#navbar-iframe { display: none; }

« Home | Sapporo Beer Museum » | Madame Brussels, Melbourne » | Iiza, Newtown » | Melbourne Food & Wine Festival 2010: The Edible Ga... » | Melbourne Food & Wine Festival 2010: World's Longe... » | Freebie Friday: Win movie tickets to My One and Only » | Sapporo Snow Festival 2010 » | Dotonbori, okonomiyaki and a hotcake sandwich - Os... » | Tetsuya's, Sydney - and your chance to win a Maste... » | Osaka Castle, plum blossoms and kendo »

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Interview: Ten Questions with Curtis Stone


Curtis Stone is hot property.

The Aussie surf-loving chef, who trained under Marco Pierre White in London, is conquering new ground - the US of A - and leaving a trail of fawning female fans in his wake.

After starring in two series of Take Home Chef, Curtis is appearing in the current US season of Donald Trump's Celebrity Apprentice, alongside fellow contestants Cyndi Lauper, Sharon Osbourne, Olympic gold medallist Michael Johnson, Sinbad the comedian and Brett Michaels from Poison.

Apart from his love of food and surfing, what makes Curtis tick? Grab Your Fork asked him ten questions to find out.


Ten Questions with Curtis Stone

1. You've spent much of your career overseas - in London and LA. What's the first thing you want to eat when you come back to Australia?

Definitely seafood – we have some of the best in the world. I'll be home this Easter and we'll probably get some Tasmanian Salmon from Coles.


2. Your grandmother played a significant role in your culinary future by spending a lot of time in the kitchen with you when you were young. What's your fondest memory?

Cooking fudge with Granny – good times!


3. What's the first dish you learned to cook?

My mum was a terrible cook but a great baker! I used to love cooking sticky things like caramel slice with her.


4. You started studying a Bachelor of Business but quit to pursue a career in food. What was the turning point for you?

I’d always had a passion for food and started training as a chef at The Savoy in Melbourne. I then travelled throughout Europe and three months into it ended up in London and broke. That’s when I met legendary Chef Marco Pierre White and offered to work for free in exchange for the opportunity- the rest is history.


5. What do you know or think about food blogs?

The more people discussing food the better – its great there’s such a fervent dialogue now. It can only mean more people will engage with food, learn more about it, and ultimately make more informed and healthier choices.


6. You've just gotten home after a big night out and you're starving. What's your favourite dish to whip up with pantry staples?

I’ve whipped up a fair few burritos for boozy friends in my time – you can use practically anything you’ve got in the fridge. I’ve also have learnt that your body needs a good potassium boost after a big night out on the town so a banana smoothie with plenty of honey and natural yoghurt is great followed by poached eggs (of course!) with crispy prosciutto.


7. What food do you crave when you're sick?

There is nothing better than a good homemade soup when you’re not feeling so well. A good chicken or vegetable soup usually does the trick.


8. Entree and main, or main and dessert?

I would have to say main and dessert. I’m a sweet tooth and a self-confessed chocoholic.


9. Favourite movie?

An all-time favourite is Shawshank Redemption.


10. And finally, what's the ideal breakfast you'd want to wake up to?

There is no better way to start the day than with a freshly squeezed juice. Grab whatever fruit is in season, mix them all together and you really can’t go wrong. I also do a delicious crispy tortilla with ham, chilli, spinach and fried eggs. The chilli adds a great kick and will get you going for the day.


Related Grab Your Fork posts:
Ten Questions with Matthew Evans
Ten Questions with Luke Nguyen
Ten Questions with Poh Ling Yeow
Ten Questions with Chubby Hubby

20 comments - Add some comment love

posted by Helen (Grab Your Fork) on 3/20/2010 01:23:00 am


20 Comments:

  • At 3/20/2010 2:44 am, Blogger Unknown said…

    OMG. I think this picture deserves more drool than any food photos you've ever shown. *SWOOON* Food for the eyes! Yes, I'm a Take Home Chef fan. :)

     
  • At 3/20/2010 6:51 am, Blogger Hannah said…

    You know, I was always more of a fan of Ben on Cooking the Menu... but now I know that Curtis is a chocoholic, I might have to change my preference :P

     
  • At 3/20/2010 8:35 am, Blogger Min Ai said…

    I love your celebrity chef interviews! :) Plus, just ever so slightly jealous about your chance to meet Curtis Stone!! :P

     
  • At 3/20/2010 9:55 am, Blogger foodwink said…

    Great interview, Helen. You always get to meet the most popular people in the business!

    Side rant: Curtis, if you are reading, did you really have to plug Coles in the first answer?

     
  • At 3/20/2010 1:32 pm, Blogger Simon Leong said…

    that's a great interview. nice to know about how he feels about bloggers. Coles for Tasmanian Salmon? Interesting. I guess it goes with his recipe http://www.coles.com.au/portals/0/content/pdf/christmas/curtis_stone_recipes/salmon_broccoli_orange.pdf :-)

     
  • At 3/20/2010 1:45 pm, Anonymous Mark @ Cafe Campana said…

    Interesting. I love the shameless plug for Coles. I do like salmon though.

     
  • At 3/20/2010 1:47 pm, Blogger Phuoc'n Delicious said…

    Great interview; one of my favourite movies is also Shawshank Redemption. I'd have to agree with foodwink; Curtis is a great guy but what's up with the plug?

     
  • At 3/20/2010 3:33 pm, Anonymous Renita said…

    Thanks for the insight Helen! :)Said what i was thinking Simon Food Favourites! Salmon + Coles?
    To be honest, I caught that "Take Home Chef" on fox once and it was um...very painful to watch. Sorry Curtis :( It reminded me of "Suprise Chef" with Aristos...

     
  • At 3/20/2010 11:50 pm, Anonymous penny aka jeroxie said…

    Great interview and insight of My Curtis.... ;)

     
  • At 3/21/2010 2:07 pm, Blogger marloperry said…

    aaahh he is SO hot!

     
  • At 3/21/2010 2:13 pm, Blogger cinnamobus said…

    Love the interview, but first thing I noticed was the shameless plug for Coles as well! Tsk tsk tsk Curtis Stone. As if he would have bought his salmon from Coles.

     
  • At 3/21/2010 6:40 pm, Anonymous The Ninja said…

    Shameless plugs for win and profit!

    Charming fellow, can cook, somewhat-inspirational story...can do worse.

    Good on you both.

     
  • At 3/21/2010 9:34 pm, Anonymous Trissa said…

    Curtis sounds like a lovely person! I enjoy these interviews a lot Helen - you ask the most interesting questions that you really get to know the person being interviewed.

     
  • At 3/21/2010 10:45 pm, Anonymous Zina @ tastedbytwo said…

    Curtis did a great job on the first episode of Celebrity Apprentice - it was a restaurant challenge, so I'm not surprised! Curtis was smart enough to price the burgers at $100, and not the $20 the other team was charging. Woo!

     
  • At 3/22/2010 11:39 am, Blogger Unknown said…

    Okay, my Monday morning has been blessed with giddysauce. Must be a tough job maintaining this blog with meet-and-greets like that ;P Thanks for taking the time to interview him, Helen!

     
  • At 3/22/2010 9:27 pm, Anonymous Amy @ cookbookmaniac said…

    I really like his cookbook, Cooking with Curtis. I also like the fact that it wasn't until I liked his cookbook that I liked how good lookin' he is. kikikiki. The man must be catch if his fave movie is Shawshank Redemption. that's one of my fave films too.

     
  • At 3/23/2010 1:02 pm, Blogger Helen (Grab Your Fork) said…

    Hi Daena - lol. Glad to see that Grab Your Fork continues to keep you drooling :)

    Hi Hannah - Ahh sweet tooths unite! Always interesting to hear whether chefs are more inclined to sweet or savoury dishes.

    Hi Min Ai - Alas this interview was done by email, otherwise I would have been a lot more descriptive in what he's like in real life :)

    Hi foodwink - It was a rendezvous via email and hey, I guess everyone has to earn their keep. lol.

    Hi Simon Food Favourites - I'm always curious to hear about how food blogs are perceived but so far everyone has been rather conciliatory!

    Hi Mark - Salmon is always tasty!

    Hi Phuoc'n Delicious - Shawshank is often touted as a movie favourite - I do like the scene where Tim Robbins plays Ave Maria over the loudspeaker. And ah, I guess everyone has to earn their keep!

    Hi Renita - Ahh I've never actually seen Take Home Chef but I can only imagine the gushing women. lol.

    Hi Penny aka jeroxie - Thanks. Always intriguing to find out what celebrities love to eat :)

    Hi Marloperry - So you're a fan? lol.

    Hi cinnamobus - Surely Curtis wouldn't lie!

    Hi The Ninja - Ahh it's the way of the world these days isn't it? I bet you could show him a few kitchen tricks using only a shruiken or two.

    Hi Trissa - Glad you enjoyed it. I found his answers about what he cooks for his mates rather insightful.

    Hi Zina - Oh I've been trying to work out to watch episodes of it but sounds like he had the right business plan from the start!

    Hi Margaret Tran - Anything to be of service. It was more an email-and-greet but hey, it's all good!

    Hi Amy - Commendable indeed! I reckon any guy that can cook instantly exudes charm and sex appeal. lol.

     
  • At 3/23/2010 2:27 pm, Blogger Joanie said…

    Great Job and very lucky of you HElen!!!!

    Hoping to do the same when I meet Jamie Oliver :)

     
  • At 3/23/2010 6:37 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Love his attitude towards blogging community. Always interesting to read about your interview with chefs. Another great piece :)

     
  • At 3/24/2010 2:07 pm, Blogger Helen (Grab Your Fork) said…

    Hi Joanie - Thanks so much and oh, lucky you meeting Jamie Oliver! Hope you get a photo :)

    Hi Ellie - I've yet to interview anyone who has rained on food bloggers but I guess it's a loaded question given that they know I'm a food blogger! lol. Always interesting to get an insight into chefs though, and I'd never have guessed that Shawshank was his favourite movie. lol.

     

Post a Comment

<< Home


      << Read Older Posts       |       >> Read Newer Posts