Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma’s vegan dinner included snake meat and beef broth? Here’s the truth

Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma, known for their vegan diet, tasked Chef Harsh Dixit with creating a special Vietnamese Pho for their 2019 wedding anniversary. Given the traditional Pho ingredients (snake meat, snake wine, and chicken/beef broth), Chef Harsh shared his creative approach to crafting a vegan-friendly version for the couple in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India.

Chef Harsh said, “You have to keep things interesting. For Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma’s anniversary in December 2019, I made Pho, but with a twist." Given Virat and Anushka's vegan lifestyle, Chef Harsh Dixit had to adapt the non-vegan traditional Vietnamese Pho to suit their dietary needs.

Chef Harsh mentioned, “There’s chicken and beef in the broth. But they were eating gluten-free at the time, so we went with rice noodles, which are traditional in Pho and gluten-free." He said, “Vietnamese cuisine includes a lot of snake — snake wine, even snake meat. So, how about serving ‘snakes’ to vegans?"

Chef Harsh Dixit opted for smoked snake gourd, filled with peanuts, coconut, tofu, and coriander, as a key ingredient. The dish also included water chestnuts, enoki mushrooms, and chilies, all simmered in a lemongrass-ginger-coriander root broth. He emphasized the importance of creativity within dietary restrictions, highlighting the essence of being a private chef.

Chef Harsh also shared a ramen recipe favored by Alia Bhatt and Deepika Padukone. He mentioned that Alia found the dish reminiscent of her travels, highlighting the impact of thoughtfully prepared food.

He added, “There’s the tare (the seasoning base), often soy or miso, the broth, noodles, protein, and toppings. But I’ve started seasoning the broth directly instead of using tare. That trick has been a hit with all my clients." He said, “They’re called Miracle Noodles, virtually zero calories." Chef Harsh mentioned that Deepika Padukone prefers her ramen "ultra-hot, extra spicy, with Miracle Noodles," a combination that she thoroughly enjoyed, requesting a second serving.

Chef Harsh Dixit, a well-known private chef, caters to numerous Bollywood stars, including Virat Kohli, Anushka Sharma, Alia Bhatt, Deepika Padukone, Katrina Kaif, Shahid Kapoor, Jacqueline Fernandez, Arjun Kapoor, Aditya Roy Kapur, and Ranbir Kapoor, among others.

Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli first crossed paths in 2013 on the set of a television commercial. They kept their relationship private, eventually marrying in a small ceremony in Italy in 2017. The couple welcomed their daughter, Vamika, in January 2021, and their son, Akaay, in February 2024.