Courting the culinary coast

I joined the culinary industry when I was 20 years old. I worked as an assistant at a restaurant in Mumbai and worked my way up from there. I don’t have any training of working in the kitchen, so it was during my time at various restaurants that I picked up the tricks and trade of the industry.

I came to Bengaluru in 2003 and worked as a demi chef de partie before I joined the Goldfinch Bangalore. I joined as a senior chef de partie and now I am a Masterchef in coastal cuisine.

I never thought I’d become a chef when I was growing up. My big brother was my inspiration though. He worked as a chef and told me various stories about the industry.

Since I joined the kitchen straight away, I found it difficult to understand ingredients and how certain ones came together. Thankfully, with much practice, I began to understand the culinary world.

Some of the dishes I started making were ‘chicken sukka’, ‘Mangalorean chicken curry’ and ‘Mangalorean fish curry’. I come from Hassan district, so seafood came naturally to me.

One of my favourite dishes is ‘King fish masala fry’. It never fails to make me happy.

Being a chef is not always easy. It involves many hours of work and requires constant innovation and invention of recipes. I’ve had my fair share of bad reviews too when I initially started preparing dishes in the kitchen. But I took them as positive feedback and decided to improve them. If you ask me what the best part of being a chef is, I would gladly say that I love cooking an Devaraj Shetty d watching my guests enjoy their food.

That’s why the ‘Chicken Sukka’ recipe shared today is one of the dishes that makes me happy.

It’s a common dish in Mangaluru and people there often have it with ‘roti’ or ‘chapati’. It’s a very simple dish and the ingredients are easily available in stores. If you want something spicy, tasty and different for your meal, this recipe is just perfect for you.

Chef Devaraj Shetty
Masterchef, Sanadige, Goldfinch Bangalore