Krish Ashok set the Cookery Corner at the 42nd Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) ablaze with science, regaling an excited audience with interesting anecdotes as he prepared mouth watering Indian food items.
“I’m actually a techie who thinks about cooking through the lens of science”, noted Ashok who prefers not to be called chef as he revealed a delectable pan-Indian menu featuring Paneer Pakora (cottage cheese fritters), Kerala Fish Curry and Masala Tea to demonstrate; not only the cooking process but also the science that guides it all.
“When preparing the pakora batter, if you blend gram flour (besan) with rice flour, each of the powders will lose water at a different rate when you start frying the fritters, making the pakoras even crispier.”
Having dedicated his bestseller cookbook, Masala Lab: The Science of Indian Cooking to his grandmother, Ashok said he gathered most of his cooking know-how from practical observations made in home kitchens.
“I feel there is a need to document our grandmothers’ methods not as recipes but as scientific lessons. Do you know why mustard seeds are added to hot oil first? It is to test the temperature of the oil. If it sputters quickly, the oil is too hot. If it doesn’t crackle, the oil is not hot enough”.
Krish, who was given free reign to explore the kitchen at a young age by his mother, shared a long-held sociocultural observation: “What has always struck me is that how nobody really recognised the fact that the approach that women have been taking to cooking for generations is in fact more scientific than simply following traditions passed down to them”.
“This fact was not given any importance, probably because they were women and also because they were expected to cook,” he added.
With a strong social media following of almost 650k on Instagram and another 40k on YouTube, Ashok’s culinary journey began at the age of 15.
2033 publishers are showcasing more than 1.5 million book titles from 01-12 November, 2023 at the Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF). The UAE, Egypt and Lebanon are leading the list of Arab publishers attending the event while publishers from India, the UK, and Turkey top the list of international publishers.
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