Farm to Fork – A Culinary Journey to Trikaya Farms

A three-hour drive from the JW Marriott, Sahar to Talegaon near Pune was all it took to give us city dwellers a new lease of life.

Bound by the common love for food, eating, cooking and everything related to gastronomy brought us bunch of food bloggers from Mumbai to the beautiful Trikaya Farms.

It was like a dream come true, a perfectly planned Saturday outing in collaboration with the Food Bloggers Association of India (FBAI) and JW Marriott, Sahar made our trip to Trikaya Farms memorable and we came back satiated with a taste of some of the finest cuisine courtesy Chef Roberto Zorzoli, Head Chef at Romano’s, JW Mariott, Sahar.

We were welcomed by the zesty green ambiance at the Trikaya Farms, and were taken on a guided tour by Mr. Manje Gowda, the plant expert (who manages the farm) who showed us around the farm telling us interesting facts, facets and characteristics of the herbs and vegetables grown there.

Be it Italian Basil, Curled Leaf Parsley, Garlic Chives, Flat Leaf Parsley, Oregano, Lemongrass, you name it, you can find all of it right here.

Armed with a cane basket each, we food bloggers followed Mr. Gowda like little children in awe of all the variety of herbs being grown there and he patiently answered all our queries.

We realised the importance of each and every herb, plant or vegetable being grown there in utmost care and how each of these humble ingredients add to the strength, flavour, character and appearance of a dish – be it an entrée, mains, salads or soups.

It was a refreshing experience for us to nibble on the herbs while we plucked and learnt about how they are used in various cuisines.

We loved the flavours of Garlic Chives, the mint was so refreshing when we bit into a leaf, we were awestruck how much juice the Pomelo contained, loved the juicy tangy flavour of the Starfruit (Carambola), relished the chunkiness of the Thai Guava, the dynamite heat of the cute and tiny Birds Eye Chilli and simply fell in love with the deep pink colour of the Dragon Fruit.

I remember as children we lived in our ancestral house in Asansol, Bardhaman District in West Bengal after my father retired from the Army.

We had ample of garden space and we would grow our own vegetables during the winters – from carrots, cabbage, raddish and my favourite the Gondhoraj Lemon.

A walk through the Trikaya Farms rekindled my childhood memories and I was so happy once again to find myself in the midst of the greenery, peace and calm at the farm far away from the city life.

Post a very informative and an educative walk through the farm we settled down to watch Chef Roberto create magic with some exquisite hand tossed salads that were complemented with some limited edition boutique wines.

So the very delicious Aglio Olio pasta was paired with a Tuscan wine – Casamatta, while the grilled chicken in lemon & orange sauce with artichokes, baby carrots & celery with the Brancia 2012.

Finally, our sumptuous meal ended with freshly plucked mulberries, yes, mulberries! I remember plucking them straight from the shrubs during my childhood days in Delhi and now it was like a total blast from the past.

A trip to the Trikaya Farms has instilled in me a respect for those who toil hard in the farms to give us freshest of ingredients that form an integral part of our meals and to the chefs who tirelessly create magic in the kitchen to help us have a truly fine dining experience.

It has also taught me to understand where the herbs come from and how we need to use it.

Personally I feel, as a mother, we should bring our kids to such farms more often so that they can see how the vegetables are grown and learn to respect and enjoy their greens better.

We came back home with lots of fresh herbs and fruits as a gift from Trikaya Farms. For the next few days I enjoyed my cooking spree in my kitchen where I made soups, Thai curry, grilled vegetable sandwiches and treated my family to some of the freshest ingredients available.

To view more pictures of our visit to Trikaya Farms, please visit our official Facebook page.

Collaborate with us:

Write to us at tanya@tanyamunshi.com if you’d like to get featured or collaborate with us at The Lifestyle Portal.