Renowned chef Marcus Samuelsson didn’t acquire multiple restaurants, three cookbooks or the $115,000 winnings from Bravo’s cooking reality show, “Top Chef Masters,” without first building up his craft from simple beginnings.
After he was orphaned at an early age in Ethiopia, Samuelsson was adopted and raised in Sweden. Supported by his new parents and grandmother, he cooked around the world and opened his Harlem-based restaurant, Red Rooster.
Samuelsson has recorded these experiences and more in his most recent book, “Yes, Chef: A Memoir.” Daily Bruin’s Colin Reid spoke with Samuelsson about the inspiration for his book, his work as a culinary mentor and his upcoming talk at the Hammer Museum this Sunday.
Daily Bruin: This Sunday at 3 p.m. you’re giving a talk at the Hammer Museum. Can you elaborate on what you’ll be discussing and what you hope the audience will walk away with?
Marcus Samuelsson: The collaboration between art, race, food and culture is a fascinating subject that I chose to explore because I … am a creative person. … I devoted my whole life to culture, even as a chef and as an artist. … In my book, “Yes, Chef,” I describe (this) more, in a longer narrative. I describe my journey, a black culinarian’s journey, as it goes through its ups and downs. … I’ve been committed to cooking all my life, first as a young intern, then as a cook, then eventually as a sous chef and chef, and now I’m guiding people in this place.
DB: Tell me a little more about the inspiration behind the name of your book “Yes, Chef: A Memoir,” and why you chose to write this book?
MS: Well, that expression is obviously one that we talk about in the kitchen. When we say something, we say “˜yes, chef,’ no questions asked. … (I want) non-chefs to understand what that commitment meant (to me), and to share my experience. … Regardless, (the book) can hopefully inspire you, and help you to become a professional (chef) or relevant in that (field).
DB: Can you describe what went through your mind when you won “Top Chef Masters” back in 2010?
MS: I worked so hard for it, it was a very tough competition and I felt a sense of accomplishment. There have been many accomplishments and moments in my life, whether I was part of them or created them, … but sometimes you get lucky, … like (how) my time in the kitchen opened doors for me. Some moments put you completely in the middle of that, and “Top Chef Masters” was one of those moments.
DB: Now, as a master chef, are you mentoring any up-and-coming chefs yourself, and if so, how does that feel?
MS: Absolutely, that’s what having Red Rooster in Harlem is about. When you reach head chef, you understand and you see the turn. … You’ll eventually be mentoring others, and it really comes full circle. You start as a mentee, and then you are that person opening the door.
DB: Back in 2010 you opened your restaurant, Red Rooster, located in Harlem, New York City. Do you have any further plans to expand your culinary reach, possibly opening a restaurant on the West Coast of the U.S.?
MS: No. … Red Rooster just opened and it’s a new engagement for us and we feel like we have a lot to give, and … it’s not about opening brand new restaurants all the time. Red Rooster took a long time for me to craft, five years. The books took a long time for me to make, and in between that I founded a website called FoodRepublic.com. My work, I trust it, but it takes me a long time to craft.
DB: As a professional chef and married man, how do you and your wife handle meals at home? Who plans, prepares and cooks the meals?
MS: My wife does most of the cooking at home actually, and she’s a really good cook. She’s cooks Ethiopian food, and is a better Ethiopian cook than I am.
DB: Born in Ethiopia, raised in Sweden and now living in New York City, you have experienced and cooked many different cultural dishes. What would you say is your preferred dish to prepare and cook?
MS: Well I would definitely say my grandmother’s meatballs. I love making them because it connects me to my family. From a chef’s point of view, … I love cooking salmon. Smoking it, curing it; there’s elegance in that, but it’s also directly relevant to where I came from.
Email Reid at creid@media.ucla.edu.