Malaika Arora on what inspired her to start cooking, her love for coconut, and her favourite food spots in Mumbai

“Food is a whole mood for me,” says the actor as she shares her best-kept kitchen secrets with Vogue India

Malaika Arora talks about cooking and food in an exclusive interview with Vogue India
Discovery+

One of Bollywood’s fittest moms and a yoga expert, Malaika Arora loves her rice and curry and always keeps a pair of sneakers handy to keep comfy while cooking. These are some fun facts that we learnt about the actor on Star vs Food, a celebrity cooking show on Discovery+ that has also featured the likes of Kareena Kapoor Khan, Karan Johar, and Arjun Kapoor. The episodes see the stars taking on a challenge to cook a meal for their loved ones under the supervision of a professional chef. Arora was seen sharing screen space with chef Prateek Sadhu of Mumbai-based Masque, and together they made her mom’s Malabari fish curry and Konkani fish ceviche on ghewar, among other dishes. From the star's favourite ingredients to her inspiration for cooking, we caught up with Arora on all things food.

The last two years have been about food, food and all things food. Between home-cooked food and eating someone else’s cooking, what do you gravitate towards?

I’d say a bit of both. While the foodie in me loves cooking for my family and friends—it’s usually
simple and nutritious meals—occasionally, I also love getting pampered, like with my mom’s
cooking. Once in a while, my friends cook delicious meals for me and I just sit there and
devour it.

You mentioned that you didn’t cook a lot initially—what changed?

I actually started cooking because of my son. Once he came back from school and told me “Mumma, all the other parents and mothers cook such yummy stuff and you don’t know how to cook." So that was one of the challenges that I took up. I said, “You know what, I will show you and I can do this.” So now, I cook for him pretty often.

And when you do end up cooking, what does your meal look like?

Chopping and cleaning are a complete no-no for me but I love putting together ingredients,
textures and of course my strongest suite is presentation. I usually end up cooking simple meals at home but I like giving a slight modern touch to our daily cooking. So we will eat a basic bajra or nachni roti which will be served with roasted veggies, some dal and rice. People think I don’t eat
rice, but I do. I especially love adding coconut to my food wherever possible. It’s my go-to
ingredient, it is both delicious and nutritious. I also love replicating my mom’s recipes at times,
like a good Malabari fish curry—but that’s still a work in progress.

What’s a meal like on a regular day, both while eating in at home and while on the go?

At home, it would usually be a nice three-course South Indian meal with a nice big glass of green juice and a bowl of fruits. Food is a whole mood for me. I prefer being vegan, but post COVID-19
recovery, I felt that my body needed some meat, so I went back to eating fish. When I’m on the go,
or on the road, my handbag will usually have nuts and fruits. I’m not a granola bar person.

You’ve often been spotted with your girlfriends eating at the best places in the city, especially with your sister Amrita. What's the difference between what you and your sister enjoyed eating while growing up versus what your kids enjoy now?

Well, yes, there’s a huge difference between what we ate as kids and what my kid eats now. There
are so many new super foods available in the market that weren’t known or easily available back
then. But I truly believe that while ingredients are different now, we did enjoy equal health benefits through our mom and grandma’s nuskas. As a matter of fact, quite a few old traditional foods are making a major comeback just with a fancier name, like haldi doodh has become turmeric latte and subja is chia seeds, though there is a slight difference between the two.

What do you usually end up ordering in? Is there a particular cafe, a restaurant or a delivery kitchen you swear by?

I order a lot of different varieties of cuisines. For me, food is majorly mood-driven. Sometimes I
may crave a vegan flourless cake on one day, and a street style vada pav on the next day. Among
restaurants in Bandra, I love Sequel and I’m also very fond of different thalis and South Indian
thali restaurants scattered all over India. My friend Raveena Taurani (of Yogisattva) is an amazing
plant-based chef and I love everything that she makes for me.

On Star vs Food, chef Prateek Sadhu asks if you'll be cooking in stilettos. Can you really do that? What is your idea of ideal kitchen wear?

Cooking in stilettos is only for optics. I can’t cook in heels at all. In fact at home, I prefer cooking
barefoot or in my regular home slippers because I think you have to be in your comfort zone to
make a meal filled with love.

You also share some of your mom’s secret cooking hacks on the show. What are your personal kitchen secrets?

My best kept kitchen secrets are magic ingredients like haldi, both fresh and powdered, aloe vera
and methi seeds. These magic ingredients are wonderful to consume as well as amazing for your
hair and skin when applied directly as well. And of course, I always keep a bar of dark chocolate
handy because it tastes heavenly!

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