Offal Good™

International Chefs Congress 2006

What a great event this was. It was the first ever international chefs’ event held in the US. Starchefs outdid themselves with an all-star line up of chefs from around the world. The congress was held in New York City, giving the chefs plenty of options to eat out as well as meet with other chefs. There were great panels and lots of educational demos designed for chefs by chefs, which made this a unique and very cool event.

this photo is courtesy of: www.harlanturk.com

The first day I spoke on a panel called No Guts No Glory with Anthony Bourdain and Fergus Henderson. We had a large turn out with lots of questions. The biggest stink was from our responses to a question about the ban on foie gras. What a fucking joke that is. Apparently it’s OK to factory farm animals, keeping them in tiny pens, clipping their tails and beaks, feeding them inappropriate diets and pumping them full of drugs, but it’s not OK to feed an animal like its parents feed them when they are young. I dont get it.
The 2nd day, I taught a tripe workshop. I showed the difference between bleached and unbleached tripe. I had 3 different types of stomachs and showed 3 different cooking applications. Then we prepared and tasted a cold tripe salad. It was pretty fun.
Take a look at the overview of the ICC event, and plan on being there next year. With the amount of demos and lectures, it’s a huge educational opportunity for any chef or cook. I had a great time and I’ll definitely be back next year.