Interview : Sanjana from KO Rasoi

Black bean and chocolate chilli from KO Rasoi

KO Rasoi is a blog of good cooking. Good Indian vegetarian cooking to be precise. Good Indian Vegetarian cooking with Brit and Ugandan influence to be even more precise. Behind it all is the young and talented Sanjana. This burgeoning star of the UK Food Network is a perfectionist, creating solid recipes and then photographing the finished dishes on lovely tablescapes.

Her blog will make you hungry  and her interview answers will keep you entertained. Enjoy Sanjana’s humor, humility and tips for starting your kids young on the cooking path!

First question, and yes I would ask you this if you were a man. Why are you so ridiculously good-looking?
Oh man, seriously? My brother is actually the good-looking sibling. Good genes from beautiful parents?

Aren’t you a little young to know so much about cooking?
I think that all depends on what defines someone as ‘young’, the age they started cooking and when they began getting experience in the kitchen. I’m in my early twenties and have spent over half my life cooking, therefore I have a different amount of experience compared to someone who is my age (‘young’) and started cooking, say three years ago.

What’s your earliest kitchen memory?
Peeking over the stove top aged eight, trying to follow my mother’s handwritten recipe for classic chai to the tee (do you like what I did there?) I remember insisting on making her a cup of tea because she would always cook me pasta (my childhood favourite) whenever I asked and I wanted to return the favour. I always wanted to be like her – I still do.

I recently read a Marion Nestle quote that said the “most revolutionary thing people can do is to teach kids to cook.” What do you recommend to families who want to raise food conscious/cooking kids?
It’s funny you ask, because just the other day I was reflecting on how for myself, learning to cook has become a gateway to so many other opportunities. It’s important to emphasise that cooking is a life skill which can be really enjoyable if you make it so. Having said this, it shouldn’t be a forced hobby – that would suppress creative flair rather than encourage it. Casually teach children the necessary basics from a young age and if their interest in cooking develops, you can take it a step further. Most importantly, make cooking exciting, playful and personal.

You’re from a Gujarati family. What elements define Gujarati cooking?
Sweet, sour and simple. Gujarati cuisine is all about keeping flavours as effortless as possible. Spice combinations are perfectly balanced and make the most of the contents of a classic Gujarati spice box – some include: Mustard seeds, cumin seeds, asafoetida, turmeric, chilli, salt and sugar. A squeeze of lemon should finish off every Gujarati curry, soup or salad.

All of the food we see on your blog, who do you share it with?
Other than me, myself and I? My friends and family.

Rhubarb & anise chutney

I love your post on Rhubarb and Anise Chutney… Mmmmm. This recipe is boldly a fusion of Indian and English flavors. What other dishes have you cooked up that reflect the fusion of your heritage?
I make a mean cheese and cumin scone (do you say ‘scon’ or ‘scOne’?) I grew up eating English scones, slightly warmed and with plenty of butter and strawberry jam. I love using local produce like apples, pears and plums to make Indian chutneys and pickles using cinnamon, whole fennel seeds and star anise. These are great in scones and cheese sandwiches.

My parents are from East Africa so I also tend to cook a lot of Indian-influenced East African dishes like Kasodi (a Ugandan dish made with whole cobs of sweetcorn in a creamy peanut sauce) and Hot & Sour Tamarind Cassava.

You seem equally comfortable baking or cooking. Do you prefer one to the other?
Do I really make it look like that? Generally speaking, I prefer cooking to baking simply because I think I’m better at it. I’ve always been one of those people who finds it a chore to spend time measuring ingredients and much prefer to throw in a handful of this and a pinch of that – which I tend to do when I’m cooking for myself. Keeping a food blog has helped me hone my skills and stamp out this habit when writing my recipes.

Although when I need to unwind, baking is just the ticket. Baking is science (something I’ve never really been good at) and because all of my baking recipes are eggless, it’s even more of a chemistry lesson for me. I love to see positive results after marathon baking sessions and now, it’s really about fine-tuning the smaller things. I love to bake because it’s a challenge… I never really know what might happen – and because I love to eat cake!

The Best of Food Blogs Cookbook was published in October 2010 by the online cooking encyclopedia, Foodista. Any plans in the works for your own cookbook?
Someday I would love to write a cookbook of my own. I’m a huge perfectionist so it would be a long-term project I would like to dedicate all of my time to. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. Watch this space.

Who’s the food blogger you’d most like to cook with?
He’s not so much a blogger as he is a writer, but it would be a great honour to cook with the infamous Kurma Dasa. Ten years ago you would have found me with my head buried in his fantastic books, seeking inspiration by studying the words and images. I still do it today.

Vegetarian tandoori kebabs made with....PANEER!

I found your paneer survey absolutely funny. Only a food blogger would think of such a thing! So, how often do you eat paneer?
Ha, I laughed out loud reading this question for the first time at the dinner table on my Blackberry. I was eating a dinner of Paneer Butter Masala with Peshwari Naan and, erm… Paneer Samosas. I eat paneer once, sometimes twice a week. Is that a lot? Please don’t judge me.

Shahi paneer stuffed okra

Sanjana, if you were stranded on a kitchen island and the surrounding floor was deemed shark infested waters, what 5 items do you hope you have with you?
A block of paneer, a hand blender, whole green chillies, ground fennel (my favourite spice), and someone to do the cleaning up.

I have a feeling you are a neatnik. What is the biggest mess you’ve made in the kitchen?
The biggest messes tend to occur when I’m baking – I get chocolate all over my face, flour on the worktops and sugar on the floor (the worst thing to stand in barefoot!) Don’t let me get started on the red velvet incident of 2010 – to this day we don’t speak of it.
Also, I don’t know what it is but every time I attempt to microwave aubergines for Oroh (Mashed Aubergine Curry), they explode.

Finally, describe your dream kitchen.
Modern , full of new gizmos and gadgets to play with on one side and for the other side to be brimming with traditional Eastern cooking tools and appliances like a tandoor (clay oven), a sit-down pestle and mortar and space to make all kinds of Indian sweets and savouries. I don’t ask for much do I, eh?

print