Ahmad Fraijeh

I don’t paint or sketch out my dishes, but I still consider myself a creative cook. I really like working with my hands and handling ingredients, but I also like aesthetics and the art of composing a dish; I feel like I can transform an empty plate into a work of art. What I appreciate most, however, is how cooking brings people together and how food impacts their identity.

I began my career as a cook in Beirut, where I was born, then I worked in different places around the Mediterranean basin like Sardinia and Marbella, as well as in Paris. Then I worked in Algeria and Gambia, before returning to the Gulf countries, in Dubai, Doha and Riyadh.

Cooking is more than a hobby, it is a passion, and if God gives me a long life, I want to cook for the rest of my days.

Food is the most important thing after breathing and your heart beating. Eating is a necessity, but it is also the easiest way to share a moment with someone. For me, the best source of inspiration are my travels and the people I meet.

I started my career working in restaurants, trained by bakers and pastry chefs. These are jobs that use butter in many recipes. I really learned to use butter at work, because it’s not something that’s taught otherwise.

I work with both, but sweet butter is more practical in the kitchen, because it allows me to add my own personal touch – I can then season it as I wish.

Yes, because many of my recipes contain it; and personally, I also use it every  morning at breakfast.

When you have a pile of pancakes, you can add all the blueberries you want, but they won’t taste as good without butter as the main ingredient.So yes, butter is essential to all cuisines in the world because it enhances the flavour of many dishes.