NYC Chef Says Rach Inspired Her to Open Restaurant: "I Couldn’t Cook AT ALL Until I Tried 30-Minute Meals… She Changed My Life"

The biggest form of flattery, indeed!

PriaVanda Chouhan now has TWO successful restaurants in NYC — both named Desi-Galli and serving "fresh Indian street eats" — but she says it was actually Rachael who inspired her!

"I moved to New York nine years ago, once I got married," says PriaVanda. "I had zero experience in the kitchen. I was eating out SO much. [My husband and I] gained about 15 pounds each!"

But she says, Rachael turned that around! "After watching shows like 'Rachael Ray,' I learned how to do '30-minute meals,' learned how to make some home recipes and here we are today," she says.

She adds, sincerely, "I really feel like Rachael's changed my life, in a sense. She really made cooking seem less intimidating. It seemed like anyone could do it — including myself!"

(Yeah, Rach!)

And how about this adorable fact? Just like Rach, she says, "I still, to this day, throw salt over my shoulder for good luck."

We love it!

After starting with Rachael's Spicy Lemon Dip and more Rachael recipes, PriaVanda slowly moved into Indian cooking — and then she and her husband decided to open their restaurant.

And the rest is history!

See what foods PriaVanda brought Rach to try in the video above!