Chef Manjit S. Gill is a globally renowned Indian chef and the current president of the Indian Federation of Culinary Associations. With over four decades of experience, he has played a pivotal role in elevating traditional Indian cuisine in world-class restaurants, notably at ITC. He is the visionary behind concept restaurants like Bukhara, Dum Pukht, Dakshin, Kabab & Kurry, and the vegetarian Royal Vega, which draws from Ayurvedic principles.
Chef Gill has had the honour of designing menus and curating Indian fare for world leaders, including former U.S. Presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and George Bush, as well as premiers from France, Canada, Britain, and Germany at state banquets hosted at ITC properties. Renowned for his expertise in traditional Indian cuisine, he is also a champion of sustainable and healthy cooking practices. Currently, Chef Gill is running for the presidency of the World Association of Chefs’ Societies (WACS), a prestigious global network of chefs’ associations founded in 1928 at the Sorbonne in Paris.
In an insightful discussion with Fresh, Chef Gill outlines his vision as the President of the World Association of Chefs’ Societies. He touches on a wide range of topics, including the unique character and philosophy behind Indian cuisine, role of the World Chef Association, the difference between good and bad processed food, how chefs can promoting sustainability and more. Read on for this exciting conversation.
Chef Manjit S. Gill: Undoubtedly, I’ve had a highly productive career in the culinary world, and must credit the companies I worked for. I began this journey with my Kitchen Management training at Oberoi Hotels—one of the finest institutions for this field. Then I spent nearly 46 years with ITC Hotels. I consider myself fortunate to have joined ITC, where there was a strong focus on promoting India and its rich culinary heritage.
Being part of ITC deeply impacted my career, thinking, and pride in my own culture. I have traveled around the world, interacted with numerous professionals, and observed how different countries use their cuisine to showcase their culture. With these experiences, I was convinced that as an Indian chef, my role was to promote Indian culture and cuisine globally. For over the last three decades, I have been deeply committed to this mission.
As I mentioned, my training at Oberoi Hotels focused more on international cuisine, and even our hotel schools primarily taught what was then called continental or international cuisine. However, after joining ITC Hotels, I shifted my focus to Indian cuisine. This shift allowed me to explore, study, and conceptualize iconic Indian restaurants within ITC Hotels, working closely with the team. I was fortunate to be in the right place at the right time, which solidified my belief in Indian culture and cuisine, particularly its roots in Ayurveda. The more I read and practiced it, the more it influenced both my personal life and the kitchens I managed for many years.
Having trained in many countries and attended numerous workshops, I realized that much of what is described in our own cuisine has already been well-documented. This sets us apart from the rest of the world, which is still exploring and trying to grasp concepts that we’ve documented since centuries. But to fully benefit from this knowledge, we first need to understand and rediscover it ourselves. Once we do that, we can disseminate it within our country, instill pride in our culture, and then share it with the rest of the world.
Sometimes it’s disheartening when discussions about Indian cookery are reduced to just recipes. Recipes are merely guidelines; they do not define a culture or a cuisine. They are the result of the skills and knowledge you possess, and they evolve—recipes are dynamic, changing, and creative.
However, the challenge lies in accessing this vast culinary wisdom. Currently, one has to sift through many cultural and historical texts to find descriptions of our culinary traditions. We need to consolidate this knowledge into one or two books that fully capture the essence of India’s culinary heritage, making it easier for the world to understand and appreciate our rich food culture.
Sometimes it’s disheartening when discussions about Indian cookery are reduced to just recipes. Recipes are merely guidelines; they do not define a culture or a cuisine. They are the result of the skills and knowledge you possess, and they evolve—recipes are dynamic, changing, and creative.
What’s important is the knowledge and philosophy behind the recipes. That’s what we need to understand and learn, and every Indian should be aware of this. Even if someone isn’t cooking, they should be able to talk about their food and communicate its significance to the world, helping people better understand our cuisine and culture.
I’ve experienced many cultures, and I believe that our cuisine deserves recognition globally. There’s even a book titled ‘Cooking, Eating, Thinking’, which compiles food philosophies, and three-fourths of it focuses on Indian philosophy. This shows how profound our culinary traditions are. It’s crucial that we now make a concerted effort to understand our own cuisine and aggressively promote its philosophy to the world.
Chef Manjit S. Gill: Food is a vital part of every human being’s life, and understanding it is equally important. Asia, and particularly India, is playing a significant role in global gastronomy. Many of the best chefs today are from Asia, and a large number of them are from India, which makes sense given our population and the intellectual background of our people.
We have an innate ability to quickly grasp and recreate the essence of any cuisine, thanks to our deep-rooted culinary background, which is built on taste and evolution. This makes it easy for us to adopt and re-interpret recipes from other cuisines. As Indians and Asians, we have a significant role in the global gastronomy scene, and it’s essential for us to be more involved in the international culinary community.
The global chef community, the World Association of Chefs Societies, has been around for nearly 100 years, and I took on the challenge to represent India on this platform. It is important to help people better understand Indian food. While many enjoy it, there’s often a sense of mystique around it. We need to demystify Indian cuisine and explain that its goodness comes from the knowledge and philosophy behind it. It’s not just about flavor—it’s also highly scientific.
This is why I accepted the challenge. I have the experience and understanding necessary to disseminate this information globally, which will elevate Indian food to a higher pedestal and positively impact Asian cuisine as a whole. I understand the diversity in India and across Asia, and it’s crucial to share this understanding with the world.
Chef Manjit S. Gill: The main objective behind this initiative was to structure the culinary profession better and to educate and train people, as food is a very serious subject. It’s such a critical area that I might touch upon it further in my talk later. The goal was to introduce apprenticeship programs for chefs, train them, and ensure food standards are consistent and easily delivered. With this, technology also began to integrate into the culinary world, creating synergies with chefs.
The first president of this movement, in 1928, was Chef Auguste Escoffier, who is still considered the father of modern cuisine, culture, and kitchen organization. He established the administrative structure of kitchens and clearly defined the roles and responsibilities for each level of the kitchen staff, ensuring that the final product was consistently excellent. This structure originated in France, and that is why France is still considered a culinary leader.
The Culinary Olympics happens every four years and has been running for nearly 80 years. In the last edition, two girls from Chennai won gold medals for vegetable carving, showcasing one of the many skills within the culinary arts.
To further advance the profession, numerous competitions were created, allowing chefs to compete based on specific guidelines and criteria. These competitions prepare chefs to compete at high levels, requiring immense practice—much like any other competitive field. Today, culinary competitions are major events where professionals observe, learn, and draw inspiration from one another.
Competitions now take place on national, continental, and international levels, including the Culinary Olympics, which many people in India may not know about. This prestigious event happens every four years and has been running for nearly 80 years. It’s a culinary movement, and a source of great pride for those involved. In the last Culinary Olympics, two girls from Chennai won gold medals for vegetable carving, showcasing one of the many skills within the culinary arts.
We are working hard on these initiatives, although they can be expensive. But I am confident that, as a nation, we will continue to grow in this field. My goal, during my term as president, is to ensure that within the next four to five years, India sends a full team to the Culinary Olympics, helping us understand and appreciate the importance of these competitions.
Chef Manjit S. Gill: Sustainability is crucial for chefs to understand, and today, chefs are among the most influential figures when it comes to food. It begins at the farming level, with food production, the food chain, and how food is cooked. Chefs are at the final stage of this process—they prepare the food that consumers ultimately eat, making food consumption their responsibility. Farmers grow crops, but they are inedible in their raw state. It’s the chefs who transform them into delicious, well-presented meals that people consume to gain nutritional benefits.
Farmers do incredible work in growing these crops, and without them, chefs would have nothing to create with. Sustainability encompasses every element of nature: the earth, water, air, and the key role that food plays in that cycle. For example, it’s often said that to produce one kilogram of Basmati Rice, around 3,000 liters of water are required. So why can’t chefs create equally great dishes using rice varieties that require less water? Chefs have the power to create demand by understanding sustainability and influencing consumer choices.
When chefs appreciate the importance of environmental sustainability, they become more mindful of farmers, the earth, air, and water. By selecting the right crops and grains and turning them into desirable dishes, they can influence what people eat, ultimately creating demand for sustainable produce.
Menus should be seasonal and local. In India, the concept of eating seasonal, local produce is not new—it’s something we’ve practiced for a long time. However, we’ve started moving away from these traditions in favor of year-round availability of certain products, often transported from far-off places, increasing carbon footprints. Chefs are now shifting back to seasonal and local ingredients, which boosts the demand for seasonal vegetables and produce while reducing the environmental impact.
In India, we have a philosophy rooted in Ayurveda that food must be in harmony with nature. If it isn’t, then it isn’t true food—it’s harmful. For us, food in harmony with nature is food for life.
Chef Manjit S. Gill: Indian food is incredibly tasty, and we are only people who understand the six fundamental tastes of nature. Unfortunately, many people are still unaware of these six natural tastes and the flora and fauna described in Ayurveda, which has been documented for thousands of years. This understanding is crucial, though somewhat unstructured. We may not always be able to name these tastes or understand how they pair together, but we have an innate connection to them from childhood. Our taste buds are unique—we can detect and appreciate flavours quickly. This is part of who we are as Indians.
However, the commercialization of our food, often by untrained or unprofessional cooks and immigrants especially abroad, has led to misconceptions. The overuse of fats and other ingredients by some has distorted the true nature of our cuisine. This isn’t what Indian food is about. Sadly, this has created a false perception in the minds of people, especially internationally.
If Rogan Josh needs a layer of fat on top, that’s part of its character. This dish was created for a specific region where fat is essential for health. If it doesn’t fit a certain environment, then don’t cook Rogan Josh—but don’t remove the fat and still call it Rogan Josh. This is where we often go wrong with our food.
As a nation, it’s time we address this. The best minds in Ayurveda, history, anthropology, and culinary arts need to come together to empower chefs with the knowledge necessary to represent our food accurately on the global stage. We must take pride in our food and present it the right way—because if we don’t, no one else will. Our food is a reflection of our culture, and it is our responsibility to elevate it.
Too often, when serving Indian food to foreigners, we downplay it by saying things like, “You might not like it, it’s too spicy,” or using negative terms like “hot” or “spicy.” We need to speak positively about our food. In other cultures, people never alter their dishes to suit others’ preferences—they explain their cuisine with pride. Whether or not you enjoy it, you leave understanding and respecting their food. In India, we try to change our dishes, which leads to misunderstandings about our cuisine.
Instead, we should embrace the vast variety of Indian food, which includes countless regional specialties. It’s our professional duty to showcase the best of what we have, rather than altering dishes to fit misconceptions about health or fat content. For example, if Rogan Josh needs a layer of fat on top, that’s part of its character. This dish was created for a specific region where fat is essential for health. If it doesn’t fit a certain environment, then don’t cook Rogan Josh—but don’t remove the fat and still call it Rogan Josh. This is where we often go wrong with our food.
There is a vast repertoire of Indian dishes, even in tribal areas, that are naturally low in fat. We need to highlight these dishes and use high-quality fats when necessary. India has a wealth of natural oils and fats—ghee, mustard oil, and many others—that no other country possesses. We must be knowledgeable about this and share that knowledge with every Indian citizen, so they understand their food and speak positively about it.
Chef Manjit S. Gill: Ayurveda states something very simple: food is not truly nutritional, even if it contains nutrients, unless it is well-balanced with the six tastes. The food must be tasty. In many parts of the world, and even among many of us, there’s a misconception that if food is tasty, it cannot be nutritious. But the truth is, food is only nutritious if it is tasty, and that is what defines our cuisine.
The taste triggers the brain, helping it understand how to process and digest the food. If people don’t understand this, I would strongly recommend they read about neurogastronomy to gain a deeper understanding of the relationship between food and the brain. Once this is understood, people will realize that our food is among the most nutritious in the world. The guidelines for creating nutritional food are clear in our culture, and every step we take enhances its nutritional value. We just need to understand and follow them.
FRESH: How do you view the potential for Indian cuisine in the global market, particularly in the form of processed and packaged foods like ready-to-eat or ready-to-cook products?
Chef Manjit S. Gill: As the world evolves and becomes more dynamic with advances in technology, many traditional practices such as food preservation and processing, have adapted. Food preservation is not a new concept – it’s something we’ve done for centuries. For example, why do we make pickles? It’s a form of food preservation. In regions with harsh climates, like parts of Kashmir or high-altitude areas like Lahaul-Spiti, sun-dried vegetables are stored for winter.
In the past, preservation techniques focused on preventing oxidation—whether by using oil as a protective layer or other methods to keep food safe from moisture and contamination. Now, with new technology, the same concepts are applied differently, like through retort processing or canning, where air is removed, and food is sealed to extend its life. This is what we refer to as processed food today.
The issue now arises with ultra-processed foods, where the emphasis is often on making food cheaper. This is where regulations need to step in. Consumers should be vigilant about reading ingredient labels. If you find ingredients that you don’t use in your home cooking, you should avoid that product. However, if the ingredients are similar to what you’d use at home, there’s nothing inherently wrong with processed food.
In the past, preservation techniques focused on preventing oxidation—whether by using oil as a protective layer or other methods to keep food safe from moisture and contamination. Now, with new technology, the same concepts are applied differently, like through retort processing or canning, where air is removed, and food is sealed to extend its life. This is what we refer to as processed food today.
It’s important to recognize that processing food at home is a form of food processing too. As life becomes busier and we face time or space constraints, industrially processed food, done by the right companies with proper precautions, may be safer than homemade food, especially when done on a larger scale with advanced infrastructure.
For the future, the focus should be on the right kind of processed food. People should be educated on how to read labels, understand ingredients, and safely store and regenerate processed foods. Processed food isn’t inherently bad. We’ve all adapted to using technology in our lives, just like we’ve moved to using laptops and AI, even at this age. So, processed food needs to be understood similarly—it’s not bad in itself.
Take fish, for instance. Buying fresh fish from the market can be risky because you don’t know how long it’s been there or where it came from. It’s actually safer to buy branded, frozen fish, which is frozen at sea, maintaining better quality. Frozen is the new fresh, especially for the future. In places like Delhi, which are landlocked, where would you even get fresh fish? But if I’m in Manali, I’ll definitely buy fresh trout because I know it’s truly fresh.
So, we shouldn’t dismiss processed food as inherently bad. It’s all about understanding how it’s made, what’s in it, and choosing wisely.
Chef Manjit S. Gill: In place of relying solely on exports, we should explore broader options. India has a vast market. For example, when you visit hotels or places that serve breakfast buffets, you’ll always find a mix of Eastern and Western dishes.
On a trip to the Philippines six or seven months ago, I noticed that Indian dishes, such as aloo bhaji and dal curry, were featured on their menus. However, it’s challenging for them to produce these dishes locally due to ingredient sourcing issues and the necessary cooking skills. Additionally, the infrastructure often presents constraints, and acquiring skilled labor can be expensive.
It’s more efficient to utilize processed quality food, such as retort or frozen products. This way, even someone with basic skills can reheat and serve high-quality meals that both Indians and locals will enjoy.
In India, for example, the processed food industry is thriving. I once worked with a chef from Thailand at a pan-Asian restaurant who solely requested Thai curry paste packets, emphasizing the ease of using processed ingredients over sourcing fresh ones. If Thai cuisine can be prepared using processed food here, why can’t Indian food be cooked globally with processed Indian ingredients?
There’s a significant demand for this. For this, chefs and professionals in the industry must collaborate. Consider the popularity of pizza in India; many containers of tomato products arrive from Italy every month. Who benefits financially from this? We lack exports of our own products, even with numerous Indian restaurants operating here.
We should aim to offer our products of comparable quality to those imports, ensuring people enjoy better quality, consistent, and safer food. The market for processed food exports is substantial and full of potential.
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