Slurrp Exclusive: From Television To The Kitchen, Chef Amrita Raichand Engages In A Detailed Chat About Her Journey So Far And A Special Recipe For Kids

Chef Amrita Raichand, or do we call her the actor Amrita Raichand? For this multi-talented lady who is also a mom, the professional life has been no less than a roller coaster ride. With culinary degrees from one of the best Global Culinary Schools in Asia, Chef Amrita Raichand has been juggling between the home and work kitchen quite perfectly for years now. Well-known for her stint in the cooking show Mummy ka Magic, this actor-turned-chef gets her cooking genes from her mother. Happiest when in her kitchen, this mom chef wants us to tell her what dish describes her personality the best. Read on to find out. 

We got talking with the chef for an exclusive chat about her new experiences as a chef, her acting days and upcoming projects. Here are the excerpts from the interaction. 

Q1. That one Eureka moment when you knew you wanted to be a chef. 

When I started the show, Mummy Ka Magic, it happened by pure coincidence that I was at home, cooking for my son and I was offered this show. When I started shooting for the episodes, the very second day I knew that this is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. So I guess that was my Eureka moment. 

Q2. From television to the chef’s kitchen, how has the switch been for you? 

The switch has been really welcoming and fun. It is a lot more relatable to me. I think at some level I always struggled to play somebody else. The kitchen gave me… actually, not the kitchen but this profession gave me the kitchen which I love and am so passionate about. Being on screen fulfilled the acting instincts that I had so I think it was the perfect combination and to top it all, I got to spend a lot of time with my child so I think it was the perfect move for me.

Yes, when I finally decide to take this up professionally, I went to Singapore and did an Advanced Culinary course from At-Sunrice, the Global Chef Academy, which is one of the biggest culinary academies in Asia. Also, I have done a nutrition course from Cordon Bleu which was online. I’ve also worked in Intercontinental for six months to understand how a commercial kitchen works. Then of course, my experiences and learnings from my mom, all have been great teachers for me. 

Q4. Can you draw some similarities between TV and the kitchen? 

There are absolutely no similarities in TV and real life kitchen. On TV, everything is pre-recorded, re-recorded, edited but when you are in the kitchen, everything is happening just the way it is. Of course, when we edit kitchen recipes we manage to take some liberties but when we’re talking about TV and real-life cooking, there are zero similarities between the two.

Q5. How does the name Mummy Ka Magic resonate in your personal life? 

Here, I would like to believe that I create magic in the kitchen. My son is a happy child, most of the times so I think it does resonate with my being. It’s not just what I do but I connect with it so much because I have , through my show and all the other stuff I do on my YouTube channel, Amrita Raichand: Chef and Beyond, managed to create recipes that are magical. They help every mother and every child have a wholesome diet and growth because there is usually a lot of struggle at home between mothers and their children where wholesome and yummy food is concerned. So I’m hoping that I have been able to contribute in some way or the other, in the lives of mothers and made their children happier. 

Q6. Who would you credit for your cooking skills? 

My mom, because I inherited all the cooking genes from her. The fact that I would just stand with her every time she would cook, I would be a part of her entire repertoire of cooking and learnt so many things from her just by observation and the way she did things. 

Q7. Since you’re a chef, do we believe that your son’s tiffin is the most wanted in school? 

Well, even I would like to believe that. But kids are kids and there are moments where my son finds out that something is healthy and it still becomes a war . However, I would definitely like to believe that my son’s tiffin is the best. 

Roti - E - Berger

Ingredients

For the dough 

• Jowar flour (1/2 cup)
• Rajgira flour (1/2 cup)
• Salt (1/2 tsp)

For The Patties 

• Boiled Rajma (1/4th cup)
• Boiled Potatoes (2)
• Ginger garlic paste (1 tsp) 
• Salt & pepper (to taste)
• Red chilli powder (1/2 tsp) 
• Chaat Masala (1/2 tsp)
• Oil (2 tsp) 

For Assembly 

• Lettuce & Cheese Slices
• Mayo 
• Ketchup 
• Cherry Tomatoes 

Method

1. In a bowl add the jowar & rajgira flours. Add salt & make a soft dough using some hot water.
2. Roll out thick rotis & cut roundels with the help of a cookie cutter. Cook them on a tava.
3. In a bowl mash together the rajma, potatoes along with ginger-garlic paste, red chilli powder, pepper powder & chaat masala.
4. Mix well & shape them into burger patties. 
5. Shallow fry them until they are golden from both sides.

For the Assembly

1. Mix mayo and tomato sauce in a bowl. 
2. Take one roti, spread the sauce & place a lettuce leaf on it.
3. Over the lettuce, place the burger patties, add a little sauce again & a cheese slice.
4. Place another roti over the patty & seal it with a cherry tomato on top with the help of a toothpick.

Q9. Let us in on some tricks you use when your son acts fussy while eating? 

Well, the trick that I have always used when my son was one and half years old and started weaning him, was hiding healthy stuff in yummy foods and most of the times he wouldn’t find out. But the day he found out when he watched my Ted Talk that this is the trick I had been applying, like I mentioned, there was some tussle at home. Now he is mature enough to understand that I did it for his benefit. So yes, it has always been about hiding healthy ingredients in a favourite of the child. You basically camouflage the healthy ingredient, say for example, you camouflage vegetables in a sauce which you top up with cheese. This way the child doesn’t understand or find out that there were vegetables in it.

I love working with my spiraliser because it gives me the liberty of turning everything into a noodle shape which children love. Very often, I have disguised zucchini, carrots and peppers and you know, mix them up with regular pasta and spaghetti and it has worked wonders. Whether you use it in a salad or you make noodles out of it or just for a fun presentation, it always works. 

Q11. If you were a dish, what would you be and why? 

Well, I really like that question but I don’t think I can answer it. Why don’t I throw it right back at you and you tell me what dish do you think I could be and why. (She smirks) 

We feel that a fragrant and flavourful biryani would best describe the myriad of talents that the chef possesses, just like the wide variety of spices used in the one-pot dish. We hope she agrees. 

Q12. Any food combination that makes you nostalgic and why? 

I love my dal, chawal, tamatar ki chutney, aloo beans ka bhujia. That is something that I have grown up with and that was also the first meal I made at the age of eight. That and sattu ke paronthe, both these things take me back home and back to my childhood. 

Source: Chef Amrita Raichand/Instagram 

That is a norm or rather something that I have been propagating since the day I started cooking on TV. I think it did really come to use, especially when the lockdown happened. There were so many people who finally started cooking. I also took the opportunity of doing this Live that I do on Instagram every Friday called #MereGharKaKhana and started teaching people simple recipes that I make at home. And I think it has really found a place in peoples’ hearts and I can see that with the kind of response I get to that property of mine on Instagram. It is really important for people to understand that cooking is not a chore, a thing that you leave it for your mother, it is something that you can easily do yourself and have fun while doing it. 

Q14. Does the celebrity chef rule the home kitchen too? Or does she sit back and watch others cook? 

No, as much as I would like to sit back and let others cook, that’s not the case. I am full involved in my kitchen and it is becoming a bit of a problem because being a perfectionist, I want everything to happen in the best possible way. So it takes up a lot of time but because I enjoy what I do, it’s working well so far. 

Q15. Any upcoming projects/ future plans? 

Well, fortunately, a lot of things are happening. I’m coming up with my range of healthy cookies which I plan to sell. I'm currently judging India’s first televised baking show on Zee TV called Baker’s Studio and I'm really enjoying it. Moreover, I’ve recently signed Spanish Olives as their brand ambassador and there are more such opportunities coming up so the future looks bright.