Michael Weldon has come to India with a suitcase full of native Australian spices. This, he says, is to give diners here a taste of cuisine from Down Under.
“My favourite is the mountain pepper that has a warm and fruity undertone, with the same effect as schezwan pepper. I’ve also brought wattle seed that I’m using in a pumpkin dish, and the lemon myrtle that is going into a fish preparation,” says the chef and two-time MasterChef Australia contestant, who is touring India as a part of the Australian Government’s Taste of Australia campaign. Part of which, he is hosting a series of interactive food and beverage demonstrations, masterclasses and curated dinners, to showcase Australia’s cooking with an Indian twist.
I caught up with Michael over a call in the middle of dinner prep for a pop-up at The Oberoi in Mumbai. “I’m really happy with the food, and it’s coming out well. I’ve literally taken a 12 hour flight just to cook! The chefs are great, and they are teaching me how to make Australian cuisine more friendly for the Indian palette — a bit more spicy,” says the chef who has just completed pop-up dinners at New Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai over the past week, and will wrap up the tour in Bengaluru on September 16 and 17.
