Business

Doctor wanted fresh curry, so she made it

A physician hopes that curry sauces with freshly ground spices and ingredients will give her entrée to busy professionals.

By Tyler Chin — Posted Sept. 12, 2005

Print  |   Email  |   Respond  |   Reprints  |   Like Facebook  |   Share Twitter  |   Tweet Linkedin

Making sidelines pay

Business Pitch

Doctors who branched out beyond running their practice tell why they did it, how they did it, and what you should know before you do it.
» Other installments

Name: Asha Patel, MD

Specialty: Internal medicine.

Location: Royal Oak, Mich.

Business: Tasha Foods Inc. In February, the company started selling bottled Indian curry sauces through gourmet stores in the Detroit area.

Annual revenue: "It's a new company. I'm not sure [how much] I'm going to make."

Why she started the business: Four years ago, Dr. Patel and her psychiatrist husband, Hiten Patel, MD, were busy with their careers and raising two sons who then were in middle and high school.

"It's an elaborate [and time-consuming] process to cook an Indian dish," she said. "I always used to cut the ginger, chop the onions and everything [else] at home. I was thinking that if you could just sauté the chicken and then just pour on the sauce, it would be ready very quickly."

She had tried commercial curry sauces, but found them lacking.

"I wanted all fresh ingredients, and a lot of the curry sauces do not have fresh ingredients," she said.

That's when she decided to create curry sauces that would enable her to cook tasty -- and healthy -- meals in 10 to 20 minutes.

However, she had to put her plan to go commercial on hold because the company she had lined up to manufacture the sauces could not do so according to her specifications. But Dr. Patel resurrected the idea late last year, after her oldest son had gone off to college.

She found that the same company could now handle the job.

Why she keeps practicing: "This is a hobby. Medicine is my business. I'd never leave medicine for this. No, even if this grows big, I'm going to continue [to practice medicine]."

Words of wisdom: "You need a lot of self-motivation and persistence. That's very important."

Back to top


RELATED CONTENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISE HERE


Featured
Read story

Confronting bias against obese patients

Medical educators are starting to raise awareness about how weight-related stigma can impair patient-physician communication and the treatment of obesity. Read story


Read story

Goodbye

American Medical News is ceasing publication after 55 years of serving physicians by keeping them informed of their rapidly changing profession. Read story


Read story

Policing medical practice employees after work

Doctors can try to regulate staff actions outside the office, but they must watch what they try to stamp out and how they do it. Read story


Read story

Diabetes prevention: Set on a course for lifestyle change

The YMCA's evidence-based program is helping prediabetic patients eat right, get active and lose weight. Read story


Read story

Medicaid's muddled preventive care picture

The health system reform law promises no-cost coverage of a lengthy list of screenings and other prevention services, but some beneficiaries still might miss out. Read story


Read story

How to get tax breaks for your medical practice

Federal, state and local governments offer doctors incentives because practices are recognized as economic engines. But physicians must know how and where to find them. Read story


Read story

Advance pay ACOs: A down payment on Medicare's future

Accountable care organizations that pay doctors up-front bring practice improvements, but it's unclear yet if program actuaries will see a return on investment. Read story


Read story

Physician liability: Your team, your legal risk

When health care team members drop the ball, it's often doctors who end up in court. How can physicians improve such care and avoid risks? Read story

  • Stay informed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • LinkedIn