Making furry animals out of kiwis, fish from melons

EXPRESSIONS: Most types of fruit and vegetables can be carved and used for decoration. Even small, commonly available fruits and vegetables like lime, carrot, beetroot, potatoes and kiwi can be used to produce interesting pieces.

By Aney Mathew

What do bitter gourds and crocodiles have in common? Even as most of us ponder on the question, trying to come up with an astute answer, Richard Rea Balandra, a kitchen artiste, responds with a creative, yet unusual rejoinder – he uses one to produce the other. His endearing ‘crocodile’ that was once a pile of uninspiring bitter gourds, is an interesting example of what can be achieved if you are able to see beyond the obvious. Watching Richard sculpt on fruits and vegetables as he creates gorgeous centre-pieces, you could be deceived into thinking that the process is fairly uncomplicated and effortless. Armed with a couple of knives and a few toothpicks, Richard goes about his business effortlessly - carving faces, animals and birds out of watermelons, pumpkins, melons, carrots and even radish. Every flick of the knife seems to give a new dimension to the piece. Richard Rea Balandra, the kitchen artist at Wyndham Grand Regency, is a man of many talents. No matter what he gets to work on - be it a chunk of yummy chocolate, a pile of vegetables, a block of cold ice, a slab of insipid margarine, or even an uninteresting block of plain, white Styrofoam, Richard can turn it into a stunning centre-piece or a picturesque scenery – one that is sure to charm the guests at the banquet hall. “It’s all a question of using your imagination,” he says simply. “Richard is brilliant; he is a great artist. He has won several prizes at various culinary competitions for his artistic skills and abilities,” says Ahmed Mustafa Hassan Zaza, Head Chef at the hotel, an individual who is personally very passionate about culinary arts.Perhaps not all of us are as gifted as Richard is, but the fact remains that most mothers have at some point tried their hands at some kind of fruit or vegetable carving in a desperate attempt to get their children interested in their veggies. From simple, smiley faces to imaginative animals and birds, many a masterpiece have adorned the snack boxes of little kids – a mother’s labour of love! Then again, there are the more gifted ones, who love to adorn their dining tables with their own version of embellished fruits or vegetables. Decorating a banquet table with carved fruits or vegetables is not a recent phenomenon; the genesis of vegetable carving goes back by at least 700 years. While the country of its origin is disputed -- with Japan, Thailand and even the Tang dynasty in China being credited with introducing this delightful art to the culinary world, Thailand has a very interesting anecdote related to this art. Legend has it that vegetable carving has its roots in the Loi Krathong festival, when ornately decorated rafts are floated in Thailand. It is believed that in 1364, Nang Noppamas, a royal consort of the king, desired to create something unique to decorate her raft. Using real flowers for patterns, Nang is said to have carved out flowers and even a bird out of vegetables. With her carvings, she created a raft that was so unique that it got the attention of the king. The charmed monarch went on to declare the art of vegetable carving a Thai heritage; he further decreed that this art would be taught in a special school at the royal palace.  For generations the art of vegetable carving, referred to as ‘Kae-sa-lak’ in Thailand, was a closely guarded secret. Experts kept the techniques to themselves, passing them down the generation only by word of mouth or demonstration - books weren’t written about it. Today, however, vegetable carving is taught in primary schools in Thailand as the country tries to popularise it. The art is no more restricted to Thailand either; fruits and vegetables carved in interesting shapes and stunning patterns are proudly displayed at various Asian restaurants and the interest is catching on. “Most types of fruit and vegetables can be carved and used for decoration. Even small, commonly available fruits and vegetables like lime, carrot, beetroot, potatoes and kiwi can be used to produce interesting pieces. Kiwis make great furry animals and pineapples are ideal for creating owls.  Don’t forget the radish; white radish makes exquisite birds,” he says. The photos in Richard’s albums are witness to what imagination and skill can produce; it is filled with gorgeous pieces of fruits and vegetables that have been worked on, to produce elegant masterpieces.  “Each fruit and vegetable has its own unique characteristic; the colour, texture, thickness of the skin etc are all factors that play a part in the kind of carving you can do. I love to work on pumpkins because the flesh is hard and it lends itself to detailed carving; watermelons are versatile and help you produce very interesting results, while ripe papayas are the most difficult to carve because of their thin skin and soft flesh,” points out Richard. Watermelon seems to be the fruit of choice for most carvers – anything from wildlife to portraits of famous characters to the Taj Mahal can be seen carved out in hues of pink, green and white. “The fruit lends itself very well to ‘skin carving’ as the colour of the flesh is a good contrast to the skin, thus revealing the finished figure clearly,” explains Richard. The popularity of the emoji (expressions using graphic symbols) seems to have made a strong impact in the world of fruit carving as well; watermelons sculpted with the most interesting expressions can often be spotted - an absolute delight to behold! Watching Richard as he sculpts on the fruits, you can be deceived into thinking that fruit/vegetable carving is simple; but as with any other art, it requires patience, an eye for detail, steady hands and, of course, an artistic flair. He uses the knife like an artist uses a paintbrush, every flick of the hand is purposeful. Richard readily agreed to demonstrate some simple vegetable carving for this reporter. As a matter of fact, he had several fruits and vegetables lined up for the demo, but with limitations in terms of space and the fact our camera cannot videotape every cut and slice, we had to settle for just a couple of easy and simple pieces. See the photo series on creating an underwater scenario using a watermelon.Finding Nemo“This project is really for children. They can make a simple fish using a lemon and some thin slices of carrot,” says Richard with a smile. Richard begins by cutting a horizontal ‘V’ on one end of a lemon, to form the mouth. He then makes a long slit on the top of the lemon to accommodate the ‘fin’. Similarly small curved slits are cut on the two sides of the lime to hold the ‘gills’. Next Richard shapes one side of a thin strip of carrot like a fin and pushes the uncut side into the long slit in the lemon. He cuts out a triangle from another thin strip of carrot and shapes one edge to make it appear like gills; he pushes the pointed edge of the carrot strip into the curved slit on one side of the lemon. This is repeated to make a gill for the other side. He makes a tail, using the same idea and fixes it into the slit at the back. Richard then scoops out two small circles from a pink radish for the eyes and holds them in place using a toothpick. A small piece of pink radish is used to make the tongue. Your Nemo is ready for his next adventure!Underwater wonderCarving out the fish on the melon does call for a little more skill and patience, but it’s well worth the effort. Richard begins by trimming back some of the green rind, ensuring the white part of the melon shell can be seen. He then draws the outline of a fish with his carving knife – you may use a template if you cannot draw it freehand.  Richard proceeds to slice off a thin layer from around the fish, ensuring you can see the pink (to bring out the contrast). He then carves the details of the fin and tail, and moves on to carve the eye; a small piece of olive is used for the eyeball. The scales are then carved as rows of ‘C’s; the rows are now slowly worked on to remove thin slivers of flesh to ensure the carving has more depth. Details of the mouth and gills are then carved.The background is now carved, as Richard proceeds to easily carve out sea weeds and scoops out air bubble and finally gives the finishing touch. Presto! The wonder world of the deep sea was finished in 15 minutes.Go ahead and decorate your buffet table with edible summer centre-pieces, using some of the above ideas. Happy carving!