Putting India On the Global Culinary Map
Gautam@2022 Garima Arora, a highly-acclaimed Indian chef, is creating a stir in the modern culinary world with her traditional Indian techniques.
She is the chef and owner of Gaa, a three-storeyed fine-dining restaurant situated in a traditional Thai house in the heart of Bangkok along with her exquisite Indian Eatery & Wine Bar in Bangkok, HERE. She is also the founder of
Food Forward India, a unique travelling and non-profit initiative discovering the multi-dimensionality of Indian cuisine. She takes her culinary skills to newer levels as she features as one of the prominent judges of MasterChef India Season 7, alongside renowned chefs Vikas Khanna and Ranveer Brar.
A culinary icon, she was honoured with a Michelin star, becoming the first Indian female to receive one at the age of 30. She attributes this prestigious award to her team’s dedication and hard work as well. A trailblazer in the culinary segment, Chef Garima leads an inspiring career for all future female chefs. In conversation with Chef Garima Arora, she discusses her passion and career.
Setting up a restaurant in one’s own country is no easy feat. What’s it like opening one in a foreign country? What were the ups and downs you faced before you opened Gaa?
The language, the ingredients – there’s a lot that’s different when it comes to opening a restaurant in a foreign country. But I always believe that if you surround yourself with the right people, things happen. I’ve been blessed with a very good team that’s been with me since Day 1. The biggest challenge was thinking as a chef to a businessperson – and no one can prepare you for it. One has to learn on the job to make the switch from being creative to understanding the commercial side of things.
How do you approach menu development and creating dishes to showcase india through your creative lens?
We concentrate highly on techniques, culture, and ingredients and then try to define what makes Indian food Indian. Sometimes we start with an ingredient or technique and somewhere down the line they both meet and something new comes out of it.
“We concentrate highly on techniques, culture, and ingredients and then try to define what makes Indian food Indian”.
What was your reaction when you found out that Gaa had been awarded a Michelin Star? how did it impact your approach to cooking and running your restaurant?
It was, of course, great validation when we received it, but for me, the greatest joy was to see how happy the team was. It was more their win than mine. The Michelin is not for the chef, it’s for the restaurant and the team makes a restaurant. I’ve never seen a group of 40 people come together in so much joy and happiness derived from one achievement like this!
Of late, ‘fusion cuisine’ has been quickly gaining popularity. Do you think fusion cuisine is the future of dining?
There are takers for each type of cuisine and food. No one should shy away from experimenting, having fun and trying to push the boundaries. There’s scope for tradition, but as a cook and artist, you have to have the freedom to have fun. The word ‘fusion’ comes with a lot of added baggage but that doesn’t take away from the fact that food is democratic and one has the right to do anything they want to with food as long as it tastes good and people enjoy it.
What inspired you to start your non-profit initiative – food-forward India?
We were winning so many accolades and the idea was to always take the spotlight back to Indian food. The idea was to make it a nomadic initiative where we travel to different rural, urban, and tribal areas within states, understand why people eat the way they do, what makes Indian food Indian, and what makes our food so unique.
As a much-loved judge of MasterChef India, can you describe your process for evaluating dishes and determining which contestants should advance or be eliminated?
I always look for thought in a dish. For example, in the biryani challenge, the staples for a biryani are set, but it’s interesting when homecooks put their own perspective on things. That is where I look for thought and intention. I think it’s crucial to have a clear idea of why you’re putting things together, and why you’re choosing a technique – I’m very curious to know why. I think this is something I take back from my journalism days. When you answer why, who, which, when – as long as the dish answers those questions and makes you think a little bit, I find that most interesting.
How do you balance providing constructive feedback to contestants with being honest and critical when necessary?
This is something I had to learn the hard way. Because we work in high-pressure kitchens so we are very direct and to the point. We don’t have time to tiptoe around people’s feelings but I had to understand that in our kitchen we are all professional chefs. We come with the attitude to learn and we know it’s going to be a demanding job. But when home cooks are making the transition from the comfort of theirownkitchenstoaprofessionalkitchen,it’simportant to be patient, show them the way, and mentor them. People have good days and bad days in the kitchen. Ultimately that’s the format of the show. But when someone has to exit the show, I feel they should leave being better cooks than when they started. Not all skills are cooking skills. You take soft skills and hard skills away too. I think our job as judges – or rather as mentors – is to condense everything we’ve learned over years of working in the industry in this shuttle period for them.
Can you describe a particularly memorable moment or dish from your time as a judge on Masterchef India?
There are so many, it’s difficult to choose. But I think one of the most moving dishes was the Holi edition where Santa Sarmah and Marina Balakrishnan made a thali inspired by
Krishna’s Holi in Varanasi. I think that was a very beautifully put-together Satvik vegetarian meal and there was so much love and respect in every single bite. I remember that so fondly.
Vikas Khanna just shared a heartfelt post about the bond he shares with you. Could you share some fun incidents you had on the Show with your ‘partner in crime’?
One of the best things that happened to me was meeting both Vikas and Ranbir. The camaraderie and friendship the three of us shared required no work, we just had so much fun. I was the youngest on the set and they bullied me and pulled my leg a little bit, but always very protective. It was my first time on set and in front of a camera. Every now and then I would hear him yell out “Baby ke liye coffee lao,” “Baby ke liye nariyal pani lao,”and then magically someone would get me coffee and nariyal pani that I had not asked for. Then he would just come and take it from me and say “Don’t worry, it’s a mistake.” A couple of days later I realized that they were calling me ‘baby’ and getting me things that he wanted for himself. The entire production team figured it out and played along, and we started calling him “Baby’ after a while.
Sourced from: https://issuu.com/sloane-trading-international/docs/four_india_june_-_september_2023?fr=sN2QzMDE1MDA0MQ
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