Say hello to Chef Chopra.
Neeraj Chopra was only 13 years old when he left home to pursue his javelin dream. Within years, he was spending months in a country far away. And as he began to live the monk-ish life of an athlete, Neeraj also took a slice of home with him — by learning some of his favourite recipes.
As the years passed, he slowly began to perfect the art of cooking. And it started with his favourite dish — the Haryanvi speciality, namkeen chawal, somewhat similar to a vegetarian biryani.
Speaking at a fireside chat with Duolingo English Test takers, the two-time Olympic and World Championship medallist spoke about the life skills he developed after moving away from home, starting with learning how to cook.
“Cooking is a basic need, especially for athletes who need to eat right. So I started with Namkeen Chawal and slowly learned how to make dal, vegetables, rice and roti,” Neeraj said.
In the early years, Neeraj said it was tough to ‘train twice a day and cook three times’. Gradually, he found the right balance.
“As an athlete, our relationship with diet is quite deep. We have to take care of our nutrition and cook as well. So I learnt to cook different things from the beginning. Like dal, roti, rice… But my favourite thing to cook is something that we in Haryana call ‘Namkeen Chawal’. You can call it veg biryani. And also raita and salad to accompany it. I used to cook it really well and I pour desi ghee on it. It tasted amazing. That was the first thing I learnt to cook,” Neeraj said.
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He added: “After that, I learnt many other things. It was quite tough in the beginning because I used to train twice a day and cook three times a day. The journey is tough but if you learn to manage everything, then things do get done.”
Neeraj was addressing a group of students and he advised them to stay patient. “When you learn to manage on your own, you are ready for bigger challenges,” he said, encouraging students to take pride in becoming independent.”
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