Kunzes Angmo
seznuk@gmail.com
The idea germinated from the desire to preserve in a jar – the surprise and familiarity of a tangy-sweet Ladakhi summer on our table round the year, the heritage of each fruit; many picked from the century-old apricot trees in our garden in Nubra and the need to best utilize this fruit which otherwise lay waste. So yes, Artisanal Alchemy first emanated from the need to just jamapricots, but gradually I went a step further by adapting recipes, techniques and processes; old and new; from around the world to local systems, sensibilities and of course varieties to craft simple, delicious and farm-driven organic food and preserves that were sourced from our own garden. And this chapter in my life basically began with my son. Cause in all honesty, I was born and brought up in Srinagar until 1990 and progressed from childhood to adulthood in boarding schools and college hostels where I thrived on tuck and junk food and loved it; all in ignorant bliss of anything remotely to do with the terms “organic”, “gardening” or even “natural”! It was motherhood; something about it…you want to provide for your child, the best and the purest and coming down to the elemental; it’s as simple as “real”, “natural” food. That was my initiation into the world of organic gardening and foraging and thence onto some comprehension of the agro-ecological processes and systems of the land and the flora it supports which naturally transcended to the life, food identity/culture/history of the people and the land. Living in far flung rural Nubra (a very first in my life), I turned to indigenous knowledge systems woven around food in my endeavour to provide the ‘purest’ to my son in every season and circumstance that rural Ladakh sent my way.
It is my belief that every human has a right and should have easy access to ‘real food’ – the food that today is sold as ‘organic’ or ‘natural’. And therefore in our quest to reconnect people (in our own small way) to such ‘real’ food; in the year 2017, we started exclusive experiential lunches and farm-visits at my husband’s family farm-camp Lharimo North,Nubra for a select clientele of experiential travellers; almost all from TUTC wherein we served an ingenious menu which drew not only from Ladakhi cuisine but also continental fare that made the most of the many endemic and so called “exotic” but local herbs, flowers and vegetablesconscientiously cultivated and foraged within the premises of the farm.
Moving back to Leh in 2019; I started curating the Artisanal Alchemy Brunch/Lunch experiences at the Jade House Ladakh that included Ladakhi cuisine as well as an inspired oriental, continental and Kashmiri palette (the guests could book any one of the experiences) that reinvents our homegrown produce, preserves and ingredients for globally relevant tastes and recipes that are traditional and indigenous in the culture they represent; the kind that often don’t figure on a restaurant menu!
But it’s the Artisanal Alchemy Ladakhi Lunch Experience (at the Jade House, Leh and the Stok Palace, Stok) that most would foreground as indispensable on any experiential traveller’s check list. As over a period of couple or more hours I take my guests on a gastronomic journey (specially curated in accordance with their food/diet preferences/restrictions/tolerances, etc.) that is a microcosm of the “food of our fathers” and reflects the resilient and sustainable food traditions and bearing of the Ladakhi people. What woke me up to this urgency to study, research, document, represent and honour Ladakhi food in its truest form is the shifts in trans-Himalayan food culture and identity that has not been aptly documented, is casually overlooked and is often bastardised to suit the wider Indian/tourist palate like Ihave witnessed in most local restaurants, hotels and even homes!To truly comprehend the food of my fathers I knew it was imperative to hear, study, document and delineate that of others, especially Tibetan food culture and identity. Because inorder to do justice to Ladakhi food narratives, it was important to not appropriate those of Tibetans especially since the latter is a people facing cultural genocide and by virtue of being displaced, often their food identity and cuisine is easily appropriated across the Himalayan belt for the sake of quick commerce.And with the winds of accelerated commercialization (to cater to the common tourist’s comprehension of the familiar camouflaged as ‘exotic’) and the increased assimilation into the ‘acceptable’ idea of “Indian” culture, we are witnessing changes that have crept into everything – from the food (the use of turmeric and other masalas synonymous with Indian food but which do not figure in traditional Ladakhi cuisine) to trans- Himalayan way of life and to acceptable religious practices and beliefs.
In 2021, we finally got incorporated under Ladags Earth Agro Foods (OPC) Pvt. Ltd. and made a formal move to retail Artisanal Alchemy conserves and curations…all small batch, handcrafted artisanal foods made from conscientiously farmed organic fruits/vegetables that are picked, sorted, cut/cored, prepared, processed, produced, and filled in every single jar/bottle with a ladle and packaged with our own two hands; the very same day to highlight and preserve the flavour of the seasons, so the goodness of Ladakh can be tasted in every bite. Made the traditional way, we produce our conserves, etc. on wood-fire and without the use of added pectin (commercial, synthetic or with any other prefix!). This results in a soft-set texture that captures the vibrant fruit sans any synthetic alternative or an unpronounceable chemical. Our hands-on care and close attention to detail ensures that every single jar is evaluated to be up to our exacting standards of large-scale quality, love and care.
So with this work of my own two hands, a lot of heart and a little ingenuity, I hope to continue and highlight in my own small way, a food culture that has sustained my ancestors before me and in the process further our tradition of Ladakhi farm to table food through the Artisanal Alchemy dining experiences and the Artisanal Alchemy handcrafted, limited release conserves and confections.
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