February 10, 2022: WGSHA principal Chef K Thiru, demonstrated a class and gave a presentation on ‘Food tourism in India’ for the students of Washington State University School of Hospitality Business Management, Carson College of Business as part of a lecture on International tourism. Chef began with a short statement of introduction and briefed the students about WGSHA. His presentation started with the history of Indian food and the rise of Food tourism in India. He spoke about how people connect a place with food, and how tourism affects experience economy. The food, culture, and temple cuisines of Udupi were brought forward and the students learnt about various indigenous ingredients and how to create a value-added product from them. Important emerging topics like the potential of food tourism; local beneficiaries; environmental effects and sustainable tourism; regional cuisines of India; the scope of culinary tourism and the post pandemic scenario were elucidated by Chef.

The presentation was followed by a cooking demo where Chef showed how QSRs these days are adapting to the Indian palate and creating products that are gaining popularity amongst the customers. The first demonstration included three types of tandoori marinades, which were used to prepare a triple layer chicken burger. The contemporary and Indian components were amalgamated into a burger, with the help of condiments, prepared with Indian spices and flavors. It was served with a side of sweet potato chips instead of the traditional potato chips to propel the use of local ingredients and encourage sustainability.

The second dish was an Indian variation of a hot dog made with indigenous Indian varieties - barnyard and pearl millet. It showcased the versatility of millets and how they can be easily used to prepare delectable products.

The demonstration was followed by a Q&A session. The students were extremely inquisitive and asked a number of questions about Indian food and spices. It was an interactive session as Chef was able to make it significantly engrossing for the students.  The lecture was well received and was very informative for the students who were learning about Indian cuisine for the first time. The session was well coordinated by Prof. Dipra Jha, Assistant Director and Scholarly Associate Professor, Hospitality Business Management, Washington State University.