When children from different schools took position at the counters for a cooking contest at F9 Test Kitchen it was a sight to behold. If you imagine the contestants made a mess or churned out gastronomic catastrophes, you are wrong. Their timing was perfect and the judges looked at wonder at the chopping and whisking prowess of the youngsters. When they finally presented their dishes on the judge’s table, they secretly put to shame many adults , even experienced cooks. The presentation too was artistic even for a mundane everyday creation, and justified their proud display on social media.
The increasing interest in cooking among youngsters bodes well for the city that has been drawing tourists in significant numbers. With food tourism climbing the travel chart faster than one thought of, studios like Test Kitchen are seeing more and more people signing up to learn a dish or two during their travel plans to the city.
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On a lighter note, belying the stereotype that kitchen a girl’s domain, boys from Gitanjali High School said “Hobby chef is a good idea. But the idea of cleaning after cooking is a bummer. No matter how awesomely we present or cook, our moms make sure we clean the mess behind us.” Spaghetti might be the first thing that comes to their mind when they enter the kitchen, but sometimes competes with instant noodles, they laugh.
The team of girls from HPS love their canteen’s Chicken and fish cakes but their hero is Yolanda. “She is brilliantl; love watching her on YouTube,” they declare. They too love cooking at home, “Except when mom makes sure we clean the kitchen space as well.” With their aprons and the hats on, the kids surprised the judges as they spoke eloquently of nutrition, health benefits and cooking temperature of food.
The two-day long cooking competition saw great bonhomie and confidence not just among the young contestants but also their families . Siblings hugged each other as the older ones entered the kitchen and when the final product was set out, it was the brothers who made a beeline to click photos.
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This wasn’t the only exciting cook off that took place in the recent weeks. A few days ago, Mehboob Alam Khan, an authority on Hyderabadi cuisine, was holding the stage with a biryani workshop for expats of Entrepreneurs Organisation (EO), a global business network of over 12,000 leading entrepreneurs in 53 countries. About 50 CXOs from various countries sat with rapt attention as Alam Khan walked them through a gastronomic journey of spices, meat, marination and flavours.
The inquisitive lot was awed at seeing the meat being gently massaged with the marination. The size of the cooking dish was a surprise and their questions ranged from ‘can it be put in the oven’ to ‘how does one source a container like the one he was cooking in’.
During that cooking session the participants also learnt about the journey of spices, dishes about the conventional Indian travel food when restaurants and food delivery were unheard of.