Rishi Desai, one of the contestants on Masterchef Australia, may not have won the amateur cooking contest, but he certainly won over the audience with his style of cooking as well as his personality. As a contestant on MasterChef Australia, Rishi consistently impressed the judges with his flair, palate and considerable skill. This experience provided him with the opportunity to nurture his love of cooking, and experiment with the traditional dishes of the distinct regions of India. Ultimately it has established his identity as a chef of inspired modern Indian cuisine.
Rishi recently released Modern India, a cookbook, which is an inventive and playful collection of contemporary Indian recipes that pay homage to the varied culinary traditions of India’s diverse regions, and is a fusion of the many culinary styles that have inspired him.
“I learned to cook at a young age, initially recreating the traditional everyday dishes I enjoyed eating at home in India. Later, the opportunity to work overseas broadened my culinary horizons, and inspired my repertoire,” says Rishi, whose book contains more than 70 flavour-packed recipes for everyday meals, breads, starters, side dishes and desserts
To begin, there are recipes for spice blends, pungent with flavour, to be used to add depth and definition to a broad range of ingredients, and transform them into dishes that represent food experiences.
“The book has everything you need to cook an authentic Indian meal from scratch – breads, spices, pickles, rice dishes, and a generous array of main courses, all for everyday eating. Many of the tastes, flavours, and dishes are recognizable, but the interpretation is new and innovative, stylish and interesting. There are recipes for curried dishes, roast meats, poached poultry, and vegetarian options, each full of flavour combinations that represent the spirit of Indian cooking: spicy, fiery, creamy and above all satisfying,” says Rishi.
Published in The Indian Sun (Indian Magazine in Australia)
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