Anne-Sophie Pic: Cooking with heart and soul

IF THE LAST TWO YEARS have been life-changing for anyone, it was no different for acclaimed French chef Anne-Sophie Pic, who had to learn and experiment beyond her own culinary realm. 

But with the worst of the pandemic over, Pic couldn’t be more busy. Looking back at 2022, the chef, who runs restaurants in France and abroad – Lausanne, London as well as one Michelin-starred La Dame de Pic at Raffles Singapore – says that it has been “very intense, especially the second part of the year, mostly because we got to travel again”.

She was recently in Singapore for the first time since launching her restaurant at Raffles Hotel in 2019. This time, guests literally got to taste the fruits of her efforts – namely a specially curated menu inspired by the many varieties of citrus. 

It’s just part of her continued quest for knowledge and new dining experiences. “I’m never happy with my knowledge, so I want to know more in order to go further,” she says.

Of late, she has been experimenting more with fermentation. “Of course, it is not new in France since we have cheese and butter, among others. But I’m also very interested in the combination of flavours. And fermentation opens the door to something new for us.” 

To do so, she sought training from a fermentation expert who formerly worked at Copenhagen’s Noma. Although she’s just started to experiment, she has already made her own kombucha and miso.

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On a visit to Japan, she also went to a sake brewery and saw how koji was made. “We’ve created our first koji in Valence as well. We made it with French rice sourced from Camargue in the south of France, near the Mediterranean Sea.”

When restaurants were closed during the pandemic, Pic and her team in Valance dabbled in things they never had time to before. For instance, in the summer of 2021, they launched a food truck playfully called ‘Pic-up’. “We never made burgers before, but we decided to prepare them the French way. And we make our own special brioche,” she enthuses. Pic was very happy with the outcome of this concept, which serves four types of burgers – including vegetarian and fish – all made using local products. For this pop-up, she even rolled out a dessert of chocolate mousse with tonka bean.

In the coming year, Pic will introduce non-alcoholic pairings in her restaurants. “It’s an interesting alternative for diners who don’t want to drink wine. It’s creative and enhances the dining experience.” She adds that it means having to keep training her team to dream up new concoctions. 

The non-alcoholic programme is handled by both her chefs and sommeliers. “When everybody’s working together it’s much more interesting, and they can learn new things,” she adds. The innovative alcoholic-free concoctions are the result of extractions, fermentations and infusions tried and tested at their lab in Valence. The team also uses a Rotovap distiller/evaporator to develop these drinks. 

Although trending in many parts of the world, this type of pairing is a very new concept in France. “I think we are one of the first three-star restaurants to offer it,” says Pic. She adds that in France, it’s not common especially in three-Michelin-starred restaurants as people are not as receptive to other beverage pairings besides wine. 

The best choice is a hybrid of non-alcoholic drinks and wines “because you can compare – it’s different, yet complementary,” she says.

Adding new skills and training isn’t just about her own personal growth but for the entire team. “I’m always very concerned about how to make people progress and improve, and how to stay connected with them.” People are the core of the restaurant, she adds, so she wants her team members including those at Raffles Hotel to visit France “to understand our universe”. The nurturing chef says: “It’s about transmission of knowledge.” 

Celebrating Christmas with family 

Maison Pic in Valence will be closed for Christmas and New Year. “We have done so for the last five years. We have more people working with us who have children, so it’s important for them to be with their families during this period.”

She adds: “We are located in the countryside and not in a big city. Although the demand is strong for sure, we decided to close for four weeks until mid-January.” 

As for her festive memories, Pic recalls: “When I was a child, I never spent Christmas with my parents as they were working. So I had to wait one more day for Dec 26 to get my gifts.” After their son Nathan was born, Pic and her husband David Sinapian, who also manages the restaurant group, made it a point to celebrate Christmases together.  

Pic prepares the meal, which includes classics such as gratin dauphinois. “Potatoes are sliced and combined with milk and cream. We’ll add butter, garlic and some nutmeg – and finish the dish in the oven. It’s very traditional from my region,” she shares.

“I also like to do crayfish gratin with sauce nantua,” adds Pic. Her grandfather chef Andre Pic was particularly famous for this crayfish dish with a creamy seafood sauce.

In France, Christmas dinner isn’t complete without black truffles. “My region has a lot of black truffles. We don’t actually have white truffles in France, but with the way the seasons and weather change now, we’re able to find a very small amount of them now. And we also found some matsutake mushrooms in my region. It is incredible. I was very surprised.” 

Pic used to cook sea bass for the festive period too. Called Le Bar Caviar, It’s a very traditional recipe from her late father chef Jacques Pic. “But I made a 2.0 recipe with a twist, using sake and champagne sauce, caviar and also some rose petals,” she says.

To end their celebration on a sweet note, Pic and her family enjoy traditional buche de noel –  a log cake made with genoise sponge, and slathered with chocolate and coffee buttercream.

For 2023, Pic’s wishes are straightforward: “It’s very important at the end of the year to anticipate what I want to do the next year. And to keep having dreams, and realising them.”