Pukka curries like mom and dad make them - Sunday Times

By Santham Pillay

Two Pietermaritzburg brothers eager to preserve the art of cooking authentic Indian food have launched a step-by-step DVD guide. 

HOT STUFF: Jude Padayachee (above) and his brother, Jeremiah, want to keep alive the art of Indian cooking

Real People, Real Curry is the brainchild of the Padayachee brothers, Jeremiah, 27, and Jude, 22.

Along with their eldest brother, Josiah, they are also the creators of the community forum website Proudly Indian.

The brothers were inspired to make the DVD about easy Indian cuisine after their parents went on holiday last year, leaving them to fend for themselves.

"When mom and dad were on holiday, we had to keep phoning them to find out how to cook curries," said Jeremiah.

That, coupled with the number of hits in their site's recipe section, prompted them to produceReal People, Real Curry.

The 45-minute DVD shows their parents, Morga and Balan, preparing their favourite curries with crab, fish, tripe, chicken and mutton.

"Each of the recipes is my parents' version of the curry. They are the cooks in the DVD, so, yes, they enjoyed it and they love giving free DVDs to people that can't cook curry," said Jeremiah.

Since its release in December, the brothers have sold some 70 copies and have received requests from as far afield as Canada.

Jeremiah said the DVD was necessary to help young Indians preserve the South African Indian style of cooking.

"We searched the Internet for how to cook curries and found that people in India cook very differently from Indians in South Africa. We believe that fewer young Indians know how to cook traditional dishes like fish and crab curry."

The DVD is available from Mndeni Meats in Pietermaritzburg and can also be obtained by e-mailing dvd@proudlyindian.co.za.