Four Seasons Resorts Maldives Recruits Kishan Singh as Executive Chef

The award-winning Four Seasons Resorts Maldives in Kuda Huraa welcomes visitors with a lagoon, floral gardens, and a private spa island in a Maldivian village environment. Kishan Singh, a seasoned chef who has worked with the Four Seasons since 2016, has been appointed the resort's new executive chef.

Kishan, who was born in Almora, Uttarakhand, India, lost his father abruptly when he was 13 years old. When his academics permitted, Kishan assisted his older brother in operating the family's North Indian restaurant in the hills of Almora. By the time he graduated from high school, he had "fallen in love with cooking professionally" as well as the flavorful organic produce of his hill station home. Soon after finishing a three-year programme in hotel management, he was offered a coveted position at The Leela Palace, at one of India's finest restaurants, Jamavar, and his future was determined.

Since then, his career has been on the rise, as Kishan has demonstrated his talent and creativity at a number of leading hotels in southern Thailand, including Pullman Phuket Arcadia Naithon Beach Phuket, Thailand; Shangri-La hotel Jakarta, Indonesia; Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru; Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach, Mumbai, India; Sofitel Phnom Penh, Cambodia; The Leela Palace, Kempinski, Bangalore, India; ITC (training).

Coriander is his go-to herb – "without it, you have 50% less flavour" – but his appreciation for the natural flavours of the food is the foundation of his unique approach. "At Baraabaru, one of CNN Travel's top ten "Maldives' Finest Tables" for 2022, not only is every dish cooked to order for optimum freshness, but it's also customised for each guest: "Dairy- or gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian, Jain, individual spice levels – the way we tailor dishes to exact tastes and dietary requirements is one of the things that makes Baraabaru so special. It generates an almost inexhaustible variety of alternatives."

From the kebabs and charcoal tandoors of North India to the curries and spices of the South, Chef Singh focuses on preparing real, fresh meals — and doing it well. His favourite? Dal Makhani. But this is Dal Makhani like you've never tasted it before; it takes 48 hours to create and is a dish he's been developing since his days at The Leela with the help of his first ever mentor. The same inclusive attitude is used with his own staff: "If my team works well, the restaurant does well, the visitors are satisfied, and I am performing my job well."

Chef Singh's favourite hobby, particularly when accompanied by Baraabaru's nightly live sitar band, is cooking, which he describes as "the purest aspect of my job." His leisure is accompanied by the same classical musical, but the kitchen is never far from his mind: "I prefer to be a nice human being with a wonderful sense of humour and respect for others, but cooking is my passion."