When Anthony Bourdain Defended Indian Food, The Only Vegetarian Cuisine the Meat-Loving Celebrity Chef Ever Loved

When it came to his thoughts about vegetarian food, American chef and food commentator Anthony Bourdain never minced words. He once called vegetarianism and veganism (whom he likened to the militant group Hezbollah) "the enemy of everything good and decent in the human spirit.”

The chef's disdain for vegetarianism was legendary. But in a rare (possibly the only) departure from his militant stance against plant-based foods, Anthony paid glowing tributes to Indian vegetarian food through his CNN show Parts Unknown.

The chef and inveterate traveller has been to the farthest ends of the world and has tasted the most eclectic of all cuisines. But it took a trip to India that made him change his long-standing views on vegetarian food. The show which aired in April 2014 showed Anthony relishing vegetarian food in Amritsar, sampling cuisines from dhabas. It's difficult to imagine the meat-loving chef even bring a morsel of veg food anywhere close to his mouth let alone eat it. But he was completely enthralled by the rich flavours and textures of the saags, lentils and breads he had in local places.

"India is one of the few places in the world where, even for me, that (vegetarian food) is not a burden," he quips. Plant-based cuisine in the West has often been accused of being uninspiring, using vegetables only as a substitute for meat. " Unlike some of the joyless vegetarian restaurants in my sad experience, vegetables here are actually spicy, all taste different, different textures and served with extraordinarily good bread. It's got this multi-tiered crispy on the outside, chewy in the middle. It's a whole different experience.," he says as he dunks the roti into the subzji.

"If this was what vegetarianism meant in most of the places that practice it in the West, I would be at least half as much less of a d**k about the subject," he said lampooning his own personal views.

It (Indian Food) Won't Kill You

What endeared Chef Bourdain to the millions of his fans worldwide is his unpretentious take on food. Unlike the Michelin Star culinary snobs, Anthony makes an earnest efforts to understand the local food culture and steps out among the common people. He once ate a warthog anus filled with sand and fecal matter in Nambibia, knowing very well that he'd be sick. He said, "The chief is there in front of his whole tribe offering you his very best. Show respect. I'm lucky to be there. I'm lucky to see that. I'm lucky to have that experience. Chewing some antibiotics is a small price to pay.”

During a talk show on CNN, the chef gave the host a sample of his legendary humility. The host Anderson Cooper spoke about the chef's Punjab visit and expressed his concerns over him eating at roadside stalls without of any fear of falling sick. The host was referring to the dreaded "Delhi Belly" a gastric ailment ostensibly caused by unhygienic Indian food.

Anthony quickly jumped to defend the food: "Hygiene may not be what you would like. Yes, there is an overwhelming likelihood that you'll really need to spend extra time on the thunder bucket. But it won't kill you. It won't poison you. You are far more likely, by my long experience on the road, to get ill at the hotel buffet."

The chef's sudden death on June 8, 2018, dealt a huge blow to the American culinary scene. He had a rare humility seldom seen in someone who has had a breadth of experience like his.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 09, 2018 02:11 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).