Vancouver-born Travis Petersen only had a few minutes of fame via MasterChef Canada, but it hasn’t stopped him from becoming the Nomad Cook where he has been influenced by cannabis culture.
Haters were Travis Petersen’s biggest motivators
It started when he was toiling in the oil industry. Looking for true gratification in life, he’d get home from work, spark a joint and start cooking. His friend advised him to try out for MasterChef Canada. He did, they liked him. He didn’t get one of the adored aprons. Petterson went on to work under a chef that wasn’t his biggest fan. He didn’t understand why Petterson left a good income gig to become a chef. That became Patterson’s biggest motivator. “My haters were my biggest motivators and I think if anything, that first year for me, I just wanted to prove to everyone, like, I can do this,” Petterson revealed on the A Bunch of Losers with Derrick Fox podcast.
The Nomad Cook…not Chef
Notice it’s the Nomad Cook and not Nomad Chef. There’s a reason for this. “The culinary world doesn’t accept you (coming out of MasterChef).” Petterson proclaimed on the podcast. “And that’s why I’m the nomad cook, not the nomad chef… Because when I first started, I desperately wanted respect from the culinary industry.” The Nomad Cook was at first specializing in private dining at homes and cross-country pop-up dinners. He served more than 3,000 Canadians infused experience where he got widely known as the top cannabis chef in the nation. 2019 is when he hit it big. Partnerships with huge companies like Sundial, Canopy Growth and Aurora gained him some steam, as well as worldwide media coverage. Travis is still wanting to change the stigma towards cooking with cannabis by uniting cannabis chefs from across North America. The aim is to help the growth of an industry standard for methods, lingo, and safety procedures as well as assist in directing chefs toward precise and responsible dosing.
Nomad Chimichurri
Try one of the Nomad Cook's very own recipes!
Ingredients
1 bunch of Italian parsley, leaves picked from stalks
6 fresh cannabis leaves, roughly chopped
¼ cup fresh oregano leaves, picked from stalks
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 Thai red chilli, diced
1 tbsp of Infused Oil (see recipe below)
1 cup grapeseed oil
Salt and ground pepper
Directions
Finely chop the parsley, cannabis and oregano together and place them in a small bowl.
Add garlic, chilli and Infused Oil and stir.
Whisk in grapeseed oil and add a pinch each of salt and pepper.
Place in a jar marked “Contains Cannabis,” and store in the fridge for at least one day before use.
Chimichurri will keep in the fridge for 5 to 6 days.