Nutmeggers have had a love affair with the flavorful culinary creations of Prasad Chirnomula since 2001 when he started Thali, his first innovative Indian restaurant in Connecticut. He continued to change Americans opinion of Indian food by opening four more Thali restaurants each with a unique menu — one in Ridgefield, one in Westport and two in New Haven – an upscale one and Thali Too, a casual vegetarian one on the edge of Yale’s campus.

Prasad then stepped outside of India to create Oaxaca Kitchen, a Mexican restaurant downtown New Haven. As a local food writer who had become a friend of his, I had to ask why. This artist explained that both cuisines are based on nuanced blends of seasonings to create their distinct sauces. And so Prasad’s moles and salsa are as delectable and unusual as his curries and chutneys.

And now lucky New Haveners can grab-and-go his offerings, available at Yale retail stores and at Elm City Market, and soon to be on other college campuses.

Prasad also leads tasting tours of India, hosts private tasting dinners, teaches cooking classes and offers his services at multiple charity events. I caught up with him recently to get his response to these questions.

– bonnie
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Which food product or gadget would you never give up? I would never give up my hand spice grinding equipment, which is one of the oldest methods of spice preparations. In order to get the most flavor out of my spices, I like to roast them first, then grind them to a fine powder. The true essence and aroma of each spice is then captured and then combined to make my proprietary blends.

As for a food product, I would say goat. It’s such a classic Indian meat that is getting very popular in the US.

What do you like to serve when you entertain? I always start with our award winning Faithfully Ginger cocktail, which is a blend of fresh squeezed ginger, gin, elder flower liquor, lime and turmeric served in a martini glass with a cube of ice infused with a sliver of fresh ginger and a rose petal.

Biryani is my hands down favorite. This is a classic Indian dish that is cooked in a large pot sealed with dough to keep the moisture inside. I prepare this with either marinated chicken or goat layered into a bed of basmati rice and freshly roasted spices. Lately, I have been making baby eggplant stuffed with mint cilantro chutney as an appetizer.

Describe your “last meal?” My last meal would be goat Biryani, as that dish is mostly reserved for big occasions. We serve this at the Thali restaurant daily as we want all our guests to experience this special treat.

What food is your secret guilty pleasure? Onion Bhajia, which is the Indian equivalent of the American onion ring but with much more flavor. We serve this at Thali Too, which is our vegetarian location in New Haven. I also love the fried okra which is served at all our Thali locations. Once you start eating these dishes you cant stop.

What is your go-to neighborhood restaurant? My restaurants, of course but if I am going to another place I have been enjoying 116 crown . They do a great job with the drink specials and modern pizza.

What is one food product most people don’t know about, but should? The Indian vegetable called tindora, which is also known as gentlemen toes (English) because of its shape. Its generally found in Indian food markets and has a wonderful taste and texture when steamed with blended spices.

Describe your worst kitchen disaster and how (if possible) you saved it: Two years ago I had a very large catering event at Hilton Hotel in New York state and most of my kitchen staff were temps hired for the occasion, I had taken two of my own chef de cuisines. I created a very special menu and most of the menu items were my signature dishes with recipes that only I know. Of course, this menu was bride and groom’s dream menu to please everyone at the wedding. The event included a Friday rehearsal dinner for 250, Saturday brunch for 200, wedding snacks/coffee service for 400 and followed by the wedding reception with a cocktail hour and a dinner for 450. I accepted this challenge.

This was not in my kitchen, the host made a deal with the hotel kitchen so that we are able to use their entire facility. We had to cook these meals from scratch in that hotel kitchen. On our arrival with two truck loads of food, the chef at the kitchen was not cooperative. In fact, the chef took away the prep tables and put away most of the cooking utensils and put a lot of restrictions.

The kitchen staff I hired was totally raw (no experience) to the kitchen with no hygiene practices, known knife skills or any cooking experience. I asked my sous chefs and server staff to rise to the occasion and help in the kitchen. Everybody pitched in and the event went off without a hitch and in fact the compliments were so high that we picked up few more weddings of that sort. However my sous chefs and I worked 42 hours straight, I did break a small sweat!

Who was your most influential mentor? My mother, as I learned quite a bit from her watching her in the kitchen and noticing the care she put into each dish. Also restaurants and chefs in general from London influenced me to bring some new concepts to USA.

To follow Prasad Chirnomula on Twitter, click here.