Tarla Dalal - The Indian Food Queen

Continuing the trend of food celebrity discussions, we focus today on Tarla Dalal, the lady with a radiant smile on her face who can create magic with her hands. She has single-handedly reached the epitome of respect and love that is humanly achievable in India, and rules millions of hearts with her simple and extravagant recipes.



Born in Pune, the newly-wed Mrs. Dalal moved to Bombay after her marriage. In 1966, she started cookery classes form her residence. Her classes become a phenomenal success with a long list of students wanting to join them. Its very well-known that every Indian girl learns to cook at an early age, and at one time, it was said that "If you want to get your daughter married, send her to Ms. Dalal's Classes". This was because students attained guaranteed cookery expertise after attending her classes. It may sound funny, but it sure depicts how this lady was gaining ground fast in the culinary field. From a tiny crowded kitchen she moved to bigger and better places not only in India but internationally too like Tokyo, Jakarta, Honkong, Singapore, Brussels Antwerp, Lisbon, Zurich, Nairobi, London, Toronto, New York etc.

She hosts many television shows on Indian forefront, the current favourite being "Cook it Up with Tarla Dalal". She's also a regular contributor to several publications, newspapers and magazines. She has published more than 100 cook-books on different topics like vegetarian food, international cuisine, baby food, pregnancy-related food, diabetic recipes, fast food, healthy living, soups and salads and much more. She's truly the unmatched Cookery author since two decades!! Wow, if that's not an achievement, then what is!! Try this one - She was awarded the Padma Shri on Jan 26th 2007 by the President of India to her contribution in the field of cookery.

Lots of chefs and aspiring cooks use her recipes, and novices like me look up to her for guiding us on the path to attain culinary excellence. With more than 11,000 recipes to her credit, she's truly the queen of Indian cooking arena. This legendary yet down-to-earth woman dedicates her fame to her husband and his love for food. It was him who motivated her to start cooking different recipes andsharing them (Hmm..sounds familiar!! Read my profile on the home page:))

Her advice to young chefs - "Patience, dedication and hard work"

Her favorite food quote - "Haste Khelte khana Pakao" (Cook with a smile on your face)


Visit her website http://tarladalal.com/ and her new blog http://tarladalal.blogspot.com/
Then please come back to share your thoughts about her and join me in celebrating this enigmatic persona called Tarla Dalal.