It’s time to finalise your viewing party plans and set your early morning alarms, the Olympic Games are almost here. Taking place in Paris, France between July 26 and August 11, followed by the Paralympic Games from August 28 to September 8, the games are when we dust off the green and gold and cheer on our Australian athletes in sports ranging from swimming and athletics to breakdancing and skateboarding.
It’s also an opportunity to get inspired by delicious French cuisine, plan some themed breakfasts and organise party platters for viewing parties. Find recipe inspiration for all of these below!
The Olympic and Paralympic Village menu
According to Laurent Pasteur, Operations Director at Sodexo Live! in the Olympic and Paralympic Village, an estimated 40,000 meals per day will be served by Michelin star chefs. “The Village will be the heart of life for 15,000 athletes from all over the world,” Pasteur told Olympics.com.
“At the Village, catering has an important role: to contribute modestly to the performance of the athletes with menus that have been adapted to suit elite sport but also satisfy the expectations of athletes from every continent, with more than 200 nationalities, so that everyone feels at home.”
Chicken nuggets, a reported favourite of Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt at the 2008 Beijing Games, are off the menu in Paris reports The Guardian. Meals in The Village include veggie Bourguignon, minced pork and Thai basil, fried prawns with chermoula sauce and veggie moussaka.
Of course, no trip to France would be complete without sampling the country’s famous bakeries. Luckily for the athletes, the Village has it all. “For us, it was obvious that there had to be a bakery in the Olympic Village. No matter what, we wanted to bake our own baguettes in the village,” executive chef Stéphane Chicheri told Olympics.com. In their downtime, athletes can join workshops to learn how to bake their own baguettes.
Favourite Olympic food of our Aussie competitors
What does it take to fuel an Australian Olympics team? It starts with a taste of home – Weet-Bix, Milo and more. According to Guardian Australia 50kg of Vegemite 1,400kg of Australian breakfast cereal and granola, and enough beans to brew 20,000 coffees have been sent to Paris.
“It might sound simple and little, but don’t underestimate the power of what familiarity and a taste of home can do for athletes who have spent already weeks if not months overseas on the road,” Anna Meares, chef de mission, told Guardian Australia.
Bon appétit!
Olympic food ideas for your home cheer squad
Olympic champions birthday cake
Croissant breakfast bake
Brown butter chocolate croissants
Breakfast croissants
Vegemite cheese straws
Brekkie bliss balls
Banana and ricotta on toast
Almond and avocado protein smoothie
Ham and egg brekkie burgers with kimchi mayo
High-fibre mixed berry yoghurt smoothie
Hot smoked trout, taramasalata and gooey eggs
Buttery French brioche
Croque madame
Dark chocolate French macarons
Caramel éclairs
Lemon madeleines
Little chicken and leek pies
Women’s Weekly sausage rolls
Ham and cheese croquettes
Spinach and fetta pinwheels
Salmon quichettes
Fields of play
Classic Beef Bourguignon
Picnic baguettes
French raspberry tart
Traditional croquembouche
Baker’s dozen homemade croissants
