Sharjah: A line-up of celebrity chefs will be participating in this year’s Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) to share their expertise with visitors.
Through a series of live demonstrations, the culinary luminaries, including Michelin star chefs and Guinness world record holders from India, Canada, the UK, Egypt, Jordan and Morocco will demonstrate their food preparation skills and sign copies of their best-selling cookbooks.
The world’s third largest book fair will run from November 1 to 11 at Expo Centre Sharjah and will be hosting the masterclasses as part of the Cookery Corner programme.
Acknowledging the huge Asian community in the UAE and the popularity of Indian dishes in the country, SIBF 2017 will feature three popular chefs from the Indian subcontinent, with the first being Raj Kalesh, who is known to audiences in this part of the world through his ‘Taste of Kerala’ cookery show. Primarily based on the cuisine of the South Indian state of Kerala, the show reveals the preparation of traditional dishes which have been passed down several generations.
The second Indian chef participating at SIBF 2017 is Mira Manek, who has made it her mission to educate those unfamiliar with Indian food that it is not all about overpowering flavours and heavy cream dishes. Being a Gujarati, Mira is a strong advocate of her culture’s vegetable-based cuisine, which is lighter and healthier than other dishes commonly served in India.
The third Indian chef to be at the fair holds the distinction of being the first Indian chef to win a PhD in hotel management and catering technology. The holder of an impressive three Guinness records in the culinary field, Damu the ‘Dr Chef’ is a household name among the Malayali community, having appeared as a juror in ‘Dhe Chef,’ the cooking reality show on Mazhavil Manorama TV channel. Damu has made South Indian cuisine his speciality from his fascination with its medicinal properties.
Bringing the flavours of the Far East to Sharjah will be Pailin Chongchitnant.
The delights of North African cuisine will be celebrated with the attendance of Moroccan chef Khawla Aissane while the flavour of Levantine cuisines, especially sweet dishes, will be presented by Jordanian chef Myasoon Abu Shakra who will share her skills in preparing delicious fruit chocolate dessert recipes.
For the first time in the history of the book fair, live sessions on cake-making and frosting will be hosted daily by Jordanian pastry chef Hanan Farah.
Meanwhile, the wonders of local cuisine will be explored by Daad Abu Jaber, who specialises in creating flavoursome Jordanian dishes. The author of a cookbook, ‘Ala Maeidat Daad’, Daad is also currently the host of ‘Ahla Jamaa’, ‘Teslam Al Ayadi’ and ‘Fatafeat Magazine Show’.
The other chefs are renowned Egyptian chef Abdul Samei Al Sherbiny, Kate Young representing UK cuisine, and Niklas Ekstedt from Sweden.
As well as the Cookery Programme, the 36th edition of SIBF will include the Kids’ Activities Programme, the Cultural Activities Programme, the Cultural Café and the Social Media Station.
