What you cook, eat, taste and experience, Dil Se Foodie gives a platform to share the same with a large community.
One of the coolest things about this group is that you can connect with people who share your undying love for food.
Dil Se Foodie also creates hype through events and meet-ups.
Its founder Karan Dua says, business at Dil Se Foodie is all about adding value.
How foodie is your family?
Food has always been central to my family. Much of the typical Punjabi stereotype regarding food applies to me and my family. Born in a Punjabi family, I’m raised on typical Punjabi food feasting of Chhole Bhature, Sarson Ka Saag Makke Ki Roti and Butter Chicken. In fact, my culinary journey began with Atte Wale Aaloo cooked by me, the inspiration for which came from my dad. I do think coming from a foodie family played a role in my developing gusto for trying new cuisines, street food and dishes, as just one of many contributing factors. In short, we like to cook and eat.
Any story behind the name – Dil Se Foodie?
As the name of the group Dil Se Foodie suggests, the love for food comes before anything. All of us have certain memories or stories associated with our favourite dishes. Dil Se Foodie is as much about the food as it is about those stories that surround the food and what each of those stories mean to every food enthusiast. It celebrates the idea that food cooked and relished with heart, interest and love can never go wrong.
How do you see the eating habits of people, from city to city, from countryside to up-market, from traditional families to small families to college singles?
Food is not only the source of nutrition for human, but also plays various roles in our daily life, beliefs, and socio-economics. Therefore, in today’s time, food not only indicates the social status, but also can be used as a character of one group, divided by regions, families, races or religions. Eating behaviour, once formed, has continuity. When people moving to other regional or countries, will continue keeping their traditional eating habit, taste, and cooking methods, unless in very special cases, otherwise it is hard to change. If I compare my grandparents’ attitude towards food with my own, they have changed dramatically in accordance with the lifestyle we live, the way we shop groceries, cook and dine. Long gone are the hours spent slaving over the stove. Instead, convenience food has become much more popular. If you are feeling very hungry and can’t wait hours to get your order, then ordering for home delivery, nearby take away joint and street food are the only saviour for you. In today’s busy times, the family mealtime offers a great opportunity for families to develop proximity, chat and interact. Thus, families while planning a dine out prefer more of a relaxed and calm atmosphere while choosing a place. On the other hand, youngsters and college going students prefer cafes or nukkad maggi joints to hangout.
How do you see food taste changing in the next few years as people get health conscious?
The biggest dilemma of a foodie is, how can you truly be a foodie in this health conscious world when heck, you are even trying to shed a few kgs here or there. A food lover is actually blind to the number of calories his / her favourite dish is bringing to the table. I generally think if you eat only when you’re hungry and stop when you’re full and are really honest about those sensations with yourself, you’ll be okay. In short, moderation is the key. In my opinion, the trending way to please a foodie at the dining table is to give them something fresh and simple. People prefer to have dishes that do not make too much out of their ingredients but keep the natural flavours alive with additions of taste.
How do you mix food with travel and then to writing and shooting?
Culinary tours or in some simple words food exploration trips and cooking vacations are my kind of trips. These are trips where I travel to eat or I may say eat to travel. I strongly believe that the real taste of any culture rests in the street food the place has to offer. When I am travelling, as a true foodie, I can’t just plan on going to good restaurants. I have to make spreadsheets of possible restaurants to explore the best places to get the finest local food and that’s definitely not the hotels or restaurants. If you want to try the local food of Mumbai, Delhi or other city, then you surely go to street food places as they serves you the finest food items of local cuisine. My love fling with street food ablazed with the food walks in the narrow lanes of Delhi 6, matured with the exploration of regional specialities like Kulcha Chhole in Amritsar, Wazwan in Srinagar and Special Biryani in Kolkata. To sum it up, what and where to eat is the most important checklist in my vacation planning checklist.
