Chef Joel Basumatari of Nagaland is quietly helping put Northeast India’s indigenous cuisine on the national culinary map.
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DIMAPUR — From smoked meats and fermented flavours to stories simmered in tradition, Chef Joel Basumatari of Nagaland is quietly helping put Northeast India’s indigenous cuisine on the national culinary map.
At the heart of the recently held “Flavours of Northeast”—a first-of-its-kind cooking competition and panel discussion organised by the Eastern India Culinary Association (EICA)—Chef Joel emerged as one of the key faces of a growing movement to reclaim, preserve and globalise native food traditions from the region.
Held on January 30 and 31, the event brought together chefs, educators and culinary leaders from across the eight north-eastern states, united by a shared mission: to give indigenous cuisines the recognition they deserve within India’s hospitality industry and beyond.
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As Vice President of EICA’s Northeast Region, Chef Joel conducted a Lee Kum Kee–supported live demonstration on authentic Nagaland cuisine, blending age-old tribal flavours with contemporary presentation techniques.
His session drew keen interest from young chefs and culinary students, offering both technical insights and cultural context rooted in Naga food traditions.
A press release on Friday described the demonstration as more than a cooking class—it was a storytelling exercise, where ingredients, techniques and heritage came together on the plate.
The programme itself marked a historic moment for Northeast gastronomy. Conceived under the Indian Federation of Culinary Associations (IFCA), the initiative reflected years of groundwork led by Chef Manjit Gill, President of IFCA, whose presence lent national weight to the occasion.
Other prominent figures in attendance included Chef Sudhakar Rao, Director of the Culinary Association of India; Chef Atul Lahkar, celebrity chef and entrepreneur from Assam; Chef Abhiru Biswas, President of EICA; and Chef Rangonath Mukherjee, Treasurer of EICA.
Their participation reinforced the importance of integrating Northeast flavours into mainstream culinary discourse, it stated.
Another highlight of the event was a Nestlé-supported demonstration on Manipuri cuisine led by Chef Pradip, which complemented Chef Joel’s session by spotlighting the region’s diversity of techniques and ingredients.
EICA also acknowledged the institutional backing of NIPS Shillong and IAM Guwahati, whose involvement helped bridge the gap between culinary education and industry practice in the Northeast.
Organisers credited Chef Joel Basumatari’s hands-on involvement and leadership as instrumental to the programme’s success, noting that his work reflects the collaborative spirit needed to elevate indigenous cuisines from the margins to the mainstream.