Having the bar in the skull, sore hair or even a hangover, is a feeling experienced by most of us at least once in our lives. But aching bodies and hazy thoughts of the day after don’t stop the hunger from kicking in when the lights come back on.
Because the next day, it’s the stomach that wakes up first. Victoire Loup, the author of “Cooked, 60 easy recipes for difficult tomorrows”* made it her postulate but decided to treat… the bad with the good. No need to look for detox menus in this book, there are none. And therein lies precisely all its interest.
This critic and culinary consultant living between France and California, already author of the very successful “A la maison” (sixty recipes and anecdotes from chefs confined to the house, editions HumanHumans ) does not bother with dogmas ” healthy » fashionable. On the contrary, it comforts us in what we instinctively felt: we don’t necessarily want clear broth the day after evenings that are a little too busy.
She therefore asked about sixty chefs to share their little dishes and good recipes after cooking. And since she has no equal when it comes to getting the cordon bleu chefs talking, she seasons their mouth-watering personal recipes to ward off the hangover the next day, savory anecdotes about their memorable benders. And nothing to say, this book smells of experience!
Stall or perk up? Two schools clash to face the cooked
We’ll have fun thinking about Simone Tondo and Giovanni Passerini’s competition “bifanas”, the meat sandwiches they cook up when they go to Brussels. We will relive with Bertrand Auboyneau (Bistrot Paul Bert) his improbable “truffle” evening with the police who came to check on him. And what about the nocturnal stroll through Paris of a slightly drunk Charles Compagnon (Le Richer), or the rum-soaked evening of Eric Ospital (Louis Ospital in Hasparren) with Joey Star? These chefs, we suspected, have rather happy wine.
But we also discover that two schools compete in terms of the remedy for the aftermath of a binge: should we stall or perk up? On the one hand, fans of fat and “comfort food”, on the other, fans of vegetable juices and other “vegan bowls”. However, with one thing in common: most add chilli to their dishes. As if they needed to wake up to evacuate the remains of alcohol.
In the fat camp is Delphine Plisson, at the head of an iconic 500 m2 grocery store in the Marais. His memorable binge took place on his return from maternity, after months of abstinence, this perhaps explaining that: ” Turns out I was perfectly gray in less than an hour” she admits. His remedy? A creamy gratin dauphinois whose fat, warm and pleasure made his hangover disappear. She concludes: “Drink all you want, but always have potatoes, garlic and butter not too far away” she adds.
Don’t worry, it’s not just gratins and stews in Victoire Loup’s book. We even remain in awe of the ability of these outstanding cooks to sublimate in a snap the three carrots and the half cabbage lying around in their fridges.
And if you’re one of those people who really can’t swallow anything after getting drunk, this book also lists some light recipes for a more frugal menu. Thus, the “Pink bowl of the muerte” of Angèle Ferreux-Maegh, healthy caterer and trained naturopath, or the green smoothie of Frédérique Jules of the restaurant Noglu
Everything is successful in this joyful book, the choice of chefs and recipes, the amusing anecdotes and the appetizing visuals. Even without having to bandage the excesses of the day before, we will preciously keep this collection of joie de vivre close at hand, because there are no difficult awakenings that a meal with friends cannot cure.
” Cooked, 60 easy recipes for difficult tomorrows ”Human Humans editions, 19.90 euros. To order in line or in bookstores.
