A Few Questions Chef Eric Gonzalez – Competitor In Gold Medal Plates, Kelowna
The Canadian Culinary Championships will take place this weekend in Kelowna, BC February 2-3, 2018. The eleven competing chefs will be aiming for gold as they compete in three events over two days testing their skills, creativity and endurance. We had a few question for the competitors, here’s the responses from Chef Eric Gonzalez From L’Atelier Joël Robuchon, in Montreal.
What ingredient do you always have on hand?
The base from my country: Olive Oil
What cookbook would you suggest for a gift for your foodie friends this year?
The boreal Pantry by chef Jean Luc Boulay. He said: Discover where to shop to get these homegrown treasures and treat yourself to 80 TASTY AND GOURMET SEASONAL RECIPES, which will allow you to give a northern accent to your cuisine while impressing your guests. Along the way, get to know several of the artisans who contribute to the success of the cuisine.
What wine/beer/libation are you pairing with this year? I chose for the pairing : Painted Rock because I love their passion and vision
From Painted Rock: “Our pursuit of pure terroir expression”.
- Uncompromising. Since our beginning a conscious decision has been made to never cut corners. Our property has the potential and it is up to us to realize it.
- Collaborative winemaking. Consultant Alain Sutre of Ertus Consulting in Bordeaux oversees the vineyard and winemaking team, lead locally by Gabriel Reis.
- 100% single varietal wines. All varietally labelled wines are true single varieties.
- Hand harvested. To ensure pristine berries, only undamaged clusters are harvested, gently destemmed and hand sorted.
- No transportation. With our winery and vineyard onsite, there is no travel or delay between harvesting and processing, and no environmental impact from grape transportation.
- Unfiltered. Our red wines are never filtered to ensure their most complete expression.
- Sustainable farming. No pesticides used in our vineyards and root training initiatives implements to reduce irrigation.
I also surveyed my facebook followers (many are chefs as well) as to what questions they would like answered by chefs when I interview them.
Kendall Ballantine Maybe who their favourite local food producers are (farms, cheese makers, etc)?
I love to work with local product and we are lucky in Québec we have a lot of good ones.
Kaitlyn Gabrielle Bogas-Zayac What do you think of people who claim gluten sensitivity or allergies and want them to modify every item on the menu?
I do and I’m sensitive to these people because if I if I had any issues I would like some one to take care of me.
Tara Mintenko If you could go anywhere in the world to eat all the foods they eat, where would you go?
Everywhere I love food
Lucia Higgins What is their go to dish when cooking at home and feeling tired or one when inspired?
I cook all the, from simple to advanced gastromy, even at home.
Lesley Saito What ingredients in their travels has influenced their cooking style?
For me it’s more than just travel but the people who I met.
