From childhood passion to perfection: The journey of becoming a self-made chef

It is not often that a pre-teen male chooses the ‘joys’ of preparing dishes in the kitchen over the excitement of participating in outdoor games and other boyhood activities, but Tahal Ganesh used to enjoy helping his mother prepare meals for his family when he was 11 years old.

Now, many decades later, his love for cooking has led him to become a self-made chef whose services are in demand at weddings and religious functions.

Tahal, now 54, recalled that he and his younger brother were raised by a single-parent mother, who spent her days working to earn money to send her children to school and provide necessities to keep them happy.

“Both of my sisters were married, so it was me and my younger brother; and I had no other option than to take the responsibility to cook for my mom and my brother,” he said.He fondly recalls that the first dish he prepared was fish curry, and it was done on a fireside — which remains his favourite method of cooking.

“Back in those days, there were no fridges or phones or television sets. Mommy showed me how to grind the masala on a ‘masala brick’, and there were no blenders either, so I had to also grind the seasoning; and I did this almost every afternoon,” Tahal related.

While attending the Enmore /Hope Primary School and then the Annandale Secondary School, he said, his lunch hours would include visits to the market to purchase ingredients to cook in the afternoons.

“As I grew and continued to cook, I developed a love for it, and started to try different dishes,” he told this publication.

His entry into the world of work was as bartender at the Enmore Estate when he was 18 years old, and he later mixed drinks at Palm Court on Main Street, Georgetown before taking his skills to his employment at the Pegasus Hotel in Kingston, Georgetown.

Tahal said he would use his break times to visit the kitchen to learn how to prepare the dishes being served there.

“Everything I know, I look and learn and went home and tried it out myself. The girls there (would) also take the time to teach those willing to learn,” he said.

After his marriage and the subsequent birth of his children, he began cooking for religious functions, parties, family gatherings and other social activities; and his cooking was praised by all who attended those events. Thus, many people began reaching out to him to cater for their social events.

“This is something I do for friends and family. I still use my fireside, which I have set up in my back yard,” Tahal has confessed. “I am known for cooking the ‘seven curry’ for Hindu weddings, but I enjoy making any type of curry and creole dishes,” Tahal has said.

Currently, “Mr. Tahal”, as he is called, works as a driver with the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS). On his second day on the job, in 2021, he had the opportunity to showcase his culinary skills when the GNBS held its monthly cookout exercise; and he was lavishly praised by all who had tasted his food. It was during this time that he began cooking the famous “seven curry” for Hindu weddings.

In preparing the popular channa-and-potato curry; or a dish of curried pumpkin, boulanger, eddoes, mangoes or katahar; and dhal with rice, this devoted member of the Shiv Mandir at Enmore, ECD says, he scrupulously observes all religious requirements.

He says he also prepares “sweet meats”, among which are sweet rice, mithai, parsad, and others, along with local finger foods such as pholourie, byganie and others.Married and having fathered two children, Tahal says, on weekends he remains the main cook in his home, helping his wife prepare lunch for his family. Tahal has also won two duck curry competitions.

Tahal says he takes the time to give back to his community; in that he is a member of the Enmore Community Policing Group, the Treasurer of the Enmore Community Centre Cricket Club, and a former Councillor of the Enmore-Hope Neighbourhood Democratic Council, where he has served for eight years.

Tahal is urging anyone who is thinking of becoming a cook or chef to explore ways of preparing various types of food.