The Sharjah book fair will go beyond literature again this year, with the return of the festival’s popular Cookery Corner.
It has been a highlight of the event in recent years and this time around, the fair has invited 11 internationally renowned chefs to share their culinary prowess with the masses as a part of the Cooking with Chefs programme.
The list of notable guest chefs includes Manuela Kjeilen, a baker from Norway with six books on baking to her name.
A popular blogger with more than a million followers on Instagram, she also has her own range of baked goods, called Manuela’s Cake, which is sold in major supermarkets across Norway. She will inspire bakers at the fair with a series of demonstrations throughout the first week of the festival (Wednesday, November 5, 7.30pm; Thursday, November 6, 5pm; Friday, November 7, 5pm; Saturday, November 8, 7.30pm).
Guests looking for locally inspired baking tips can get them from the 18-year-old Emirati baking sensation Bader Najeeb Al Awadhi, who will have one baking demonstration during the festival.
A full-time student at Dubai Men’s College, he is the Cookery Corner’s guest of honour this year. A self-taught baker, Al Awadhi has hosted two cookery TV shows and is currently filming a new show to run next year. His speciality is classic French desserts with a local twist. He’ll be presenting on Friday at 5pm.
Another notable name on the list of guest chefs is Tina Richardson from the United Kingdom, who has carved out an unusual spot at the global culinary table with her penchant for herbs. She specialises in everything herb-related, from sourcing and storage, to cooking and food pairing. She also writes a monthly feature in Hertfordshire Life magazine called "Matching Herbs with Foods". Check out her demonstrations at the book fair and you will never look at herbs the same again (Sunday, November 9, 4.30pm; Monday, November 10 at 7.30pm, Tuesday, November 11 at 11am and 7.30pm).
If you fancy Indian cuisine, don't miss the four Indian chefs presenting at the festival. Among them is Dhruv Baker, who won BBC One's MasterChef in the UK in 2010 and is a master of Indian spices. He writes for Waitrose Weekend and recently created a flavoured basmati rice for Tilda (Monday, November 10 at 11am, Tuesday, November 11 at 4.30pm; Wednesday, November 12 at 6pm).
Also dishing up Indian cookery tips is the chef Anil Kumar, who operates Food Wise in the UAE, a food industry consulting company. He is a senior member of the Emirates Culinary Guild, the UAE’s non-profit association for professional chefs with a focus on advancing the country’s culinary art. Kumar has appeared on many cookery shows, and his Malayalam cookery/reality TV show, called Treat, is on Media One Channel every Friday at 7pm. He has one demonstration at the book fair, on Friday, November 14 at 6.30pm.
Several more chefs and cuisines will be featured throughout the fair, including Moroccan, Lebanese and Kuwaiti cuisine.
For a full schedule of Cookery Corner presenters, visit the activities section on www.sharjahbookfair.com.
sjohnson@thenational.ae
