Chef Gary Mehigan’s love affair with India began in 2012, when he first visited the country as part of a culinary tour. Since then, he has returned several times, visiting different parts of the country — Rajasthan, Mumbai, Goa, Kerala, Leh, Ladakh and Kolkata, among others.
The former MasterChef Australia judge was recently in Kolkata for a Masterclass with Conosh and a dinner at Taj Bengal, and had a candid chat with My Kolkata about his ‘desi-ness’, Indian travels, the special things about the City of Joy and much more.
Not just a tourist
Gary’s frequent trips to India have acquainted him with the culture and traditions of the country better, so much so that at times he no longer feels like a tourist. “It's great coming to this country, and slowly it makes you feel like you’re one of their own. Everyone is so welcoming and ready to accept you,” exclaimed the chef.
The same non-touristy feeling follows him to Kolkata as well, said the chef. “Once you visit a city frequently and go into the depth of it, you start feeling homely. Watching the sunset, taking a stroll at Victoria’s gardens, getting on a six-rupee tram ride… everything about the city is so fascinating. Once I met a tram conductor who recognised me and said he had watched me on-screen. He told me that 10-15 years ago, he used to work in Melbourne and I went ‘wow!’. That is how the city surprises you!”
The magic of Durga Puja
As part of the National Geographic show Mega Festivals, Gary closely experienced Kolkata’s biggest festival, Durga Puja. From pandal hopping to the bishorjon (immersion of the Durga idol), the Aussie-English chef celebrated just as much as any other Kolkatan in October 2022.
The chef was in Kolkata in October 2022 for Durga Puja
Sharing his takeaways from the experience, he said, “The shoot we did for Nat Geo Mega Festivals was very female-focused because Durga Puja is about celebrating female power. There were female dhakis and women significantly took part in the rituals. That was truly astonishing.”
The chef also went around the city soaking in the fervour. “We did a lot of pandal-hopping last year. There were so many pandals that focused on using eco-friendly and sustainable material as decor. One pandal, I remember, used everything from the blossoms to the bark and leaves of the banana tree. It was incredibly done!” Another great experience, he added, was joining people travelling in trucks to the Hooghly river for the immersion. “The drums, the smell of the incense sticks, the final goodbye to the goddess, everything is worth experiencing in the moment!”
Gary’s Bengali taste buds
During his foodie chat, Gary Mehigan admitted his love for Bengali cuisine and Kolkata’s street food. While he obsesses over Kolkata's phuchka and bhanr-er chaa, he also thinks Kolkata is a great city to eat fish. On previous visits to the city, Gary visited Kolkata’s fish markets accompanied by friends and described himself as a “kid in a candy store” when walking around the market. So, what does he think of our queen of fish — Ilish?
“Ilish is an incredible fish and I have gotten the opportunity to relish it both at a restaurant and cooked at home. It has a distinct, strong smell and flavour, and it’s incredible how every part of the fish is a delicacy, from the head to the fat to the eggs.” As a chef, it was his responsibility to try it, he said, because if a community likes it there is a reason for it and as a chef he tries to understand how it smells, how it feels on the tongue. Ilish has an incredible taste and it’s no wonder the fish needs to be protected, said Gary, though the bones prove to be a challenge. “I think when you are born here, you have special fingers that can separate the bones easily! As a clumsy Australian I am always wondering ‘how do you eat this?’ That’s where I like bekti,” chuckled the chef.
The celebrity chef enjoys home-cooked Bengali food as it involves a personal touch and in many Bengali homes, the food is made by someone who has been cooking for years. “With restaurants, they are making larger quantities and with a number of other dishes. But in a home, the person who is cooking brings family recipes and personal experiences to the table. The taste is better because at home, people cook in smaller quantities and with lots of love.”
Kolkata’s street food, though, holds a special place for Gary Mehigan. For him, the golgappa - pani puri - phuchka war ended after a taste of Kolkata’s phuchka and he has concluded that nothing is better than the phuchka. "I know there is a debate in the county regarding phuchka and other variants of it in other states. But I love phuchka! I also love the spicy, tangy Kathi rolls and, of course, the roadside tea! When you go about enjoying street food in a city, I feel you get to know the place better.”
He is also a big fan of Kolkata’s rolls and the bhanr-er chaa, with spices and aromatics — a perfect cup of masala chai.
‘Bengali sweets are too sweet’
While the street grub scores big points, having a tongue for savoury flavours, Gary finds Bengali mIshti too sweet. However, from a chef’s perspective, he notices how the culture of desserts in India varies from the rest of the world. “Bengali sweets are interesting as they are made with a lot of skill but they are very sweet. I can hardly take more than a bite from some of them that are dipped in sugar syrup although I love rasgulla and sandesh. If you look at other desserts from other countries, Indian sweets are much sweeter. It is interesting that way.”
India’s diverse flavours
The “food-obsessed traveller” has discovered distinction in flavours as he travelled through various cities in India. “In India, I have found that flavours change with every city and sometimes a dish tastes different in different families within the region! What I have discovered is that northern India has more spices in their food while in Bengal the food has more pungency, with earthy and fishy flavours. There are mild spices that are easy on the stomach and a lot more textures are involved. Similarly, in Nagaland, I saw them using more ingredients from the forest. There was wild ginger, Naga chillies, etc, as opposed to turmeric, cumin and other spices.”
One of the dishes that embodies this diversity is biryani, said the chef, pointing out how the concept of biryani remains the same but the ingredients and taste change with cities and regions.
When eating his way through India, even an experienced culinary palate like Gary’s has experienced its share of mishaps and one of those times, Gary ended up with a fish curry massacre. “I remember making a fish curry with coconut and curry leaves but I used mustard oil in it. When I gave it to one of my Indian friends, he said, ‘What have you done to it! It is wrong on so many levels!’ So yeah, every region has a different flavour and cooking method and you can’t always play around with it.”
Where India meets Australia
When asked if the cuisine of India intersects with Australian food, Gary explained how the food in India is similar to Aussie cuisine in terms of flavour and texture and both countries like the element of crunchy-meets-soft.
“There are differences in both cuisines, but when it comes to crunch, and the warm-and-cold factor, I think both palates meet. For example, the warmth of the spices in a raj kachori or papri chaat are balanced by a cool chutney or yoghurt. Talking about crunch, the perfect crispy fish fry is soft from the inside. I think the Aussies and Indians share a similar love for that!”
Chef Gary’s desi secrets
The chef’s love for Indian food has meant that Indian ingredients find a space in Gary Mehigan’s kitchen in Melbourne. He has been introduced to the world of Indian spices by his friends and acquaintances in India, and loves playing around with them. “I love Indian spices and I have a box with compartments with things like turmeric, green cardamom, cumin, etc, and I use a lot of them. I picked up ingredients like asafoetida from India and until then I did not know about it.” he said.
Apart from spices, this Aussie chef also has a curry leaf plant in his backyard, which he treasures and nurtures even in the chilly winters of Melbourne. “I have a curry leaf plant back in Melbourne and I love using fresh curry leaves in many recipes. The plant has to be taken care of when it's extremely cold in Melbourne so I wrap it up.”
A message for young Indian chefs
The chef has seen young Indian chefs taking hyperlocal Indian food to a global platform, and during his India tour he came across chefs from various parts of the country who have been working giving traditional dishes a modern approach — something the chef wholeheartedly endorses.
Mentioning Chef Avinash Martins, owner of Cavatina in Goa, Gary said, “It is incredible how chefs from India are evolving traditional dishes with a modern touch, and that’s what I encourage people to do. Don’t do continental food if you are from India. Do Indian food, give it a new look and present it globally.”
Lately, Gary has been collaborating with various hotels and restaurants in India to bring in unique projects to the Indian culinary scene. In fact the trio of MasterChef Australia judges — Gary Mehigan, George Colambaris, and Matt Preston will be in India sometime in November again. “There are a couple more trips to India planned. There are going to be many interesting things about food. Stay tuned for more revelations,” signed off the chef.