In a big surprise, a baker from Sri Lanka clinched the prestigious prize for best traditional French baguette, which comes with a €4,000 prize and the right to supply the Elysée Palace with fresh loaves every morning, according to The Telegraph.
Sithamparappillai Jegatheepan, 43, works at the Fournil Didot bakery in the 14th arrondissement. He is Sri Lankan, and so are his two deputy bakers.
“It was a big surprise. It was my first time and I won straight away. I’m very proud,” he told The Telegraph.
Every year since 1994, the city of Paris and the Greater Paris Bakers’ Union convene to elect the grand prix de la baguette de tradition française de la ville de Paris (grand prize for the traditional French baguette of Paris).
A jury of experts, councilors, aficionados and laymen munch through hundreds of loaves from among the capital’s 1,100 boulangeries, before homing in on a winner.
The rules are strict.
Each baguette has to weigh between 250 and 270g, measure between 50 and 55 centimeters, and not exceed a salt content of 1.4 grams per 100 grams. Some 29 bakeries were disqualified this year.
“There is a score for appearance, another score for baking, a third score for alveolation, one for taste and a fifth for smell,” said Pascal Barillon, former laureate, vice president of the Greater Paris bakers’ union and a jury member for this year’s award.
The best baguettes, he said, have a crisp crust and a regular “honeycomb” crumb inside, with small, evenly distributed holes rather than large gaps followed by dense patches.
Color also plays a role: “Ideally you’re looking for a slightly golden crumb,” he said, explaining that a faint yellow hue can indicate careful fermentation and less kneading, which helps preserve flavor and aroma.
The baguettes that finished on the podium this year, he added, all shared the same qualities: “A beautiful interior, a regular crumb, a good color and they were well baked.”
In the end, however, the craft of baguette-making remains something of a mystery. “It’s a bit of alchemy,” Barillon said. “Every baker has their own personal touch.”
For Jegatheepan, it is a dream come true. After arriving in France from Sri Lanka in 2003, he started out with pastry, specializing in macarons, before moving on to bread.
Setting up his own business in 2018, he has since perfected his craft and turned it into a passion and now owns two boulangeries. This one sells 600 traditional baguettes per day at €1.30 a piece. Business has surged since the prize.
“I didn’t know anything about baking. I had never thought about it,” he told The Telegraph. “Then one day, when I tasted bread and pastries in France, I said to myself, ‘this is what I want to do’.”
Martin du Vachat, 41, a classical singer, said: “The award is well deserved. It’s golden and very beautiful. It’s a pleasure for the eyes and all the senses.”
“That said, you have to eat it quickly, because five hours later it’s not worth much. You should tell that to the Élysée.”
The bakery has not yet begun supplying the presidential palace, which generally orders 20-25 baguettes every morning.
Despite mastering the art of that most Gallic of gastronomic traditions, Jegatheepan doesn’t yet have French nationality.
“My request is being processed,” he said, confessing that perhaps this accolade would accelerate the procedure.
