Andijviestamppot in Bangkok: Dutch traditions, but then sustainable

bangkok - Master chef Albert Kooy has expanded his culinary mission to Asia. In the Thai capital Bangkok, he is the leader of a five-day Dutch dinner party.

At the event, called Culinary Dutch, in the central Westin Grande hotel, guests can taste a variety of Dutch flavors and ingredients.

'The whole world is eating lasagna. Why not a delicious Dutch hunting dish of hamlets of hachee, red cabbage and mashed potatoes? ', Says Kooy, a champion of the seasonal kitchen.

There are buffets, lunches, a photography workshop and even a sandwich with sprinkles at breakfast. 'The hotel asked me to present real Dutch flavors. On the menu there is therefore little fine dining, but typically Dutch food like pea soup and duck steak pot. '\n  \n   \n    \n    \n   \n   \n   \n      \n   \n     Master chef Albert Kooy at the Culinary Dutch event in Bangkok.\n    \n   \n     Photo: THE TELEPHONE

But there are also recognizable pleasures for Asians. 'Ice Chicken Sauce!', Jokes two Thai invited guests at lunch for the tourism industry as a dessert of peanut butter cream with chilli sauce. It looks like the sauce that Thai standards eat at their fried chicken from street foodstalls. But the taste is something different. 'A good combination,' concludes the ladies surprised.

Kooy advocates an environmentally conscious, pet friendly and healthy kitchen. Using modern cooking techniques and international influences, but based on Dutch traditions.

'I have a message that I think is important. We eat too much meat and commit earthquake raids. We can not keep that up if we have to feed the whole world. We have to go to a diet of eighty percent vegetables and twenty percent meat, 'said the chef.

That message had some feet in the earth. 'Sustainability is important and of course, that means I could not just let everything fly in. So I made all the products myself with local, organic ingredients from Thailand. For example, you also have excellent mackerel, with which I prepared the rolls for one of the starters. Only one person was not really able to come. But I found a strong lettuce, similar to French frisée, which is a good alternative. '

Kooy is affiliated with the Stenden University Hotel in Leeuwarden. In addition to divisions in South Africa, Qatar and the Indonesian island of Bali, the leather company opened a campus in Thailand two years ago.