This week’s 'Book of the Week’ is a blast from the past. As a young chef I read this cover-to-cover a lot. It’s not just the recipes that I get into in a good cookery book, but the stories. And there are many fabulous anecdotes in The Great Chefs of France by Anthony Blake and Quentin Crewe.
It’s a book that delves into the life, minds and culinary genius of some of France’s greatest chefs. Everyone that I had heard of in my early career was in this book. Troisgros, Guerard, Pic and of course, Paul Bocuse. I’m still inspired by it.
Bocuse was a giant amongst chefs, quite literally as he was a big man. He worked for many great chefs when he was a young man learning his craft, in the days of opulence. I had the luck to meet him in 1999 at the Michelin awards in Greenwich. It was a memorable day. There’s a photograph of him in this book standing to attention behind a table laden of wine and books, next to a very Napoleon-esque image of himself, wearing full chef whites and a cheeky grin. It says a lot about him: cheeky, professional, traditional, yet accessible. If you do get the chance, and you enjoy a good cookery / reading book, then do get a copy of this.
