Name: Hind Akil

Restaurant/concept: Artisanal sourdough bread

Title: Hindough

QUICK FIRE

Breakfast of champions: Pumpernickel bagel with cream cheese 

Favorite kitchen gadget: Infrared thermometer and a bread lame (a tool that is used to score bread before it’s baked) 

Most underrated ingredient: Salt 

Favorite place to eat: My kitchen 

The aroma that makes you the happiest: Coffee and bread 

Desert island dish: Sashimi and soy sauce 

What fueled your passion to become a chef?

My love and appreciation for good bread and the lack of quality bread in Kuwait. Good bread is a staple and I wanted to make it accessible to others. 

What’s the one great thing about working in a kitchen that people would never imagine?

Zoning out, zero distractions, and not thinking about anything else at that moment. It’s a complete meditative state.

How would you build the perfect sandwich?

Swiss cheese, mustard, pickles, jalapeños, black pepper and good bread. Nothing else matters.

How does your personality differ inside and outside the kitchen?

I’m focused, organized, creative and work well under pressure; but talk to me when I’m outside the kitchen, and that doesn’t apply, or so I’ve been told.

If you specialized in a different cuisine or cooking technique what would it be?

I bake bread, I don’t cook much so I wouldn’t be able to choose a cuisine really. For the time being it’s all about sourdough for me. I would maybe explore fermented foods further and start testing and adding new sourdough base items to my menu, perhaps go into sandwiches, croissants or pretzels in the future.  

Which dish do you most wish you’d created and why?

I wish I came up with a process not just a dish. The process of fermenting foods is just so intriguing to me as it comes with endless possibilities!

In which season do you most like to source local ingredients and why?

Although I try to source and use local ingredients as much as possible, unfortunately Kuwait has limited growing seasons so we try to get our hands on whatever we can, though at times we would need to source specific ingredients elsewhere. We do however support local farms in Kuwait and source a lot of our wheat locally. We also run through the milling process ourselves; you could say it’s “as local as it gets.” 

What do you think will be the biggest food trend of 2020? And why?

Plant based foods seem to be the up and coming trend nowadays. Food such as the impossible burger and beyond meat. Although this trend is still widely debated on whether animal protein is really necessary. All I can say is that if it does pick up, it’s a good thing my bread is vegan!