MARIE-ANTOINE CARÊME: BIOGRAPHY, WORKS AND CONTRIBUTIONS - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

Marie-Antoine Carême (1784-1833) was a renowned French gourmet and chef, who also excelled in the area of ​​architecture. Mainly, his great contribution to the world of cooking consisted in being the first European to study the famous French sauces; this research was the one that immortalized him within the gastronomic environment.

His work entitled L'art de la cuisine française is comprised in its entirety by five volumes, which were published between the years 1833 and 1844. In fact, volumes II and V were published after his death, while volumes IV and V were written by his follower Plumerey, from the notes that Carême left when he died.

Despite the importance of this gourmet for the art of food, there is almost no bibliography in Spanish that addresses the studies and life of this character. Because of this, connoisseurs today are faced with the arduous task of translating the vast French documents addressing Carême's knowledge.

Biography

Marie-Antoine Carême was born in Paris, France, specifically on Rue du Bac, into a family that is not only very large, but also very low-income. In fact, it is said that Carême was the brother of 24 other children of the marriage, although some sources indicate that there were actually 15 children in total.

The misery of the Carême family was of such magnitude that even the father decided to abandon Marie-Antoine, arguing that he no longer had enough money to support him.

However, according to some sources, the father encouraged him to get ahead and find work. Marie-Antoine was only 10 years old at the time: it was the year 1793.

Survivor of abandonment

During the 18th century it was quite common for children belonging to very poor families to be left to their own devices, which meant that the little ones were subjected to terrible and exploitative jobs or, in the worst case, practiced begging and prostitution.

Fortunately, that was not the case for Carême: after a devastating day in search of work and accommodation, the young man found a tavern located in the Maine neighborhood called La Fricassée de Lapin.

Seeing Marie-Antoine abandoned and hungry, the owner took pity on him and decided to offer him accommodation and employment as a kitchen helper.

It was in this tavern that the young Carême learned various techniques of the trade and discovered his vocation. In fact, at the age of 16 (in the year 1799) he managed to get a job at Chez Bailly, becoming an apprentice to the pastry chef of the same name.

This was a great achievement for Marie-Antoine, as by then Chez Bailly was considered the best pastry chef in the whole city.

Emergence in the world of cooking

Later, Bailly realized Marie-Antoine Carême's enthusiasm and passion for cooking; therefore, it allowed him to go to study on his free afternoons at the National Library of France, one of the most important in the world.

This allowed him to learn much more about the trade, as well as learn about another of his passions: architecture.

One of the most admirable aspects of Carême is that the young man could neither read nor write, so he was forced to learn on his own and in a self-taught way. In this way, through different readings, he was able to perfect his culinary techniques.

Likewise, within the library he studied great architects such as Andrea Palladio and Tertio, showing that he also had a great talent for drawing and design. In fact, Marie-Antoine combined his two passions, as it is said that he transferred his architectural knowledge to his performance as a pastry chef.

Marie-Antoine Carême is even said to have reproduced various architectural models in sugar and glazes, which made Bailly's pastry even more striking and famous. Due to this, the business began to receive orders from all over, which began to give Carême a name within the gastronomic world.

Job change

At the age of 18 -in 1801- Carême decided to quit her job at Bailly to continue climbing into French cuisine. It was then that he began working for the Gendron heirs pastry shop, where he dedicated himself to making the “extras” (in other words, the reinforcements) for the great banquets in Paris.

However, in 1804 he left the Gendron patisserie and, with enough savings and a great growing fame, managed to open his own patisserie located on Rue du Paix.

During these years, Carême continued to learn about the trade, having as teachers renowned chefs such as Richaud and Bouchet, of whom he himself spoke later.

The Cook of Kings

Between 1814 and 1815 the anti-Napoleonic armies were installed in Paris, a fact related to the Battle of Waterloo. Therefore, Carême's culinary services were hired by the Russian Tsar Alexander I, who was in Paris thanks to the alliance that had been established between the two countries to end Napoleon Bonaparte.

Then, in 1816, it was the Prince of Wales who requested the services of the already renowned Marie-Antoine Carême. In addition, in 1818 she traveled to Vienna to offer her culinary talent to Lord Steward, who was a British ambassador within the Austrian territory.

In 1819 he returned to Paris to this time serve the princess of Bragation; however, at the request of Lord Steward she was to return to Vienna. She finally returned to Paris in 1820, where she continued to work for other royals such as Prince Sterhazy and the male Rostchild.

Death

In 1829 Marie-Antoine Carême decided to retire from the world of gastronomy and aristocratic life to dedicate herself to writing and expressing her knowledge.

He died in 1833 at 48 years of age due to his proximity to toxic gases from the kitchen, which he inhaled continuously during his culinary career. Currently, his remains rest in the famous Montmartre cemetery.

Plays

According to the critics, Carême not only wrote cookbooks, but rather treatises, since his books are not only a catalog of recipes, but also the author dedicated himself to analyzing each of the ingredients, foods and dishes, being meticulous with the steps to carry out the preparation.

Likewise, the spirit of Carême's works is didactic, synthesizing and also current; At present the author's classification of sauces is still used, as well as his treatise on stews, which is said to have had an encyclopedic character.

In addition to her popular work L'art de la cuisine française au XIXe siècle, Marie-Antoine Careme is also credited with other texts on architecture, such as Projects d'architecture pour les embellissements de Paris et de Saint-Pétersbourg.

Likewise, he also wrote the books Projects d'architecture pour les embellissements de Paris and Projects d'architecture, dedicated to Alexandre 1.er, all published in 1821.

Contributions

Marie-Antoine Carême made many contributions to the art of gastronomy, from the manufacture of various utensils to improvements in hygiene standards within the kitchen. In turn, Carême's funds and sauces are considered as the basis of what cooking is as a discipline today.

Uniform

One of the greatest contributions that Marie-Antoine made to the world of cooking was the introduction of the famous white uniform, which is still in use today.

He also implemented the use of hat that is known today. Connoisseurs of the subject indicate that it was inspired by the headdresses that the ladies of the Austrian court used on their hair.

This change in the uniform was intended to improve the presentation of the cooks, demonstrating the hygiene and cleanliness of those who were destined to handle food.

It is said that Carême took this step when she visited Russian kitchens, as she was shocked when she realized the disorder and lack of hygiene that these cooks had.

Correct nutrition

Another of Marie-Antoine Carême's contributions was that she was one of the first to worry about promoting adequate nutrition, since the author was concerned about eliminating excess fat from meals, especially dinners, since he was looking for a balance in the percentage of calorie intake.

Likewise, Carême fought against the abuse of spices and condiments, as well as the placing of meat and fish on the same plate.

Furthermore, the author is said to possess excellent decorative taste; Marie-Antoine promoted the idea that food should not only satisfy the stomach, but also the eye.

In fact, such was his aesthetic concern that the gourmet dedicated himself to designing different styles of tableware, which enjoyed a chromatic exquisiteness. After being designed, the author sent them to be manufactured with the best glassmakers in the country.

References

1. Ruiz, M (2000). Antonin Carême: the chef of kings and the king of chefs. Retrieved on September 21, 2018 from ResearchGate: researchgate.net
2. Inga, P (2017). Proposal for the elaboration of sauces based on mortiño, joyapa, pitajaya and uvilla for application in poultry and fish. Retrieved on September 21, 2018 from the Institutional Repository of the University of Cuenca: dspace.ucuenca.edu.ec
3. Pierre, F (2017). The French cook. Retrieved on September 21, 2018 from Google Books: books.google.es
4. Capella, J (2015). Cooking is designing. Is it comparable to designing a chair and cooking a pizza? Retrieved on September 21, 2018 from Revistes Catalanes amb Accés Obert: raco.cat
5. Weiss, A (2013). French food: On the table, on the page, and in French culture. Retrieved on September 21, 2018 from Taylor & Francis Group: taylorfrancis.com