Michelin Star Magic: Chef Jacob Boerma Brings European Flavours to India
By : Reshmi AR
Update: 2024-07-08 05:37 GMT
Celebrated Michelin-starred chef Jacob Jan Boerma wooed Mumbai's foodies with his European-inspired pop-up at the Taj Mahal Palace. Known for his elegant refinement and cosmopolitan flair, Boerma blended traditional Indian spices with his unique culinary vision. It was an unforgettable dining experience for The Culinary Chronicles.
Chef, What inspires your culinary approach, and how do you plan to tantalize the taste buds of Indian foodies at The Culinary Chronicles?
Ans: It is always challenging to cook in another place out of your own kitchen but with a lot of positive energy and sometimes the feeling is you are camping cooking. But it is always doable because if you want to know more about other countries you have to taste and you have to work with their ingredients and if your collaborate to your own personal style then it is possible to cook a little like how you are cooking at home with small eye to how to cook in another place which is not always easy to do. For me it is really important to always give my life a new experience and I know before I came to India it will not be easy to make my own vision of our European food. So if you can forget it a little then you know this country brings you a completely new surprise. I need things like this in my life to learn about the heart of a country and this is what I am really excited to present to my diners at Taj Mumbai.
Your cuisine is known for its cosmopolitan flair. How do you think Indian cuisine, with its rich diversity and complexity, has influenced global culinary trends?
Ans: It may be stupid to say but the Indian Bombay toastie is already one of my new guilty pleasures. For the rest, the power of Indian cuisine is the balance between the acidity of spices, vegetables and the right preparation. It's always interesting to go in your own country to an Indian restaurant but when you want to feel the real heart of Indian food please put this country on your bucket list.
You have had an illustrious career, from Restaurant De Leest to The White Room and Fine Fleur. What lessons from your mentors, like Dieter Müller and Roger Souvereyns, have stayed with you, and how have they shaped your cooking style?
Ans: My mentors taught not only cooking but also how I have to do my own restaurants. Of course it is everything about the quality on the plate but without good management of your staff you can never be there if you forget the small details of your work. It starts already with clear water and flowers on your table and it ends with closing the doors and the light because otherwise stupid things can come. If you want to be a really good Chef of course you have to learn how you cook but even more importantly the way you organize a restaurant.
Your dishes are celebrated for their elegant refinement and light sauces. How do you balance innovation with respect for tradition?
Ans: We don’t have a Dutch food culture but I have my heart to make my own culture of the way I cook. Respect for ingredients and balance everything I put on the dish is for me really important to show that all the small details still connect with my cooking style. One of my favourite dishes – Tuintje and this means vegetable garden on the plate more than 40 different preparations of the vegetables of the season and I make only this dish in Summer because our gardens are blessed with young vegetables, herbs, fruits, flowers and always in my menus I make my most favourite ingredient Langoustine and I can say already that when I go back to Netherlands of cooking Langoustine in my Indian way.
You've worked in various international kitchens, including England and France. How have these experiences influenced your culinary perspective, and what have you learned from them?
Ans: When you are a really young boy the most important thing in cooking is seeing different styles of cooking to get in the end your own style.
Indian cuisine is known for its bold flavours and spices. How do you plan to incorporate these elements into your creations for The Culinary Chronicles, and what Indian ingredients or dishes excite you the most?
Ans: I find the bold flavours and aromatic spices of Indian cuisine incredibly inspiring. For The Culinary Chronicles, I plan to integrate these elements thoughtfully into my dishes to create a harmonious blend of Indian and European culinary traditions.
One aspect that excites me the most is the use of spices such as cardamom, cumin, coriander, and turmeric, which can add depth and complexity to any dish. I envision creating dishes where these spices complement rather than overpower, enhancing the overall dining experience.
As a Michelin-starred chef, what advice would you give to aspiring Indian chefs looking to make a mark in the global culinary scene?
Ans: I think the face is already there but if the Indian Chefs are a bit more looking to the fine dining way and they change the local cooking style into that they create a new opportunity in the new industry. Pani puri everybody knows it and a lot of people in the Netherlands use Pani puri in our appetizers/snacks.
Your commitment to quality and respect for ingredients is evident in your cooking. How do you source ingredients, and what importance do you place on sustainability and locally sourced produce?
Ans: Respect for your local ingredients, everything you get close to your own house is always fresher than somewhere else. I love to take the ingredients from the Netherlands but with always a flavoring from around the world. The Netherlands is a country of a lot of vegetables and I like to use them in many different ways and preparation. Textures and different kinds of acidities are the real heart of my cooking. Sustainability for me is working with the ingredients that are available in the season.
Can you share a memorable culinary experience or dish that has left a lasting impression on you, and how has it influenced your cooking style?
Ans: I think the easiest thing like Japanese cuisine, like Sushi looks very easy but the technique of making the sushi rice is a process of more than a minimum of 6 hours. That's why everybody in the world needs a little respect for Chefs wherever they cook.
What's next for you, Chef? Any new projects or ventures on the horizon that you would like to share with us?
Ans: I can say that I will open at the end of this year my new restaurant in the North of Italy and I will also open a new restaurant in Belgium.
Share Your Experience on Chambers At Taj
Ans: It’s always nice to see private clubs wherever in the world I think the Chambers is a really interesting private club because they love to do experience with people around the world and that is why to cook for them is a great feeling but without the feeling of the Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai it should have never happened.