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In a bid to reinforce and rekindle the state’s ancient link with the 31 countries along the historical Spice Route, a unique culinary fest titled ‘Spice Route Culinary Festival’ was held by Kerala Tourism at Kochi.
The four-day event saw chefs from 15 out of the 31 countries along the Spice Route spar against each other by preparing cuisine from their home countries with a dash of spices from Kerala.
“The whole idea for the Spice Route Culinary Festival came to our minds after showcasing the Muziris Heritage Project. The Spice Route, an innovative initiative by UNESCO and Kerala Tourism, was the second stage of the Muziris Project,” said Mr. U.V. Jose, Director, Kerala Tourism, while delivering the welcome address in the valedictory function.
The Spice Route initiative is focused on reviving a significant heritage shared among as many as 31 countries by facilitating people from around the world to once again travel the route, used by traders for over 2000 years.
The French duo Didier Corlou and Le Minh Manh took home the prize for the best international chef team. The Egyptian team of chefs Yasser Ramadan and Mariem Magdy were adjudged first runners-up with the team from Thailand, Chef Songpol Vithanwata and Chef Jareuk Sriaroon, rounding up the list of winners. The participants had to use Kerala spices sourced from the local markets during the contest.
In the ‘Kerala Chef’ competition in the professional category, Chef Prakash Sundaran of Kochi bagged the top prize while chefs Ashok Eapen of Thiruvananthapuram and Siyad C. A. from Ernakulam bagged the second and third prizes respectively. In the amateurs’ category, Sanjay Sunny from Kannur took the top slot with Lisa Joji from Aluva and Saida Abdul Salam of Kochi coming in as first and second runners-up respectively.
Leading chefs from Egypt, Iran, Lebanon, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Thailand, Oman, Turkey, Qatar, Netherlands, France, Malaysia, Italy and Japan battled it out in the festival. The jury comprised ITC Corporate Chef Vijay Nagpal, Mahindra Resorts’ Executive Chef Debraj Bhaumik and Montu Saini, currently Executive Chef to the President of India.
Mr. Janvier Kamiyama, French Consul General, Ms. Petra Smulders, First Secretary, Netherlands Embassy, Mr. Alphonsus Stoelinga, Ambassador of Netherlands to India, Mr. Shigeru Aoyagi, Director and UNESCO Representative to Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka and Ms. Moe Chiba, Culture Head at UNESCO India were some of the luminary attendees.
The festival saw 17 national teams from 15 countries along the spice route battle it out with Kerala spices. The programme was held under the aegis of the Spice Route project, an initiative of Kerala Tourism in partnership with UNESCO and helped showcase Kerala cuisine to the world.
