Iranian-born entrepreneur Gilava Pour is sharing her love of traditional Middle Eastern cooking with Aussie households, making it easier to discover new flavours and enjoy good food together.

There’s something special about the meals we remember from childhood. Whether it’s Mum’s Sunday roast, Grandma’s famous cake or a treasured family recipe handed down through generations, food has a wonderful way of bringing back memories. For Iranian-born entrepreneur Gilava Pour, food has always been about much more than what’s on the plate.

“In Iranian culture, food is how you welcome people, show love and bring everyone together,” she says.

It’s this philosophy that inspired Gilava to create Exotic Bazaar, an Australian food business bringing traditional Middle Eastern flavours into everyday kitchens through convenient meal bases, spice blends and cake kits.

And for home cooks who love experimenting with new flavours but don’t necessarily want to spend hours preparing dinner, her products offer an inviting introduction to a cuisine steeped in history and tradition.

Bringing a taste of home to Australia

When Gilava arrived in Australia from Iran in 2008, she was delighted by the country’s multicultural food scene, but while supermarket shelves offered an impressive variety of international cuisines, she noticed Middle Eastern cooking wasn’t nearly as well represented.

“I kept wondering why Middle Eastern food – with all its heritage, generosity and flavour – was still so underrepresented,” she says.

At the time, Gilava was working as an IT data analyst, regularly bringing homemade Iranian dishes into the office. Her colleagues were fascinated by the flavours and often gathered around to sample her cooking.

“People would gather around, ask what I had made, taste things, and often want the recipe,” she says.

But there was a catch. While everyone loved eating the food, many felt overwhelmed by the thought of preparing it themselves. That realisation eventually sparked a business idea: what if she could make authentic Middle Eastern cooking accessible to anyone, regardless of their experience in the kitchen?

Good food doesn’t have to mean hours in the kitchen

For many older Australians, cooking habits have changed over the years. After decades of preparing family dinners, packing school lunches and catering for special occasions, some are looking for ways to spend less time in the kitchen without sacrificing flavour.

Others are embracing retirement as an opportunity to become more adventurous with their cooking.

Gilava believes Middle Eastern cuisine is perfect for both.

“I think the biggest misconception is that Middle Eastern food is too difficult to cook at home,” she says. “People often imagine long ingredient lists, hours of preparation and unfamiliar spices, and they fear getting it wrong.”

But she insists the cuisine is fundamentally about comfort, generosity and sharing. Her meal bases allow home cooks to create traditional dishes in around 30 minutes, generally requiring just a couple of fresh ingredients.

It’s an approach that makes experimenting with unfamiliar flavours less daunting, whether you’re preparing dinner for two or entertaining the whole family. “I never want to strip the food of its story or soul,” Gilava says. “The aim is to make the first step easier, so people feel excited rather than intimidated.”

Sharing traditions across generations

One of the loveliest things about cooking is the way recipes connect generations, and Gilava understands this connection deeply. Like many migrants, she found that cooking familiar dishes helped her maintain a connection to her homeland while establishing a new life in Australia.

“My story is not something added on later. It is the reason the business exists,” she says.

That heritage is reflected in Exotic Bazaar’s range, including its Persian Love Cake kit, which makes preparing a fragrant, celebratory dessert more approachable. For Gilava, the products are an invitation to discover the stories behind the food. “They are not just buying a sauce, spice blend or cake kit. They are trying a flavour, a dish name, a memory and a little piece of culture.”

A  huge business and emotional milestone for Gilava was Coles making a place for Exotic Bazaar products in 2025.

“It meant Middle Eastern flavours were no longer left on the edge. They were part of everyday Australian shopping baskets, and that felt incredibly meaningful,” she says.

Gilani Scrambled Feta by Gilava Pour

This simple dish is inspired by Gilan in northern Iran – a lush green region known for its rice fields, tea plantations, misty mountains and warm hospitality. “Life there feels closely connected to the land, with colourful local culture, generous tables and a deep love of fresh, seasonal food,” Gilava says. “It’s salty, buttery, soft and fragrant, and is often served as a side with herb-based stews, alongside rice, or with fish. It is also beautiful on its own with warm bread for breakfast, brunch or a quick meal.”

Ingredients

4 eggs

300g feta, crumbled

1 tbsp dried dill

½ tsp turmeric

2 tbsp butter

Black pepper, to taste

Method

1. Crack the eggs into a bowl and whisk lightly. 

2. Melt the butter in a non-stick pan over medium-low heat. 

3. Add the turmeric and dried dill, then stir for 30 seconds until fragrant. 

4. Add the crumbled feta and gently warm it through for 1 to 2 minutes. 

5. Pour in the eggs and stir gently, cooking slowly until soft and just set. Season with black pepper to taste. Avoid adding salt until you taste it, as the feta is already salty.

For more exotic recipes, you can download Gilava’s cookbook HERE

We have plenty of other great recipes to share. Check out Julia Busuttil Nishimura’s classic British dessert – a 3-ingredient lemon posset.