M: Ashwani, would you take a moment to introduce yourself?
A: Hello, My name is Ashwani. As you mentioned, I am from Delhi, India. I do food tours, photography tours and heritage tours in different cities of India. I studied MBA in tourism.
M: What is the story behind "The Horses King"? How did you get this title?
A: In India, everyone has a meaning to their names. My name is Ashwani, it's a sanskrit word, which means, 'the king of the horses'. My mom gave me this name. It suits me, because being a tour guide this name gives a sense that I am funny and a royalty, showing my kingdom to my guests.
M: For people that would like to follow along online where can they find you?
A: They can google up "TheHorsesKing" or find me on any social media.
M: My understanding is that you did not start in the tourism industry. What was your path to the tourism industry and leading food tours?
A: This is the story of my transformation. I am a mechanical engineer, and worked as an engineer for a few years. I did like the work, so I quit it and went to volunteer at Gandhi Ashram. There I used to teach kids, work in the farm and with the community. There I met a tour guide from Italy, she shared her amazing stories with me. So, I realized I could also be a tour guide and started working in the tourism industry. After that I went to pursue an MBA in tourism to overcome my engineering background.
M: Now, we have delayed the topic long enough! Ashwani, where are we going today and what are we talking about!
A: India and specifically, India For Foodies! As I am a food tour guide in India. We will talk about food and India.
M: Now, where do we even begin!? At some point we are going to do a second episode reading through a menu. But for today - let's just make people drool! Let's start with what characterizes Indian food?
A: India is known for its spices. It is the land of spices. Even colonizers came to India for the spices like black pepper. Black pepper is native to India like many other spices. So, Indian food is full of spices. I would say India added flavours to most of the cuisines of the world.
M: Will you find raw meats on an Indian Menu?
A: In India, you don't find anything raw. We have been using spices to cook our food for 3-4 thousand years now. So, we cook food with spices, not raw.
M: Will you find beef in Indian cuisine?
A: India is a diverse country. We eat all kinds of meat in India. From a western perspective, India is a religious country. It is, but food is not related to religion but to geography. So, in some parts of India, people eat beef.
M: I think the stereotype Americans, and likely Europeans have is that Indian food is spicy. This can be a barrier to entry for many people. Can you give us some beginner/entry level Indian foods for the first time taster?
A: We break the stereotype regarding Indian food on our food tours. Indian food is spicy but by spicy people mean that it is chilli hot, which gives a burning sensation. And chilli is not native to India, so we recently started using it. We don't use green or red chilli, we mostly use black pepper in our dishes. So, yes Indian food is spicy, or to say it as full of flavours not just hotness of chilli. Adding extra chillies doesn't make it Indian food. We also add black pepper in our drink like buttermilk, and use it to cure sore throat. Another stereotype is turmeric latte. For Indians, turmeric latte is nothing. My mom is giving me turmeric milk since I am able to drink by myself. So, it is very common in our homes. I don't why they are charging so much for that.
If someone wants to try Indian food, they can have samosa or pakora in snacks; curries, lentils and breads in main course; kheer or gulab jamun in sweets; lassi(buttermilk) in drinks.
M: Now, as far as the more...
