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Nikolaj Coster-Waldau on Playing a Steely, Volatile Chef in ‘A Taste of Hunger’ Posted: 24 Jan 2022 09:00 AM PST TrustNordisk In the Danish film directed by Christoffer Boe, "Game of Thrones" star Coster-Waldau trades King's Landing for an equally high-stakes setting: a restaurant kitchen There's no shortage of movies that explore fire and passion required from ambitious restaurateurs. From Chef to Big Night, and even Burnt or Ratatouille, the passionate, high-stress pursuit of opening and working in restaurants is easy fodder for dramatic tension. But in A Taste of Hunger, the latest film from director Christoffer Boe, the restaurant merely serves as a setting for a crumbling marriage. The film stars Game of Thrones' Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Carsten, a perfection-obsessed chef at the helm of Malus, a top-tier Copenhagen restaurant in hot pursuit of its first Michelin star. Carsten lives next door to Malus, which he runs with his wife Maggie (Katrine Greis-Rosenthal). Everything seems pretty perfect until Carsten discovers an anonymous letter, written originally to him but found by Maggie before he saw it, telling him that she's in love with another man. Eater spoke with Boe and Coster-Waldau about what makes a restaurant the perfect backdrop for relationship drama, how to bring nuance to age-old narratives about volatile chefs, and why the humble hot dog — which features heavily in A Taste for Hunger —is the perfect food for bringing people together. Eater: First things first, for the Game of Thrones fans: Would [your character] Jaime Lannister have been a good cook? Nikolaj Coster-Waldau: It's funny you ask. There was a scene that, for some reason, was cut from the final show, where Jaime is creating this lasagna for his sister Cersei and Brienne of Tarth. He was trying to convince them into some kind of open marriage thing, so he thought it would be a good idea to bring them together and talk about this while he cooked this lasagna. I thought it was a beautiful scene, but the creators thought it was too complicated, all the layers of that storyline. Must've been tricky to film that scene with just one hand. NCW: Very tricky. But he actually uses his golden hand to rinse the water away from the pasta. He would dump the pasta in his hand, put a bit a meat on top, and feed them. As you prepared to portray Carsten in A Taste of Hunger, which chefs did you look to as inspiration? NCW: I spent some time in Copenhagen with Rasmus Kofoed, who runs a restaurant called Geranium. He's just an incredible chef — he won the Bocuse d'Or in 2011, he's been a coach for other countries. He was very gracious, and he spent a lot of time helping me understand not only the food, but the kind of passion and focus and work ethic that goes into creating something like what he's created, and what my character wants to create in the movie. When I was there, the restaurant was serving lunch, and he asked if I wanted to go into the kitchen. I laughed and said "Great idea, what could possibly go wrong there? But okay." He put me in charge of cutting out these little tiny flowers that were decoration, but it was pretty cool because I got to hang out with all these other chefs and just talk to them. He definitely made sure that I couldn't destroy anything. Copenhagen is just very lucky. We have a lot of incredible chefs, and this whole world of eating has just changed so drastically now. Chefs are superstars now, and what they do is art. It has a whole different type of weight. Christoffer Boe: As I was writing the script, I went and visited a lot of restaurants and talked with different chefs. When we were in pre-production, I took the actors to different restaurants and had them experience these rooms, talking to the chefs and the waiters so that they could understand the whole deal of how to make a restaurant happen. Just about when we started shooting, Rasmus Monk opened up Alchemist, which became very famous, and he runs that with his wife. I took inspiration from how they do this business together, basically together 18 hours a day, and have been doing that for seven years. Do you consider yourself people who are "into food," the type who would go to a restaurant like Malus? NCW: I like food, but it's not like I have to go to an amazing restaurant all the time. I like a food truck as much as a fancy restaurant, but I do go now and then. I like to give friends or my wife that experience. For a couple years, while I was filming Game of Thrones, we had a bet every year where the loser had to take the others to the best restaurant in the world, which was incredible. But that's a once-a-year type thing. Is there something specific that makes the physical act of cooking work differently on screen than, say, sword-fighting when you're playing Jaime Lannister? NCW: Cooking is a form of communication. Obviously we need nourishment, but it's more than that. As an actor, it was really interesting for me because the best chefs in the world are able to turn their food into an extension of their personalities and are able to convey that to the customers. In media and in culture more broadly, there are a number of tropes associated with chefs — they're volatile and sometimes abusive. How did you seek to portray a chef in a different way than in other films? NCW: He does have a temper, because there's a lot of pressure involved in these things. This couple has put their whole life savings into this restaurant to fulfill this dream. That's stressful. It was interesting because all the extras that you see in the movie are people who work in the restaurant business, people who had spent a lot of time in kitchens, and they could tell me if what I was doing felt natural. There's a scene where Carsten loses his shit, and fires a sous chef. It's very tense, and I asked the extras if this was normal, and they all said "we've been there." Every one of them had stories about people throwing stuff at them or yelling. So it is kind of a cliche when you hear about a chef having a bad temper, but these kitchens are tense. These experiences aren't great, but they are real. From their perspective, the good guys are the ones who come back after they blow up to make it right. Christoffer, is that why you chose a restaurant to serve as the setting for this story that's centered on a crumbling marriage? CB: Restaurants themselves are just very filmic, inherently. You can see that by opening Netflix and seeing how many food shows are out there. It's very aesthetically pleasing, and these places are very reflective of the humans and cultures and ideas that are put into them. The industry is full of people who are cut-throat and ambitious, who want to have these Michelin stars. The movie itself is very sexy. Was it natural to weave that sensuality into this story about an intense environment like a restaurant? CB: There are few constants and basic elements of life, and love and sex and food are most of them. For many thousands of years, our basic endeavor has been to provide food for ourselves and in doing that, we share it with each other and connect with other people. In that sense, there is something very intimate about food. One of the first things anthropologists do when they're studying different cultures is look at how those people share food, how they cook. It really is a way into the human heart, and in more ways than just romance. We need to have food, and it could be so basic, so cheap, that you could just eat and never think about it, but people put so much passion and work into it and turn it into art. Even though it is about a modernist restaurant, the central dish in A Taste of Hunger is a classic Danish hot dog. It brings Maggie and Carsten together more than once. Why a hot dog? CB: In Denmark, we pride ourselves on having a very sophisticated hot dog, but it's still a very simple, fast food. It's something that most people are familiar with, and when you talk to chefs, they'll tell you that the hot dog is the perfect umami dish. It's got all the things you desire in food — the familiarity, the warmth, the different flavors blending together. Even though they are seeking to achieve this incredibly pristine food, what saves them in the end is a cheap hot dog. A Taste of Hunger is set for release in theaters and on-demand on January 28.

The Best Dip Recipes, According to Eater Editors Posted: 24 Jan 2022 06:30 AM PST Knorr hot spinach and artichoke dip. | Stefania Orrù When an elaborate dinner isn't in the cards, a big dip with crusty bread or crackers is just as good — if not better Sometimes, nothing hits the spot quite like a big bowl of dip. Not just dip as an appetizer to the main course, or dip as an afterthought left to languish beside the charcuterie board, but dip as the star of the show. During the winter, post-holiday cooking exhaustion sets in, so a perfectly pureed bowl of dip — especially if that dip appears in a bread bowl or next to some lightly toasted crackers, or with a big swirl of olive oil on top — can be a miracle. Here are seven Eater editors' go-to recipes for those special occasions when dip is what's for dinner. Beau Monde Dill Dip Tish Gidney, Allrecipes Growing up in my house, two things were appetizer staples at parties: rumaki (the nostalgic bacon-wrapped water chestnuts on a toothpick) and dill dip served in a pumpernickel bread bowl. They might feel a little dated, but each worked its way into my own entertaining repertoire, at least for some occasions. My mom's recipe is very similar to the one linked above, though she always added a little garlic powder. I suggest swapping fresh dill and parsley for the dried (and upping the quantity of the dill a bit), and I'll also usually serve some pickled vegetables alongside the dip-filled bread bowl. The secret to any version is Beau Monde seasoning. Despite the fact that Beau Monde is basically just salt, celery seed, and onion powder (and not a seasoning blend I have come across in any context beyond this dip), I still keep a bottle in my pantry in case I need some for an impromptu gathering. — Missy Frederick, cities manager Buffalo Chicken Dip STL Cooks There are many ways to prepare Buffalo chicken dip. There are recipes that call for minced garlic or a dash of vinegar or sour cream or blue cheese. I'm sure these are all perfectly fine, but for me, the platonic ideal of Buffalo chicken dip was the first one I tasted shortly after I moved to St. Louis. It was at trivia night, a classic St. Louis activity which usually takes place in a community center, and participants bring their own food, the saltier and junkier the better. This dip had been prepared by my coworker Chad, who told me it contained just cream cheese, ranch dressing, hot sauce, cheddar cheese, and, of course, chicken (rotisserie or canned). You combine all these things in a casserole dish and then eat it hot, with tortilla chips. And voila! Simple, basic, salty Midwestern ambrosia. It contains three of the basic food groups, so it can be justified as a meal. Which I have. — Aimee Levitt, Eater Chicago deputy editor Zahav's Hummus Tehina Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook, NYT Cooking I can't say for certain that hummus is the first dip — like, ever, created by humans to eat — but given the Middle Eastern origins of the chickpea, sesame seed, and ancient civilization, it just might be. In any event, hummus reigns supreme over other dips, and chef Michael Solomonov's recipe is the one to rule them all. One clue as to why is the recipe is named hummus tehina instead of just hummus: Tehina, or tahini, is an underrated essential ingredient in any good hummus, and Solomonov's generous tahini-to-chickpea ratio is one reason this recipe is so good. A few more reasons: Letting the chickpeas soak overnight, then cook down to a mush, yields exceptional smoothness. So does using a blender, not a food processor. And grating the garlic and letting it soak in lemon juice and salt mellows out the garlic's bite. Follow each step to a tee (no rushing or skimping!) and you'll be rewarded with the creamiest, most flavorful hummus that can be eaten endlessly, with any topping or accoutrement, in place of any snack or meal. It's been working for thousands of years. — Ellie Krupnick, director of editorial operations Alder's Pub Cheese Melissa Clark, NYT Cooking Hello, I am a Chicagoan, what can you do for me in the genre of utopian Great Lakes fantasia? If Mars Cheese Castle (a tourist attraction on the northern side of the Illinois-Wisconsin border — nay, a legend) had a moat they'd fill it with this pub cheese. I dream of a fake log cabin interior, with a relish tray, and this is the centerpiece. Once I had a supper club-themed dinner party, and I cut my finger on a mandoline and bled into the potatoes, but everything went off without a hitch for this mauve-colored cheese dip, which gets its pallor from an entire bottle of reduced red wine, no injury required. Just be careful scraping it out of the food processor. — Rachel P. Kreiter, senior copy editor Hot Spinach & Artichoke Dip Knorr I first had this hot spinach and artichoke dip at a friend's barbecue over a decade ago. I demanded to know the recipe, and was shocked to find out it's right off the back of a Knorr vegetable soup packet. Trust me: Everyone who tries it has the same reaction. It's the definition of nothing fancy: mix a few ingredients together, heat, eat, boom, done. There's plenty of texture and creamy, savory goodness throughout. (I omit the water chestnuts since they're not my favorite.) I've served this with pita chips, Tostitos Scoops, piped onto fancy crackers, smushed on some toast, and have definitely chipped away at its leftovers by the spoonful straight from the fridge. It's also a pretty easy recipe to lie about if you need to impress but can't stomach admitting it isn't homemade. I'm not judging! My recommendation: Scoop some on a burger immediately, if not sooner. It'll change your life. — Stefania Orrù, supervising producer Fromage Fort Deb Perelman, Smitten Kitchen I love any recipe that boils down to "put your junk and scraps in here," especially one that — no matter what — turns out convincingly elegant. I've made this fromage fort spread with all combinations of cheese and herbs, even those that seem like they absolutely wouldn't go well together, but through the magic of white wine and garlic it always ends up tasting like homemade Boursin, the ideal cheese spread. As always, more garlic and herbs never hurt anyone. — Jaya Saxena, senior writer Easy Muhammara Dip Minimalist Baker When a cooking school classmate introduced me to muhammara over a decade ago, I quickly became enamored of it. Typically made from roasted red peppers, walnuts, breadcrumbs, pomegranate molasses, ground Aleppo pepper, and olive oil, it's a Syrian-born dip served in Turkey and throughout the Middle East. When I first learned about it I had a hard time finding it in restaurants, so I began making my own with some help from a Saveur recipe. It's a simple and extremely forgiving dip to make: While you can take the time to roast your own peppers, jarred ones also do the trick, and you can play around with the amounts of pomegranate molasses, Aleppo pepper, breadcrumbs, and other spices to customize it to your taste. Lately I've been using the Minimalist Baker's recipe as my guide, and putting the results on everything from grain bowls to Wasa crackers to smoked salmon. Nutty, spicy, sweet, and hearty, there are very few things it's not good with, though if I'm honest, a lot of the time I eat it straight from the container, and that works pretty well, too. — Rebecca Marx, senior editor

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