Modi not a fussy eater, cooking for him a pleasure: Sanjeev Kapoor

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is open to experimenting with food and is not a fussy eater, said popular chef Sanjeev Kapoor who was in the UAE to cook for him on the invitation of Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Mohamed bin Zayed.

"Our Prime Minister is a dream to cook for. He is not fussy and loves unpretentious food. They needn't be fancy, so we concentrate on making it nutritious and healthy. He has such a busy schedule, so I made sure that he ate food that gives you energy," Kapoor told Gulf News.

Kapoor on Sunday shared a series of photographs along with Modi and captioned it: "Absolute honour and privilege to cook for Modi..."

On Modi's eating habits, he said: "He believes in simple vegetarian food and is a believer that food is a great way to learn about each other's countries and cultures... So there was a lot of food that fused elements from India and the UAE."
Dosas, beetroot minced kebabs and the comfort Indian food dal and rice always feature on his plate, said the chef.

Kapoor revealed that Modi's breakfast was a flat-bread with nine 'ancient' grains such as millets and rice.

The chef even got to learn some things about food from the Prime Minister. "We were talking about parathas and he told me about this paratha made with drum-sticks. It sounded very interesting and I told him that I am going try making it in my kitchen."

Kapoor said that upon tasting the staple breakfast of 'foul medames' for breakfast, Modi compared the cooked fava bean mix to 'paav bhaji' and also sampled the Emirati dessert aseeda fused with rice cake, which reminded him of the Indian halwa, and a no-meat version of harees, which is a dish made with wheat and meat.

However, mezzes containing hummus along with an Indian raita with sprinklings of pomegranate and walnuts stole the show.

For dinner on Saturday at the palace in Abu Dhabi, the menu included "saffron rice infused with stock from different Indian spices, quinoa cake and a moong dal bhujia (dollop of cooked lentils) served on a metallic spoon as appetizers and a pumpkin pudding dessert", reported Gulf News.