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About Us

Mauritius Australia Connection & Recipes from Mauritius

Madeleine was born and brought up in a family that placed great value on culture and the arts. Most of all, family values were very important and the dining table was the centre piece of family gathering. Food had a very special place and her mother Therese made sure that all her children developed their culinary skills at a very early age. Madeleine fondly remembers the day when she was told that it was her turn to cook dinner for the family.

Discussions on food preparation, cooking techniques, use of herbs and spices were very much part of Madeleine’s continuing passion for Mauritian cuisine. She would not hesitate to venture into the kitchens of restaurants like the famous Rio Restaurant in Curepipe Road, Mauritius to question the chefs on their cooking techniques.

She developed an uncanny sense of food analysis whereby she could tell you the ingredients that went into the making of any dish that she would sample.

An invitation to Madeleine’s dining table was a privilege that many enjoyed. You could be sure that you would be enjoying the most tasty and delightful dishes. After meeting and marrying Clancy Philippe, her culinary skills and Clancy’s technical background led to the creation of the now very popular and famous Recipes from Mauritius website. This website is now the foremost and top of the rankings for Mauritian Cuisine.

Unfortunately, after bravely battling breast and ovarian cancers for five years, Madeleine left us on February 11, 2011. However, her culinary legacy lives on and so does she through her recipes that thousands consult on a daily basis. Madeleine’s passion for Mauritian cuisine has been passed on to her husband Clancy, who has kept this passion alive and well. You can read about Madeleine and Clancy and their battle with cancer in their book “Losing a Soul Mate to Cancer”.

Clancy is well travelled and has spent considerable time in Europe and China to learn about French and Chinese Cuisines. In particular, Clancy spent two weeks in Meizhou, China to learn about Hakka Cuisine. Access LinkTree Clancy Philippe for more info.

The idea for the compilation of a book on Mauritian cuisine dates back to the early 1980’s when it was cost prohibitive to do so. Madeleine’s illness and Clancy’s work commitments prevented the project from going ahead. However, Clancy has taken on the challenge and this book is the result of Madeleine’s teachings and culinary expertise. In many ways, Madeleine is writing this book with Clancy as the medium to put to print her thoughts and expertise on Mauritian cuisine. At best, Clancy has taken on the responsibility to preserve Madeleine’s legacy for future generations.

The name Madeleine Philippe is now a world renowned brand for Mauritian Cuisine. Madeleine and Clancy have contributed to newspaper articles, been consulted on Mauritian cuisine and written food contents for such publications as the Lonely Planet Travel Guide to Mauritius, Reunion and the Seychelles.

Mano Stephen has a very similar culinary background to Madeleine’s. She grew up within the same family nucleus as Clancy. An invitation to her dining table is a privilege that many enjoy. You could be sure that you would be enjoying the most tasty and delightful dishes. Mano has a special interest in Rodriguan Cuisine. She is also widely travelled and has experienced the best of Indian Cuisine in Mauritius through her connections with traditional Indian chefs in the mother country.

Gourmand Best In The World Award Winning Book

“Maddy and I would love you to write a preface for the Cookery Book we are producing”. Clancy’s email did not really surprise me as I am used to him speaking of his dearest wife, Madeleine, in the present tense. Although physically departed from this world, Maddy’s spirit will live on forever for those who loved her…and still do.

“All, …everything that I understand…I understand because I love you”. These words from none other than Victor Hugo – whose mother, by the way, was born in Mauritius – must have been written for Maddy and Clancy whose love affair has survived the ravages and worldly pressures of time and even the harsh reality of death.

Clancy keeps her alive, and cheerful, in all his actions and writings and one cannot but feel the communion – that united them all these past years – continue to flow into his daily life.

So what better way to honour her memory than to publish a book on her inimitable cuisine? The cuisine of her homeland, Mauritius, one of the rare places in this world where different ethnic groups live in near-perfect harmony. Sharing their cultures and religions whilst maintaining a very strong sense of belonging to a little island-dot lost in the middle of the Indian Ocean. A very special island, steeped in history, which appears on the first world map ever published – Alberto Cantino’s planisphere (1502). No Australia yet and only pieces of America…!

These diverse elements from Asia, Africa, India and Europe (France in particular) find their way in the cuisine of Mauritius in a happy, spicy and often intriguing blend… always succulent.

Maddy had mastered the subtleties of this cuisine and in this book, she reveals through her soul mate Clancy, the secrets of its intricacies leading to the final taste explosion.

Those who were not fortunate enough to have crossed her path will have the lucky opportunity, here, to discover the jovial and fiery character mingled with her incredible warmth and generosity that pervade these recipes. She would desperately want you to enjoy them, as sharing was an innate part of her persona.

This is not just any Cookery Book….this one was written in Heaven !

Marcel Lindsay Noë

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