Marcus Samuelsson Says French Cuisine Isn't The Gold Standard (Reheat)

Chef Marcus Samuelsson was taught in culinary school that French cuisine is the gold standard of cooking. One day, he realized, “somebody lied." Samuelsson, a black Swede and the youngest chef to ever receive a three-star review from The New York Times (at age 23), has forged a new culinary ethos that permeates his restaurants in Harlem, Montreal, and London. His flagship restaurant, Red Rooster Harlem, combines Swedish and Ethiopian influences into dishes that have helped launch an empire. The menu includes cornbread with lingonberry butter, a salad with berbere vinaigrette, and his own take on fried chicken: a hot honey yardbird. In this conversation, taped live on stage at the Museum of the City of New York, Samuelsson talks about the life experiences that have informed his approach to food. He responds to criticism of his Red Rooster restaurants, and tells us about a  dish he’s working on that gives a rare window into the mind of a chef. This episode originally aired on August 5, 2019, and was produced by Dan Pashman, Anne Saini, Ngofeen Mputubwele, Peter Clowney, and Jared O'Connell. The Sporkful team now includes Dan Pashman, Emma Morgenstern, Andres O'Hara, Kameel Stanley, and Jared O'Connell. This update was produced by Gianna Palmer. Every Friday, we reach into our deep freezer and reheat an episode to serve up to you. We're calling these our Reheats. If you have a show you want reheated, send us an email or voice memo at [email protected], and include your name, your location, which episode, and why. Right now, Sporkful listeners can get three months free of the SiriusXM app by going to siriusxm.com/sporkful. Get all your favorite podcasts, more than 200 ad-free music channels curated by genre and era, and live sports coverage with the SiriusXM app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.