“I find my place in the kitchen more comfortable than in an office or a desk job,” says 35-year-old Chef Jamshid Nurov Abdurashidovich.
Chef Jamshid was part of a team of culinary experts from Uzbekistan recently flown to Dubai to prepare a special spread at OSH, La Mer’s contemporary Uzbek restaurant, for the Uzbek National Day on September 1st.
Chef Jamshid, who has 11 years of professional experience across Russia, Uzbekistan and now, Dubai, shares that his journey had a rather bumpy start.
“My father was a bit strict and didn’t approve me working as a cook,” he explains.
When he was 20 years old, Chef Jamshid went to St. Petersburg to work in a bakery. “There I was in charge of filling up the eclairs,” he recalls.
“Then I went back to Fergana in Uzbekistan to work in a school. After (that) I left for Russia in 2010 to work in restaurant Strana Katoriy Net and Cukariku. I stayed there till 2018 when my chef proposed that I come to work in Dubai to open an Uzbek restaurant,” Chef Jamshid said.
While others prefer other careers, Chef Jamshid said it’s the kitchen for hum.
“I enjoy working in the kitchen, especially in the dough section where I have more than seven years of experience. I find my place in the kitchen more comfortable than in an office or a desk job,” he said.
Sharing his thoughts on current culinary trends, Chef Jamshid said: “I see a lot of farm-to-table movement which I was born with. The use of chemical and non-organic substances don’t let the product shine, so I’m happy to see more organic markets.”
Uzbekistan, the chef said, has lots of “beautiful organic products… (a) strong tradition of good local food for centuries and a love for our culture.”
Chef Jamshid said he plans to open a shop back in Uzbekistan one day with the money he has saved. “The idea is not a full restaurant, but rather a shop where you don’t need to wait too long. It will be full of dough products such as cheburek, Manti, Urama, Chuchvara and Vareniki, among others,” he said.