Whipping up a storm

It was a culinary treat as chef Kunal Kapur whipped up a storm for Prime Minister Narendra Modi; German Chancellor Angela Merkel; Sunil Mittal, founder and chairman of Bharti Enterprises; Azim Premji, chairman of Wipro Limited and more. Chef Kunal presented a delightful culinary theatre of India with a focus on South Indian cuisine and Satvik food (freshly cooked, vegetarian dishes prepared with naturally sourced ingredients).

Talking about his experience and the menu, Chef Kunal, Executive Sous Chef, The Leela Group, said, “It was an honor to cook for Modi ji and other dignitaries at the NASSCOM event. In accordance with preferences, we presented home-style food cooked with authentic and simple recipes to keep the meal light, healthy and delectable”.

A few of the chef’s dishes were inspired from his recipe book ‘A Chef In Every Home’. He presented an exceptional homemade mango and chilli pickle and a ‘chundo’.  The menu was well-appreciated as it was well-balanced and wholesome.  It consisted of a healthy welcome drink called ‘Sambharam’, which is  a spiced buttermilk flavoured with lemongrass.

It also included a variety of vegetarian starters with the most unique being the ‘Murungaelai Adai’ (Drumstick leaf pancake).

The dish is high on fibre and has a very unique taste when coupled with Chef Kunal’s homemade pickles including ‘Mahali’ (a traditional Tamil Brahmin pickle made of roots possessing a smell of vanilla and cinnamon) and ‘Vazhapoo Vada’ (Banana blossom fritters), which is high on potassium and tastes best when served steaming hot out of the pan with fresh coconut chutney.

The chef has been instrumental in designing and training German chefs to serve food on-board for Lufthansa First and Business class for the last four years; this experience has given him an in-depth understanding of the German palette, which was very useful when preparing food for the German dignitaries at the event. The chef and his team were  appreciated by the Ministry as well as the German delegation for their well-thought of menu, seamless execution and detail to perfection.