Flying high, with the love of good food

Imagine an organisation that annually consumes 3.3 million fresh eggs, 1,250 tonnes of chicken and eight tonnes of lobster. Or if you are vegetarian, picture 2,000 tonnes of flour, 920 tonnes of tomatoes, 74 tonnes of strawberries, and hold your breath, 2,20,000 tonnes of whipped cream a year.

These are just some of the ingredients that go into the preparation of meals for the millions of passengers who board Emirates’ flights across the world; last year the number crossed a record 44 million across six continents.

Food factory We’re at the sprawling Emirates Flight Catering (EKFC) facility in Dubai, which makes, on an average 1,35,000 meals by 500 chefs, using 1,524 different menus. At this kitchen, the largest in the world (certified by The Guinness Book of World Records) we get a first hand experience of how airline meals are prepared, chilled, stored, how the after-meal dishes are brought back, sorted and cleaned. About 2.5 to 3 million pieces of equipment are cleaned here daily.

Bustling with activity The holiday season is the busiest time for the airline as everybody is flying home. And on those days, the toys gifted to children take precedence over everything else. On some days as many as 16 bagfuls of toys go into the aircraft and “the crew goes ballistic because there is little room left for anything else. But then if the children are happy on board, everybody else is happy,” says Jane Zdrojewski, Operations Manager.

As food forms a big part of that happiness quotient, every April, for each sector the menu is revamped. Ravi Nage, Executive chef at the EKFC in charge of the Indian sub-continent or Region 5 in Emirates lingo, walked us through the intricacies of managing the different menus, 764 for this region alone. Based on taste, more than geographic profiles, the work is cut out for six divisions - the four sectors of India, and one sector each for the neighbouring countries, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

To each his own While Pakistan and Dhaka sectors have more meat components in the menu, Ahmedabad is heavily vegetarian with chunda being the preferred mango pickle. Butter chicken for North India and pepper chicken with mango thokku for South are a given. The eastern region gets Machher jhol with tomato garlic pickle.

Comfort food rules Workshops are organised well in advance and the chefs who come from 37 countries are asked to design, prepare and taste the food. Nage explains, “I insist on food that is comforting.” The drinks are being tweaked too; Masala chai for the North and filter coffee for the South is next on the list. Nimbu pani is constantly tweaked to improve freshness.

But what can’t be delivered is something that pushes up the weight; “as fuel is always crucial for an airline.” So meat on the bone or nalli-gosht is out. As is also Sikandari raan . There isn’t enough space in the tiny tray, particularly in Economy.

But despite all the care taken, why does all airline food taste ordinary? “Well at 37,000 feet the taste buds change; it’s scientifically proven. And you’re tired, and have no alternative. So it’s also perception” says Nage.

The writer was in Dubai on an invitation from Emirates.