Nuanced. - Taste of Abby: Mama Maan Surprises Aaron with Her Signature Spicy Hot Sauce

Episode Date: September 20, 2024

Aaron speaks with Mama Maan from Maan Farms about her family's journey from India to Canada, their passion for providing unforgettable food and farming experiences, and how they've blended tradition and innovation to create a thriving business in the Fraser Valley.Send us a textThe "What's Going On?" PodcastThink casual, relatable discussions like you'd overhear in a barbershop....Listen on: Apple Podcasts   SpotifySupport the shownuancedmedia.ca

Welcome to Taste of Abbey. I'm Aaron Pete from Chihuahawthal First Nation, and I host the Bigger Than Me podcast. In this series, we'll explore Canada's largest farming community, connect you with local farmers, creators, and restaurant owners. We'll dive into how they harvest from the land, strive toward sustainability, and strengthen the social fabric of our region. Join me as we deepen our connection to these lands and explore the Taste of Abbey. It is an honor to be with you today.

I'm so excited to get into this. Would you mind first just introducing your background and perhaps how you got started with this business and the fruit stand? Yes, no, thank you for coming and bringing your team, awesome. So my journey started in 1985, October 19 and my university, very university coming soon. And so it's been a... pleasure to be in Fraser Valley my journey is now I'm Canadian more than I spend more years in Canada than in India did you have this vision when you started like

looking at how far you've come it's it's probably remarkable but did you have this path envisioned when you had started out to be honest no no envisioned I just came with the open hands like embracing the the love that our community offers and my family supported. So, no, I had nothing in a vision when I landed into Canada. Amazing. And it sounds like today we're going to be doing some cooking. Would you mind telling us about that?

Right. So my culture, cooking is a very big part of feeding people. It's part of hospitality. Whenever you go to any Indian Punjabi people, especially, they feed you. They give you the food more than the specialized food when you are there. So, and today I am showing you how to make butter chicken. Oh, fantastic. Yeah.

So would you mind telling me how you got started? Did you develop this recipe years ago? Yes, we did. In fact, when we opened the man farm, so we were doing more Western food, but then I learned to know we need to offer our ethnic food, which is we are proud. the switch and in our menu every day the butter chicken is one part of it with the smooth sauce and other curries fantastic tell me about how we get started here

right so we got all the ingredients here then so obviously the base is always onions lots of a I would say ginger and garlic and then that's that kind of start When I was growing up back home, we never had any cookbooks where I came from, Aaron. And I just learned seeing my sisters in the kitchen or my mom cooking. So standing or sitting next to the pot, like observing. That's how our schooling of any recipes. Most of the still back home, all the cooking still happens freehand. And this is what I'm doing today.

So how do you think about it, I guess? Because I always rely on recipes. How do you make sure that it's going to taste good? Usually when you're cooking for your family, you know how many members you have and how much food do you need. And then so after in my age, you get a pretty good idea how much you need. Yeah. So now I'm adding onions. Yeah.

And how do you determine what flavor you want to stand out at the end of the recipe? Again, it depends. The cooking happens. One is more like curry style or one vegetables are more like dry. So they're same or similar but the different forms of spices are determined and how you cook them. So any vegetable I'm cooking then there's no water going. there's no water goes in them, it's just the base is all the same, ginger, garlic, and onions with the spices like salt and pepper, and Kerminik is the main three, and then there is a garamasa or coriander is also part of it. I find that cooks often have like a preference, like one that's their favorite. Do you have a preferred seasoning or flavor? It's just the same

Same spices makes how do you cook it and what are you cooking it makes a different flavoring. Okay, okay, okay. And how do you garnish it? Everything is part of the full recipe. Yeah. And do you have a particular feedback that you really like to hear? You have so many different varieties of hot sauces and types of food. Do you have one that really stands out that you love the feedback on? Yeah, so since we have been doing from so many years, people,

definitely want to try but then they're scared of the hot spices obviously we come up front to break their barrier to tell them there's no spices there is spices but they're good spices as for the hot spice level they're very milder and especially with the butter chicken will be adding cream or the the milk at the end so that that breaks make brings them more like a sweet sweetness into the recipe. Okay, interesting. Yeah, because I get all nervous about spices too. Yes, I know. If you put too much of one thing or even too much of salt, that doesn't taste good. I know where you're coming from. Yeah. And so the fruit stand, when that started out, did you have a vision that it would eventually turn into this? What was that process to start that business? When I came in Canada, so after, I think, within a year, my daughter born, and then I was kind of a stay-home mom, but then always on the back end I wanted to support my husband. And then so back when I joined the family, they already had a food stand, whatever, they'd grow on the farm, selling just for four or five weeks.

Back then, we were just growing strawberries, and then we shut our doors. And then I kept kind of like how somehow I managed to help them. And then when the children were growing, they became part of that fruit stand as well. They were sporting mom and dad and grandpa and grandma as well. Have you seen that growth? Obviously, shopping local has become more and more of a priority. And it's more of a topic. Did you see that back then?

Or has it changed? Definitely. It was overwhelming to when. the community was coming to year after year like I always I still remember memories of my customers like they they come buy the product then they disappear and every year then the next year they come back I I always I always wonder where they get disappeared kind of like it for my thought process but overall like I never had idea how that can become like a so I

I learned from a Canadian community to, yes, there's a need for to serve the local community, like firsthand grower to the consumer that I learned with my journey. One piece that I find really beautiful is that it's a family-owned business. During those early days, did you work to instill that family-owned business into it? Did you teach that to your children? How did that kind of come about? it just happened to be I think it just fall into the place by itself we never planned it so we were raising kids like any typical mom and dad that works out of the home he my husband

did even three jobs like he had a permanent job he was doing the farming raising the family and he has his business as well and then I was like he was a role model for our family too how hard he was working and then to me by himself by on his side it was kind of like him so like our children also grew up seeing dad how hard he was working and then and then when they were growing up on the farm it gave them firsthand training like even though they were not interested to be farmers yeah but then over the years it built the interest how how ideas when I remember when we built our first kind of like when we brought the farm animals it was for our children I was saying why we're doing

different than than any any of their friends parents are doing kind of like all immigration granted all immigrant parents here of my children's friends they they were not doing the same thing what we were doing so we were almost coming out of the box, like trying to build a facility where people can come and stop, they buy the food, but then they can interact with our farm animals. So it was not making sense. But then over the years, when they finished their degrees and that journey, it just progress happened into their minds. Yeah. So was that always a dream to have a space that people could kind of gather, enjoy a meal, learn, kind of develop themselves. Was that something you saw during those

fruit stand days? Or when did that idea come about? Whenever, I guess, we were used to all our life. Mostly we have been into this road name is Mackenzie, McKenzie Road. And we did move for almost 30 years on to another neighborhood. But then our heart was here. And then when we left this road and then it was always a dream to come back and stay into this same neighborhood and then that brought us to like buy a property into that near same neighborhood where the location makes more sense right so when where we were standing we acquired this land in 2005 and then with that dream to go back into more agritourism came came along yeah okay

Okay, fantastic. So what would be our next step to bring this to fruition? Okay, so our, they are more like, I was waiting for our onions and garlic and ginger to be saute and now they are on the next level. And then we're adding some spices. I usually, I know there are measuring spoons, I am used to of my teaspoon. So I'm cooking here. I would have four to five people.

So the taste of the spices could be up to your level. So I'm just being, I know these, some peppers are very hot than others. So I know they are very hot. So I'm using a little bit half a teaspoon of a, and then terminic is good for your joints and for color. Oh, wow. I'm putting lots of coriander to build the curries.

And then this is a garamasa, I'm just adding little bit less than a teaspoon so I'm roasting the spices into the oil and all the base right and then we'll be adding some we can add fresh tomatoes or I will be adding more like tomato paste and tomato sauce okay how important is color when you're making food? To me, when I learn the cooking, it is very important. So especially when you're having a almost like a feast or party, having the food, when I'm planning the food, I don't want all the food should be yellow with turnic. I want green. It could be, I could be serving spinach with the baneer. It could be a little bit infused with more like tomatoes. It could be

on red side or it could be green green vegetables bright and colorful yes bright and colorful that's our culture too so make it make sure there's a many different colors in the food as well interesting what advice would you have for people starting out like myself that aren't that good at cooking how do i how do i improve over time i would say just don't get afraid first thing don't get afraid basis three things oil uh garlic ginger and onions and then spices. If they have any question, they can come and talk to me. And yeah, those are the main basics,

like any curries or any dry vegetables, yes. So I think our spices are roasted. So this is the paste. I'm just adding a kind of a tablespoon of paste. And I'll add, I would say, four tablespoon of the sauce. The sauce, tomato. That smells really good. Yeah.

Yeah. So my other question for you is, obviously, when you're young, you might not see your vision for where you want to go. But you've watched your children develop and they've all taken on different roles and kind of found their true potential. Did that surprise you how involved they've gotten or the roles that they've taken on? I think at the back end as a parent, especially my husband, he kind of did vision them to be involved in farming. Like being a farmer, keeping the land and keep passing on to the generation.

It's very, very, I would say, it takes time to think about your planning and not always you're successful that happens. Like as a parents, you wish that your journey you started, it passes on your kids and they continue with it. I think luckily we did a good job. Somehow they kind of like the idea. They had grasped to them and they are now their own voice. kind of like that. So if I even talk about a kid, like Amir, like he doesn't want to work for somebody.

He has a freedom or any child. Like they have freedom to when to work, what to work on. And yeah, it just, they love this life. Yeah. Within my First Nations culture, we have this idea of seven generations where we're supposed to think into the future. And what I love is like that feels like it's something

that's sort of gotten lost with people that you pass something on to your kids and then they take it on, like, you used to have a blacksmith who would teach their kid how to be a blacksmith, then they'd kind of pass that on and it'd be a family trade. Right. And it feels like this reminds us of that value of, like, passing that on in a good way. But also that they kind of take it and then they run with it in their own direction because now you have like a haunted house and you have a haunted maze.

And like, did you ever imagine seeing that? Because they're taking these ideas and kind of pulling out new ways of going about things. No, I think our family always now believe in. Like as they're growing up, they believe in the sky is the limit, like that's my children say. And then look at this, Garlene, what she turned into. Like, you have to put yourself into the situation. And then, as us, as a family, we love challenges. It's not easy what we do.

At the back end, we suffer so many challenges. And bringing our children too in our pace and our shoes to see and take the business to next level. it was it was not easy I was still talking I was just even today I was talking to another group and say even Goro was saying I don't want to do farming and then it was definitely a kind of like we had to think about a new innovative idea how he can be still enrolled and then the winery came in a picture yeah then he liked that he liked that he's making wine since he is not he was not drinking each right So there's a plan.

Somebody has a plan. Like we wished for it, but then it happened. Maybe if we could just briefly go through each one of your children and what roles they've taken on and how they've flourished. As we're talking, our kids, they, Amir started with the farming. So he takes all the, he studied about how to be a good student of the land. So he studied a four-year degree in UFV, BBA in Agriculture. So part of that, he went to Holland.

My husband believes in, like, education opens your eyes, like it broadened your mind and your thinking goes vast. So he grows all the berries. He's very passionate, you know, on the showy media about the strawberries. And then Hans is like, it brings him something else, like he loves it. So Garlene had joined the family, like she, they were part of the, part of the business in the early age when we were building like the food stand stage. But then when she finished her degree, she went to, she went to work as a like a corporate corporate world. And then after after five years, she realized that being in a downtown, why I'm here.

I need to be, I need to go back home. and make the difference and so she came back and then she had a struggle to fit in to the family because she had her own ways but she brought good things to the to the business she she knows how to how to kind of like a tackle there's so many problems comes on a even hiring that like she knows she knows what to look for to hire a person right so how to talk to people and anyhow and then Goro came in between kind of like he is he's a overwine man so he loves making wine yeah that's got to be so rewarding to be

able to see like try that wine and see them creating their own thing contributing the strawberries and all that growth and just see them reaching their full potential in the ways you might not have imagined when they were little kids right yeah now we know we're it's not the end we're still begin in the beginning stage and so it takes time so So we're getting bigger and bigger. So we're proud of our children. So they are on the upfront stage and we're we're sporting them.

So even though we are fully involved, fully invested, but they are taking the lead and we support them. So part of the recipe, I am grinding it or like making it puree. Oh, it smells really good. Thank you. So this is what I call one pot recipe. Right. So I'm just going to get it.

Just going to get a few minutes and then this curry base is ready then I'll be finishing up with the cream. So we're going to try some wine today. I'm very excited. And then I also want you to try some hot sauce. Okay, I can't wait. Yes. So how do you make pumpkin wine? Wow, how do we make pumpkin wine?

This is made from the pumpkins which are grown on the farm. Wow. Coral makes them and yeah, so... I'm excited. Is this like from the seed or from the mushy part of the pumpkin? Mushy, pushy. Okay, got it. Yeah, all the...

Got it. Got it. I guess it wouldn't be as good with the seeds. No. Seeds, we take the seeds out, but then, oh, did I pour more for me? You go ahead? Okay. There you go.

Thank you. So it's more the flush and the skin. Yeah, it is really good. Oh, and you've got the glasses? Look at that. Okay, cheers. Cheers. Thank you very much.

Thank you. Mmm. That's amazing. Yeah, it has lots of it. That's amazing. Spices and more like fall spices. Yeah. And people can't have enough of it.

Yeah, this is so smooth. What? This one's. Does anybody else make pumpkin wine? Why have I never heard of this? We are innovative family. So we do things, nobody else does in a way, kids. Okay, so I'm adding milk and stirring it, sorry, no worries.

And then finishing up with some cream to make it more heavier. Right. So that's milk and cream? Yes. So they're like different textures? You can add only milk or only cream. If you want more creamy, I will say do the cream side. Okay.

At Manfarns we do more like more milk less cream because otherwise it's too much, it's very heavy. Right. This way it's more healthier. Right. So now my color has been changed as well. So it's more smoother. So I'm going to let it cook. And then I will add some chicken.

Fantastic. And you have these available? So people can actually just buy the sauce itself? You want to try the sauce itself? It's there, but then we saute the chicken and then we add in there. So that's how it is. That's cool.

Yeah. Awesome. So yes, go ahead. The other question I had is you've gone through so many challenges, I imagine, over the years. There's been floods, there's been droughts, there's been all types of weather challenges. How do you as a family try and approach those challenges? Yeah, I know in Fraser Valley there floods came a few years back. We were blessed. It didn't get affected. We were on a higher spot.

But as being a farmer, there are lots of challenges. growing the especially the strawberries so close to the ground when the rain comes it spoils so quickly like you and then it has been happening year after year you lose your crop like 30 40% and then so again throughout the COVID we had made a switch to grow the berries indoor so now we have enclosed greenhouses that's where we grow our strawberries and also this year we we have introduced a standing strawberry you pick so it's happening just across the street and under the hoop houses so people can stand and pick their strawberries wow so we kind of like again the whole

word is changing people are growing more scientifically rather than being a typical farm we're still farmer but then we're bringing the more technology how to be better grower. So do you guys like you have a flood? Do you sit down with the family with everybody and kind of go like how are we approaching this issue? I just find it fascinating because in a business you might have like a board meeting but your family mixed with business so there's this this intermingling that allows you guys to have it over the dinner table or something like that. Yes definitely we do regularly family meetings especially then there's any issues we just get together and try to get the ideas from each other and we have a really strong team in

our office as well so we involve them as well so we tackle everybody help each other so any challenge we come through yeah that's amazing oh okay so this one is cooked and do you and try some absolutely it's going to be hot temperature hot I don't know if the spice is hot, but temperature's hot. That's really good. Not too spicy. That's very good. Yeah, it is good.

That's awesome. And then how do you put it into a pie? How do we put it in a pot? Like a pie. Like this sometimes ends up being in a pie, right? Oh, we do savory pies, butter chicken pie. Yeah, yeah. So mostly it's a sauce and chicken. Then we put in with some rice to give the body into the small pot pies.

And then yeah, we bake them. That's fantastic. And then people can take those by them frozen and then we go cooking. Yeah, we do lots of savory pies. They are five inches and then they could make easy dinner or lunch. Yeah. One of my favorite things about the space is it isn't just about the food. It isn't just about the amazing views.

It's like you're giving people a memorable experience. experience. Like when they come out with their family, they're going to remember that in 10 years, 20 years, they're going to have that story. How does that make you feel that you're giving people more than just food or just one item? You're giving them that memory. It feels great. That's always our kind of like almost like a motto or that's our dream to have a facility where people come and build their memories with their families and remember. remember us in their memories. That's always kind of like a take-home memories.

That's our dream is. I love that because there's so much to having, trying a new drink or trying a new food, but it's all of that coming together with your family and making those memories that I think is so valuable. Thank you. Coming out of the COVID pandemic, like that's what everybody's looking for

and that's what you're providing people. Right, yeah. You know, we're blessed. Everything is coming together. There's lots more to achieve. So we're working on, different ideas we're a very innovative family and we're all leaders that's sometimes it's a good and bad so not in a bad in a bad sense but that could

be a challenge to whose idea is better and not better so it's a family issues yes is there one idea that's come out of this over the years that you've been like I just could have never seen that coming that really just stands up to you Like if I standing here and thinking about doing the haunt, hot nights serving thousands of people every night kind of thing, I never dreamed about it. I never dreamed about it.

But people, I guess, people like it. People love it, yeah. People love it to come out seasonally and enjoying themselves. And when people enjoy on our property and we feel good. We are doing something right. Yeah, because then people can come. They can experience that. They can grab food. They can relax. They can have a drink. It's the whole experience that's all come together, but it's so cool that each family member kind of helped bring it to this one-stop shop for an experience.

Thank you. Yeah. No, it is it's just meant to be, I guess. Everybody has, Garlene has her own passions, and then Amy does the farming. He loves what he does, and then Gour does the wine. So everything, they all work together. We're probably, we're probably. The biggest takeaway from me from your story is that you really encourage people to find their own path and to like really push forward and like overcome that adversity and figure out how to share your gift with the world. What advice do you have for people who are like, I want to go start this, I want to start a fruit stand, I want to start farming or I want to do something with my life, but I'm a little bit nervous to take that big step. I think dreaming is a good idea, but then action is more important. so my husband and I would say my children everybody is proactive about if they want to achieve you have to work they understand so anybody is starting a new thing you need to dream about it and you need to make make you need to work on it and then you need to work hard on it right it's not just oh yeah I'm

working on it just some people I know that even even our community like People say, oh, yeah. But then 10 years, they never start. Starting is always tough. Agreed. Okay, brilliant. Anything is doable. Yeah.

Yeah, amazing. So we have three hot sauces. There's a habanero, there's a green, and the red. These are the base is cayenne peppers. This is haban pepper, which are grown on the farm. And then, but then they are, same breast. but different flavors because the maturity of the green versus red and this is different peppers so we'll start with the green one okay so let's see how hot

you can taste how can I how well can I handle this yes is it too much no we're good you need a glass of water or wine no I'm good we'll keep going to And that one is very spicy. Spice, you get it right at the back of the throat. Okay, I'll give you a little smaller test. Okay. Is this one spicier? Let's see.

You tell me, people ask me, but we need to hear from other people too. That one's lighter. Okay. Did I handle that one better? I'm not crying. You're not crying. Okay, that's good. Okay, do a big one on this one.

Is this one the hottest one? Well, I... This is a haban error pepper. According to Google, it's more hotter, but let's see. We conquered it. What do you think? Which one is? Oh, that one's coming now.

Okay. So in my hand is a mixed char. It's a pickle made with the peppers, cayenne peppers again. it's a different recipe they're they're cut but with lots of they're infused with the spices so i don't know how much i should give you i'm just thinking how about this go a little bit bigger is it hot is it spicy no no it's a different spicy it's infused with spices it's meant to be eaten with the curries or with the rice or or roti that's really that's really good

Yeah, it's a different type of spicy. Different. It's like the top of my mouth. Well, this has been an experience. Okay. It is more good spices. Yeah. All the spices.

It has flavor. It has not just hot. All the flavors has their own health beneficiaries. Okay. So yeah. So you're eating good thing. I'm glad. Hopefully I'm healthier as a consequence of this.

Yeah. Yeah. That's great. Amazing, well thank you so much for being willing to do this. One more cheers. One more cheer. Thank you. Thank you for sharing this experience and for taking the time.

This has been an honor to learn and I'll definitely be picking up these products. You're welcome. Thank you. Thank you very much for coming. And thank you for watching Taste of Abby.