In this series, columnist Sibylle Eschapasse interviews some of France’s top chefs, the Maîtres Cuisiniers de France.
Name:
Jean-Louis Dumonet
Hometown:
Poitiers, France
Age:
57 going on 24
Occupations:
Executive chef, The Union Club of the City of New York; president, American and Canadian delegation, Maîtres Cuisiniers de France.
Years of experience with French cuisine:
57 (“since I was born”)
Maître Cuisinier de France since:
1994
Sibylle Eschapasse: What does it mean to you to be a Maître Cuisinier de France, a most envied title?
Jean-Louis Dumonet: I am very proud to be part of such a group of chefs. Most of our elders were our chefs when we started, and a lot of them became mentors. It is great to have followed their path and to be part of the same group now. It is why we have the mission to do the same with younger chefs and to follow the Maître Cuisiniers de France’s motto: “to preserve and spread the French culinary arts, encourage training in cuisine, and assist professional development.”
Ms. Eschapasse: Why did you choose to become a chef?
Mr. Dumonet: I think it came naturally to me. When I was a kid, my dad was a chef already and owned a restaurant in the countryside near Poitiers. I spent the first 5 to 6 years of my life there with my grandmother, who was cooking for 6 to 10 people [in the family] every day. We were cooking chicken from our henhouse, and rabbit as well. So I learned how to kill them, and pluck or skin them. Then my dad moved to Paris, and I cooked with him every time I could, during vacations or breaks.
Ms. Eschapasse: If a close friend were to describe your cooking in three words, what would they be?
Mr. Dumonet: I would like him to say good, generous, and full of love.
Ms. Eschapasse: If you weren’t a chef, what would you be?
Mr. Dumonet: Orchestra conductor and musician.
Ms. Eschapasse: How would you define French cuisine?
Mr. Dumonet: Vast! It can be very simple or sophisticated. Very tasty with great products, respectful of the ingredients and flavors.
Ms. Eschapasse: Of France’s many regional cuisines, which do you prefer to cook?
Mr. Dumonet: You know, France is a small country, but we have the chance to have many regions and the great chance, too, to have four seasons, so I like to cook [the cuisine of the] Mediterranean in summer; central France in fall; eastern France and game in winter, as well as southern France with black truffles; and Loire Valley and Charentes in spring. Each season has its proper ingredients, as the region does.
Ms. Eschapasse: Tell us about the recipe you chose.
Mr. Dumonet: [It’s] sea scallops with porcini. We have the chance to have both in the same season in New York, in the fall. It is also one of my favorite scallop dishes (as well as my wife Karen’s, too). It is a mix of Charentes-Maritime, next to the sea, with the scallops, and porcini from Poitou-Charentes.
Roasted Diver Sea Scallops with Oregon Porcini and Foam
