Charles Ranhofer

Charles Ranhofer
Charles Ranhofer

Portrait of Charles Ranhofer taken from the flyleaf of his book, The Epicurean.
Born November 7, 1836(1836-11-07)
Saint-Denis, France
Died October 9, 1899(1899-10-09) (aged 62)
New York
Cooking style Classic French

Charles Ranhofer (November 7, 1836, Saint-Denis, France — October 9, 1899, New York) was the chef at the famous Delmonico's Restaurant in New York from 1862 to 1876 and 1879 to 1896. Ranhofer was the author of The Epicurean, (1894), an encyclopedic cookbook of over 1,000 pages, similar in scope to Escoffier's Le Guide Culinaire.

Contents

Career

Ranhofer was sent to Paris at the age of 12 to begin his training by studying pastry-making, and at 16 became the private chef for the prince d'Hénin, comte d'Alsace. In 1856 he moved to New York to become the chef for the Russian consul, and later worked in Washington, D.C. and New Orleans. He returned to France in 1860 for a short time, where he arranged balls for the court of Napoleon III at the Tuileries Palace, but then came back to New York to work at what was then a fashionable location, Maison Dorée. In 1862, Lorenzo Delmonico hired him for Delmonico's, and it was there that Ranhofer made his real fame, though others say that he made the fame of the restaurant as well. At that time, Delmonico's was considered the finest restaurant in the United States. He was the chef at Delmonico's until his retirement in 1896, except for a short hiatus from 1876 and 1879 when he owned the "Hotel American" at Enghien-les-Bains.

Recipes

frontispiece of the Epicurean

Ranhofer invented or made famous a number of dishes that Delmonico's was known for, such as Lobster Newberg, and had a talent for naming dishes after famous or prominent people—particularly those who dined at Delmonico's--as well as his friends, and events of the day. Examples include:

  • "Lobster Duke Alexis," named for then Grand-Duke Alexis in 1871.
  • "Sarah potatoes," named for Sarah Bernhardt.
  • "Lobster Paul Bert," named for Paul Bert.
  • "Chicken filets Sadi Carnot," named for Marie François Sadi Carnot.
  • "Peach pudding à la Cleveland," named for President Grover Cleveland.
  • "Veal pie à la Dickens" and " Beet fritters à la Dickens," named for Charles Dickens in honor of his 1867 visit to New York.
  • "Salad à la Dumas," named in honor of Alexandre Dumas, père.
  • "Lobster Newberg", named in honor of sea captain Ben Wenberg then renamed when Wenberg had a falling-out with the restaurant.
  • "Marshal Ney", a dessert named in honor of Marshal Ney.

Many others may be found under "List of foods named after people."

Ranhofer did not invent baked Alaska, but he popularized it in 1876 when he named it in honor of the newly-acquired Alaskan territory. He also experimented with new foods, acquainting New Yorkers with the "alligator pear" (avocado) in 1895, among other things.

Death

Ranhofer and his wife Rose had five children: three sons and two daughters. He died at home of Bright's Disease in 1899 and was buried at Woodlawn Cemetery.

References

  • "Epicurean; Our own Escoffier; One of the 19th century's greatest chefs was American," by Russ Parsons. Los Angeles Times, December 15, 1999, Food Section, Part H, page 1.
  • Charles Ranhofer: Delmonico's chef de cuisine, by Joe O'Connell.
  • "Obituary: Charles Ranhofer Dead," New York Times, October 11, 1899, page 7.
  • New York Times, October 3, 1925, page 15. Rose Ranhofer obituary identifying her as Charles Ranhofer's widow.
  • The Epicurean by Ranhofer. Feeding America: Historic American Cookbook Project (Michigan State University Library).
  • Kamp, David The United States of Arugula, New York: Broadway Books, 2006.

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Charles Ranhofer — (1836 1899) del The Epicurean. Charles Ranhofer (7 de noviembre de 1836, Saint Denis, Francia 9 de octubre de 1899, Nueva York, Estados Unidos) fue el chef del famoso Delmonico s Restaurant en Nueva York desde los …   Wikipedia Español

  • List of foods named after people — This is a list of food items named after people. :For other lists of eponyms (names derived from people) see eponym. :For a list of eponyms sorted by name see List of eponyms.A* Fillet of Beef Prince Albert – Queen Victoria s Consort Prince… …   Wikipedia

  • Eggs Benedict — Infobox Prepared Food name = Eggs Benedict caption = Eggs Benedict alternate name = country = region = creator = course = served = main ingredient = Eggs, English Muffin, Ham or Bacon and Hollandaise sauce variations = Multiple calories = other …   Wikipedia

  • Lobster Newberg — is a seafood dish made from lobster, butter, cream, cognac, sherry, [These ingredients have largely replaced the original Madeira, which is too sweet for the modern taste for dryness .] eggs and Cayenne pepper. The dish was invented by Ben… …   Wikipedia

  • Historia de la hamburguesa — Hamburguesa de perfil mostrando sus ingredientes típicos: pan, verduras y carne picada …   Wikipedia Español

  • List of French people — This is a list of French people of note.Actors/actressesA*Isabelle Adjani *Renée Adorée *Anouk Aimée *Arletty *Antonin Artaud *Fanny Ardant *Jeanne Aubert *Jean Louis Aubert *Jean Pierre Aumont *Claude Autant Lara *Daniel Auteuil *Charles… …   Wikipedia

  • Baked Alaska — de banana. Baked Alaska (también conocido como Tortilla noruega y Tortilla sorpresa o en francés como Glace au four y Omelette à la norvégienne) es un postre a base de helado colocado en un molde que contiene láminas de pastel o pudín de navidad… …   Wikipedia Español

  • Woodlawn Cemetery — Eingang des Woodlawn Cemetery an der Jerome Avenue …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Bright's disease — is a historical classification of kidney diseases that would be described in modern medicine as acute or chronic nephritis. The term is no longer used, as diseases are now classified according to their more fully understood etiologies.It is… …   Wikipedia

  • Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx — This article refers to the Woodlawn Cemetery in the New York City borough of The Bronx. For other uses, see Woodlawn Cemetery (disambiguation) . Located in The Bronx, Woodlawn Cemetery is one of the largest cemeteries in New York City. It opened… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”