Sukhi Singh
courtesy of sukhi’s indian cuisine; © ArchiVIZ / stock.adobe.com

Cultural flavors

Sukhi’s Gourmet Indian Foods makes it easy to put the tastes of India on your table

by MICHAEL REDSTONE

Sukhi Singh, founder of Sukhi’s Gourmet Indian Foods, has a favorite saying: “There are only two types of people: people who love Indian cuisine and those who just haven’t tried it yet.” True to this belief, Singh has spent much of her adult life trying to introduce people to Indian food so she could make them lovers of this cuisine.

Roots in India

Singh’s life is a classic American success story. The tale begins in northern India, where 7-year-old Singh began cooking with her grandmother. Those early years engendered a love of cooking that continued into adulthood after Singh; her husband, Surinder; and their three children moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in the mid-1980s.

After the family purchased a small deli, Singh’s fiery entrepreneurial spirit came to the fore and she began producing Indian curry sauces to sell to her deli customers.

Steady expansion

During the ensuing years, the entire family pitched in to help sell Singh’s sauces, marinades and spice mixes at farmers markets throughout Northern California. Singh also found a niche selling her spice mixes to corporate dining chefs. Despite the growing success of her bases for Indian meals, Singh realized that too much preparation was still required to complete a full meal. It was then that she decided that refrigerated, fully prepared entrées were the future of her business.

Today, Sukhi’s Gourmet offers a full line of delicious Indian cuisine created by Singh. Sukhi’s Gourmet products contain no added preservatives or artificial ingredients, and all of the chicken used is hormone- and antibiotic-free. The company’s lineup includes several vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free offerings. Singh’s first prepared entrée, chicken tikka masala (chicken in a creamy tomato curry sauce), remains the company’s top seller.

Prioritizing sustainability

Sukhi’s Gourmet has worked with Costco to develop sustainability initiatives. “We are very proud of the compostable fiber trays that we developed for our refrigerated entrées available at Costco,” says Bonnie Chimni, company president (and Singh’s eldest daughter). “This allowed us to cut the plastic in our packaging 70%. We will continue to offer more sustainable solutions.”

And that’s just one more reason to try Sukhi’s Gourmet and become an Indian food lover.