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If there’s any buzzword that’s overused in marketing today, it’s “passion.” It’s become a near-catchall word that’s used so casually it’s almost lost its meaning. You don’t just like something these days (except on Facebook, I guess)… no, you’re passionate about it! Except that many times, the reality doesn’t quite live up to the hype. Recently, I was in a meeting with a businesswoman, and she mentioned to me that she was passionate about her line of work. Yet there could not have possibly been a more pronounced absence of passion in her voice and body language when she said it. The dichotomy was so startling, I noticed it on the spot.

Clearly, however, I was not meeting with Geeta Jayabalan at the time. This enterprising woman bubbles over with passion to the point where it even comes across in her emails! Unlike so many who carelessly throw around the word, Geeta is a genuine embodiment of someone who is pursuing her passion.

Back in 1994, Geeta left her corporate job to start Culinary Capers, offering cooking classes to small groups and corporate teams, mostly as a fun team-building activity. The classes resulted in rich, mouthwatering dishes that would make any chef proud. A few years ago, upon realising that her sumptuous cooking choices were taking her down an increasingly unhealthy path, Geeta made a conscious decision to make a significant change in her own lifestyle, going on a major health kick. And the positive results she experienced in her life as a result have now, very naturally and quite understandably, transformed her Culinary Capers venture, which has now evolved into a multifaceted enterprise encompassing cooking classes, catering, personal chef services, and more, all with a goal of helping people improve their lives through better food choices and uncomplicated, inspired cooking methods. When it comes to catering, one of the most popular services offered by Culinary Capers, Geeta’s focus on “healthy meal catering” means that busy clients don’t have to sacrifice proper nutrition for great taste. Natural food, whole grains, and lots of homemade quality and wholesomeness make these catered conveniences as healthy as they are delicious.

Culinary Capers is a terrific way for expats and their friends to really get the hang of what it means to be Malaysian. As a diverse and multicultural society, Malaysians may periodically differ on a great many things, but if anything unites the varied peoples of this nation, it’s a near-fanatical love for food. So what better way to integrate into your adopted home – and who doesn’t love good food? Geeta is currently offering a couple of fun new programmes that teach and entertain at the same time. The first, an irreverent team-building exercise centred around the most basic – but often the most delicious – entry into Malaysian cuisine, “Secrets of the Malaysian Hawkers.” This activity, for small groups of four to six, is held in food courts or hawker centres, and a contest to find certain dishes and then taste beloved Malaysian hawker meals and identify the main ingredients is sure to be a fun-filled away to acclimatize yourself to the culinary delights of the humble hawker stalls.

Another enjoyable exercise is called the “Nude Noodle” and takes place at various restaurants around KL. Participants are given different bowls of plain noodles with a variety of different ingredients, and challenged to create their own gastro-noodle masterpieces. Local chefs are on hand to help with advice, and impromptu competitions are a common theme.

Culinary Capers even offers overseas food-themed trips, a great way to gain insight into the cultures and customs of foreign countries. Their specialty is off-the-beaten-track destinations and this past year, trips to two very different parts of India were offered. These culinary adventures are, not surprisingly, very popular with expats and are a unique and rather different way to travel in the region.

From preparing elegant meals with a distinct flair for “unfussiness” to entertaining to making ihealthy food choices, Geeta’s unbridled passion fuses beautifully with her enterprising spirit and boundless energy to make Culinary Capers a venture worthy of your attention.

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For more information, please visit Geeta’s site at www.culinarycapers.com.my.

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Source: The Expat July 2013
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