Abandoned by his father as a child
Antonin Carême was born in 1784 in Paris into a family where one could not afford the luxury of being a gourmet. Worse, his father, the head of a family of 14 children and unable to feed them all, decided to abandon one of them. It is Antonin. He was 8 years old and his father, who judged him to be the most astute of all his children, thought that he would be fine. So he abandons him in Paris and lets Fate do its thing.
The kid is hired and he has talent.
With a small bundle and a few coins, the kid is hired by a cabaret owner, he naturally excels in cooking, so much so that he is noticed by a pastry chef, he then enters Talleyrand's house, prince minister, and gastronome. While founding a pastry shop with incredible pastries, Carême continued to work for Talleyrand to concoct a year's worth of menus without any repetition and using only seasonal products. He also wrote a culinary bestseller in 1828: Le Cuisinier parisien ou l'art de la cuisine française au XIXe siècle.
We owe him the idea of a menu, the chef's hat and the word "chef" used in cooking.
It is even said that it is to his incredible menus and their gourmet recognition that we owe the indulgence of the enemies of France in 1815 after the fall of Napoleon, who also enjoyed the cuisine of Carême. He then became the cook of George IV of Great Britain and Alexander I of Russia. He rehabilitated the sauces, by making them light, at a time which used a lot of spices and which was often heavy. To him who said "good food and good wine delight the heart of the gastronome" we owe the chef's hat, the word "chef" in kitchens of french restaurants, and the idea of a menu with successive dishes. An incredible work force and an immense intelligence.
Photo by julien Tromeur on Unsplash
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