Yasmin Qureshi, daughter of legendary chef Padma Shri Imtiaz Qureshi, who handed away final 12 months, wears many hats with ease and delight — she is a style advisor, a dressing up designer, and now, a chef. While her early profession was rooted in style, she ultimately discovered her calling within the kitchen, the place she feels most linked to her roots.
Focused on increasing the attain of her father’s legacy whereas including her personal inventive contact, Yasmin has been curating meals pop-ups that carry genuine Awadhi flavours to new audiences. Most lately, she collaborated with actor Mona Singh’s Restaurant then for a four-day Kona Kona x Yasmin Qureshi Pop-Up, an intimate culinary showcase of one in all India’s most iconic meals traditions: slow-cooked dum pukht delicacies.
Raised in a household the place “food was a way of life,” Yasmin recollects being surrounded by the aromas and self-discipline of Awadhi cooking, watching her dad and mom and siblings pour love, self-discipline, and intuition into each dish. As a “heartfelt tribute”, her latest showcase featured Lucknowi mutton biryani, kathal biryani, galouti kebabs (vegetarian and non-vegetarian), barra, dahi kebab, prawns, rooster curry, nihari, marrow nihari, her mom’s favorite dal, and desserts like shahi tukda and phirni.
Indianexpress.com caught up with Yasmin for a candid interview, and the chef mirrored on holding her late father’s legacy alive, Awadhi delicacies, and ditching every little thing else for slow-cooked or dum pukht cooking. Read edited excerpts beneath:
Q: Take us by way of your journey as a chef now.
Yasmin Qureshi: Fashion allowed me to discover creativity and storytelling by way of visuals, however meals connects me extra deeply to my roots and household legacy. Growing up surrounded by the aromas and strategies of Awadhi cooking, I at all times had a deep respect and keenness for the culinary arts, even when it wasn’t my preliminary profession path. After my father handed, I felt a calling to step into the kitchen and carry ahead his unimaginable legacy as he at all times desired. Cooking lets me mix custom with creativity — it feeds each physique and soul. It additionally retains me linked to my father and permits me to share his classes with the world.
Malai Phirni (Photo: Pr Handout)
Q: How was it collaborating with Mona Singh for her restaurant?
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Yasmin Qureshi: It was an exquisite expertise. From our first dialog, it was clear we shared a love for genuine meals and storytelling by way of delicacies. Our conversations have been very open and galvanizing. We talked about mixing conventional Awadhi flavours with a contemporary eating expertise that her restaurant goals to supply. Mona’s enthusiasm, love, and respect for meals and heritage made the collaboration clean and artistic. Together, we’ve been in a position to craft dishes that honour custom whereas interesting to in the present day’s diners.
Kona Kona felt like the proper accomplice due to their heat, vitality, and artistic openness. There was an immediate consolation—no stress, simply real enthusiasm. For me, this wasn’t only a pop-up; it’s a really private journey. Kona Kona supplied an area the place I could possibly be myself, honour my roots, and categorical my father’s legacy with out compromising its soul.
The thought grew very organically. I didn’t sit down and plan it like knowledgeable chef constructing a menu. I went with emotion. These are dishes I’ve grown up consuming, cooking, and watching my household make, from my father to my mom, my grandparents to my brothers. They’re stuffed with reminiscence and which means. I began with what felt near my coronary heart and constructed from there. The thought was to carry alive flavours that formed me, in a means that also feels gentle, accessible, and soulful.
Q: How do you look again at your late father, Ustad Imtiaz Qureshi’s journey?
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Yasmin Kureshi: He taught me that cooking is not only about recipes however about endurancerespect for substances, and keenness. From him, I discovered humility, dedication, self-discipline, and the artwork of sluggish cooking that brings out the soul of a dish. I really feel extremely grateful for his knowledge and values, which information me in each life and work. Carrying ahead his legacy with my brothers is an honour. For me, meals is tradition and love, and I wish to preserve bringing individuals collectively by way of the tales behind every dish.
Q: Can you are taking us by way of a few of his most cherished suggestions and methods that you simply nonetheless observe within the kitchen?
Yasmin Qureshi: My father by no means used measuring spoons; he believed in intuition. He insisted on letting meat and greens cook dinner in their very own juices, with out including water, and at all times averted stress cookers for meat, preferring sluggish dum pukht cooking to construct deep flavours. Above all, he mentioned meals should be made with love — with out it, no dish can actually style good. That’s the lesson I carry all over the place.
Q: Do you’re feeling the restaurant and meals house has develop into overpopulated with individuals and cooks craving for house?
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Yasmin Qureshi: Yes, it’s undoubtedly crowded, with many proficient, passionate cooks getting into the sector. While that’s thrilling, it makes it more durable to face out. For me, the secret’s authenticity — staying true to my roots whereas including my very own inventive contact. Genuine storytelling and constant high quality are what create an enduring impression.
Q: There is quite a lot of debate on nepotism in Bollywood. And it additionally applies to different fields. As a daughter of a famend chef, what’s your take?
Yasmin Qureshi: I acknowledge that my household identify opens doorways, however legacy alone isn’t sufficient. You need to show your self every single day. There is stress to dwell as much as expectations, however I’m dedicated to carving my very own path whereas honouring my father’s legacy. At the top of the day, expertise, ardour, and perseverance maintain a profession, not only a surname.
Q: Is there added stress on you to carry out each time?
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Yasmin Qureshi: Yes, there’s undoubtedly added stress to carry out each time. Being related to my father’s legacy means individuals have excessive expectations from me. But I attempt to see that stress as motivation, to continuously study, enhance, and convey my greatest to the desk. It pushes me to keep up excessive requirements and preserve evolving whereas staying true to the roots.
Q: What do you wish to be remembered for?
Yasmin Qureshi: My objective is to maintain the soul of dum pukht and frontier meals alive but in addition current it in a means that resonates with in the present day’s diners. I hope my cooking displays each respect for heritage and a private expression of flavour and innovation.
Q: With a lot meals throughout, what’s your mantra to eat mindfully, or do you wish to indulge?
Yasmin Qureshi: While I’m obsessed with cooking, I’m actually not the most important fan of consuming my very own meals. I are typically extra of a feeder than an eater! That mentioned, I do like to bask in good meals, whether or not it’s making an attempt one thing new at a restaurant or having fun with easy home-cooked meals. To stability that, I be sure that to work out no less than thrice per week. For me, conscious consuming is about appreciating flavours and permitting myself guilt-free indulgence whereas sustaining a wholesome and lively life.
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Q: What’s your mantra to unwind after a protracted day?
Yasmin Qureshi: I really like sharing every little thing, the ups and downs of my day, with my brothers and shut associates. After that, I often curl up in mattress, take heed to calming music and I often meditate and pray earlier than going to sleep, thanking God for the blessings. It’s a relaxing routine that helps me discover peace and prepares me for the following day.
Mutton Galawati Kebab (Photo: Pr Handout)
Q: Is there any recommendation you want to point out for newbies within the subject?
Yasmin Qureshi: To keep humble and be affected person. Respect the traditions and strategies, but in addition be open to studying and experimenting. Passion and consistency are key. There might be challenges, however should you love what you do, you could preserve pushing ahead to do what you like.
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Q: Some of the Indian dishes that you simply assume want extra consciousness, and why?
Yasmin Qureshi: Many Indian dishes deserve extra recognition, particularly from the Awadhi and Mughlai traditions. Slow-cooked dals, lesser-known kebabs, and regional curries and rice dishes typically get overshadowed by extra fashionable gadgets. These dishes carry wealthy historical past and distinctive flavours that inform tales of tradition and heritage.
I imagine elevating consciousness about them helps protect these culinary traditions and introduces individuals to the depth and variety of Indian delicacies.
Q: Do you will have a love-hate equation with social media?
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Yasmin Qureshi: Yes. It’s fantastic for connecting with meals lovers and sharing tales, nevertheless it will also be overwhelming — the stress to continuously create content material and the negativity at occasions. I attempt to deal with it as a device, not a entice, and discover stability in how I take advantage of it.
