Thailand and Peru have one thing above all else in common, a rich tradition and enormous popularity of their food. Once a delicacy only sampled upon a rare trip to the country, Peruvian cuisine has exploded across the global scene and has been unstoppable since 2021 when Ferran Adrià, a 3 Michelin Star Catalan chef from Spain’s Costa Brava, considered one of the best chefs in the world, announced that Peru held the key to the future of gastronomy.
H.E. Ms. Cecila Galaretta, Ambassador of Peru and her Third Secretary Jazmina Clemente visited Dusit Thani College to discover how Thailand’s first and largest hospitality school under Dusit International has become the epicenter of Thai Culinary and Hospitality education and to explore ways on how Dusit Thani College and Dusit International could support the Ambassador’s goals of raising awareness of Peruvian food and cuisine in Bangkok and across the region.
As it turns out, Dusit International is already taking the lead. It recently opened NóMADA Bangkok, part of the Baan Dusit Thani complex, an escape to the exotic flavors of South American fusion (including Peruvian cuisine) and led by Dusit’s very own South American Chef Chef Andre Severino. And for guests who want to learn how to cook the food they just enjoyed, The Food School, also owned by Dusit International runs Peruvian and South American Cuisine Workshops with the same chef who prepared the meals at NóMADA.
From an education and training perspective, Dusit Thani College also has a role to play. It will explore offering an exchange program with students from top Peruvian hospitality and culinary schools to allow them to not only gain valuable education and work experiences in Bangkok but to also promote and demonstrate the art of Peruvian cuisine for the public.
“We most certainly plan to work with The Embassy of Peru to support their initiative of building awareness of Peruvian food, people and culture and we’re excited to see what not only Dusit Thani College but the entire Dusit Family of businesses can offer in terms of promotion, hosting of courses and education of Peruvian talents” commented Frouke Gerbens, Rector at Dusit Thani College.
“Imagine if we create a Peruvian open house day where anyone can discover Peruvian Cuisine from the young chefs from Peru, studying at Dusit Thani College, that will become the future leaders of the culinary industry, that would make a big impact.” Commented John Lohr, Executive Director of External Affairs at Dusit Thani College.
“While Peru might seem a world apart, in fact you are surrounded by Peruvian foods every day,” commented Embassy officials. “Most of the blueberries, grapes and avocados that are sold in Thailand actually come from Peru. In terms of the extremely popular “Superfoods” Quinoa, Maca, Sacha inchi, Cherimoya, and others, Peru is also one of the main providers to Thailand.”
“With these surprising facts and more, the Embassy of Peru and Dusit Thani College hope to spread the knowledge to the international Bangkok community.”
To learn more about Peruvian Food and Courses:
NóMADA – https://www.baandusitthani.com/nomada-bangkok/
Peruvian Products – http://peruthai.or.th/trade_product.php
Peruvian Culinary courses offered by The Food School – https://thefoodschool.com/course/peruvian-south-american-cuisine-workshop/