The Culinary Institute of America

From the vivid street markets of Vietnam, perfumed with tropical fruits…to sun-warmed Sicily and the coastal town of Trapani, where seafood couscous is the signature dish…the world of food takes us places beyond imagining. For a chef, every journey brings new tastes, new ingredients, new skills and inspiration. The more we see, the more we grow. Travel with Mai Pham, a chef, cookbook author and Vietnamese food authority, through the street-food stalls of Hanoi and the floating markets of the Mekong. Meet Ciccio Sultano, Sicily’s acclaim Michelin-starred chef and your guide to the finest Sicilian ingredients. Witness the preparation of an elaborate caponata, the Sicilian eggplant dish, at the hands of chef Carmelo Chiaramonte. Then see another expert’s approach at a farmhouse inn near Siracusa as one of the island’s best home cooks makes the dish her own way. Fasten your seat belt for a whirlwind tour of the world’s best tables. “Savoring the Best of World Flavors: Sicily and Vietnam” is the third edition of The Culinary Institute of America’s World Culinary Arts DVD Series: a first-of-its-kind DVD reference library documenting the “gold standards” of world cuisine. In this edition, we’ll explore the markets and hidden kitchens of Vietnam and Sicily, with local food authorities providing background and history, while leading chefs demonstrate key techniques in step-by-step detail. Download Podcast Video

Istanbul by night. A sparkling city steeped in history, a glistening jewel on the Bosphorus. By day, this great metropolis greets visitors with grand bazaars and glorious spice markets… with wide, open-air plazas and serpentine back streets. The only city in the world that straddles two continents, Istanbul is literally where East meets West. In its famed restaurant kitchens, chefs perpetuate a culinary tradition that integrates remnants of the palace cooking from the days of the Ottoman Empire with the wisdom of home cooks, guardians of many of Turkey’s best recipes. The city’s prime spot on the spice route between Asia and Europe made Istanbul—the former Constantinople—the richest city of its day. Its architectural wealth remains breathtaking, exemplified in the minarets and soaring domes of the sacred Blue Mosque. For the food traveler, Istanbul provides a steady stream of temptations. Street vendors tempt passersby with boreks (Buh Reks) and baklava and, for the adventurous, juicy tripe sandwiches. But in its restaurants, both modest and grand, diners can experience the breadth of Turkish cuisine, a seamless fusion of East and West. Download Podcast Video

Istanbul by night. A sparkling city steeped in history, a glistening jewel on the Bosphorus. By day, this great metropolis greets visitors with grand bazaars and glorious spice markets… with wide, open-air plazas and serpentine back streets. The only city in the world that straddles two continents, Istanbul is literally where East meets West. In its famed restaurant kitchens, chefs perpetuate a culinary tradition that integrates remnants of the palace cooking from the days of the Ottoman Empire with the wisdom of home cooks, guardians of many of Turkey’s best recipes. The city’s prime spot on the spice route between Asia and Europe made Istanbul—the former Constantinople—the richest city of its day. Its architectural wealth remains breathtaking, exemplified in the minarets and soaring domes of the sacred Blue Mosque. For the food traveler, Istanbul provides a steady stream of temptations. Street vendors tempt passersby with boreks (Buh Reks) and baklava and, for the adventurous, juicy tripe sandwiches. But in its restaurants, both modest and grand, diners can experience the breadth of Turkish cuisine, a seamless fusion of East and West. Download Podcast Video

Istanbul by night. A sparkling city steeped in history, a glistening jewel on the Bosphorus. By day, this great metropolis greets visitors with grand bazaars and glorious spice markets… with wide, open-air plazas and serpentine back streets. The only city in the world that straddles two continents, Istanbul is literally where East meets West. In its famed restaurant kitchens, chefs perpetuate a culinary tradition that integrates remnants of the palace cooking from the days of the Ottoman Empire with the wisdom of home cooks, guardians of many of Turkey’s best recipes. The city’s prime spot on the spice route between Asia and Europe made Istanbul—the former Constantinople—the richest city of its day. Its architectural wealth remains breathtaking, exemplified in the minarets and soaring domes of the sacred Blue Mosque. For the food traveler, Istanbul provides a steady stream of temptations. Street vendors tempt passersby with boreks (Buh Reks) and baklava and, for the adventurous, juicy tripe sandwiches. But in its restaurants, both modest and grand, diners can experience the breadth of Turkish cuisine, a seamless fusion of East and West. Download Podcast Video

Singapore: a city, an island, a modern Asian nation. This captivating country at the crossroads of Southeast Asia has multiple identities, countless mysteries and a culture woven from many threads. Now a bustling, orderly metropolis with one of the busiest ports in Asia, Singapore has long been a magnet for people seeking opportunity. The British added Singapore to their crown in 1819, when a young merchant named Thomas Stamford Raffles saw its potential as a trading post and established a British port there. With its prime position on the tip of the Malay Peninsula, on the main sea route between two oceans, Singapore thrived as a commercial outpost, luring Southern Chinese traders and laborers and, later, Indian immigrants. These new arrivals intermarried with the native Malay people, provoking a slow, natural fusion of cultures, religions, architectural style and cuisines. Today, the glamorous Raffles hotel preserves the memory of the visionary who saw Singapore’s potential, and the city’s famous hawker centers preserve the dishes that have emerged from this unique melting pot. KF Seetoh, the author of a popular guide to Singaporean street food and restaurants, gives us a little background on his country’s culinary culture. Download Podcast Video

Singapore: a city, an island, a modern Asian nation. This captivating country at the crossroads of Southeast Asia has multiple identities, countless mysteries and a culture woven from many threads. Now a bustling, orderly metropolis with one of the busiest ports in Asia, Singapore has long been a magnet for people seeking opportunity. The British added Singapore to their crown in 1819, when a young merchant named Thomas Stamford Raffles saw its potential as a trading post and established a British port there. With its prime position on the tip of the Malay Peninsula, on the main sea route between two oceans, Singapore thrived as a commercial outpost, luring Southern Chinese traders and laborers and, later, Indian immigrants. These new arrivals intermarried with the native Malay people, provoking a slow, natural fusion of cultures, religions, architectural style and cuisines. Today, the glamorous Raffles hotel preserves the memory of the visionary who saw Singapore’s potential, and the city’s famous hawker centers preserve the dishes that have emerged from this unique melting pot. KF Seetoh, the author of a popular guide to Singaporean street food and restaurants, gives us a little background on his country’s culinary culture. Download Podcast Video

Singapore: a city, an island, a modern Asian nation. This captivating country at the crossroads of Southeast Asia has multiple identities, countless mysteries and a culture woven from many threads. Now a bustling, orderly metropolis with one of the busiest ports in Asia, Singapore has long been a magnet for people seeking opportunity. The British added Singapore to their crown in 1819, when a young merchant named Thomas Stamford Raffles saw its potential as a trading post and established a British port there. With its prime position on the tip of the Malay Peninsula, on the main sea route between two oceans, Singapore thrived as a commercial outpost, luring Southern Chinese traders and laborers and, later, Indian immigrants. These new arrivals intermarried with the native Malay people, provoking a slow, natural fusion of cultures, religions, architectural style and cuisines. Today, the glamorous Raffles hotel preserves the memory of the visionary who saw Singapore’s potential, and the city’s famous hawker centers preserve the dishes that have emerged from this unique melting pot. KF Seetoh, the author of a popular guide to Singaporean street food and restaurants, gives us a little background on his country’s culinary culture. Download Podcast Video

For the food and wine traveler, southern Spain offers no end of pleasure. From the lively tapas bars of Sevilla and the sherry bodegas of Sanlúcar to the bountiful seafood stalls of Cádiz, gastronomic delights await the adventurous. Vast olive groves and vineyards blanket the region’s hillsides, and in its cellars hang what some experts call the best ham in the world. The Moors, who ruled here for 700 years, called it al-Andalus. Today, we know this land as Andalusia, an arid, sun-swept region where the Moors left their mark on the food, art and architecture—most notably, in Córdoba’s world-famous mosque, or Mezquita. Andalusians live life outdoors, strolling the wide plazas that grace the region’s large cities, pausing for a café con leche in a sidewalk café, and navigating the quiet back streets where hidden tapas bars welcome the tired and thirsty with a glass of chilled fino sherry. Whitewashed houses with flower-filled courtyards line the narrow streets in Andalusia’s villages, while its cities supply diversions like flamenco dancing, late-night dining and—not for the faint hearted—the ancient sport of the bullfight. Download Podcast Video

For the food and wine traveler, southern Spain offers no end of pleasure. From the lively tapas bars of Sevilla and the sherry bodegas of Sanlúcar to the bountiful seafood stalls of Cádiz, gastronomic delights await the adventurous. Vast olive groves and vineyards blanket the region’s hillsides, and in its cellars hang what some experts call the best ham in the world. The Moors, who ruled here for 700 years, called it al-Andalus. Today, we know this land as Andalusia, an arid, sun-swept region where the Moors left their mark on the food, art and architecture—most notably, in Córdoba’s world-famous mosque, or Mezquita. Andalusians live life outdoors, strolling the wide plazas that grace the region’s large cities, pausing for a café con leche in a sidewalk café, and navigating the quiet back streets where hidden tapas bars welcome the tired and thirsty with a glass of chilled fino sherry. Whitewashed houses with flower-filled courtyards line the narrow streets in Andalusia’s villages, while its cities supply diversions like flamenco dancing, late-night dining and—not for the faint hearted—the ancient sport of the bullfight. Download Podcast Video

For the food and wine traveler, southern Spain offers no end of pleasure. From the lively tapas bars of Sevilla and the sherry bodegas of Sanlúcar to the bountiful seafood stalls of Cádiz, gastronomic delights await the adventurous. Vast olive groves and vineyards blanket the region’s hillsides, and in its cellars hang what some experts call the best ham in the world. The Moors, who ruled here for 700 years, called it al-Andalus. Today, we know this land as Andalusia, an arid, sun-swept region where the Moors left their mark on the food, art and architecture—most notably, in Córdoba’s world-famous mosque, or Mezquita. Andalusians live life outdoors, strolling the wide plazas that grace the region’s large cities, pausing for a café con leche in a sidewalk café, and navigating the quiet back streets where hidden tapas bars welcome the tired and thirsty with a glass of chilled fino sherry. Whitewashed houses with flower-filled courtyards line the narrow streets in Andalusia’s villages, while its cities supply diversions like flamenco dancing, late-night dining and—not for the faint hearted—the ancient sport of the bullfight. Download Podcast Video

Citrus, Spanish Mediterranean Cooking, and the Legacy of the Moors with José Andrés and  Dolores Vélez A video seminar from "Spain and the World Table" the 2006 Worlds of Flavor International Conference and Festival at The Culinary Insititute of America at Greystone. Download Podcast Video

Ferran Adrià: Tradition, Invention, and a View to the Future   As presented by Ferran Adrià and José Andrés at the 2006 Worlds of Flavor Conference at The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone. Ferran Adrià is the chef/owner of the Michelin three-star El Bulli restaurant on the Costa Brava in Catalonia, Spain, and is widely considered one of the greatest, most innovative, and most influential chefs in the world. Called “the Salvador Dalí of the kitchen” by Gourmet magazine, Chef Adrià is the co-author (with Juli Soler) of El Bulli 1998–2002. El Bulli is open from April to September; Chef Adria spends the other six months of the year perfecting recipes in his laboratory/workshop, El Taller, in Barcelona. (Roses, Spain)   José Andrés is the chef/owner of Café Atlántico, Jaleo, Zaytinya, and Oyamel restaurants in the Washington, DC area. Chef Andrés is the host of the popular daily television show “Vamos a Cocinar” in Spain, author of Tapas: A Taste of Spain in America, and conference chairman of the 2006 Worlds of Flavor International Conference & Festival at The Culinary Institute of America. Chef Andrés was the 2003 winner of the James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic region, and received the Silver Spoon Award from Food Arts in December 2005. (Washington, DC)Download Podcast Video

The following video contains highlights from interviews conducted with Spanish chefs, cookbook authors and Spanish food authorities. These interviews were captured during “Spain and The World Table,” The Culinary Institute of America’s 2006 Worlds of Flavor International Conference & Festival. Among those interviewed are: Janet Mendel, Maria Jose Sevilla, Clara Maria de Amezua, Nancy Harmon Jenkins, Colman Andrews, Teresa Barrenechea, Jose Andres and Anya von Bremzen.Download Podcast Video

In November 2006, as part of this program series, The Culinary Institute of America staged the critically acclaimed “Spain and the World Table,” the largest and most comprehensive conference ever held in the United States on Spanish food, cooking and wine. The following is a video excerpt from that program. The annual event is the college’s flagship conference, transforming the Napa Valley campus each November into an amazing crossroads of world food and culture. The conference showcases the “gold standards” of world cuisines—from the Mediterranean and Latin America to Asia—that are increasingly reshaping American palates and our industry. In November 2006, as part of this program series, The Culinary Institute of America staged the critically acclaimed “Spain and the World Table,” the largest and most comprehensive conference ever held in the United States on Spanish food, cooking and wine. The following is a video exercpt from that program. The annual event is the college’s flagship conference, transforming the Napa Valley campus each November into an amazing crossroads of world food and culture. The conference showcases the “gold standards” of world cuisines—from the Mediterranean and Latin America to Asia—that are increasingly reshaping American palates and our industry. The Worlds of Flavor International Conference Festival is widely acknowledged as our country’s most influential professional forum on world cuisines and culinary flavor trends. Now in its tenth year, the annual gathering has become a “must attend” for leading chefs, corporate menu decision-makers, foodservice management executives, suppliers, and journalists and other professionals—and always sells out many months in advance. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of its ground-breaking Worlds of Flavor Conference Series, the CIA will stage The Rise of Asia: Culinary Traditions of the East and Flavor Discovery in 21st Century America this coming November. This spectacular, multi-dimensional event will bring together a conference faculty of more than 60 top chefs, market cooks, food writers, beverage experts, food producers, and other authorities from throughout Asia, the Pacific, and across the United States. Download Podcast Video

With Culinary Institute of America chef-instructors to guide you, you'll perfect your technique for making some of the world's classic rice dishes and learn some contemporary ways to present them. Watch Chef Bill Briwa prepare Spicy Lemongrass Tofu Rice Bowl with Asian Basil.Download Podcast Video