About Indian Chefs

Indian Chefs are the masterminds behind the sumptuous Indian cuisine. The diaspora of Indian food is characterised by its sophisticated and subtle usage of many spices and vegetables. Whether vegetarian or non-vegetarian dish, whether North Indian or South Indian, the Indian Chefs have introduced unique processing of ingredients to place some of world"s most exquisite cuisine tastes.

The Indian chefs have brought about each family of Indian cuisine its unique characteristics by a wide assortment of dishes and cooking techniques. Thus, Indian cuisine varies from region to region, reflecting the varied demographics of the ethnically diverse Indian subcontinent.

Male Chefs in India

• Sanjeev Kapoor: Sanjeev Kapoor is, perhaps, one of the best recognised faces in the Indian culinary world. His show "Khana Khazana" is one of the longest running cookery shows in Asia. He is a celebrity chef that is well known in the top culinary circles.

• Ranveer Brar: Ranveer Brar is known as India"s most stylish chef. This Punjabi lad"s first experience with cooking was at a Gurudwara"s langar at the age of 6. He has gathered most of his culinary education from the old streets in Lucknow. In recent years, has hosted 5 TV shows and also judged at MasterChef India Season 4.

• Vikas Khanna: The award-winning Michelin star chef started his culinary journey in his grandmother"s kitchen in Amritsar. Vikas Khanna has worked with some of the best chefs around the world and runs a popular restaurant "Junoon" in New York.

•vAtul Kochhar: Atul Kochhar was the first Indian chef to win a Michelin star. His modern take on Indian cuisine has gained him a lot of fame in England. He launched "Benares" in 2003 in London followed by "Ananda" in Ireland and "Vatika" in Southampton.

• Hari Nayak: Hari Nayak started his journey from the Culinary Institute of America. He is also celebrated for his preference of simple cooking over intricate, messy recipes. Nayak is widely recognised as one of North America"s best Indian chefs.

• Manish Mehrotra: Manish Mehrotra has always been appreciated for his contemporary additions to traditionally heavy Indian cuisine. He has several awards to his name.

• Saransh Goila: Saransh Goila is in the Limca Book of Records for the longest road journey by a chef. Excelling in Italian cuisine, Goila also loves to surprise his fans with modern twists to classic Indian fare.

• Harpal Sokhi: Fondly known as "The Energy Chef", Harpal Sokhi worked as a chef at a variety of high end restaurants including The Regent, Taj Lands" End and Centaur Hotel. However, he"s better known for hosting "Turban Tadka" on the Food Food channel and for his restaurant chain "The Funjabi Tadka."

Female Chefs in India

Women in India has proven it that they are not just great cooks, but also brilliant chefs and they have gained much popularity across the world. India has many famous female chefs who are extremely successful in this industry. In a predominantly male dominated industry, female chefs are still an exception, but women are moving to stake their claim as the best out there. These famous female chefs are making their presence felt in every point of life, and they have also written few amazing books on cooking and have also been a part of various cooking shows, and not just part, they have hosted various cooking shows, which were a hit amongst the household.

Traditionally, women have been responsible for making simple meals at home. But here are a few who took this everyday job as a passion and made an impact in the culinary world:

• Tarla Dalal: Tarla Dalal was a well-known Indian food writer, who has published more than 100 books and sold over 3 million copies. Her cookery show "Cook It up with Tarla Dalal" was a hit in the early 90s. She also runs the largest Indian food website and a bi-monthly magazine. She has also been conducting cooking classes. Tara Dalal manufactured her own range of ready-to-cook mixes which made work easier for women to cook.

• Nita Mehta: Nita Mehta is a famous female chef who is famous for cook books. She is renowned for her food critics and she also takes cooking classes in Delhi and has branches across the country. She has also been a judge to various cooking shows.

• Veena Arora: She is a passionate cook and a famous female chef, who has been cooking for more than 9 years. She is the Executive Chef at the Imperials, and her speciality is Chinese. She is not trained at all and she cooks by following her instincts.

• Ritu Dalmia: A famous female chef, who is known for her Italian cooking. Ritu Dalmia has hosted TV shows as well and she owns a restaurant named "Diva". She hasn"t learned Italian anywhere, but she gained interest in the cuisine during her visit to Italy.

• Anjum Anand: Anjum is considered as one of the first food writers to give a twist to Indian recipes that not only tickled taste buds but also catered to the taste of a diet conscious person. Her recipes consisted of mixed traditional dishes, recreated with healthy ingredients and limited oil.

• Madhumita Mohanta: Madhumita Mohanta is an Executive Chef at Claridges, Surajkund. She has worked in Singapore, Bahrain and Kuwait before she joined Claridges.

• Kamini Jha: Kamini Jha is the Queen in preparing Tandoori dishes in The Oberoi. She has not only survived in the industry but also made it big. She first entered her home kitchen where she felt comfortable at the age of 10.

• Madhu Krishnan: Madhu Krishnan is an Executive Chef in Bengaluru, was recognized by her hard work and enthusiasm.

Cookery Books by Indian Chefs

Indian chefs not only introduced the appetizing preparations, but they also popularised Indian food in overseas through their magnanimous collection of cookbooks. India is the only country producing the maximum cookbooks in the Asian subcontinent. Michael Pandya is one of the successful Indian Chefs who have published several books on Indian Cuisine. Some of them are "Home, Here We Come!", "Vegetarian Wonders from India", "Indian Chutneys", "Raitas, Pickles & Preserves", "Quick and Easy Indian Cooking" and so on.