Barely a day goes by, it seems, without a restaurant advertising a special promotion — from happy hours to ladies’ nights. However they’re packaged, events are one way to get customers to return to restaurants in an increasingly crowded market. It’s certainly a route that works well for Atul Kochhar at his Dubai restaurant Rang Mahal.
Previous editions of his Battle of the Chefs series have sold out before the day, but as he returns for the fifth instalment of the popular event on April 4, Kochhar tells me it’s not about money as much as it is about personal satisfaction.
“I put it more down to learning than to marketing to be honest,” the chef behind Michelin-starred Benaras London said on a recent visit to Dubai.
He goes head-to-head with Nigel Haworth in Dubai on April 4, with each cooking a five-course menu at Rang Mahal. Diners will be able to sample both menus, and vote for a winner.
The face-off format seems to be successful because if showcases techniques and recipes beautifully, while allowing diners to elevate the dining experience into something else; to play critic and reality show judge all at the same time, while promoting the sort of endorphin rush that comes from sharing a pleasurable experience.
Previous editions have seen Kochhar take on South African celebrity chef Reuben Riffle, his own protege Amrish Sood, Rang Mahal’s chef de cuisine, as well as a memorable episode with MasterChef India finalists Kirti Bhoutika and Ashima Arora. And in the UK, he has teamed up with peers such as Haworth, Paul Ainsworth and Cyrus Todiwala for similar events, and hopes to eventually also lock down a cook-off with Jamie Oliver, schedules permitting. Haworth, of course, is the brains behind Obsession, an annual gastronomic event that has been welcoming chefs from all over the world to Northcote, the Michelin-starred country house hotel in Lancashire, England, for the past 18 years.
“To have such people and work next to them and see where their inspiration comes from and how we all handle the same ingredient differently, that’s a massive learning that I don’t think any amount of money can buy,” Kochhar says. “And then as chefs, you know, we get very little time to socialise with each other and that gives us a great time to get a good laugh and a good drink and a good meal.” That may sound like PR guff, but a deeper conversation on a quiet morning at Rang Mahal brought home to me the fact that he could quite possibly be one of the most grounded celebrities in the business today.
Kochhar now runs, or is associated with, seven restaurants around the world, including ventures in Madrid, Mumbai and one on the high seas, for P&O Cruises. A much-reported new venture in Birmingham, NRI, has been delayed, partly because finding staff is a challenge in the wake of the UK’s decision to leave the European Union.
The Oberoi alumnus says he isn’t interested in building up a large portfolio of restaurants, or indeed in more Michelin stars (Benares retained its star in November). “I haven’t set out to make a large number or anything to be honest. I often go with my gut feel that I want to do it or if there’s a good opportunity, or sometimes if you have a brilliant chef and a manager in your team who wants to set up their own restaurant, and I can be an investor.”
Remarkably, although he owns all his restaurants, except Rang Mahal, he insists he isn’t a control freak and prefers to share responsibility with his chefs. The head chef at each restaurant has a big say in his own menu, and Kochhar believes each must be able to take home a piece of the business’ profits. “I think everybody puts their blood, sweat, tears, passion everything into it, and they deserves a piece of that.”
So what about those extra Michelin stars? They’d allow him to charge more — and raise his profits, for one. As one of the first Indian chefs whose restaurant was awarded a star, the Jamshedpur, Kochhar has seen its impact first-hand. “I think trying to achieve a second or third star would require chasing after it, and that would turn my focus away from what I want to do — which is really good food. I want to be with people, I want to enjoy what I’m doing and I’ve often seen that when you chase something you very rarely achieve it. I want rewards to come if I deserve them for whatever I am doing,” he smiles.
It’s a solid idea that runs counter to the now-widespread overachievement we’re all exhorted to prize in an age of incessant, social media-driven motivation. “I’ve seen a lot of people kill themselves literally in the pursuit of more and more Michelin stars, and lose out on their lives. But I want to be with my family, with my friends, and to cherish what I’m doing,” he continues. “It wasn’t something I didn’t set out to achieve stars. It happened to me I was very grateful that I was given the privilege to be included. One day if Michelin thinks that I’m not worth it, so be it.”
I ask if that’s because he’s slowing down and preparing for a second act. After all, as life expectancy improves, several experts believe we’ll all be working much longer than ever, often in two or three different careers. He admits it could be an age thing. “I’ll be 50 in two years, and my kids are going to be old enough to leave home soon — so I’d like to be there for them, as my parents were for me.”
Get a good pasting
Atul Kochhar’s new book, 30 Minute Curries, with recipes from all over India, is now available in Dubai. It is published by Bloomsbury.
But as anyone who’s sauteed onions will tell you, half an hour seems impossible for a curry. His biggest secret is in pre-prepared pastes; here are his top three tips on achieving the unattainable.
1. Onions: Kochhar is a fan of advance prep, and agrees that the biggest time killer in Indian cooking is the onions. “So I take five kilos of onions, peel and drizzle with oil, and stick it all in the oven at 180 degrees Centigrade for 45 minutes to an hour,” he says. Peel away any burnt bits, and blitz the now-pulpy insides with a cup of sunflower oil and a cup of ginger-garlic paste. You’ll have about four kilos of paste, which you can divide into bags of about 250 grammes, which he says is enough to work as the base for a dish for four people.
2. Tomatoes: “Since you don’t always get tomatoes at their best, whizz up a paste when you do,” he advises. Blanch a bunch in boiling water, skin and blend them into a fine paste, which you can store in ziplock bags.
3. Ginger and garlic: For this essential starter mixture, take equal amounts of peeled ginger and garlic, and blend with a little oil to prevent oxidation. Pour the lot into an extra ice-cube tray and freeze until ready to use. One cube equals one tablespoon. “But keep it far away from your ice cream, otherwise you’ll end up cursing me and I don’t want that!” he laughs.
Check it out!
Battle of the Chefs returns to Rang Mahal by Atul Kochhar for season five, featuring an epic cook-off between Kochhar and UK celebrity chef Nigel Haworth tonight, April 4. For Dh395 per person, diners have the opportunity to chat with both chefs, to sample their menus and enjoy welcome drinks and canapes. From 7pm to 11pm.
