We have more sad news to report, as we have learned
that legendary chef Paul Prudhomme passed away today at
age 75. Prudhomme popularized Cajun and Creole cooking,
elevating the status of those cuisines through his restaurants,
cookbooks, and television programs.
New Orleans restaurateur Mary Sonnier, who worked for Prudhomme
in the 1980s, says his vision for cooking was a drastic departure
from the status quo. "He sort of started the whole farm-to-table
movement," she said. "When we opened every night, we opened with a
new menu. We didn't buy food for the menu, the menu was created
based on what food we had."
Prudhomme influenced chefs in his native Louisiana as well as
countless chefs and home cooks across the globe. In addition to
running his flagship restaurant, K-Paul, he hosted several cooking
shows, wrote numerous cookbooks, and created his own line of spices
and seasonings.