On Friday 17 th March ,2023 ,the students of Third Year B.A Culinary Arts curated a hearty menu that was cooked using a Chulha. Chulha cooking is often seen in rural India, in the villages where brick and wood is put together and a fire is created in its center. The utensils are then placed on the top of the chulha and slowly cooked. This feast was prepared on the ground floor of our college in the parking area.
This was all done as a part of our Innovative Cuisine practical guided and led by Chef Vinayak Shettigar. Pre-preparation for the same started 2 days ago. Students were divided into teams according to the dishes and work started smoothly in the Quantity Training Kitchen. Marinades,batters, accompaniments and other mise-en-place were being done to reduce excessive workload on the day of service. Dishes that take more time to make were made a day prior.
On the day of the service students gathered in the kitchen at 8am and started their work after a briefing from the Chefs. Dishes that had to be cooked using the chulha were brought downstairs. In the parking area 4 Chulhas were set up using bricks, wood, mud and husk.
A few dishes made on the Chulha were Chicken Champaran ,Haleem, Bhakri, Kaul Chicken, Malai Kofta, Curry and Agri Chicken Sukka. Once cooked everything was brought upstairs for service. In the kitchen, students completed the desserts, baking of breads, kebabs and tikkas that were made using a Sigdi (a stove that is used in North India for cooking) . All the gravies were being seasoned and given the final touches simultaneously. By 12:30 the food was taken to the Hibiscus Restaurant for service to our faculty.
The restaurant was set up, with printed menus, an attractive buffet and an interactive live station for desserts which included mouthwatering jalebis, chum chum and kulfi, which was also set up in the restaurant.
We were also very delighted to be serving Mr Arvind Tiwari, our honourable Principal Mr. Conrad D’souza and our beloved faculty members.
The service came to an end by 2pm and the day ended with a de-briefing from our Chefs and various highly positive feedback.
It was a unique, one of a kind event, and an opportunity most of the students, as residents of the city, may only experience rarely.
