The partnership between Suresh Kumar and Verstegen Spices & Sauces began in 2010. “This partnership made it possible to put my idea of the authentic Mortar Kitchen into practice. Because the Verstegen company has specialised in the import of spices since 1886 and is able to guarantee the high quality and the freshness of the ingredients I need for my products.”
Kumar’s origin lies in the Asian mortar kitchen region. A region in Asia that stretches from India to Indonesia. Founder Suresh Kumar grew up in Malaysia, where he was introduced to the flavours of the mortar kitchen at an early age in his parents’ kitchen. He experimented a lot with spices and herbs. “After I moved to Europe, I started looking for these typical flavours. What’s more, I often wondered what links the such different cuisines of Asia. It is both the fresh ingredients and the use of numerous fresh spices, herbs and mortars.” The fresh herbs are crushed in mortars in Thailand, India, Malaysia and in other Asian kitchen, creating the authentic mortar kitchen flavour.
If you take a good look at the logo, you will see that the four elements symbolised in Kumar’s logo – air, water, fire and earth – balance each other out, just like the flavours in Asian dishes. The red circle containing these elements symbolises a greeting that is often used in many countries in Asia: ‘Have you already eaten?’
Kumar’s works closely with professionals to seek out interesting applications, which is how the close culinary partnership with German chef Heiko Antoniewicz came about. He was enthusiastic about the quality of Kumar’s products right away: “The fragrance, the colour, the flavour of his curry. To me, it felt as though I was actually in Asia.”. As brand advisor, Heiko shows us the many potential uses for Kumar’s in modern kitchens.
