Being your fiercest competitor is the surest way to ensure success for any endeavour, according to home chef Pallavi Khaitan. Her brainchild For_kandknife has brought a lot of innovation and fresh ideas to the table and taken home kitchen concepts several notches higher. Coupled with an unmatched zeal to create an unforgettable experience for the patrons Pallavi started her brand amidst the pandemic and her efforts were rewarded too.
Taking cues from MasterChef Australia, Pallavi’s kitchen offers a varied global fare and her vegetarian entremets have found favour with more than 200 city gourmands till now. Speaking about the challenges, she says, “I love challenges. The foodscape is evolving globally. People are appreciating vegetarian and vegan items. So, I feel really pumped to create gourmet vegetarian dishes and my patrons love my experiments.” Pallavi single-handedly cooks all the delicacies and artfully packs them too. Her talent lies in Asian and Lebanese fare and some of her signature offerings include an extensive variety of salads, Thai Yellow Curry, Mapo Tofu, Teriyaki Noodles, Thai Drunken Noodles, Scallion Pancakes, Spinach Fatayer and Halloumi Pizza among others. Since she operates from her home kitchen, social media is crucial to her business and Instagram has played a vital role in getting orders.
Talking about surviving through the lockdowns, the young chef tells us, “There’s a crazy spike in the number of new diners sprouting in the city. However, people also look out for home-cooked comfort meals, specially prepared for them. So, I don’t see home chefs going anywhere, they are here to stay.” For Christmas, she is planning a cheese and mezze board, and some chocolate fondue for her clients. And if things go right, 2022 will see her expand globally, she tells us.