In preparation for the DVD release of The Hundred-Food Journey, HELLO! Online donned our aprons and visited Le Cordon Bleu culinary school in London to attempt to remake the famous omelette as seen cooked by Helen Mirren in the film.
Le Cordon Bleu has taught chefs from all over the world since 1933, and as we toured the beautiful school – equipped with impressive industrial kitchens and boasting a delicious café on the ground floor – there was no doubt as to why the school has become so popular for aspiring chefs.
We were greeted by Chef Loic Malfait who set us up in our kitchen stations where we were to make an omelette and a small pastry topped with fruit, a jam glaze and pistachio nuts. According to Chef Loic, the perfect omelette should only cook for 24 seconds, which all depends on having the frying pan at the right heat exactly, then folding it halfway so that the inside will continue to cook when put on the plate – that way when you’re ready to eat it, it will be “just right”. We then topped our sizzling three-egg omelette with a mouth-watering vegetable curry prepared by Chef Loic himself, and finally drizzled it with fresh coriander.
The delicious fusion of flavours was apt for the film, which follows culinary ingénue Hassan Kadam (Manish Dayal) and his family as they open an Indian restaurant in a quaint village in the south of France – opposite a Michelin starred French restaurant owned by the chilly Madame Mallory (Helen Mirren).
Hassan’s passion for French cuisine and his love interest for sous chef, Marguerite, makes for a culinary magic between the two cultures.
Prior to the filming, Dame Helen Mirren and the rest of the cast visited Le Cordon Bleu to learn from the very best – resulting in beautifully cooked food, just like seen on the film. THE HUNDRED-FOOT JOURNEY IS AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY AND DVD ON 9TH MARCH, COURTESY OF ENTERTAINMENT ONE. THIS EVENING WAS HELD WITH LE CORDON BLEU LONDON, THE UK’S LEADING CULINARY SCHOOL