Chef Pierre Thiam – Iron Chef Battle
Chef Pierre Thiam recently appeared on Food Networks Iron Chef America, and as Food Network fans know, during each battle a skilled chef chooses their opponent known as Iron Chefs and the battle begins after the secret ingredient is reveled. It was battle Papaya, and Chef Pierre choose Iron Chef Bobby Flay as his adversary.
The battle was fast paced and exciting as each chef created unique dishes with the same ingredient. Chef Pierre created dishes that were inspired by his Senegalese background which created a buzz of excitement, and what made its debut and had the judges in awe was Akara. As soon as the judges saw the husk being separated from the black-eyed peas, they could hardly remove their eyes anxiously anticipating what culinary masterpiece was going to be created. Chef Pierre prepared Akara in the traditional way, and accompanied it with a beautiful sweet papaya sauce. Although the chef did not win the overall battle, Akara was definitely a winner and the judges were inspired by the dishes he created which gave tribute to African cuisine.
Chef Pierre is currently owner and Executive Chef of Le Grand Dakar in Brooklyn, New York. It is an African inspired restaurant that draws from Africa’s traditional cuisine.
Le Grand Dakar
http://www.granddakar.com/about.html
285 Grand Ave
(between Clifton Pl & Lafayette Ave)
Brooklyn, NY 11238
I’ve been wondering when African cuisine would be featured on a food show…I mean rice and stew, pepper soup, veggie soups, plantain dishes; so many choices. Thanks to Chef Pierre for starting what I hope will be a trend.
@ Ms. XiXI,
African cusine itself doesn’t get as much credit as it should, although its influence can be seen in so many other cultures. It’s about time, and the more visibility it gets the better. Thanks for the comment!