Indian and Seychellois chefs exchange cooking experience |07 October 2013

A Seychellois chef, Eli Belizé from the Le Relax Hotel at Anse Royale, had on Saturday the opportunity to share his experiences with top Indian chef Sanjeev Kapoor, during a culinary workshop held at the hotel. If chef Kapoor taught how to cook some typical Indian vegetarian dishes, chef Eli as he is known among his co-workers, showed how to make local snacks from banana, bread fruit and sweet potatoes and how to cook the ‘pwason griye’ and ‘kari legim kreol’.

Chef Kapoor, himself owner of a culinary channel, announced to the over 150 enthusiasts present comprising of housewives, cooks and students, that the activity will be broadcast on television in India and is expected to touch over 40 million viewers. As for Chef Eli who reveals that he has never travelled out of Seychelles, he has nevertheless acquired much experience in foreign cuisine from expatriate colleagues he has worked with, and would like to participate in a similar workshop in India.

“I had wanted to make more demonstrations such as the ‘kari zourit’, but I had to respect the time allocated. I have never travelled, but as a cook for 25 years and a chef during the last 11 years, I have been exposed to Chinese, Italian, French and other foreign cuisines.

 I have heard that the Seychelles- India Day will also be held in India, so I would like to get the opportunity to travel there for a similar workshop.”

Richard Mathiot, one of Seychelles’ best known executive chef and culinary trainer had this to share:

« The workshop has deepened and refined my knowledge and experience of North Indian cuisine, for example in the cooking of biryani. Chef’s Kapoor method is easy to follow. His cuisine can be cherished by anybody, is simple and can be integrated in any Creole cuisine. The dessert for instance is simple to prepare and shows us that we can easily prepare for ourselves what we usually buy in tins. Sometimes we do not pay attention but Creole cuisine contains many Indian elements which we enjoy when the food reaches the buffet table.

 I believe that there should be much more of those activities and a chef of this calibre should be invited to the Seychelles Tourism Academy in order to help create a new generation of cooks and chefs. Although more than 100 or so persons are present, this activity should have touched more Seychellois. We should also create more partnerships with foreign chefs and in order to do this, we have to revive the Seychelles Chefs’ Association.”

Guests present, who also included the Indian high commissioner Thanglura Darlong and the Minister for Social Affairs, Community Development and Sports Vincent Meriton, were at lunch time treated to a tasty meal combining fine Creole and Indian cuisine.