The ever-smiling Tarla Dalal was here in the City for a special cookery session recently, with the ladies of the ‘Round Table India’ and ‘Ladies Circle India’.
Her energy was commendable and the speed at which she churned out dishes, one after the other, spoke volumes about her passion for cooking.
Close to a hundred woman participated in the workshop and were seen following the expert cook, as she explained the procedures to make various dishes step by step. The icing on the cake was that she also let the audience taste the delicious dishes she was preparing in front of them. The session started with an eggless chocolate pie, which was made in a jiffy.
She followed it up with Burmese khow suey, Mexican quesadillas and many more dishes.
The ladies were clearly having a ball, clarifying their culinary doubts and getting tips from Tarla.
Pooja Prabhakar, an entrepreneur, was amazed by her enthusiasm, saying that it was an enriching experience.
“I really appreciate her enthusiasm. She is so energetic and passionate about cooking even, at this age — it is commendable.
What I will take back from this experience is a lot of love from her. I love cooking and don’t consider it a chore anymore. I have been inspired by my mother and mother-in-law when it comes to cooking and I am sure many women here have been too. She, of course, is an inspiration to all of us,” she said. Tarla Dalal shared that she doesn’t approve of the latest trend of consuming frozen food.
“I don’t approve of frozen food. The ingredients are stale, there is hardly any nutritional value and it tastes bad as well,” she informed. She added that she finds cooking relaxing and enjoys each and every session. “I feel every woman should cherish the act of cooking and not take it as a chore. I feel woman in the South are keener to learn and are always enthusiastic about learning new recipes. This is missing in the North,” she added.
When asked about her favourite cuisine, she said, “I like my very own Gujarati food and also enjoy cooking — as well as eating — Mexican food. I feel today, people are always in a hurry and don’t want to spend time cooking, which is wrong. I always try to teach recipes which are easy and quick to make.”
