Holland America Line (HAL) is adding a delicious twist to its popular onboard cooking shows. This time, the featured dishes will be regionally inspired and locally sourced.
These demonstrations will be available across the fleet, occurring at least twice every seven days. Conducted by the executive chefs, the sessions will showcase local cooking techniques and regions’ culinary histories. Guests can later sample the dishes in the ship’s dining room and take a copy of the recipes home with them.
The cruise line’s Vice President of Food, Beverage, and Room Division, Michael Stendebach, described them as one of HAL’s “most popular enrichment activities.” He added, “Our new cooking shows are all about connecting guests to the culinary culture of the region they’re visiting with a fun and attainable experience.”
What’s Cooking?
The cooking sessions vary according to the vessels’ routes. For example, featured cuisines on a ship traveling through the Caribbean will not be the same as those on a vessel going to Alaska.
Several meals will include ingredients from the cruise line’s Global Fresh Fish Program, a port-to-table initiative that obtains the freshest seafood from nearby ports.
Here’s a quick look at some of the dishes by destination:
- Alaska: Honey sriracha salmon bowl, barbecue salmon bowl
- Asia: Crumbed miso sesame lamb chops, red snapper coconut curry and vegetables, Japanese pork katsue with curry sauce, macadamia crusted grouper, pan-seared honey sake barramundi
- Australia/New Zealand: Coral trout with porcini and bacon, Panko-crusted Australian flathead, seared yellow fin bream, Australian bass with orange vermouth sauce
- Caribbean: Crusted rockfish with cou-cou & coconut shrimp bisque, grilled seabass tacos with spicy slaw and lime crema, Bahamian grouper with bacon grits
- Hawaii: Seared opah with mango avocado relish, Kauai-style poke, macadamia-crusted grouper, lomi-lomi salmon
- Mexico: Grilled seabass tacos with spicy slaw and lime crema, grouper with rice pilaf and salsa picante, blackened tuna Oaxaca-style
- South America: Peruvian half-roasted chicken, braised short rib empanadas, grilled shrimp with chimichurri and polenta, seared grouper with Chilean salsa
- South Pacific: Huli huli chicken, crackling pork ceviche, macadamia crusted grouper, lomi-lomi salmon, honey sriracha salmon bowl, Japanese pork katsu with curry sauce
The cruise line has been whetting passengers’ appetites with several culinary programs. In 2019, it expanded America’s Test Kitchen, imparting practical kitchen tips to participants.
In 2023, it launched Culinary Cruises featuring celebrity chefs. More recently, it hosted the Top Chef season finale with Chef Masaharu Morimoto onboard the MS Eurodam.
Holland America Line continues to elevate the culinary journey at sea, ensuring guests savor unforgettable flavors at every sailing.
