The Food Nerd Festival
We invite you into our glasshouse for a deep dive into the four pillars of cooking—Salt, Fat, Acid, and Heat—where renowned chefs break down the science behind every bite.
The announcement for our annual Food Nerd Festival. This event is a celebration of all things food, where we explore the four essential cornerstones of cooking with some of the best chefs in the industry.
The Food Nerd Festival is for everyone, whether you're a professional chef, a home cook, or just a flavor geek. With four workshops centered around basic cooking elements, it's a day of immersive learning and fun.
We bring together a stellar lineup of renowned chefs for the Food Nerd Festival. This graphic introduces the experts who will guide you through hands-on labs and interactive sessions on salt, fat, acid, and heat.
A look at the 'Salt Lab' session from our Food Nerd Festival. Participants get hands-on with pickling and fermentation, learning how salt transforms simple vegetables and cures meats, a tradition with deep roots in Indian history.
The 'Fat Lab' with Chef Heena Punwani is a deep dive into the world of glorious fats. This session includes a cookie lab where you can taste the difference between butter, ghee, and brown butter to understand how fat shapes flavor and texture.
The 'Acid Lab' with Chef Payal Shah explores how acidity brings zing and balance to dishes. Participants learn about making vinegar at home and taste refreshing shrubs and oxymels to see acidity in action.
The 'Heat Lab' with Chef Gresham Fernandes demystifies how heat shapes our food. This session covers everything from the history of fire-roasting to the science behind chewy jerky and crispy carrots.
About The Food Nerd Festival
This is not a lecture series; it is a full-day collection of labs. You will be hands-on with pickling jars in our Salt Lab, comparing butter styles in the Fat Lab, and testing the science of fire-roasting in the Heat Lab, all designed to change how you approach your own kitchen.
The Food Nerd Festival turns our Shanti Nagar glasshouse into an interactive classroom. We move beyond recipes to focus on the four cornerstones of flavor. Each lab is led by an expert who brings specific technical knowledge.
In the Salt Lab, you explore the history of fermentation and pickling, turning simple vegetables into complex pantry staples. The Fat Lab with Chef Heena Punwani contrasts the textures of butter and ghee, while the Acid Lab with Chef Payal Shah explores the chemistry of vinegars and shrub drinks. Finally, the Heat Lab with Chef Gresham Fernandes looks at how temperature control impacts texture. It is a day built for those who want to understand the science behind flavor. Whether you are a home cook or a professional, you will leave with a new perspective on the ingredients you use every day.
The Conservatory
We are a glasshouse where chefs bring their wildest menus and diners bring curiosity. Every event here is a sensory experiment, designed to pull back the curtain on how food really works.
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