Her own little patch of green

Supattra Boonsrang, Chef de Cuisine of the Thai Soul restaurant at the Grand Hyatt Bolgatty at Kochi talks about her herb garden which she has set up on her own. This enables her to provide pesticide-free produce for her guests 

Photos by A Sanesh      

By Shevlin Sebastian

An evening breeze is blowing. There are shouts of children as they frolic in the azure swimming pool of the Grand Hyatt Bolgatty at Kochi. A melodious song is playing over the sound system. People sit on low-slung chairs chatting and sipping glasses of juice. But oblivious to all this is Supattra Boonsrang, Chef de Cuisine of the Thai Soul restaurant.    

She is standing in a black outfit, with a black chef’s cap, holding a bamboo tray, and snipping leaves with a pair of scissors. This is her herb garden which she had set up one-and-a-half-years ago, just outside the poolside restaurant. In it, she has been growing lemongrass, basil, ginger, galangal, eggplant, papaya, and butter peas.

Asked how she got the idea, Supattra says, “I realised that the climate in Kochi is similar to that in Thailand. There is a hot summer, a rainy season, a not-very-cold winter and high humidity. I used to have a garden in my home country.”

Not surprisingly, it is pesticide-free. In its place, she uses an unusual type of manure. “We put chicken and fish bones in the oven,” says Supattra. “Then we roast it. After that, we put it in the grinder and make a powder. This is good for the soil.”

Helped by two young employees, Supattra removes overgrown grass and leaves.

Soon, she takes a batch of lemongrass, laksa leaves and basil and heads into the kitchen….

She is making a crab meat salad. The meat is put in a charcoal oven and has been smoked. Supattra puts the meat, now cut into small pieces, into a bowl, and adds lemongrass, laksa leaves (Vietnamese mint), coriander, shallots, chillies and fish sauce, along with thinly-diced mango and mixes it up.    

Soon, in quick succession, Supattra makes the Tom Yum Koong, a spicy prawn soup with kaffir lime, lemongrass and galangal (forest ginger), and a green curry called Kaeng Khiao Wan Gai, which has coconut, eggplant, and green chillies. This is to be eaten along with the long-grained Jasmine rice. This rice is available only in Thailand and has been imported.

As for the dessert, Supattra has made the Tab Tim Kromb. This consists of water chestnuts, in a red food colouring, dipped in coconut milk and crushed ice. To give a Kerala touch, she has put a slice of jackfruit on top. This is a cool concoction to have on a hot day. In fact, all the dishes have an intensity about it, and you cannot help but concentrate when having it.

When she is told this, Supattra smiles and says, “I use traditional methods. So, while most people these days chop vegetables, meat and fish by machine, I do it by hand. I still use the mortar and pestle. I feel that is the only way to give the food a human touch.”  

This is her 25th year in the Hyatt International group. Earlier, she had served in Bangkok, Taipei, Jordan, Sharm-el-Sheikh (Egypt), and the Park Hyatt Dubai (for 13 years).

Her journey towards cooking began when she was growing up in the town of Yasoton in northern Thailand. Her father Payad used to work in a small restaurant as a chef. Supattra would help him in cutting and cleaning vegetables. “From a young age, I felt a great passion for cooking,” she says. 

She began her career cutting vegetables in a hotel for one year. Then she washed them for another year. And from this low-key start, she is now one of the most enduring talents of the Hyatt group.

Asked about the changing trends she has observed over the decades, Supattra says, “People want food that can be made fast. Time is short for everybody. They prefer less garnish. Earlier, when you went out for dinner, there were many courses that were served. Now all the dishes have to be put out at once. But I am also happy to note that Thai food has gained a worldwide reputation. One reason is that it is steamed, so it is very healthy and light on the stomach. My own mother, at 88, is so fit she walks faster than me.” 

As for her aim today, she says, “I want to make Thai food popular among Malayalis.”