Last Lick of the Spoon article with the French powerhouse that is Pierre Koffman!
Taken from our quarterly magazine, Infuse – the culinary legend renowned for holding three Michelin stars at his London restaurant La Tante Claire, talks to us about food memories and his ultimate tips for aspiring chefs.
Pierre Koffmann has been a pioneer of French cuisine during his long career and trained up many famous chefs, including the likes of Gordon Ramsey and Marco Pierre White. Now, Pierre heads up Koffmann’s, a leading chef’s brand for fresh and frozen potatoes and vegetables, which we are proud to list across the Caterfood Buying Group.
What three dishes bring you the most joy?
My favourite is bouillabaisse, which is a dish from Provence in the south of France. If someone told me I was going to die tomorrow that would be my last meal. The second has to be a pig’s trotter with morel mushrooms and sweetbread. The third is a Lièvre à la Royale – a hare, deboned and stuffed with a mix of meats, including foie gras and cooked in red wine.
I have a lot of favourite dishes, but those would be the three, because you don’t eat them every day – they need a lot of preparation and care.
You’ve earned three Michelin stars in your career. How did that feel?
I was very pleased, of course. I was not really cooking for a Michelin star – I was cooking the food I wanted to eat. It was simple food, cooked properly. I was happy, without a doubt, but it didn’t change my feelings on Michelin. If I had to choose between three Michelin stars and a full restaurant, I would go for the full restaurant every time. I’m not mad about Michelin stars.
How did it change your business?
We were always busy before because we had a small restaurant, just 42 seats. But yes, many customers love going to places with a Michelin star, so it definitely brought lots of people with it.
Is there a food you’ve never liked?
I cannot eat chillis. I don’t understand why people eat chilli; it kills the food.
Of the culinary stars you trained, who was the greatest challenge?
I’d say no-one was a challenge. They had to adapt to me; I never adapted to them. I was the head chef, running a restaurant. It’s like an army in the kitchen – the head chef is the general, the sous chef is the colonel and then you have the troops. It was a different time, as anyone who wanted experience in cooking had just a handful of restaurants at the top to pick from. Now there are great restaurants all over the country.
Favourite food memory?
My grandmother making food when I was a kid. My grandparents were farmers and it was great. If you wanted salad you went outside, cut it, and ate it. My grandfather loved fishing and shooting and he’d shoot a quail or hare and it’d be on the table the next day.
What advice would you give to aspiring chefs?
Work hard, read books, go out to see what’s happening in other restaurants and don’t look at the clock. Taste your food many times because the difference between good food and bad food can be a pinch of salt. Don’t stay too long in the same place – before I came to England, I never stayed more than seven months in a restaurant, because you learn from moving around. And, of course, enjoy what you’re doing.
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