Chiiz Volume 04 : Wildlife Photography | Page 9

Garlic Soya Dosai iPhone6 4mm F/2.2 1/33s ISO100 For the Love of Food Uma Raghuraman M asterchef Mom Uma Raghuraman is a doting mother and a passionate chef. Her culinary journey began two decades ago culminating in her becoming one of the top food bloggers in the country, with her blog containing more than 700 recipes from cuisines across the world. To compliment her blog, she shares these recipes through her Instagram and Facebook handles too. PRIYASHI NEGI from Chiiz in quick chat with Uma about her journey so far in the kingdom of food. Where does your passion for cooking stem from? I have a family that just loves to eat good food. Meal time is the best time that bonds the family and a great meal makes it even more happy and memorable. This challenges me to take extra interest and explore various cuisines. How would you describe your cooking? I cook with loads of enthusiasm. I enjoy cooking using fresh and local ingredients. I like to cook from scratch and use my heart to decide the menu for the day. I use my creativity to give even the most regular dishes a twist that makes them interesting and unique. Did you go to some culinary school or are you self taught? I am a self taught cook and a baker. Practice over the last two decades has helped me to reach the place I am in today. What is your favourite cuisine? What are the different cuisines that you can cook? I specialise in cooking Indian Cuisine. But I am also fond of Italian, Mexican and Lebanese Cuisine. How did you come to be known as ‘Masterchef Mom’? The title ‘Masterchef Mom’ I got is not through any competition but bestowed to me by my children. I treasure it and feel so proud of it. Like many of you may agree with, it is really difficult and most challenging to get compliments from fussy eaters. You are one of the top food bloggers. Does that put you under pressure of any kind? Not at all. I enjoy cooking and sharing my experiences and recipes through my blog. It makes me more happy. It gives me a sense of satisfaction, not pressure. Your message to all the food lovers and aspiring food bloggers. If you have original content and the drive and passion, you can create your own identity. Thanks to social media like blogs, facebook and instagram, you can share your ideas, creative work and thoughts with the world and inspire someone else. You can reach out to food lovers who can then try out recipes from different corners of the world from the comforts of their kitchen. To know more about her and her delicious recipes, you may visit her blog, masterchefmom. blogspot.in. Priyashi Negi [email protected] Trekking to the top of the hills through tiny little paths and between pines is nothing short of paradise for Priyashi. Books and poetry are her refuge. She is a foodie at heart and seems to be blessed a love for all things cheese (pun-intended).