'I learnt to cook real Indian food - I'll never look at korma same way again'

15 August 2023 , 16:00

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'I learnt to cook real Indian food - I'll never look at korma same way again'

Cooking food from India can be a daunting task, but with meals from that region of the world one of the most popular takeaway cuisines in the UK, why not make it at home once in a while?

Of course, the term "Indian food" is misused in the same way that French and Italian food is - each region has its specific dishes that originate from history, culture and tradition.

As it's South Asian Heritage Month, which runs from July 18 to August 17, I decided to take a Southern Indian cooking course at London's Food at 52 Cookery School, hoping it would inspire me to cook dishes myself, rather than eating out or ordering in, to save a bit of cash.

Food at 52 offers several cooking classes, including Indian Street Feast and Southern Indian (Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz)

The chefs make you feel like you're actually doing all the work - but you get lets of help (Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz)

The three-and-a-half-hour class was run by head chef Jean Marc Zanetti, who has worked at the cookery school for more than four years. The French chef, who worked alongside Michelin-starred chef Michael Caines MBE for over eight years, explained to me that when he first started teaching cooking classes, Southern Indian food wasn't his "best" one, but he quickly learned and had it helped that he had a huge interest in the cuisine.

Jean Marc said: "It's interesting, when you're a chef you have to learn everything, but when I came here, southern Indian was one of the cooking classes I didn't know much about. So it was daunting to start with, but you learn quite quickly."

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The Southern Indian cooking course consists of dishes from the Kerala region, which is known for its palm-lined beaches and incredible food. In an introductory chat by Food at 52's owner John Benow, he explained that the class would be "dynamic and fun" and that we would be "on our feet a lot".

We were split into groups and told that we would all be cooking different dishes, apart from the Spinach Vadai (a type of savoury fried snack that is eaten in South India) which we all made - and then sharing all the meals at the end. The menu consisted of carrot pachadi, snake bean thoran, courgette, aubergine rasavangi, moru kachiyathu, and in my opinion, the star of the show - chicken nadan kozhi.

All the spices and ingredients are laid out for you (Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz)

Jean Marc showing everyone the ingedients (Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz)

According to John, this chicken curry is "like a korma, if korma was any good", and I couldn't agree more. I love a korma, but after cooking it, I will never be able to look at that curry in the same way again. It was incredibly rich and creamy, and bursting with flavour. Although my group didn't make it, we were all sent the recipes to every dish at the end, and I will definitely be making that next time.

When asked which dish is the easiest to make at home, Jean Marc again mentioned the chicken nadan kozhi, which he said is "basically like a chicken korma, but 1,000 times better. It's probably something people have done before."

John went through how the evening would run (Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz)

The menu is written on the mirror, but they also send you the recipes afterwards (Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz)

Although each group only made specific dishes, we all picked up tips that we will be able to use at home for cooking. One thing I learned from Jean Marc, is that some things need measuring, and some don't. We were told to carefully measure the spices, such as cumin, turmeric and garam masala. But when it came to things like yoghurt and water, Jean Marc would swoop in out of nowhere and measure it by eye. I suppose this is something you learn with practice.

This ties in with one of Jean Marc's most important pieces of advice. You always need to season the dish with salt, as it "enhances the flavour", but: "You can always add more, but you can't take away," he warned. He taught us that we should add a bit of salt, taste, add more, taste again, and then repeat until happy. But remember, "a tiny bit of salt can bring it over the top," so be careful.

Another tip we all agreed on we would use at home, was about mustard seeds. Many of us were under the impression that when you're cooking with oil, you should always heat this up before adding anything to the pan. However, this isn't the case with mustard seeds, which are widely used in Indian cooking. Instead, you should always start them in cool oil, because you need it to get hot gradually to raise the flavour - then you wait for them to pop. That's how you know they are done.

Ariane and husband Kieran with the Spinach Vadai (Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz)

After we'd all made the dishes using the provided recipes, we all sat down together to tuck in - and I was blown away by how delicious it was. This is a far cry away from vindaloo and chicken tikka masala - although sometimes there's no denying that does hit the spot.

But despite the chefs being there to guide you through when you're struggling, I'm left with a feeling that this is something I could do at home, albeit it would take me a lot longer, as Jordan and Joshua who were on pot wash made it all flow like a dream.

This is a cooking class where you can't fail. The chefs make you feel like you're doing all the world, and you are actually doing quite a bit - but they are there every step of the way. I was left with the confidence to stock up my spice cupboard and attempt it myself.

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You all share the incredible dishes at the end (Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz)

It tasted incredble (Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz)

Although it can be daunting when you first look at the recipe, Jean Marc explained that when you start doing it, "you realise it's not that difficult". He added: "All the classes that we prepare here are not ones that no one can make at home. It's very easy recipes to make. When you come here, you go back home, you get the recipes and it's quite simple."

According to Jean Marc, if you want authenticity, "English curry is not the one". He added: "Vindaloo or whatever they call it, is not great." For those who are wanting to try to make something at home, he said: "First, you want to find a local Indian or Asian shop where you can buy authentic spices, fruit and vegetables and especially chillies. Don't go crazy on the spices. Don't put too much. Taste it, understand it. And then, just do what you like to do."

Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz