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Let there be no mistake—Chef Erik Ramirez makes a mean Pollo a la Brasa, ceviche, and Lomo Saltado. But when he puts ponzu and daikon in that ceviche, or bacon and banana in his quinoa, the message is clear: there’s more to Peruvian cuisine than meets the eye. At Ramirez’s Michelin-starred Brooklyn restaurant, Llama Inn, the spotlight is on flavor, and he’ll go great lengths to achieve it—like growing huacatay, an Andean herb, right on Llama Inn’s rooftop to make a lapping-good green sauce for roast chicken. Meanwhile, the charred octopus ceviche gets a sprinkling of togarashi.Wait. Japanese chile in ceviche? That’s not Peruvian, that’s fusion. But Ramirez will tell you that cultural combinations are fluid in Peru, where there are even specialized terms for them: “Chifa” to describe Chinese-Peruvian and “Nikkei” for Japanese-Peruvian. You can probably taste the glossy umami depth of Chinese oyster sauce in the Lomo Saltado, and Ramirez serves it with scallion pancakes so diners can build their own Lomo "tacos."Ramirez hasn’t always been this in tune with his Peruvian palate. Having been raised in New Jersey on his mother’s traditional arroz con pollo and rich stews, he wanted to widen his horizons when he started his culinary career in NYC and sought out a ticket to another country’s kitchen. He developed classic French and American skillsets at Eleven Madison Park and Irving Mill, respectively, which shine as you watch him swiftly slice an onion or emulsify sauces to silky perfection.But a trip to Peru shed new light on the food he'd grown up eating when a mind-blowing ceviche changed everything: “I was just like, wow...I couldn’t believe what I’d been missing out on for 28 years,” he recalls.Outside Llama Inn, the backdrop of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway helps set the pace for his food: dynamic, never stagnant. “It’s New York cooking with a Peruvian attitude and heartbeat,” he says. “I knew it was going to translate because the flavor profiles of Peruvian cuisine are delicious. Delicious is delicious no matter what continent you are on.” That’s certainly the case in the dishes Ramirez has made for Panna using ingredients that may raise eyebrows, but which make total sense in your mouth. Pollo a la Brasa, an iconic Peruvian dish, carries a funky whop of Chinese black bean paste in the marinade; carapulcra, an indigenous pork mole features papas secas, freeze-dried potatoes that almost look like pasta. Last but not least, there’s ceviche, swimming in a gingery, vegetal “Leche de Tigre” that will inspire an “Aha!” moment in your mouth.Once you source a few key, special ingredients, the prep is simple, the flavors original yet grounded. His dishes have something for everyone: If you already love Peruvian food, these recipes will shake up your favorites with New York swagger. And if you’re new to Peru? You’re in for a delicious ride.Erik's Restaurant:Llama Inn (Brooklyn, NY)

Growing up in Essex, where his parents run their own highly respected pub/restaurant in Clavering, Jamie Oliver was frequently found helping in the kitchen. At 16, Jamie left school to complete his training at Westminster Catering College. After spending time working in France and at Antonio Carluccio’s Neal Street Restaurant in London, Jamie joined the acclaimed River Café, where he worked for three and a half years alongside Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers. In 1997, Jamie was featured in a television documentary about the River Café. Jamie was then offered his own television show, and The Naked Chef was born. The concept was to strip food down to its bare essentials, and Jamie’s hands-on style and general laid-back outlook was like a breath of fresh air, inspiring everyone to cook. The first U.S. show aired in 1999. The Naked Chef book accompanied the television series and became an instant best-seller. A second and third television series was filmed, along with the second and third tie-in books, all published by Hyperion in the United States: The Return of the Naked Chef and Happy Days with the Naked Chef. Jamie spent the autumn of 2001 taking his show on the road; the Happy Days Tour was a huge success with more than 17,000 people packing theatres in the U.K. The tour then travelled to Australia and New Zealand with sold-out crowds in seven cities. In 2001, by personal invitation from Tony Blair, Jamie also cooked for the prime minister of Italy at Downing Street. Jamie wanted to ‘give something back’ to the catering industry, so he opened a training restaurant in 2001 for young people who were not in full-time education or employment. Cameras documented him as he spent the year setting up a training scheme, the restaurant and the charity into which all the profits would be channeled. The series, Jamie’s Kitchen, became one of the biggest hit shows of the year in the U.K. It has now been shown in more than 35 countries and the tie-in book, also called Jamie’s Kitchen, became a runaway success. The triumph of the restaurant was shown when it won Tatler Best Restaurant Award 2003 and the Academy Award of Excellence at the Tio Pepe Carlton London Restaurant Awards the same year. Jamie was awarded an MBE in 2003 for his contribution to the hospitality industry. The Fifteen Foundation charity now owns Fifteen London and continues its work, recently recruiting the sixth year of students for training in London. The first Fifteen franchise opened in Amsterdam in 2004 and subsequent Fifteens have opened in Cornwall, the U.K. and Melbourne, Australia, in 2006. Motivated by the lack of nutrition in U.K. school lunches, Jamie wanted to educate and motivate kids and school administrators to enjoy cooking and eating nutritious lunches. He launched a national campaign called Feed Me Better with an online petition for better school meals that garnered 271,677 signatures. In March 2005, Jamie took the petition to 10 Downing Street where the government pledged an extra $550 million to improve the standard of school meals and to provide training for lunch workers and equipment for schools. More than seven months of hard work and filming culminated in the award-winning series Jamie’s School Dinners, which prompted a public outcry to change the school meals system. A follow-up documentary, Jamie’s Return To School Dinners, aired in the U.K. in September 2006, and the British government further invested in school meals and food education for school children as a result of Jamie’s new findings. Jamie’s Great Italian Escape, a series based on his travels around Italy and his love of Italian food, followed his school movement and was accompanied by his sixth book, Jamie’s Italy. In addition to Jamie’s television programs and books, Jamie works with top U.K. supermarket chain Sainsbury’s, advising them on how to further improve the quality and variety of supermarket food. He has also designed several lines of quality tableware and serveware with Royal Worcester, including the most recent range, Simply Blue. Working with T-Fal, Jamie has launched three lines of cookware called the Jamie Oliver Professional Series, most recently The Italian Series. Jamie has also launched an Italian food range and has a wide range of gift foods, which are distributed internationally. He has also developed a great kitchen gadget called the Flavour ShakerTM, which launched in the U.K. in 2005 and is also being launched internationally. Jamie’s seventh book, Cook With Jamie, was published in October 2007 by Hyperion Books. All of Jamie’s profits from this book are going to the Fifteen Foundation to help more young people start a career in the catering industry. Through 2006 and early 2007, Jamie filmed a series and wrote a book, both called Jamie At Home. He has been successfully growing fruits, vegetables and herbs at his Essex farmhouse since 2004. The book and series, both released in 2008, reflect his new love of gardening organically as well as featuring delicious recipes inspired by the produce of his garden.

For the past 15 years, Chef Tyler Florence (www.tylerflorence.com) has delighted the masses by sharing the sights, sounds and flavors of his unique culinary vision with fans around the world. After graduating from the prestigious culinary program at Johnson & Wales University, Florence tackled the Big Apple where he helmed multiple acclaimed restaurants and established himself as one of New York City’s finest young stars. In New York, he honed his culinary skills under the tutelage of some of the city's premier chefs, including Charlie Palmer at Aureole, Marta Pulini at Mad 61 and Rick Laakonen, ultimately becoming executive chef at Cafeteria. As the buzz about the charismatic young chef’s food picked up steam, a fresh new television network took notice; the rest is history. After more than 14 years as a Food Network star, Florence has taken his food and his wit across the globe, finely tuning what is regarded as one of America’s most important culinary voices. He has starred in such series as How to Boil Water, his cooking show for novices; Food 911, his hugely popular "recipe rescue" show; as well as his signature series, Tyler's Ultimate. Florence has also hosted numerous other Food Network shows and specials, including Planet Food, All American Festivals and My Country, My Kitchen. Tyler is also a regular guest on The Today Show, CNN, The View, The Tonight Show, Oprah, Access Hollywood, Extra, Good Morning America, and more. In July 2008, Tyler opened his first kitchen retail shop, The Tyler Florence Shop, in Mill Valley, Calif. Outposts will also be opening soon at San Francisco International Airport and in Napa. Adjacent to the Napa shop will be Tyler's new restaurant concept, Tyler Florence Rotisserie & Wine. Tyler also released two best-selling cookbooks in October 2008: Stirring the Pot and Dinner at My Place (Meredith Books). He also has three previously released books: Tyler’s Ultimate, Eat This Book and Real Kitchen (Clarkson Potter). In January 2009, Tyler launched his signature lines of steel-clad cookware and titanium cutlery on Home Shopping Network and at major retailers across the United States, including Macy’s, where Tyler is a member of the prestigious Macy’s Culinary Council. Also in 2009, Tyler opened his first signature restaurant, The Empire Plush Room, at the new Hotel Vertigo in San Francisco. In June 2010, Tyler opened his first signature restaurant, Wayfare Tavern, in San Francisco's Financial District and later opened the historic El Paseo in Mill Valley in fall 2010. Tyler lives in Mill Valley, Calif., with his wife, Tolan, and has three children: sons, Miles and Hayden, and daughter, Dorothy.