Around 150 trainees of hotel management programme saw Marriott’s chefs cook live.
Around 150 trainees of the Hashoo Foundation’s Hotel Management Training Programme attended the “Thai Food and Culture Studies” event at the Marriott. The event was organised by the foundation and the Embassy of Thailand in Islamabad.
Panutat Yodkaew, the first secretary of the Thai embassy, told The Express Tribune the event was part of Thailand’s “cultural diplomacy” in Pakistan to promote Thai food and traditions in the country.
“Thai food has become quite popular in North America and Europe,” Yodkaew said. “We feel that Thai cuisine has similarities with South Asian food and are thus trying our best to make Thai food and culture accessible to people here.”
The participants, who are learning food preparation and culinary arts through the programme, got to see the Marriott’s Thai chefs do live cooking demonstrations.
Shahbaz Alam, an Islamabad-based trainee, said the food preparation demonstrations were “very interesting.”
“I learnt how to use innovation in preparing and serving Thai dishes,” Alam said.
Javed Akhtar, a senior programme manager at the foundation, said he hoped the exercise would instill a spirit of entrepreneurship in the trainees, who arrived in Islamabad from various parts of the country, and build their capacity to cook Thai cuisine, which is an emerging cuisine in Pakistan.
Representatives from the Thai embassy also informed the audience about Thai culture and history, connecting the historical accounts with the origins of some favourite Thai dishes.
Yodkaew told the participants about Thai King Chulalongkorn the Great, who ruled in the late 19th and early 20th Century and left a legacy of modernisation.
“One aspect of the legacy is our appreciation of Western arts and culture,” Yodkaew said, explaining that India and mainland China are also included in Thailand’s definition of the West and have influenced Thai culture. “The Thai people are not ethnocentric, we are liberal and accommodating.” There was a traditional Thai musical performance by Pattimai, a Thai singer.
Zainab Saad Niazi, a trainee, said she was fascinated by the cultural elements including the respect Thai people accord to their temples and buddhas. But for Niazi, the best and most helpful part was the food itself.
“As trainees in culinary arts, my colleagues and I want to get comprehensive knowledge of world cuisines,” said Niazi, who is an aspiring restaurateur. “This was a great opportunity for us to learn Thai food preparation from the experts.”
Published in The Express Tribune, October 28th, 2013.
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