MEET THE MASTERCHEF TEAM

Here they are the crew at Masterchef led by Chef Usha Argawal, and ably supported by her Sous Chefs Santosh and Rohit who are brothers. My short tenure was 2 weeks and I felt every bit like a close member of the family. The Chef and her Consort, the super wonderful Mahesh Argawal treated me like a son, even though I am a few rungs up the age scale. The two boys grew up in the Argawal household, next to their own children and if there is one thing they are taught well .. it is cooking. I took a video of Rohit, the younger brother in blue, fine chopping a red onion with such finesse I was in awe. Returning home I told my team that 'this is the way onions are to be chopped moving forward'. They are good nature, polite, helpful, friendly, skilled but their zeal to learn is singularly inspiring. Santosh was my tour guide on one of my days-off and we lunched at a Chinese restaurant where he ate his first Tiger Prawn .. imagine that!

Back in 2009 at Le Cordon Bleu my class size was 15 in Cuisine and 18 in Patisserie. I have since become spoiled by the 1-on-1 approach where I learned not only how to cook, but to become a better human being via these priceless inter-cultural encounters as I had at MasterChef in New Delhi.  

TO SUM UP MY CURRY BAPITISM

My mission to complete 10-culinary experience worldwide from age 60-70 is not complete without a Curry Sojourn in India. Via TripAdvisor I was able to join Chef Usha at MasterChef in Delhi for a full week of 1-on-1 classes. I chose the word 'baptized' in the title because it is the most appropriate description of what I went through, at the end of which I emerged with a totally different mindset on Indian cuisine, and of course on the challenges of cooking it. Indian cooking is complex, make no mistake about it. My 6-days gave me a rudimentary first look at 'what is Indian cooking' and in particular specialties like; Punjabi, Mughlai, South Indian,Tawa-Handi Specials & of course Indian Sweets. 

The Chef hails from the Punjabi region but Delhi is home for 20+ years. She is a veteran in teaching Indian cuisine. A vegetarian all her life, what amazed me is her abundant knowledge how the maze of curries, Masala, cooking methods and technical tips complement meats, poultry and seafood. She is a walking dictionary. The lessons were conducted in her spacious home in the quaint neighborhood of Defence Colony, away from the hustle-buzzle of Delhi. I stayed in the area (Stallon Hospitality) and 'walked to school' every morning, passing the local market and making friends on the way. Such friendly people! This unique feel of 'belonging' alone is memorable. 

Back to the classes : totally producible recipes and clear notes were always at the ready, fully hands-on experience in the kitchen from start to finish for every recipe, open to all questions throughout the course, excellent demonstration of techniques, plating instructions and lastly, ample tasting at the end of every day, in the form of a sumptuous 5-6 course late lunch to 'taste what we made'. The curries and specialties are simply superb. Did I make them .. I asked myself that question daily, the answer was still no, I did not, I could not possibly have. I took copious notes but unless I start practicing .. code word for making each dish 10 if not 15 times .. I can never get to the fluency that the Chef showed me, and expect of me back in Hong Kong. I was in awe the whole week, by the overload of information, by the Chef's never ending coaching but above all, by the kindness and generosity of the Argawals. I have done 7 such sojourns already with 3 more to go but believe me, my time at MasterChef is one of a kind. 

Chef Usha thank you for my Baptism!

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