Hooked on bake and shark

WE CAN be sure that Marcus Samuelsson will leave Trinidad and Tobago this morning licking his fingertips. The Ethiopian-born chef, with a “Scandinavian hand” made just one visit to Maracas Bay and he has already been won over by the taste of a true Trini bake and shark. He was also treated to Lebanese-style cooking by his hosts, Peter Elias and Wendy Fitzwilliam, and can’t stop talking about it. Since Marcus has been in Trinidad on a one-week visit, he has been feasting on various ethnic dishes. However, his chance to don an apron and operate in the kitchen arrived last evening. Marcus, along with Hilton’s finest chefs, prepared a special dish for hundreds of guests at the Gala Charity Dinner in aid of a new home for the children at Cyril Ross Nursery.

Marcus was excited. Up until the event, he couldn’t spare much details as to what the dish would entail, save for saying that there would be fish and “chocolate for dessert.” The handsome, single, 33-year-old chef has travelled from New York, putting his work on hold, on invitation of his good friend Wendy Fitzwilliam for a worthy cause. He is the house chef at two New York restaurants, Aquavit and Riingo (Apple in Japanese), which he co-owns. Moments prior to our interview at Hilton Trinidad on Wednesday morning, Marcus, casually dressed in red v-neck, blue denim jeans and black sneakers, sat on the porch trading secret recipe tips with another guest at the hotel. “That’s what I want. Real ethnic stuff,” he said. Chorba, an Algerian dish, was the new dish he was going to attempt. “Before, it was finding out about other chefs, but now it’s about finding out about people, ethnic food,” he said.

It was his first visit to Trinidad. “I’ve been to many islands, but never Trinidad and my visit here is, foremost, for a cause. I am also involved in other projects. I am in the middle of writing a book about Africa — its music, culture; where it took influences from and gave influences to as well as producing a CD. And I think that Trinidad has the perfect mix for my research. South Africa and Trinidad have a very similar blend of people, food and religion... and I want to be able to educate myself,” Marcus said. Marcus embarked on his two-and-a-half-year project a few months ago mainly to create an identity and a wider niche market for African cuisine. In April, he plans to travel to Senegal, Morocco and South Africa to pursue his research. He is still thinking about the name “The Soul of New Cuisine,” for his new book which will be released in late 2005.

His roots are dug deeply in Africa, his homeland, although he has lived most of his life in Sweden with adoptive parents. His birthparents died of tuberculosis when he was three years old. However, because of his quest to learn more of both worlds, Europe, where he was schooled and his place of birth, Marcus, birth-name Kassahoun, is drawn to all aspects of his culture. Injera bread, sour dough pancakes, “with anything” is his favourite African food. Add fish to the list. “I always feel comfortable with fish because we ate a lot of seafood growing up.” He speaks three languages, including Swedish and German. “I can’t keep up with the native Africans, which is Ahmaric.” He grew up in G?teborg, Sweden, with his father, a geologist and mother, a housewife, and learned his cooking skills from his Swedish grandmother.

He said: “I always worked with her picking plums, cleaning salmon and herring so it was not just about eating, but developing an appreciation for preparing food...” He was quite helpful in the kitchen, except for the times “I would get a whack over the head with a salmon,” he joked. His quest to “find other cultures” nagged at him constantly, so he decided to travel to New York “to cook.” “I lived in France, Switzerland, and Europe seemed the same... You see, Sweden has a cold climate, you get in, you shut the door. For me, I was always seeking warmth within people, and the climate.” The latter must be the reason he leaves the US every time the cold weather sets in. “I  wanted to find a balance of both Europe and the US, a multi-culture and New York really stands out.”

So he left his parents, and sister Fantaye also called Linda, behind and ventured to new territory.  After returning from Austria in 1991, where he learned how to craft fine pastry, Marcus was invited by then Aquavit owner Hakan Swahn for an eight-month apprenticeship at his restaurant. He later worked in France and in 1994, returned to Aquavit where he was appointed executive chef the following year. Last year, he received the honour of “Best Chef New York City” by the James Beard Foundation. Despite his rapid progress, and though thousands of miles away from his family, Marcus always keeps in touch. “Before coming here I called my little sister,” who is one year his senior, “to let her know I was coming to Trinidad. She lives on a nice, quiet, little island near my parents and I envy her for it.” Linda works in the field of healthcare and is described as “very creative and free spirited. She has the creative blood in her,” Marcus said. “If she wants to sing, she can sing. If she wants to paint, she can paint. I am a little different, I have to work a little harder to do those things.”

However, Marcus is never the one to sit at home and “twiddle his thumbs.” He is always immersed in some activity, starting something new. “That’s why I’m a rookie all the time... It’s not about what you have accomplished. I don’t look back, I look forward and use what I’ve done to climb mountains. It doesn’t stop there, you can’t hold down creativity and talent. I take these as leverages to give me new ideas and if it doesn’t work out, if people don’t like my food that’s OK. I’m completely at peace with failing.” He further revealed one more project he plans to tackle while in Trinidad, sampling and combining food sold on the streets and from around the world for the production of a “Street Food” television programme in the near future.