Oct/Nov 2015 Feb/Mar 2015 | Page 12

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by Joelle Kidd sauce boss Gourmet Inspirations is building community from condiments

For Peter Fehr , the mind behind Gourmet Inspirations finishing sauces , the goal has always been to bring people together .
Food offers plenty of opportunities to create relationships , whether between families around a dining room table , producers and their customers , or between owners of local businesses . It is clear that Fehr is passionate about strengthening these bonds . “ I want people to gather , and eat together ,” he says .
The idea of bottling and selling sauces to be used as a topping or cooking ingredient was conceived during a stint as chef at a Northern Manitoba fishing resort . “ It was a rancher from Texas who inspired it ,” Peter recalls . The customer raved about his creamy peppercorn whiskey sauce . “ He told me I should go into business .”
Fehr , trained as a chef , knew he needed to learn a few things about starting a company .
But the idea stuck , and after a stint of business training courses at Red River College , he registered Gourmet Inspirations in January 2013 . A few months later he started production .
In addition to the original peppercorn sauce , three other flavours — sweet and spicy lemon , strawberry balsamic with basil , and chocolate port — are now lining shelves . These varieties set themselves apart with unique flavours not already available in a market saturated by big condiment brands . The sauces are versatile enough to be used in a number of different dishes and applications ; the creamy peppercorn whiskey sauce , for example , can be drizzled over steak , swirled into sweet potato purée , or sizzled into stir fry . Keen culinarians have free reign to be creative , or to pull out an impressive meal for short notice dinner guests .
Trying out gourmet , restaurant-style fare is a trend that at-home cooks are enthusiastically
10 ciao ! / feb / mar / two thousand fifteen