Now Serving.Indigenous India

India's culinary scene is buzzing with a quiet revolution, fueled by a vibrant comeback of hyperlocal ingredients. This movement isn't just about digging up fresh, local produce from across the nation—it's about rediscovering the deep, rich tapestry of India's diverse culinary heritage

- Sharan Sanil

For ex-Bombay Canteen food maverick Thomas Zacharias, the journey into hyperlocal ingredients began in 2014, after a formative food trip across Europe.

"My biggest realisation from that trip was that I was focusing so heavily on learning European cuisine when I hadn't really done much to explore Indian food. That was an eye-opener for me," he recalls. This spurred him to embark on his first 'Chef on the Road' trip across India, covering 18 different places and exposing him to a vast array of ingredients he had never encountered before. "What I saw and experienced on this trip really blew my mind because up until then my exposure to Indian food, like for most people, was limited to what the average person gets-what you get in an Indian restaurant or the food you grew up eating."

The impact of this trip on Zacharias was profound. It was not just the discovery of ingredients like Jakhia seeds in Uttarakhand or Kadaknath chicken from Madhya Pradesh that left a mark, but the awareness of how underrepresented these ingredients were in the upper echelons of Indian cuisine. "Even today, it's hardly seen. Yes, we see it in media here and there, and there are publications covering it, but if you actually get down to it and see how many restaurants are featuring local ingredients from different parts of the country, it's very few."