Cooking is rewarding and cheers up this Dubai-based chef

What is your earliest kitchen memory?
I've always been a mamma's boy, so most of the time I was with her in the kitchen while she prepared meals. I would get pulled towards the aromas whether it was that of tea, curry or even dry roasting of cumin - I loved it all. On growing up, I began to assist her with odd jobs like cleaning rice, peeling fruits, etc.
When did you decide to train as a chef?
My elder brother was studying Hotel Management and he would share glamorous stories about the places they visited, foods they tasted, etc. I followed suit - it was a natural and spontaneous choice. 
Do you spend time in your kitchen at home?
Hardly! My wife and mum make sure I don't.
What's your favourite dish?
Khichdi; in all forms and variations. I can eat home-cooked khichdi prepared by my wife, every day.
A culinary skill you've mastered?
Understanding the balance between taste, texture, and aroma.
A chef you look up to?
Chef Manish Mehrotra and Chef Gaggan Anand.
Share you culinary philosophy.
Stick to the basics and get your basics right.
What do you order at a restaurant you've  have never been to?
I go in for the tasting menus to have a complete experience.
Food apps on your smartphone include...
Zomato and Talabat.
A food destination(s) on your wish list?
Thailand and Japan.
A dish on your wishlist?
Shrimps with brown butter at Noma, Copenhagen.
When the going gets tough, how do you cope up?
It's my wife, who makes sure I don't give up. She's my backbone, be it when it comes to dealing with work pressure or meeting social commitments.
Describe the behind-the-scenes of a restaurant kitchen.
Discipline. Thinking. Teamwork. Consistency. Organised.
If not a chef, what would you have been?
An artist or a designer.
purva@khaleejtimes.com

• UAE