mushrooms, creamy saffron-infused risotto, sumac roasted sea bass, lemon-dill yogurt sauce, crisped millet cakes, summer squashes.
The wine selection includes Stone Tower Chardonnay “Kristi” 2021, PATEL Red Blend 2019, and Domain Carneros Brut Rose.
In addition, the decor of the venue has been inspired by India’s national bird, the peacock and colour scheme, comprising blues, greens and saffron, pays homage to the Indian flag as well as First Lady Jill Biden’s favourite colours. “Tomorrow night, guests will walk across the South Lawn into a pavilion draped in rich greens with saffron-coloured flowers at every table — the colours of the Indian flag,” Jill Biden said.
Following the dinner, there will be performances by Grammy award winner Joshua Bell, and Penn Masala, a South Asian acapella group from the University of Pennsylvania.
PM Modi arrived at Washington after leading the historic 9th International Yoga Day at the UN Headquarters in New York. He has also made an appeal to the UN to declare 2023 as the year of millet. Millet is gaining popularity as an alternative to cereals because of its high nutrient value.
