Andreas Viestad (left), host of Scandinavian cooking show 'The Perfect Day', shoots a segment with Jamaican chefs Colin Hylton and Anthony Miller on a boat dock in Bodo, Norway. - photos by Robert Lalah
Anthony Miller and Colin Hylton, the two Jamaican chefs who won this year's Seafood from Norway Culinary Challenge, were recently whisked away to Norway for one week as part of their prize. The trip involved both men touring fish farms and processing plants all across the European nation that currently exports around 80 per cent of saithe fish (we know it better as saltfish) to Jamaica. Miller is from Couples Swept Away in Negril, and Hylton runs Guilt Trip in St Andrew.
One of the perks of the trip was that both chefs were featured in a segment of the popular Scandinavian cooking show, The Perfect Day.
The taping of the segment lasted a little more than an hour and took place in the casual setting of a boat dock in Bodo. The show's colourful host, Andreas Viestad, showed up in a funny-looking green suit with matching scarf and sneakers and spent a few minutes chatting with the men about Jamaicans and saltfish. Viestad writes a food column for the Washington Post, and travels the world to discover different culinary customs and traditions. 'The Perfect Day' is seen on television screens all over the world, so it was a proud moment for Hylton and Miller.
Cheesy moments
Standing on the dock of a bay in Bodo, Norway, Jamaican chefs Colin Hylton (left) and Anthony Miller are being filmed for the Scandinavian cooking show, 'The Perfect Day'.
There were, however, a few cheesy moments during the show. Just before taping began, the show's producers handed the men a knapsack which contained a small bag of boiled ackees. The goal was for it to seem like Viestad just happened to bump into the Jamaicans on the dock and they just 'happened' to have a bag of ackees with them to use as a visual aid while discussing the fruit.
Though a bit painful to watch, Miller and Hylton made the most of it and even offered a few authentic Jamaican cooking tips to the host, who, though widely considered a food expert, is not a trained chef.
At the end of the taping, Viestad told The Gleaner he was happy the Jamaican chefs were going to be on the show. "It's always good to get different perspectives on food. If you invited guests to dinner in Norway you wouldn't serve saltfish, yet in Jamaica it's part of the national dish. This happens with different kinds of food all over the world," he said.