Indian-born Pradeep Kaur arrived in the UK in 2007, never anticipating today she would become army chef, Corporal Pardeep Kaur.
After landing a job as a beautician in 2009, Kaur’s world changed, when she made a dramatic career change and joined the British army in 2010 as a chef.
It wasn’t long before the single mum had her first taste of an army chef outside the UK. In 2015 CPL Kaur was deployed in Kenya on Exercise Askari Storm and then Exercise Silver Arrow in Latvia where she had to feed hungry troops ensuring that the meals were up to the highest standards. Twelve years on, and CPL Kaur shows no signs of stopping.
Her hard work is certainly paying off, as the chef has recently been selected for promotion to Sergeant and awarded her third tape or stripe.
She will also be delivering her first course as an instructor, teaching cooking to phase two recruits, in the catering school, in Worthy Down.
In an interview with Asian Sunday, CPL Kaur said:
“I joined the army in 2010, originally as a chef, when I completed my phase two training, I was assigned to an artillery unit, then I volunteered to join the recruitment team, which was such a good experience, as a female and South Asian in the army, because I didn’t gain much experience from the trade I am in, so joining this group helped open my eyes”.
After being promoted to Sergeant and delivering her first course as an instructor, she says: “It is a dream come true and a very proud moment for me, as I believe I am the first South Asian female instructor to teach recruits in the British army”.
Becoming an army chef, has been life changing for CPL Kaur. She explained: “I wanted to become an independent woman, so I started to read about joining the army”.
After visiting a friend, who was in the army Kaur told Asian Sunday “My family was quite proud but worried because no female in the family had ever joined the army, let alone join the British army, but I sat down with my parents and explained to them, that I’m joining as a chef, not a front line soldier”.
Her duties may not be front line, but now being posted in Estonia, her day is far from simple, with a typical day starting from as early as 430am.
Kaur discloses: “From 4:30 am, coming into the kitchen, I make sure everything is there, as a production supervisor. I make sure my team is ready to start the day. Make sure the menu is written. Make sure everything is there for us to get through the day, and run the shifts; early shift, middle shift and late shift”.
Presently Kaur and her team of chefs have been feeding up to 1,300 to 1,500 people, but numbers can reach as high as 2,000 people, which will include Danish, Estonian, French and Ukrainian troops as well as British troops.
They recently had the privilege of cooking for the Queen’s Jubilee parade, at the Ambassador’s house in Estonia, where they managed to cook for 500 people.
“It was a curry buffet, so we did two different types of curries, Bombay potatoes, rice and all the things you would get at a curry buffet in the restaurant.
“Estonians came back to their tent to tell them it was the best curry they had ever had”, recalls Kaur. “That kind of momentum and morale from the chefs, just made our day. It will stay with me for the rest of my life.”
Staying connected to her Indian heritage through food, she says “When I joined the army, I was so happy, I could share the taste of Punjab, and the taste of India.”
Although sourcing ingredients is not a problem, she still secretly takes spices from her home, adding “When we deploy, we make sure that we have the ingredients and are already there or that we can order them through our contractors for food”.
Kaur explains the standard army menu will consist of soup, two meat options, two veg options, starch options, and two vegetables, which take two or three hours to prep. This will also include catering for religious diets, such as kosher and halal and also for vegans and vegetarians.
While the army menu is strict on allergens and calorie count, CPL Kaur doesn’t really get to experiment with her curries, but she would “love to see if the army could provide the type of desi breakfast that South Asians would typically have, not just for the Asian soldiers, but for the British soldiers too” who she believes would enjoy tasting something from other regions.
When it comes to adjusting the spice levels in the curries she cooks, the Sergeant-to-be says “Everyone has different tolerances of chilli, so we always make sure we have extra chillies on hand if someone wants more”.
Whilst on leave or during her time off spiring, CPL Kaur aspires to become a fitness and cooking blogger, and has already reached out to celebrity chefs for an opportunity to cook with them for her online blog and YouTube platform.
This go-getter attitude is one of the many reasons for CPL Kaur’s success.
“If you want to become something, you always have to put yourself out there, if you’re thinking you are restricted in a certain career, I recommend and advise you to look into the army website, as there is so much variety in terms of different professions.
“Whilst being in the army and you get to travel a lot and I’ve been all around the world”.
