Born in a family of doctors and choosing to become a chef was not a conventional choice for chef Arun Sundararaj. By Unnati Joshi
It’s the way Sundararaj consistently uses this quintessentially notion of “Happy chefs make happy food” that puts him ahead of his time. “My cooking philosophy is simple, happy chefs make happy food. When a chef loves what he does you can actually see it in his food. He will never compromise on either the quality of the ingredient or the amount of time that he is supposed to spend with the product or the process. And all that comes when you are naturally happy,” he gushed.
It was his true passion for food that drove young Sundararaj into the culinary profession. “I started out as a kid, my parents travelled internationally. I was lucky to have got the opportunity to travel extensively from a very young age, the exposure to different cuisines I got as a young child intrigued me and that was the beginning of my journey. Almost 24 years ago I joined the Taj group as a trainee chef at the Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai and ever since there has been no looking back. In terms of cuisine, I started as a county chef, worked in Italian and Chinese kitchen and then back to the Goan and Saraswat food and worked with an Italian chef again then Hyderabadi and now I am here in Delhi. When I look at my journey, I see a new learning everywhere. It could sometimes be a roadside kebab or maybe learning about a new ingredient or working with a new ingredient, for example, take sandalwood powder and then fuse it with chat masala to give it a new aroma. Every little learning has always been amazing for me,” said chef Sundararaj reminiscing his culinary journey.
“I come from a family of doctors, my father is a doctor, his father was a doctor, my uncles and my sister is a doctor too. I was like a black sheep in the family. I enjoyed most of my time in the kitchen,” he added.
The secret to Arun’s success is his ability to take an ordinary dish and give it the kind of twist that makes people wonder.
“I normally cook on Sundays at home. I give my wife a break but this is my time with family. When we are together it could be something as simple as omelette or could be curry for lunch. I normally cook at home. I don’t cook on family gatherings. But I would cook when we are entertaining someone at home. My wife was also a chef, she is a teacher now. I quite enjoy what I do, so it’s fun. My sons love Biryani. I love cooking the biryani fusion. It’s the mutton biryani that I make and they relish it. So I presume that it’s my signature dish at home.”
His contribution to food has given Indian cuisine sheen of respect, taking it far beyond greasy, spicy curries. Explaining the evolution of modern Indian food he said, “Quite a few people these days are going back to authentic recipes. Everyone is definitely looking at organic part of the Indian cuisine and then looking at the process that reminds you of your heritage. When you say modern I think most of the people are looking at the presentation as well as the taste.”
Innovation in cuisine has no boundaries, much like an artist who works on his imagination with no restrictions. The only key to remember is not to lose the essence of your dish in the process of innovation or experimentation. Thus far Taj has excelled in terms of guest attendance but what is his secret as an executive chefIJ “Each customer is different but everyone enjoys a good meal served with a smile. A chef should know his customer well, understand their preferences and cater to their needs,” he concluded.