Photography David Lineton
Stylist Alice Andrews

In a studio in North London we recreated a Dutch still life painting. We asked three chefs from different culinary and cultural backgrounds to cook us one of their famed dishes which are intrinsic to their culinary DNA.

Mexican chef, Santiago Lastra, of Kol restaurant, is a selfdescribed ‘nomad Mexican chef’. His flavours are bold, punchy and unapologetically tantalising on the taste buds. He cooked his famous chocolate tamal, yet langoustines and seafoods, dry chili and wild mushrooms are his go-to ingredients.

Andrew Wong of the Michelin awarded restaurant A.Wong cooked his famous Egg Custard Buns. Sichuan peppers, chilis, pomegranate, eggs and limes are ingredients inherent to his restaurant. Look closely and you may discover them exploding from the picture.

The result is such: Elizabeth Haigh is a Singaporean-born chef who won a Michelin star at the Hackney restaurant Pidgin. She cooked her steamed Hainaenese chicken, and pandam, garlic, ginger and chilis are all on constant rotation in her kitchen. Her culinary style is described as bold and exciting, as she fuses her Singaporean–British heritage and fine dining cooking experience with a passion for woodfire cooking.

The photographs are intensely realistic but are aimed to confront and intrigue the viewer. Look closely and admire the delicate detail of the shot, as with everything its permanence is wavering.