France reclaims world Pâté en Croûte title from Japan
France has regained the world pâté en croûte title after chef Thibault Gonzales won the 2024 championship final in Lyon.
France has regained the crown for the world’s best pâté en croûte, ending several years of near-total dominance by Japanese chefs.
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The final of the Championnat du Monde de Pâté en Croûte took place in Lyon on Monday, where Thibault Gonzales, from Thuir in the Pyrénées-Orientales, claimed first place.
The 42-year-old chef impressed judges with a pâté combining Basque pork belly, duck breast, foie gras and veal sweetbreads, all enclosed in a carefully crafted pastry.
His win brings the title back to the homeland of the dish, after Japanese chefs secured four of the last five competitions.
Japanese chef Seigo Ishimoto, who runs a French restaurant in Chiba, finished third with a game-based pâté made from venison, wild boar and duck.
Second place was awarded to French competitor Jonathan Dudek.
A classic of French gastronomy, pâté en croûte, a mixture of pressed meats baked inside shortcrust pastry and eaten hot or cold, remains widely available in charcuteries, markets and supermarkets across France.
Gonzales, visibly moved after his win, said the creation he presented in Lyon represented “the culmination of two years’ work.”