Anand runs the Gaggan restaurant in Bangkok which was this year voted number one on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list. The chef isknown for taking the street food of his home country, giving it a truly hearty kick and mixing up age old recipes with modern techniques and styles.
In the episode he traveled back to Kolkata in India to speak with the street food sellers that have inspired his cuisine and try to unearth the cooking secrets they protect and pass on through generations.
We caught up with the chef just after his trip to find out more about it and ask him about some of the highlights of his own career journey - you can all see the whole episode in three clips posted below.
Inside the Gaggan Kitchen.
Tell us about the episode, how was it for you?
I chose my city of Kolkata where I come from, it was a very easy choice, then to cook something from there and go to the archive of what happens there…For me Kolkata is my memory, my nostalgic city, when I get down from the airport the first thing I do is go to a sweet shop and buy these sweets that remind me of back home.
What did you learn from this episode?
I learned a lot about Bengal cooking and the use of mustard, I always thought this was a British influence but actually cooking with mustard is really a Bengali approach and this was interesting.
When I was cooking back home I never got that famous and I would go and ask people who I knew how to cook really good food in Kolkata they would never teach me, they would never expose their secrets of dishes in the kitchen but now through CNN and the fame that I have, I have actually got access to the treasure of secret recipes they have. It;s a learning experience for me because in India food is very domesticated, they don’t want to share how it is cooked but just appreciate how it is tastes.
Gaggan shops in India.
How was your first journey home after winning Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants?
Within three days I went back home, it was like going back and meeting my mum and they were very very happy and then actually I went to a famous restaurant and everybody there said hi to me and it was a little struggle to accept the fame but the funniest thing was that on the way back I was sitting on the airline and this lady said “are you Gaggan Anand” - I said yes and she said, “I’ve been trying to get a reservation for three weeks”.
If I gave you a blank cheque, what’s the culinary journey you would love to take?
It would be Japan for sure and it would really need a blank cheque, I go almost three times a year to Japan and every time I discover something new. I like Japan for the respect and the way they protect things - there are melons that cost $1,000 and $5,000 for a strawberry, I really do need a blank cheque for sure and I would be like a little kid in my Willy Wonka world. The thing with Japan is that even an egg sandwich inside a Seven Eleven tastes really good, I’ve never had a bad meal in Japan, I wish I was born there.
The Michelin Guide has announced a return in the US, with 2021 editions for Washington D.C., New York and Chicago to be released over the next three weeks in a virtual event called 'Still Serving'.
Manchester United footballer Marcus Rashford has teamed up with Michelin-star chef Tom Kerridge for a cooking video series called Full Time. Find out more.
You've probably tasted Japanese sake, but what about its spirit-relative, shochu? Read on to discover just what shochu is, how to drink it and what to eat with it. Take a look.
These are tough times for chefs and restaurant professionals around the world, but there has never been a better time to seek advice and help around a number of topics affecting hospitality workers. Here's a round-up of some of the most useful resources for chefs.
Mauro Colagreco will be taking the World's Best Restaurant to the Mandala Club in Singapore for a three-month residency, from 14 May to 11 August. Find out more.