The chefs who cook state banquets for heads of state are closely monitored by security personnel, with no one allowed in or out.
Artist Pham Thi Anh Tuyet was the one who came up with the menu idea and directed almost the entire process of cooking the state banquet for 21 economic leaders at the APEC 2017 (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) Summit, held in Da Nang. After 6 years, she said she still cannot forget the tense atmosphere in the kitchen on November 11, 2017.
"No one goes out, no one comes in", Ms. Tuyet emphasized this phrase to talk about absolute security in the kitchen at that time. The leaders enjoyed a state banquet for lunch, so from 5am on November 11, the entire cooking team had to be present in the kitchen, until the leaders left.
"I can't remember how many security guards there were, some looked Asian. However, I know for sure that two of them were White House security guards because they were wearing badges and backpacks with the word America on them," she said.
APEC 2017 was attended by 21 economic leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Russian President Vladimir Putin, South Korean President Moon Jae-in, and US President Donald Trump.
The 70-year-old Hanoian, famous for his honey-roasted chicken, said that when entering the kitchen, the whole team was once again informed of the rules, divided into separate groups, and that whoever did what had to stay there. For example, the person picking vegetables could only stand where they picked vegetables. That day, no one went to the bathroom during the several-hour cooking time because they were all stressed and highly focused.
"I kept looking up and seeing these two people staring at me. They kept their position about 5-6 meters away from me," she said of the two White House staff, adding that they always held a backpack in their hands, which she did not know what was in it at the time.
Artist Anh Tuyet cooks at the APEC Conference in 2017. Photo: NVCC
Anticipating the tension in the kitchen when the main event took place, Ms. Tuyet and her team organized many trial runs to ensure the work went smoothly. She also did "mental work" for everyone beforehand, such as not paying attention to security staff or anyone around. Whoever had a task just needed to focus on that task.
According to her, a small mistake can cause big consequences. The process of cooking the national meal must be seamless, on time, and of the required quality. Making economic leaders wait for a long time is "unacceptable".
Despite her many years of experience in the kitchen, Ms. Tuyet still feels the pressure on her shoulders. According to her, balancing flavors to suit 21 leaders from 21 cultures is not simple, because in a family of three generations, each person has a different style of eating. "This is the responsibility of a chef to represent the whole country," Ms. Tuyet said.
The artist said that each person in the kitchen was given a chip, which could be used for location. As the head chef of the hotel where the event took place, she was given two chips. Thanks to that, Ms. Tuyet could move around the kitchen and supervise the work.
She often stood at the entrance, where the hotel's waiters carried the empty plates to the kitchen to bring new dishes. As each plate passed through the door, she watched carefully to see if the heads of state had left anything behind. When the last plate of the banquet passed, she breathed a sigh of relief because most of the plates were empty.
Ms. Tuyet said that the two White House security staff were also impressed with the dishes that day. Because she saw the two people always close by, Ms. Tuyet asked the staff to make extra portions for them. When it came to the roast duck, they had to exclaim.
"They said that in their country, a duck weighs about 8 kg, has a lot of fat but dry meat. They have never seen such a small duck with such delicious meat," she said.
Ms. Tuyet and her two daughters took a photo with two American security officers. She brought her two daughters to cook the state dinner because they are the rare people who can roll spring rolls according to requirements. Photo: NVCC
The artisan revealed that the duck recipe for the state banquet that day was passed down from her grandmother and mother - who had long since passed away. The duck was roasted in a special way, with traditional Vietnamese flavors, completely unlike Peking duck. Ms. Tuyet believes that for Westerners who are used to eating fatty foods, if they praise her "tiny" roasted duck as delicious, that is a success.
Previously, during the menu review process, a Vietnamese official tried it and also praised it as delicious. "That person said he had just eaten roast duck yesterday, but this duck is so different," said Ms. Tuyet.
According to Ms. Tuyet, the state banquet menu at APEC 2017 includes chicken soup, crispy roasted duck, steamed sea bass with five spices, mini fried crab spring rolls, and purple taro dessert. The female artist is the one who makes the request for ingredients and the hotel team where the event is held is responsible for purchasing and ensuring the quality of the input.
After the heads of state finished their meal, everyone in the kitchen was still not allowed to go out until all the guests left. At this time, the clock struck 3pm, the tension in the kitchen had gradually dissipated.
Amidst the sighs of relief from the chefs, two White House security guards suddenly opened their backpacks. Mrs. Tuyet was surprised to find wine and candy brought from the United States inside. They laid everything out on the table and thanked the kitchen staff. Afterwards, everyone celebrated and at around 5 p.m., she left the hotel, ending 12 hours of serving the state banquet.
"In my entire life as a chef, cooking for a head of state is already a blessing. I was truly honored to have fulfilled that responsibility," said Tuyet, who was later chosen as one of three chefs to serve leader Kim Jong-un in 2019.
Tu Nguyen
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