A childhood passion

I’m a Bengaluru boy who grew up watching his grandmother cook. Around five or six years old, I would volunteer to help out in the kitchen, even for mundane activities like cutting vegetables or stirring something on the stove.

Being from a South Indian Brahmin family, my grandmother always believed in making her own masala powders. Generations later, we still make our own rasam, sambhar and chutney powder. And the best part? We use the age-old utensils to make them – they really do bring out a different flavour. I still have the recipes that she had written down.

When I finished college, before joining the culinary school, I did a short course in baking and cake art. I had a lot of fun learning that.

But here’s the catch – I thought a hotel management course meant that cooking is all that I will get to do (this was my aim), but I was completely wrong. As part of the course, I learnt about managing the front desk, accounting, housekeeping, bartending etc.

When I finally started training in the kitchen, I realised that the diploma course I did was a great choice. It helped me in cooking bigger dishes too.

I love that I can make others happy with food. To know that your customers are satisfied is amazing. After all, no matter what mood you are in, finding comfort in food is a universal phenomenon.

I do miss having a social life but over the years, I’ve realised that if I really wanted to have one, I can try and find the time for it. Mondays or Tuesdays are my weekends, unlike the rest of the world, but I’ve found a way to balance both.

One of the places that I worked for was the Trump hotels. I also worked in a two-star Michelin restaurant. Working abroad helped me see food in a completely different scale. I’m happy to say that India is also slowly and steadily getting there.

I’m now gearing up to start a new restaurant in JP Nagar called ‘By The People’; I am the executive chef there. There will be a lot of interesting dishes that I’ve worked on for the menu and I’m excited to make more people happy.

Today’s recipe is ‘Lamb Chops’, a dish that’s considered a delicacy in many kitchens as it takes a long time to make. I’ve used yoghurt to help the lamb hold its flavour. Unlike the usual combination of lamb chops and chutney, I have used carrot chutney. Give it a try and enjoy!

Recipe

Lamb Chops

Ingredients

For the marinade

- Lamb chops, 250 gms

- Oil, 10 ml

- Jeera powder, 5 gm

- Ginger garlic paste, 15 gm

- Garam masala, 5 gm

- Hung curd, 20 ml

- Besan, 5 gm

- Deggi Mirchi, 5 gm

- Black salt, 5 gm

For Carrot Chutney

- Boiled carrots, 100 gm

- Garlic, 2 cloves

- White wine vinegar, 5 ml

- Sugar, 5 gm

- Salt to taste

- Pepper, 1 gm

Method

Method to make lamb chops

- Marinate the chops for four to 12 hours.

- Grill it on both sides till cooked.

- Serve with carrot chutney.

Method to make chutney

- Blend it all together for desired consistency.

(By Chef Pradyumna Harithsa)