Indian and Thai food are cousins, says legendary chef David Thompson
The Michelin-star chef and author who’s visiting India, chats about his love for Indian food and his cooking philosophy.
You can call him the man who made Thai food famous today — he is credited with helping helped the restaurant Nahm earn the first-ever Michelin star for a Thai restaurant in 2002! Meet David Thompson, celebrated chef, cookbook author, TV presenter and literally the first name in Thai gastronomy. In New Delhi for a pop-up, he makes time for a chat on all things Thai, of course! “I think it’s so fantastic that anybody who eats Thai food simply loves it! I’m among those people who fell in love with it. I’m beguiled and bewitched by it. My aim is to showcase a facet of Thai cuisine that often goes unexplored in mainstream Thai eateries,” he says.
‘Every time I eat Thai food, it is thrilling and satisfying’
It’s clear to see that the Thompson finds his heart and soul in Thai, and serves that up with a flair at Fireback Goa, where he is culinary director. What makes this cuisine so exciting to him, we ask? “Well, I can talk about the sophisticated cuisine, its history, its magnificent array of ingredients and the generations of cooks who’ve garnished a culinary tradition that sings across the globe. But really what makes Thai food so exciting is how it tastes,” says David, adding. “Every time I eat it and so many other people eat it, it is just so damn good. It is thrilling, exciting, delicious and satisfying.
Finding a balance between Thai and Indian food
In today’s global culinary scene, Thai fares just as well as Western and Indian fare. Sharing more on this, he reveals, “Both Thai and Western food complement each other, but approach it from different ways. Thai food chases a taste and it builds taste and uses techniques to arrive at that taste. Western food follows technique and constructs a recipe or a dish.”
Are Thai and Indian similar, we ask? Replies the chef, “I’d say Thai food and Indian food are like cousins; they differ a lot. The two cuisines share some common tastes and ingredients, but their cooking techniques and seasoning methods are distinct. Achieving the right balance between them is an exercise in diplomacy, and I see myself as both a culinary diplomat and your cook.”
He adds, “I’m besotted by Indian food. It boasts the same wealth, richness of taste, texture, depth of character, and cultural influence as Thai cuisine, making it simply addictive. I keep coming back to India to indulge in more of its authentic dishes.”
His philosophy? Going local
If Thompson had to choose one culinary philosophy it would be this — a belief in local cooking, customs and traditions. “Yes, absolutely. If food is to be fresh and relevant, it’s got to be local,” he says.
Currently in the Capital, he adds, “I’m excited to be in India for the summer menu in Goa and our pop-up in Delhi with Conosh at Pullman New Delhi, Aerocity, giving me the chance to explore all the incredible Indian cuisine. I haven’t had a chance to travel around India, but am planning an extensive trip for it.”
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