GOURMET LIFESTYLE CHEF INTERVIEW
The science of
Molecular gastronomy is not all about dry ice and a bunch of tricks, says Ross Clarke, former creative development chef at Fat Duck experimental kitchen and protégé of Heston Blumenthal. By Nicola Monteath.
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Photographs ANAS CHERUR
oss Clarke is the kind of chef that likes to keep busy at all times. When we caught up with him on a recent trip to Dubai, he had his hands full with all sorts of quirky equipment, juice mixers, and a fishbowl of cold water and tea leaves he was attempting to make into a tea jelly! Ross began his career right at the bottom of the ladder, as a fishmonger for Verveine Fishmarket Restaurant, where he later became a chef at the age of 21. He worked his way up to the top, having worked at Segreto, Madinat Jumeirah right here in Dubai for a brief period in between, and at a oneMichelin star seafood restaurant, Jetty in Christchurch, UK. Although he’s only been a chef for just six years, he’s come a long way, and counts working with eminent celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal from The Fat Duck, whom he worked closely with as a creative development chef for over a year until recently, as one of the most important feathers in his cap. Ross now heads up his own consulting company where he spends most of his time in the lab, developing recipes, or conducting home demonstrations in London and Dubai, where he teaches home chefs how to use professional equipment and techniques such as sous-vides, dehydrators and matching food molecules. “Most people don’t know that molecules in certain foods match and as a result pair well together. Carrots and thyme are a great combination, for example, so is white chocolate and caviar,” he says. Even though Ross’ field of work does fall under what has come to be known widely as molecular gastronomy, the chef tells us that the term isn’t something he is particularly fond of. “It’s just cooking. The only difference is that nowadays we know more than we used to. I like to refer to molecular gastronomy as modern-day cooking. If you can’t cook basic food, you can’t do modern. It’s as simple as that,” he says. Here we find out how he defines his particular line of work. You have most recently worked with Heston Blumenthal, the pioneer of molecular gastronomy. What was the experience like and what made you leave? It was great and I learned a lot! Three weeks after joining the restaurant, I was put onto trial and got a October 2013 BBC Good Food Middle East 81
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9/24/13 5:20 PM