Starting a social media page is easy. But what matters is how you manage between content creation and your life. Though I had the page since 2019 my Instagram page did not start growing till the beginning of 2022. The main problem I faced was me being inconsistent. To grow a social media page you have to be very consistent and optimistic. My new year goal of 2022 was to push out more content and be consistent. This helped me to grow my page tremendously.
1. Tell us more about your background and journey.
Hi, My name is Mahesh Mohan commonly known as Hungrymahi. I have been living in Canada for the past 8 years. I moved here as a student back in 2015. That's when I started to develop an interest in cooking. I launched hungerymahi around 2019.
2. What led you to start your Instagram page and YouTube channel? Is there any interesting story behind it that you would like to share with us?
Being away from family was tough. I used to feel homesick all the time. That's when realized that whenever I eat some good Indian food that made me feel better. Living in a small town in Canada there were barely any good Indian restaurants. That pushed me to learn cooking.
Later on, I realized that it was not just me, many other international students faced the same problem. So, I decided to start hungrymahi. My main focus was to share easy-to-cook recipes to encourage everyone to start cooking.
3. What has been the biggest challenge that you faced in your journey and how did you overcome that?
Starting a social media page is easy. But what matters is how you manage between content creation and your life. Though I had the page since 2019 my Instagram page did not start growing till the beginning of 2022. The main problem I faced was me being inconsistent.
To grow a social media page you have to be very consistent and optimistic. My new year goal of 2022 was to push out more content and be consistent. This helped me to grow my page tremendously.
4. What do you think makes Indian cuisine different from other cuisines in the world?
Indian Cuisine is so unique because of the use of number of ingredients, especially spices used to create a simple dish. Different types of ingredients give a variety of flavors to the food that explodes in the mouth. Also, these spices enhance the taste of the food and give it a completely fresh and subtle texture to enjoy.
5. Is there a dish you particularly associate yourself with?
Personally, Malabari Biryani is a piece of heaven, my anti-depressant, and my instant joy. Every grain of rice will have the flavors of masala and meat on it, the meat would be tender and the rice cooked to perfection.
The color would be a shade of yellow. You can feel it slide through your throat and into your system. It is difficult to stop eating until you are absolutely full and can’t take no more. The aroma of this biriyani is fabulous.
6. How would you describe your cooking style? How has it evolved over time?
I don't like to be called a chef because I haven't learned culinary arts from an institution. I’m more of a home cook. I learn about culinary arts by watching YouTube videos and listing to podcasts. This has helped me up my skill over time.
7. What professional chefs have influenced your work, and how do you incorporate their techniques into your cooking?
I’m a diehard fan of chef Gordon Ramsay. I have binged watched pretty much all of his tv shows starting with Master Chef, Kitchen Nightmares, Hell's Kitchen, and so on. Just by watching how he cooks have helped me to learn a lot about the science behind cooking.
8. Can cooking be learned at culinary schools or a natural talent is required?
I would say it is a mix of both. Cooking is a science and there are lots of things that a person needs to keep in my mind while cooking a dish. You can only acquire this by going to a culinary school or having a good mentor. If the food is not handled properly it can turn into poison and people need to know about the basic do’s and don’ts.
9. Which is your favorite book/show and why?
Kitchen Nightmares is my favorite show of all time. I always wanted to open my own restaurant and this show has taught me a lot more than anyone could have. Watching Chef Ramsay is an absolute delight and the tips and tricks that he talks about in running a restaurant successfully are mind-blowing.
10. Your 3 quick cooking tips:
-How to make your food creamy without using cream. To do this, you can either use milk, malai, or cashew paste to make the gravies taste richer and heavier.
-How to reduce excess salt in curries. If you accidentally add extra salt to curries you can try to salvage it by adding potatoes to curries. Potatoes tend to absorb excess salt from curries and later on can be removed from the curry.
-We always run into situations when milk tends to overflow from the pot when boiling. Keeping a wooden spatula diagonally in the milk vessel will solve this problem. Place a wooden ladle in the middle of the pot, which acts as a security valve and can prevent milk from spilling over.
Interviewed By - Nimisha Dutta
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