How did your love for food begin — was there a dish or a moment at home that first made you want to be the one doing the cooking?
My love for food began not as a sudden flash of inspiration, but as a quiet sensory memory tied to my mom's cooking since childhood. Sitting quietly in the kitchen, watching her cook and going into a trance with all the flavours surrounding me, is an experience I can never forget. At one particular quiet sitting, I was so lost that I did not realize I had sat on a floor oven which had been switched on to bake a cake. The rest is history. I got away with a few burns, yet I never gave up, even though I was shooed away. As my interest grew, I started helping my mom by beating cake batters. She was constantly baking cakes for family. Married into a strict vegetarian family and watching my mother-in-law cook delicious food even without onion and garlic left me in awe. I joined a few cooking classes along the way. Slowly I discovered that my true love was for baking breads, though I enjoy cooking all kinds of food. Recently my focus has shifted toward cooking with millets and creating recipes that are flavourful as well as easy and enjoyable to cook at home. As millets offer so many health benefits, incorporating them into our daily meals has become the norm. Since bread making is my first love, baking with millets was something I started studying a while ago and finally managed to give it shape. Millet Chef Mr Vikas Chawla has been a guiding factor with his shares on his Instagram handle. I will keep working on healthier recipes without compromising on taste. Making India the millet capital of the world, with more people incorporating millets in their diet in the correct way, would be my ultimate happy journey.
Your bio sums your food up as vegetarian, nutritious, colourful and low on fat. Where did that way of thinking about food come from?
Married into a strict vegetarian family, I turned vegetarian too. Nutritious food has been on my menu since childhood and is deeply ingrained in my thinking. As awareness via study about how food affects our body grew, I started trying to cut down on fat using healthier fats along with more colours in vegetables. Making a dish colourful is the first step towards making it appetizing by making it more appealing to the eye.
Do you remember the first thing you cooked that made you think, "I've really got this"?
Cooking the Rajasthani pithod ki sabzi the first time and getting it right was my happiest moment!
What's the story behind this signature dish of yours?
This is a creamy kodo millet fruit pudding. I made this vegan dessert for a get-together, which was a first for me. After learning that a few guests had recently turned vegan, I wanted to create something everyone could enjoy. I needed it to be healthy, flavourful, and visually appealing, and also set well. I had to drive for an hour to reach it to its destination. It was almost a last-minute thought the night before. I managed to get edible flowers to decorate it with the same morning. Fortunately, it all came together perfectly.
Which of your millet creations are you most excited to show us?
You've baked millet bread and made pasta from scratch — what first drew you to cooking with millets?
I have made millet bread and also pasta from scratch using buckwheat flour. I've made many more dishes but not bajra noodles. What first drew me to millets was definitely the overall health aspect, and keeping me fuller and energetic for a longer time.
Tell us about one of your fusion feasts — what's on the plate?
Your Moroccan-Mediterranean feast wove different cuisines together — how do you decide which flavours from separate kitchens belong on one plate?
Travelling to a few countries, enjoying the local cuisine, asking or reading about it and somehow just being able to connect the flavours with the fresh produce available is my passion. I also love to pick up local herbs and spice mixes which I could use later, without any particular plan in mind.
What's a dish you make for a festival or special occasion at home?
What does festive cooking — like your moti boondi ladoos for Ganesh Chaturthi — mean to you?
Moti boondi ladoos have deep historical roots in Rajasthan, where I was born. All of my growing up years I have heard my parents say that only moti boondi ladoos are the real boondi ladoos. They were made in the royal kitchens and the traditional halwais still make them. I thoroughly enjoy eating them and making them is a labour of love. I do enjoy making halwas as well.
Which recipe did you learn from your mother or family that you'd like to share?
Your mom's layered vegetable stew sounded full of love — which family recipe will you always keep making?
The layered vegetable stew is our favourite as it's nourishing and not very difficult to make, even though you have to cut quite a few vegetables.
What's something you've baked that you're proud of?
You've described bread-making as therapeutic — what do you love about the slow, hands-on side of baking?
The finally baked loaf, the flavour and slicing the first slice. Of course the kneading and punching the dough after the rise, bringing it together again to place in the loaf tin, waiting for the second rise and baking. Almost the entire process is therapeutic and exciting.
What's the next kitchen adventure you can't wait to try?
There are a few ideas on my mind. I haven't decided yet what I will go ahead with first.
When someone cooks one of your recipes and it turns out beautifully, what do you hope they feel?
I feel happy and I hope they enjoy it too!
Contact and Follow
Email: brinda.kumar.bom@gmail.com
Instagram: @brinda.kumar.bom
