His passion and love for cooking is evident in his way of living. Ajoy Joshi, a well known chef in Australia has built a reputation for himself that translates cooking into an ardent profession. But did he always aspire to be a chef? “Well almost. Loved food, but also loved cricket. Once cricket was out of the equation, I had to do something different and cooking provided me with that opportunity.” Also a restaurateur, Joshi’s creation Nilgiri’s has been appreciated as an upscale and luxury space in the most populous city of Australia – Sydney.
This exalted chef has made appearances on television and radio programs and has authored two recipe books – Indian Cooking Made Easy: Simple Authentic Indian Meals in Minutes and Regional Indian Cooking: Simple and Healthy Ayurvedic Recipes.
Defining what cooking has taught him over the years, Joshi says, “Cooking Indian food has made me appreciate the different cultures within this vast land and that there is not ‘one’ style of cooking that exists here. It is about time we stop calling Indian food ‘curry,’ a phrase I dislike intensely as it does no justice to this beautiful land, its people and last but not the least, the different styles of cooking that are found here.”
Joshi is planning to a create a boutique-style ethnic restaurant in Sydney portraying coastal Indian food. “Hope it works, Inshallah,” he says.
