Nupur Arora, Queens Curry Kitchen
Did you know that New York City has the highest number of women entrepreneurs in our neighborhoods? According to New York City Small Business Services, women across the five boroughs employ over 190,000 people and generate approximately $50 billion in sales. This month, we’re proud to present our annual Women’s issue—dedicated to all the innovative women chefs, food entrepreneurs, restaurateurs, bakers, mixologists and more who help feed the borough everyday.
Coinciding with the print issue (you’ll be able to pick up a copy soon!), every weekday throughout the month of May, we’re featuring a different Queens woman in the food industry. From Flushing’s dumpling maestro Helen You, to Long Island City’s Brazilian baker, Daniela Martins-Schwarzbauer and Last Dragon Pizza’s Nicole Russell in Rockaway, each woman reflects the diverse and independent spirit of Queens. Oh, and did we mention that our woman-owned magazine produced this women’s issue with a team of all-women writers, photographers, illustrators, designers and editors (save for our photo editor, Ed Lefkowicz)? No big deal.
Nupur Arora, Queens Curry Kitchen
Nupur Arora’s background is in fashion design. And yet, the Rego Park chef has made it her mission to demystify Indian food. Encouraged by the reception her cooking received from other Indian students at New York University, she turned her hobby into a bona fide career.
Not only does she do catering and events, she offers weekly meal delivery services and sells spice boxes online (featuring staples from the north, south, east and west), and leads workshops in her commissary kitchen, teaching recipes such as chana masala and potato-stuffed naan. Arora emphasizes techniques, such as perfecting basmati, understanding flavor building and nailing basic curries, and has authored a book called The Vegan Indian Home. She’s currently working on a second tome titled the Immigrant Food Stories of Queens, about families who’ve sought to preserve their heritage while forging new lives for themselves.
