Guyana, Gordon Ramsay Style!

by Ulrich Koepf on June 1, 2020 with No Comments

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Gordon Ramsay, the English Celebrity Chef, decided to divert from the scenes of English and American eateries into the deep of the Rainforests in Guyana.

Since my wife’s parents are from Guyana it seems a bit strange that he decided to explore that part of the South American continent. When people ask me where my wife is from, I proceed to tell them that she was born in England but her parents are from Guyana. Most people have no clue as to where Guyana is on the world map, especially here in Europe. Did you know actor Michael Caine is married to Shakira Caine, born in Guyana, she was the runner up in the Miss Guyana contest at age 19, and she came in third in the 1967 Miss World contest held in London.

My father-in-law

and spouse left Guyana in 1953 to move to England, then in 1970 they left England moving to the Bahamas, and then in 1976, they moved to the USA. I met my wife in the Bahamas and then moved to the USA the same year she did with her family.

In 2006

my in-laws decided to move back to Guyana in order to set up a business there. That is when I decided to visit Guyana with my wife.

(see my previous blog about that trip here)

Gordon Ramsay is now exploring the culinary traditions of Guyana for his new episode airing on June 7th.

I have been enjoying Guyanese

food for the past 40 years, prepared and cooked by my mother-in-law, who is a passionate cook. Dishes such as Rôti made with potatoes or yellow split pea, the traditional Pepperpot, traditionally made with Oxtail (Sorry Gordon, not with chicken!👎) Hassa Curry, which I never really liked because the fish scales look like toenails😁, Bakes with Salted Codfish, Potato Balls with Achar Chutney (video recipe here), Tomato Choka (video recipe here), Dhal Pholouri made with chickpeas (video recipe here) and many more delicious dishes. The favorite was and still is the Chicken Curry with Rôti! even the grandkids are all excited when grandma makes a pot of curry!

The food in Guyana is a combination of East & West Indian, Caribbean, Chinese and Portuguese influence. The Amerindians, the indigenous people of Guyana, have their own style and version of food. We enjoyed some great hospitality on our visit to an Amerindian village during our trip. Now I am looking forward to watching Gordon’s journey on June 7th.