Lufthansa has engaged Wahabi Nouri, who has just been named “German Chef of the Year 2010” by the Gault Millau restaurant guide, as its forthcoming Star Chef. Born in Casablanca, Morocco, Nouri combines classic, French-inspired haute cuisine with an exquisite oriental flair at his renowned restaurant – Piment – in Hamburg. Lufthansa passengers travelling First Class and Business Class on intercontinental routes can look forward to tasting his culinary creations in the months of May and June.
In First Class, there will be a choice of three starters: lobster terrine with baby leek, curry cream and papaya relish; beef à la Mechoui presented with carrot pesto; and asparagus mousse with mixed salad. To follow, passengers can choose seafood and shellfish bisque with cilantro or a salad of frisée, romaine lettuce and arugula with herb mushrooms and carrots served with a tomato and tarragon or yoghurt and dill dressing.
Main courses are lamb shoulder tajine with stewed eggplant and zucchini and sweet potato; breast of guinea fowl filled with almonds accompanied by beans and Macaire potatoes; and fried turbot in orange and port sauce with braised fennel and basmati rice.
The Lufthansa Classics in May and June are freshly harvested asparagus with Hollandaise sauce, different types of ham and parsley potatoes. To round off the menu, Wahabi Nouri has created tempting desserts: a spicy chocolate delice with cherry sauce and mango sorbet or crème of Ras el-Hanout with raspberries. A variety of select cheeses served with fig chutney, grapes and walnuts will also be offered.
Culinary delights of Wahabi Nouri likewise await passengers in Business Class. As an hors d’oeuvre, there is, for example, coffee-marinated salmon with oriental potato salad and peppermint oil. Among the main courses is lamb stew braised in saffron and ginger presented with chick peas and mashed potatoes. The Lufthansa Classics dishes are Swabian dumplings in vegetable broth in May and spaetzle cheese noodles with fried caramelised onions in June. A variety of desserts will be offered, including a delicious soft fig and date cake, fruit salad, curd mousse and marinated strawberries. Halloumi, labneh and sumac cheese with sun-dried tomatoes will also be served.
Wahabi Nouri grew up in Frankfurt. After completing his chef training at the Weingut Nack restaurant in Gau-Bischofsheim in Rhine-Hesse, he worked under renowned top chefs such as Harald Wohlfahrt and Eckhard Witzigmann. Until the end of the 90s, Nouri worked for the international caterer Kofler & Kompanie, where he rose to become chef de cuisine.
In 2000 he opened his own restaurant – Piment – in the trendy district of Eppendorf in Hamburg. There he made a name for himself because of his sophisticated combination of spices from his native Morocco and classic French cuisine, and only one year later he was awarded a Michelin star. In 2004 and 2006 he won the German Masters and then represented Germany at the Bocuse d’Or, the unofficial world championship in the art of cooking.
