Think about a sprinkle of Mumbai magic and a touch of Staten Island sass—that’s how vegan chef, writer, and TV character Priyanka Naik is making a mark on the culinary scene. By combining her Indian roots along with her New York know-how, the Meals Community champ is on a mission to showcase the flexibility of vegan delicacies and the richness of South Asian flavors.
Naik’s dedication to her Indian heritage profoundly influences each her culinary strategy and way of life. She even prioritized studying her native language, Kannada, earlier than English. As a teen, Naik found that eating out as a vegetarian in one of many world’s largest cities, NYC, was tough, with menu decisions restricted to salads or facet dishes.
This made her notice that possibly the Western world wasn’t absolutely conscious of the unimaginable culinary prospects that exist with greens. In 2011, Naik launched her web site, Chef Priyanka, to show folks about vegan meals. “I actually imagine that in the event you contain folks in your course of, allow them to ask questions, and make it relatable, they’ll wish to know extra,” Naik tells VegNews.
“South Asia/India is huge, and we’re solely scratching the floor,” Naik provides.
Naik’s ardour for vegan cooking turned her into movie star standing by means of her 2017 championship on Meals Community’s Cooks vs. Cons. This competitors featured two skilled cooks and one house prepare dinner vying for a $10,000 grand prize. Naik’s conquer two seasoned cooks got here along with her progressive vegetarian nacho cheese pav bhaji, a twist on Maharashtrian road meals she affectionately dubs an “Indian Sloppy Joe.”
Since then, Naik has shifted her focus to creating vegan recipes and has showcased her culinary expertise on varied platforms. She made appearances on Quibi’s Dishmantled and the Right now present, amongst others, and hosted Tastemade’s Dish It Wholesome, underscoring her creativity and the rising reputation of plant-based delicacies.
Kelly Clarkson Present
When the pandemic struck, Naik took to her IGTV sequence, Prepare dinner with Chef Pri at 3, the place she filmed, produced, and starred in episodes, sharing engaging recipes comparable to darkish chocolate rose pistachio bark and stuffed jalapeño poppers with vegan barbecue rub along with her 168,000-plus followers.
Breaking meals stereotypes
Naik was born and raised on Staten Island, NY however her roots are from the Maharashtra area of India. Whereas North and South Indian cuisines are well-known in the USA, meals from this area—usually characterised by seafood, rice-based dishes, and dry chutneys—isn’t but as fashionable Stateside, and Naik is working to vary that.
“South Asian meals is bomb and I don’t wish to gatekeep that,” Naik says.
Naik has not solely taken her place amongst culinary superstars, however she has additionally opened doorways for a brand new period of inclusive and numerous illustration on the earth of meals and leisure. The American culinary scene may very well be endlessly modified by the daring flavors and provoking message introduced by this vegan South Asian chef with a mission.
“The Western/American world (primarily) views greens as an afterthought, a facet dish, and one thing they don’t need,” Naik says. “My expertise on Meals Community, on stay daytime nationwide TV, and extra has made it abundantly clear that we have to change the angle folks have on meals [and] greens.”
Priyanka Naik
Particularly, Naik needs to indicate folks why greens needs to be the star of the plate, simply as they’re in lots of cultures world wide, and break the widespread notion {that a} “full” meal is a three-segmented meal encompassing meat, potatoes, and overcooked greens. “One key side of South Asian tradition that helps break among the molds is exhibiting how we and lots of cultures world wide eat household fashion, which opens up your dinner desk for an abundance of choices,” Naik says.
Bringing vegan meals to the world stage
Desirous to proceed sharing her culinary creativity, Naik expresses her aspiration to take action on her TV present. She envisions utilizing her distinctive fashion of cooking, cultural influences, and character not solely to entertain but in addition to teach and empower folks, encouraging them to discover numerous dishes and rethink vegan meals in a brand new mild.
Just lately, Naik collaborated with vegan eatery Café Gratitude in Venice, CA to host a pop-up ceremonial dinner. Representing the primary time that Café Gratitude has partnered with a South Asian chef, the occasion provided a four-course plant-based Indian-Fusion tasting menu accompanied by stay acoustic music.
Priyanka Naik
Subsequent month, Naik is taking part within the 2024 South Seaside Wine and Meals Pageant and FoodieCon, the place she would be the solely vegan South Asian chef within the lineup. Naik will probably be taking part in varied occasions, from interactive panels to ebook signings. She additionally plans to share her journey of transitioning from a senior government in tech to a full-time chef and content material creator within the panel titled “From Cubicle to Content material.”
Amidst the glamor and vitality of the pageant, Naik goals to ship a robust message to company. As a vegan chef, she needs to emphasise the significance of inclusivity within the culinary world. Naik seeks to interrupt stereotypes surrounding veganism and South Asian delicacies, proving that these culinary experiences should not solely numerous but in addition scrumptious.
“My presence on these levels amongst all of those proficient cooks and culinary artists solidifies that vegan culinary specialists want a seat on the desk—to broaden the dialog, showcase the flexibility in vegan meals/way of life, and share the great thing about South Asian tradition,” Naik says.
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Nicole Axworthy is the Information Editor at VegNews and writer of the cookbook DIY Vegan.
