Culinary Achievers

MY FIRST DAY IN A CULINARY SCHOOL We always say time changes things, but we actually change them ourselves. One of these changes that occurred in my life was joining the Culinary Academy of India. I joined college on July 23, 2007. As our batch reached college, we were asked to sit in one of the classrooms on the 6th floor of the building. There was silence in the room as all of us were not familiar with each other and did not know what to expect from the college. There was mixed thoughts and emotions going through everybody's minds. Some were sad about leaving home and others because summer vacations had got over. For me everything felt just right. I had been looking out for a good culinary school in India and got to know about the college just a few days before the opening. As the day progressed, we were welcomed by our Principal, Chef. Sudhakar N. Rao who within minutes made us feel that we were in the right place and also gave us an insight of what to expect from the college an...

MENTORING YOUNG BUDDING CHEFS After finishing high school, youngster stands at the threshold of CAI to materialize their aspiration of becoming chefs. Their ideas are loosely woven thought… delicate desire… faint citadels of hopes… Here starts the grooming. Its through genuine interest, kindness, appreciation, flexibility and openness the mentor goals are given shape. For some becoming, a chef is a natural born talent while others it takes a bit more of work. The mentor conjures between a teacher, guide and counselor to realize the dreams of young culinarians. Creating a wonderful gourmet delicacy from basic ingredient is a magical understanding for these budding chefs in the midst of experienced stalwarts. The desire to be a great chef nurtured with love for food and ingredients is meticulously groomed by the mentors who install in them a positive frame of mind to excel in the most pressing scenario. Finally it completes a full circle when the mentor through his profound experience en...

Cruise Galley Training Though cruising culture in Europe and the America has stoked the growth of the industry tremendously, India still seems to be struggling with teething problems in meeting the expectation of the companies hiring people. Nevertheless, in terms of staffing requirements many leading cruise line companies have identified India as a Destination of Trained Personnel. But the biggest confront for these companies was to hire the staff which is well trained in food preparation and presentation and good food handling practice. CULINARY ACADMEY OF INDIA , the only institute in Asia, was satisfying this urge, which is official training Centre for P&O Cruise UK, Princess Cruise USA & Costa Cruises ITALY by formulating “Pre-Embarkation Training Programme” for Prospective Crewmembers aspiring to be chefs on aboard luxury cruise ship. This Pre-Embarkation training refers to the acquisition of knowledge , skills and competencies as a result of the teaching of vocational ...

"King of the Fruits" - Mango Mango is one fruit which is originally from Indo-Burma region. Mango belongs to the Genus Mangifera family Anacardiaceae. Anacardiaceous species yield other valuable products like wood, gum, resins, wax, varnishes and tanning materials. Mango fruit is a fleshy compressed drupe. Mangoes vary in size colour shape, fibre texture, taste and flavour. Mango is otherwise called the “King of the Fruits”. Mango is one such fruit which has edible value equally in the unripe and ripe form. As far as the nutritive value is concerned mangoes contain high vitamins A and C, minerals and anti-oxidants and play a very vital role in soothing the stomach as it has certain enzymes which help in digestion. Due to the presence of these enzymes mangoes can be used as tenderizers also and dishes made with mangoes (in any form) do not need any additional tenderizers. As we all know that mangoes are high in fibre, low in calories, rich in vitamins A & C mangoes can be ...

Indian food presentation @ CAI Whether someone agrees or disagrees “Indian food” has always been a bowl or platter food which is right from the cooking vessel into the service dish put straight on to the table of the guest. Least attention has been given to the visual aspect and presentation just because some great Indian chef said presentation is not an Indian concept. Interiors of the restaurants, hence changed from traditional to contemporary, furniture is become more casual and light unlike the heavy teak wood which used to be the order of the day. But the food remained where it was and no sincere effort has gone to bring in some visual touch as we all know Indian food tastes excellent. Being from Culinary Academy of India and having trained 7 batches in Indian regional cuisine I always had the idea of lighter, simpler but will presented pre plated Indian food can also be served as any other European foods. As a special occasion I have demonstrated 10 plates to my students in th...

EDIBLE ASPIC WORKS Culinary Artistry or food decorations are used to enhance the overall visual impact of the foods or the places where the food is being served. This emerged as a full-fledged operations of the kitchen brigade specially the Garde-Manger department of a A-grade food establishment . At Culinary Academy of India I have learned the fine art of making ASPIC-LOGOS with pure melted gelatin and food colours. After picking up the basic aspic logo making techniques from Chef Sudhakar N Rao I started experimenting and brought in my own ideas and today , I started making aspic displays with new and highly acceptable techniques keeping in mind the rules of food decorations and presentations. Apart from what I learned in CAI,( http://www.iactchefacademy.com/ ) I started using techniques such as the “inlay”, ”ensemble” and “embedding” and gave my aspic logos and works a three dimensional outlook. Today I can say that aspic is one of the best and most difficult mediums which can be u...