Q&A with a gluten-free baker

Flame Tree Co-op director Susan Luscombe chats to Saravanan (Sara) Kristnen about his new business, Bakers Chemistry

Have you always been a baker?

I am a qualified chef and pastry chef. I am from a Malaysian background and born into a fisherman family. My passion for cooking and baking started 17 years ago in Singapore after finishing high school. I worked in various organisations in Singapore, including five-star hotels. I also completed my baking certification in Singapore and did my culinary certification in Sydney.

When did you start Bakers Chemistry?

In July 2021 and it’s just me with my wonderful wife, Mekala Simanchalam, who provides support.

What attracted you to gluten-free baking?

Firstly, I love challenges in every task or journey. The food for me is medicine, so has to be completely healthy and nutritious … Many of the people I meet are coeliac and always disappointed with gluten-free products in Sydney.

So I started to explore a bit more about products in Sydney and I felt the same. My biggest disappointment is that they are mostly made using artificial ingredients and additives and are completely unhealthy.

Also I found that most of the bakeries doing gluten-free bake in the same place where the gluten breads are being baked. This is totally wrong.

So I decided to take up the challenge and use my knowledge to serve the gluten-free community.

How did you come up with the recipes?

I spent nearly eight months sourcing locally produced ingredients and another one and a half years creating recipes without using any preservatives, nasties, gums, soy, wheat and using only extra virgin olive oil. We need simple basic food packed with nutrition to live healthily.

Do you have to get up super early every day?

Yes, to make sure the breads are freshly baked … We have a kitchen rented in Carlton (Sydney), only baking gluten-free products.

How many varieties of bread do you make?

Currently we have seven types of bread including olive, classic white, seeded, fruity, activated charcoal and quinoa and yeast-free teff.

We do banana bread, a savoury scone, muffins, carrot and ginger cake, crackers and granola.

Where can we buy your products locally?

You can get my bread from Flame Tree Co-op in Thirroul, delivered fresh from the oven on a Wednesday. I am also at Kiama Farmers Market and Bundanoon Makers Market.