His CrustWorthy Gourmet Breads has a smorgasbord of options — sourdoughs, Korean cream cheese buns, bagels, babkas, and pretzels to choose from.
His foray into the baking space started one day, during the lockdown, while browsing on his phone, when he chanced upon a bread recipe.
With a set of simple ingredients: flour, water, milk, eggs, butter, yeast, and salt, Jay baked the challah (a special bread in Jewish cuisine), which turned out “pretty good;” its success pushed him to widen his scope of baking.
Heralded in Jewish culture for its symbolism of truth, peace, and justice, it is traditionally eaten on the Sabbath (a day of rest and worship observed in Judaism and Christianity).
“I began understanding the religious and cultural significance of the different types of bread, their geopolitical impact, the choice of grains that went into a certain bread, why India focused on flatbreads while European bread was more of a sandwich style,” he shares.
Other popular breads retailed at CrustWorthy Gourmet Breads include – Kanelbullar, a traditional Swedish cinnamon bun – Focaccia, a type of Italian flatbread, known for its soft, airy texture – Cibata, an Italian white bread known for its airy crumb, and crispy, golden crust – Babka, a delicious, sweet, yeasted bread
Eventually, CrustWorthy Gourmet Breads grew from a hobby idea to a startup.
What started with an initial investment of Rs 5,000 has now scaled into an impressive venture that currently retails 30 different kinds of breads from around the world, baked as per demand.