Pigeon with Wild Fountain Cress

This is a recipe for pigeon by six-star Chef Marc Veryat (both his restaurants garnered three Michelin stars), one of the most famous chefs in Europe and considered by some to be the best chef in the world. He is known for his inventive cuisine, extensive use of mountain plants and wild herbs, and for specializing in theatrical molecular gastronomy. Eating in his restaurant la Maison de Marc Veryat and le Ferme de mon Pere is more than just the usual fine dining. It is also an entertaining, cultural, and full-sensory artistic experience. Rather than the typical use French ingredients such as butter, eggs, flour, cream, and oil, he uses wild flowers, mountain herbs, mountain plants, and roots harvested in the French Alps. In this sense, many of his recipes have a restorative power such as this recipe for Pigeon with wild mountain cress.

With his signature black wide-brimmed hat and rustic boots, Chef Mark Veryat looks more like a shaman healer/magician than a French chef. The preparation of this particular recipe reflects his wild cowboy look and rugged attitude. Although this dish epitomizes simple country cooking, you might be shocked to find out that a 16-course menu in Chef Veryat’s restaurant costs around 350 euros, making it one of the most expensive restaurants in the world. Thankfully, he shares his recipe for anyone to try at home without the need for shelling too much cash. In fact, you can get the two main ingredients used in this recipe for free, that is, if you are willing to forage for wild cress and hunt pigeons in the woods or the city. To make this exciting recipe, you also need whey or milk serum, which is a byproduct of the manufacture of cheese.