"Cooking educates and entertains" says Chef Vicky Ratnani

Vicky Ratnani is undoubtedly one of the popular and well known names in the food industry today. He is a chef for whom food is an amalgamation of the experiences and tastes that he has acquired from his experiences abroad and it is all about creating dreams and feeding the imagination. He imparts knowledge which allows his audiences to learn the art and science of food when participating at events and hosting shows.

In an exclusive interaction with Adgully, Ratnani shared about his choice of career, the food industry and the major strides it is making around the globe today and more.
Having been born and brought up in Mumbai, becoming a chef was at the top of his preferences among his choice of profession. “Since my school days I was a foodie but when I got into college I took a liking for cooking and thus came the thought that now I should go ahead with it as a career. But I still make it a habit to read and practice a lot,” said Ratnani.

Vicky Ratnani is a chef with a difference, who brings the most everyday cooking experiences to life.

Sharing his opinion on cooking as a profession he avers, “Everybody wants to become a chef today. We are born in an environment where food is of prime importance to us and since childhood we’ve been pampered with different cuisines. The interest towards good foods and so called foodism is making a big impact on the industry and for an individual too. From kids, to youth, to adults, most of them are taking culinary classes and enjoying learning about food and the art of cooking.”

Ratnani is also Consultant Chef for Godrej Tyson. Speaking about his responsibilities at Godrej Tyson he said, “I think for them but am not into product development. My role at Godrej Tyson is how to use the product and how to innovate with them.”

The concept of cooking in India is a vastly different from that in the western countries. Explaining this aspect of cooking he said, “In India most of the people have cooks and maids who prepare food for them, while abroad it’s only one per cent of the population who can afford maids. Abroad cooking becomes part of your culture, but in India it is different. Convenience food there is not expensive in comparison to India. Cooking abroad is 10 times easier than it is here in India.”

Now since cooking itself has become a genre on television, what is his take on the strides this art once considered to be the domain of a housewife is making on the television medium? To this he replied, “Cooking is a part of education and entertainment now, earlier it was only education.”

Concluding an interesting and informative conversation Ratnani shared his choice of food and his hobbies that keep him busy. He said “Cuisine, I can’t finalise one, but yes I definitely like South Indian cuisine. I enjoy cooking, socialising, travelling, and discovering new flavours every given opportunity,” he said.