Heat and Peru

It is as hot as Hades in Paris. Yesterday it was 97 degrees, today a balmy 95, and tomorrow our cold front moves in bringing temperatures all that way down to 80. This may not seem like a huge climate change to any of you folks living with air conditioning but when there is no AC and you spend most of the day in a tiny hot kitchen over a stove any relief is welcome.

Today was a fun day regardless of the heat, 6 of my fellow Cordon Bleu students and I had the opportunity to assist two Peruvian chefs prepare a 10 dish tasting at the Peruvian embassy. Chef Hervé Galidie is from Lima and Chefs Lourdes Pluvinage has a Peruvian restaurant here in Paris.  

Chef Hervé Galidie left his Michelin starred restaurant Le Jardin to move to Lima with his Peruvian wife. He now owns and operate Hervé in Lima. It was amazing to be able to help prepare his dishes and learn how he combines French techniques with Asian and Peruvian flavors. 

Chef Lourdes Pluvinage is a well know chef in Paris and is most recognized for her fresh Peruvian style dishes that she serves at El Picaflor her restaurant in the 5th arrondissement of Paris. Food critics consider it the best and most authentic Peruvian restaurant in the city.

The goal of this tasting menu was to highlight a fish from the Amazon river in Peru. The fish called Airapama or Paiche is said to be a living fossil and is usually seen on Discovery channel shows like River Monsters, rarely has it been seen on any western persons dinner plate. Commercial fishing of this fish was outlawed by the Brazilian government due to over fishing however recently advances in farm breeding techniques have been made and this fish can now be farm raised. 

 

Despite the heat and the long hours it was a wonderful expirence to work with two accomplished chefs and to get away from strictly traditionl French food and flavors for a day. Oh and at the end of my 9 hours of volunteer work Chef was so appreciative of all of our hard she gave us all a nice tip. Hey mom look 30 euro for 9 hours, I will be supporting myself in no time, haha.