Global Indian Youth Tuesday, July 1 2025
  • Main Site
  • Home
  • Stories
    • Exclusive
    • Startups
    • Culture
  • Blogs
    • Opinions
  • Fun Facts
    • World in Numbers
    • Did You Know
    • Quotes
    • Word of the day
    • Influencers
  • Gallery
    • Pictures
    • Videos
  • OPPORTUNITIES
    • Migrate
    • Work
    • Study
    • Invest
    • Travel
  • About Us
  • Events
  • Join us
  • Subscribe
Select Page
Global Indianstory Global Indian ExclusiveTasting success: Meet the young chefs who are taking the Indian platter to the world
  • Global Indian Exclusive
  • Indian Chef

Tasting success: Meet the young chefs who are taking the Indian platter to the world

Compiled by: Team GI Youth

(February 16, 2023) As per a recent study by German food ordering company Lieferando, Indian food is the second most popular cuisine on social media and had the fastest growth rate of 41 percent. In the last two decades, several young chefs from the Indian diaspora are tapping into the potential of regional Indian food and stacking it with consciousness, innovation, and creativity.

Interestingly, a young chef from Kolkata – Naureen Shaikh – recently won the bronze trophy at the International Young Chef Olympiad, defeating 50 participants from various other countries. And she is not the only one. The culinary world is witnessing a rise of many young Indian or Indian-origin chefs, who are carving a niche for themselves. Global Indian puts the spotlight on young chefs who are changing the international perception of Indian food from spice-laden meals to delicate cuisine.

Naureen Shaikh

Going against her mother, who wanted her to pursue a degree in social sciences and become an IAS officer, Naureen Shaikh took admission to a hotel management institute to follow her dream of becoming a chef. And making her mother very proud, the 20-year-old recently won the bronze cup at the International Young Chef Olympiad, held in Goa. The chef, who prepared two portions of French omelette, four portions of a prawn entree, and dessert for the finale, shared in a press conference that her love for cooking started at quite a young age. ” My interest in cooking started when I was in Class VIII and I would always look for feedback on what I had prepared because that would help me improve,” she said.

Chef | Naureen Shaikh | Global Indian

For about six months before the competition, she would spend almost 12 hours in the institute ‘making the same dish over and over again’. “It was exhausting and at times frustrating. But hard work, consistency, and dedication matter. It was a Michelin-star restaurant. Working in the kitchen, I learnt that the customer gives us bread and butter and we have to give them value for money,” shared the young chef, who wishes to open a restaurant in Kolkata in the next few years.

Arnav Kamulkar

While his classmates at J.P. Stevens High School in New Jersey were looking up which college to apply to, this 17-year-old chef was busy experimenting with new recipes and designing a menu for his restaurant – Clove 12. Redefining the genre of the typical Indian restaurant with innovation and uniqueness, Arnav Kamulkar began cooking at the age of 6 with traditional Indian dishes because that’s what his mother made. When she became a “bit explorative” and tried other cuisines, Kamulkar, who was her sous chef, found his spark. “From there it just kind of snowballed. I started making my own stuff. Originally, I was just helping my mom cook vegetables and watching her cook and then slowly I wanted to make my own recipes, and do my own stuff. And that’s how it kind of led to what I’m doing today,” the chef told in an interview.

Chef | Arnav Kamulkar | Global Indian

Drawing inspiration from across the globe, the young chef features fusion offerings at his restaurant, that according to him, “marry the best flavors from all cuisines to provide a one-of-a-kind gastronomic experience.” Speaking about his plans for his restaurant going ahead, the teen chef said, “I’ll explore gastronomy. I’ll do molecular cooking. Like, sometimes I’ll make plant-based caviar. And I’ll also do fusion foods, like Indian tacos. Clove 12 is definitely a mix of all cuisines. Although I do like to keep a bit of a foundation of Indian food because that’s how I first learned how to cook.”

Madhumitha K P

Just 19, and already ruling the culinary world. Bengaluru’s Madhumitha K P represented India at the 2019 Young Chef Olympiad and came back home with a shining trophy. Though none of her family members are into this profession, she was inspired by her mother and dreamt of becoming a famous chef. “Even as a young girl I would cook at home under my mom’s supervision, and by the time I finished my schooling, I was sure that I wanted to do hotel management.”

Chef | Madhumitha K P | Global Indian

The young chef wants to work in a standalone restaurant in Europe in the coming years and hopes that it will give her the necessary experience in cooking. In the next five years, she aims to start her own food court chain across India. She also hopes to adopt orphanages and old age homes so that she can provide them with regular food.

Dev Mishra

Who can forget 13-year-old Dev Mishra – the young chef who bowled over top Australian chefs with his finger-licking lamb mughlai curry? The teen chef earned rave reviews from the judges on the show Junior MasterChef Australia, for his first-ever meal in the show, with chef Jock Zonfrillo saying, “I feel as if I’m eating at your table at home with your parents and your brothers.”

Chef | Dev Mishra | Global Indian

Like many chefs across the world, Dev’s love for cooking was inspired by his mother. “I started learning to cook for as long as I can remember. My mum always wanted my brother and me to be independent and she encouraged us to learn cooking. My first memory of cooking is when my mum would give me some dough to knead and roll to make roti or mix and prepare ingredients,” the youngster had informed during an interview. Currently running successful YouTube and Instagram food channels, the young chef plans on opening his chain of restaurants. “My restaurant will serve food from across the world. I cook different cuisines, and I try to recreate authentic flavours with my twist to them. That’s what I want to showcase at my restaurant,” he shared.

Subscribe
Connect with
Notify of
guest

OR

Connect with
guest

OR

1 Comment
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Balaji Ammanji Sundararaju
Balaji Ammanji Sundararaju
March 15, 2024 9:43 pm

I love all of there dreams in fact I had the same kind of dreams they had and
and I’ve seen dev on Instagram and YouTube

0
Reply
  • Arnav Kamulkar
  • chef
  • Chef Jock Zonfrillo
  • Chef Naureen Shaikh
  • Clove 12
  • Dev Mishra
  • Global Indian
  • Global Indian Exclusive
  • Hotel Managemt
  • Indian chefs
  • Indians in America
  • Indians in New Jersey
  • Indians in USA
  • International Institute of Hotel Management
  • International Young Chef Olympiad
  • Junior MasterChef Australia
  • Lieferando
  • Madhumitha K P
  • Naureen Shaikh
  • Young Chefs

Published on 16, Feb 2023

Share with

Related Stories

Indian youth | Nandita Saxena | Global Indian

Written By: Amrita Priya

Nandita Saxena, the pastry chef who bagged a silver at WorldSkills 2022

Chef Neel Kajale | Michelin star | fine dining | Havens Kitchen |

Written By: Darshana Ramdev

Kitchen Confidential: Chef Neel Kajale’s journey from Mumbai to New York

Young Chef | Chef Kicha | Global Indian

Written By: Amrita Priya

Showing Ellen DeGeneres how it’s done: Young chef Kicha’s culinary adventures

globalIndian_logo

Share & Follow us

Subscribe News Letter

globalIndian_logo

About Global Indian

Global Indian – a Hero’s Journey is an online publication which showcases the journeys of Indians who went abroad and have had an impact on India. 

These journeys are meant to inspire and motivate the youth to aspire to go beyond where they were born in a spirit of adventure and discovery and return home with news ideas, capital or network that has an impact in some way for India.

We are looking for role models, mentors and counselors who can help Indian youth who aspire to become Global Indians.

Read more..
  • Join us
  • Sitemap
  • Terms & Conditions
© 2023 copyright The Global Indian // All rights reserved. This site was made with love by Xavier Augustin