Sejal Sukhadwala
@sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
56 followers 8 following 74 posts
London food writer. Author of The Philosophy Of Curry (British Library Publishing). Working on an Indian food dictionary for the past decade or so. I often write about Indian food history, culture and restaurants.
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sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
Masala dosa in the Royal Free Hospital canteen. How cool is it that a major London hospital has a live dosa station where, on Wednesday lunchtimes, a chef cooks hot, fresh dosa right in front of you? All the food is absolutely delicious.
(Photos taken and shared with permission).
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
I discovered there's such a thing as 'firekraut' - spicy version of sauerkraut. Which makes it... kimchi?
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
Sad to hear that Sri Owen has died. Her Indonesian cookbooks, in particular her Rice Book, are true masterpieces. RIP.
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
Looks impressive - nice presentation
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
There seem to be a growing number of Indian gastropubs in London. The main difference with 'desi' or Indian pubs is that these are owned by second or third generation Indians and that's reflected in the more eclectic menus; and the clientele is younger and more diverse.
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
Pakadarpana (The Mirror Of Culinary Skills)
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
I’m reading food-centric Indian mythology and came across this marvellous first sentence in one of the stories…
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
It cracks me up that you can get Maggi noodles in more and more Indian restaurants in London now. And Maggi noodles with tadka.
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
Thanks. Yes after enjoying near-perfect health all my life, I’ve had a few unexpected health issues so had to take a couple of years off. It’s a daily battle kinda thing, but I’ve gradually started getting back to work (to totally changed social media and food media scenes).
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
True. I haven't been able to go in the last couple of years due to illness, must go next year.
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
There aren't enough (any?) food history festivals in the UK as far as I know, so I'm excited to virtually attend the inaugural Serve It Forth, which takes place online on 18 Oct and is organised by some top British food historians (and great podcasters): serveitforthfest.wixsite.com/info/
Home | My Site
serveitforthfest.wixsite.com
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
I'm intrigued by all these 1- and 2-episode deep-dives into individual Korean dishes that regularly drop on Netflix. The latest is K For Kimbap. I'd expect something like this on Amazon Prime which is a bit 'wild west', but on Netflix it's totally random (and deliciously nerdy).
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
There's revival of a historic walnut fair in Croydon this weekend. I don't know how walnutty it will be - the activities sound like standard family entertainment with no mention of walnuts - but a talk on history of the walnut fair tomorrow sounds great: www.culturecroydon.com/event/croydo...
Croydon Harvest featuring The Walnut Fair - This is Croydon
Croydon Harvest is back for an autumn extravaganza where giants roam and hope blooms!   Inspired by the history of Croydon’s Walnut Fair (1314 – 1868) this centuries-old tradition comes back to life w...
www.culturecroydon.com
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
An excellent exposé/ investigation of Victor Garvey's restaurant empire by Andrew Kersley. This is the kind of proper, deep-dive journalism that's done very well in the US but all too rare in the UK. Why aren't the nationals picking up on this story?
www.the-londoner.co.uk/the-rise-and...
He's one of London’s most famous chefs. So why do so many people say Victor Garvey owes them money?
Giles Coren called him his “favourite kind of chef”. But former staff and business partners paint a different picture of the Michelin star winner.
www.the-londoner.co.uk
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
I might go next year - have missed the last 2-3 years
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
It's difficult to get food writing published if it doesn't fit into 'earnest and heartfelt', 'heritage', 'polemic', 'gossipy', 'recipe-led' or 'nepo baby' categories and is just a bit of sarcastic nonsense.
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
Writing an Indian food dictionary is an uphill battle on many different levels - but a major issue right now is that what's cooked, eaten and consumed in Indian households is changing so rapidly, it's difficult to keep up. Many dishes that were commonplace even 5 years ago are now disappearing.
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
Dear PRs, there's nothing groundbreaking about "eating pumpkins in autumn." And putting pumpkin in a curry is not a "savoury hack", it's just... pumpkin curry.
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
I didn’t realise that ‘gunpowder spices’ - in fact an umbrella term for a category of South Indian, legume-based dry chutneys eaten as a condiment - had become so mainstream in the UK (prob. because of Dishoom) that it’s now used as a seasoning on a Domino’s pizza.
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
Wonder if I can George Clooney on board. Surely he likes curry.
sejalsukhadwala.bsky.social
Authors, have any "narrative growth architects" contacted you promising to promote your book globally? I have an (AI-generated?) email from one such individual, who wants to expose my book to the world so thrillingly that surely the next logical step would be to turn it into a Hollywood movie :)