He finished second in the thirteenth season of the Le Meilleur Pâtissier competition on the M6 channel in France. An emblematic candidate, Tsiory stands out for his good humor and his joie de vivre. Through his creations, he has highlighted the products and flavors of Madagascar. Proud of his origins, he agreed to give us an exclusive interview.
MIDI Madagasikara (MM.): Can you introduce yourself?
Tsiory Razafinimanana (TR): “ I am Tsiory Razafinimanana (his Instagram account tsio.r). I am a finalist for Best Pastry Chef, 13e edition. I am 37 years old and I am an IT auditor at the Banque de France. After an IT engineering school in Troyes, I began my career in a consulting service company before arriving at the Banque de France to do project management for 9 years before doing IT auditing. “.
MM. : Where did the passion for baking come from?
TR: “ I was very greedy, when I came home from school, my mother would ask me what I ate. I was thinking about the food I ate during the day. Every day, I repeat all this, it fueled my passion for food and still today I love it. The pastry came quite late, the funny thing is that I don’t really like sweet things, I like to eat savory dishes, pastry, I don’t eat a lot of it. What attracted me to baking was this methodical precision. We can create, within a defined framework, new combinations of flavors, the assembly of new and original cakes. “.
MM. : And what is the link between computing and baking?
TR : “ There is no real link between IT and baking, but if I had to find a link between my two main activities at the moment, it is more linked to personality. I like what is really methodical, square, organized and these are characteristics that are important both in my work today as an auditor. You have to have rigor, precision and these are skills and character traits that are important in pastry making where everything is a question of precision, weight to have cakes, well prepared with balanced and very beautiful tastes. »
MM. : During the broadcast of the show, you showed this image of benevolence and kindness on TV. Is this the everyday Tsiory?
TR: “I would tend to say that I showed benevolence, kindness and good humor, especially since I have been described as being in a constant good mood. It’s almost every day’s Tsiory. Like everyone, I have times when I am tired, angry, I lose my patience but I prefer to keep positive thinking and be optimistic. I think it’s my character trait. My family and friends, when they saw me on TV, it’s really you, we recognize you “.
MM. : How was the show prepared and carried out?
TR: “ Fourteen weeks is like a marathon, an endurance race, you have to be motivated, concentrated and keep a very demanding pace. Above all, you have to work on basic pastry recipes to have solid foundations and behind that, listen to the advice of the jury. Always apply, stay very serious and that took me to the last test of the 13 edition of the show. Fatigue is felt at the end, I took vitamins. It all comes down to the mind, being clear about your motivations. My goal is to experience as many things as possible, I wasn’t specifically aiming for the final and the reward, I want to be proud of what I did, and not forget what I wanted to highlight, my pastry, balanced, elegant, beautiful and tempting. I also want to emphasize my dual Franco-Malagasy culture with purely French techniques, but also flavors of Madagascar disseminated through my creations. Since I can make cakes that I can be proud of, that was really my driving force throughout the adventure. And behind it, all the rewards that we can win: the blue aprons, the tops, the golden cup cakes, the place in the final, the pride of my family and my parents, and above all the pride of all Malagasy people. These are the bonuses “.
MM. : Was it a deliberate choice to highlight Malagasy products?
T.R: “The choice of Malagasy flavors was deliberate. This participation was really an opportunity to show my origins through the flavors that I know of the country. We present with vanilla which is the gateway, we surprise with other things such as pepper, voatsiperifery, Malagasy chocolate, kaffir lime and baobab powder, mofo mangahazo, koba, vary sosoa . It was important to me to put a little icing on the cake by using the baobab fruit for the last test »
MM. : Your best memory of the adventure?
TR: “ I have a lot of good memories. I am a fan of the show and for me, participating in the show is already a dream, I was very happy to meet Cyril Mercotte, Laeticia, the guest chefs. It’s an honor and a pleasure. If I had to say a best memory it was when my family came to see me in the tent. A way for me to share the dream with them and especially since there was a sequence which was unfortunately not presented, I was baking with my mother. I started watching this show with my mother and once again, it’s a moment to share this dream with her “.
MM. : Your best discovery?
TR: “ My best discovery? Beyond discovering the tent, this year, the Malagasy were well represented and there were two of us. It’s the best discovery and a surprise. Laurène, in addition to being Malagasy, is the female candidate who came furthest in the adventure this year with the final phases which were only male. It’s a source of pride. Throughout the adventure, there is the call of blood, we established a friendly, family bond, we saw each other regularly, we even have a project together “.
MM. : Why did you always talk about turtles? Is there a special story?
T.R: “ The turtle is my totem animal. It’s my favorite animal. When I was little, we had a turtle called Tutu that I adored. The turtle represents me well too, I really believe in one step after the other, you have to know how to take your time, the main thing is not to be the first but to arrive, so we put in the effort, we put in the means and take your time “.
MM. : Is it possible that Tsiory will open a pastry shop in Madagascar?
T.R: “ My dream, I showed it in the last episode, is to open a pastry shop, a tea room. As for the location, I don’t yet know if it’s in Madagascar. Why not ? It could also be in France or elsewhere. It would give me great pleasure if before that I could return to Madagascar and be able to taste the new pastries that are being developed there. “.
MM. : You are the star of the moment, a bit of an ambassador of Malagasy know-how. What message would you like to convey?
T.R: “ I want to send a message of hope. You have to have dreams, you have to give yourself the means to make them come true and you have to believe in them all the way. When it comes true, it is truly an exceptional and incredible experience. We must not lose hope even if life is not always easy we can achieve something because I think that is one of the character traits of the Malagasy people, optimism and a good state of mind. “.
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