Get to know… Chintan Pandya

Chef, @chefchintan

Currently I am: Back in New York after a successful Dhamaka India tour, courtesy Masters of Marriott Bonvoy and Culinary Culture.

The day I realised I loved cooking: As a kid, I loved eating and eating out. By the time I was 15 or 16, I decided to be a chef, because it’s a profession in which I don’t have to pay to eat. People would pay me to eat.

One dish every adult must know how to prepare: Masala chai. Not everyone can make a good version. It seems simple but it’s more difficult to make than a complex dish.

An Indian ingredient I love: Methi. I love it in any form.

Three people I’d invite to a dream dinner: My grandmother, the filmmaker Manmohan Desai and Sachin Tendulkar.

Three food trends to watch out for: Ethnic regional cooking – it’s already getting big in New York. A serious focus on cooking with vegetables. And a huge market for grains, which the West has still not explored.

What I wish Indian diners knew about the world: That it’s possible to respect the context of the cultural appropriation of the country they are eating in.

A food I crave: Ice-cream.

My favourite Sunday memory: Everyone sitting on the floor in the living room and eating, with the food placed in the centre along with the Sunday special, pulao.

My own comfort food: Khichri.

Three food books for those getting started: On Food and Cooking, by Harold Mcgee. Culinaria, a series of books divided by country (though not for India yet). And Indian Food: A Historical Companion by KT Acharya.

If there were no consequences, I’d eat: A hot jalebi or motichoor laddoo.

From HT Brunch, April 29, 2023

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