DUBAI: Surabhi Suri is a Dubai-based, self-taught Indian chef who moved from India to the UAE in 2016 and began the process of turning her passion into a career.
Suri started posting recipes on social media, and the response was overwhelming. Brand collaborations, five-star hotel pop-ups, and features in regional publications followed. She has since worked with hospitality groups including the Four Seasons, Ritz-Carlton, Marriott and Oberoi.
In October 2025, she competed at the World Food Championships in the US, winning the vegetarian category. She went on to finish second overall at the Final Table — a cook-off between the 10 category winners — in April.
In 2024, Suri launched Sebze, a “plant-forward” supper club in Dubai, which she put on hold for the championships, but plans to relaunch in the coming months.
When you started out, what was the most common mistake you made?
I was trying to do too much of everything. I didn’t have a voice, so everything was too complicated. There was just too much on the plate… too much technique. Slowly, I realized that simplicity is the ultimate luxury.
What’s your top tip for amateur chefs?
Home cooks should focus on learning the basics first — such as base sauces and spice mixes — and good-quality ingredients, and over time find their voice or what they really enjoy cooking.
What one ingredient can instantly improve any dish?
There’s no one ingredient, but I would say acidity can immediately change the flavor profile of a dish. It could be just a dash of lime or something like tamarind, vinegar, sumac or pomegranate molasses.
When you go out to eat, do you find yourself critiquing the food?
I don’t go out to eat a lot, and I don’t like critiquing someone’s food, because, if I do go out, I just want to have a good time. But I love good service; my husband is a hotelier and we have spent all our lives in hotels. Good food is important, but good service is more important, because good service can offset bad food.
What’s your favorite cuisine or dish to order?
I go to Arabic restaurants a lot, but if I had to pick, I’d pick something Asian. Most likely Japanese, because that’s the kind of food I don’t make myself.
What’s your go-to dish if you have to cook something quickly at home?
That would be a pilaf in a pressure cooker with vegetables and some protein, served with a beetroot raita (a yogurt-based dip). Growing up, my mother, who was a schoolteacher, was always pressed for time, and she would end up making this pilaf with some soy nuggets and fresh vegetables from our garden. It’s still one of my favorite memories and favorite things to eat with just chilled raita.
What customer behavior most frustrates you?
It’s not so much a request as a preconceived notion. When I started Sebze, I found that people have this notion that a plant-forward experience will be boring and not enjoyable. I’ve had guests tell me that they had a restaurant booked as a backup because they thought they would go hungry.
What’s your favorite dish to cook?
There are so many favorites, but I’d probably pick my grandmother’s dal makhani. When I have the time, I love to spend seven to eight hours simmering it and smoking it with coal. I also love making mezze platters when my friends come over, because it’s the perfect dish to sit and linger around. It also gives me a creative outlet because I love colors, so I can make a very artistic plate with pumpkin, beetroot and herbs.
What’s the most difficult dish for you to get right?
Maybe anything French, because I haven’t really tried it. I’m also not much of a baker because I’m a very intuitive cook — I never measure ingredients; I just use my fingers to put in spices and salt — so I find baking very restrictive. I can do it if I have to, but I don’t enjoy it at all.
As a leader, what are you like?
I don’t have an ego, and I’ve learned the importance of this the hard way from working in kitchens with chefs who had big egos. In my kitchen, we’re all collaborating; everyone has a voice and a duty, and that’s the way to be. I have to have fun in the kitchen — I don’t want sullen faces. The kitchen has to be a happy environment.
Chef Suri’s pumpkin and turmeric hummus
Chef Suri’s pumpkin and turmeric hummus
Serves 4
Ingredients:
3 cups peeled and cubed pumpkin
1 cup boiled chickpeas
2 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp lemon juice
3-4 cloves of garlic
1 tsp turmeric
Salt to taste
3 tbsp olive oil
Warm water, if needed
Method:
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C.
Coat the pumpkin cubes with turmeric and 1 tbsp of olive oil.
Spread the pumpkin cubes on a baking tray and bake for 25-30 minutes, until soft and light brown. Let cool.
In a blender, combine the roasted pumpkin, chickpeas, garlic, tahini, remaining olive oil, lemon juice and salt. Blend to a fine paste, adding warm water if needed.
Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate for a couple of hours.
Top with nuts, herbs and a drizzle of olive oil.
Serve with crackers or vegetable sticks.
