Tom Franz

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Tom Franz, 2018

Thomas "Tom" Franz (born May 10, 1973 in Cologne ) is a German lawyer and hobby cook. In 2013 he won the TV cooking competition of the Israeli edition of MasterChef and became internationally known. This success made him a “culinary ambassador” and “bridge builder” between Israel and Germany.

Life

Thomas Franz is the older son of Manfred and Karin Franz, he grew up in Erftstadt near Cologne. Since meeting Israeli students at his school in 1989 as part of a student exchange , Franz has felt drawn to Judaism: “The mentality attracted me: They were happier than us and danced.” “There was joy and a sense of belonging that I felt missed in my life. ”After graduating from high school, he did an apprenticeship as a banker at a private bank in Cologne. He did his community service through Aktion Sühnezeichen in Israel, where he worked for eighteen months in a hospital and an old people's home for Holocaust survivors. He then returned to Germany, studied law and passed the second state examination in law . He then worked for a year as a lawyer specializing in insurance and commercial law at the international law firm CMS Hasche Sigle in Cologne . In 2004 he emigrated to Israel. As a candidate baptized Catholic, he spent two and a half years preparing for his conversion to Judaism , which also included a lack of work permits and circumcision . In 2007 he was accepted into Judaism after a thorough examination. Shortly afterwards he met his Israeli wife Dana Harari (* 1977). She comes from a family of Holocaust survivors from Lviv (Lemberg). Since 2003 she has been working as a PR consultant for master chefs and restaurants. In 2010 she married Tom Franz according to the Jewish rite.

MasterChef

After many attempts, Dana Franz was finally able to convince him to take part in the Israeli version of the MasterChef television cooking competition. The cooking program MasterChef was created in England and is now produced in 50 countries (as of 2016). This cooking show has become the most popular television show in Israel. In a long elimination process, the participants and their courts compete against each other according to the knockout system , until after the judgment of a jury there is only one candidate left. Franz prepared himself thoroughly for the selection process by studying cookery and textbooks as well as developing his own dishes. To do this, he bought the best books he could find, read them for two to three hours a day, and spent an hour a day in the kitchen. 6000 applicants registered for the show cooking and only about a hundred participants were admitted to the recordings. The jury members praised the taste and appearance of his dishes as well as the accuracy and care with which he cooked them. "In a way he is just as only a German can be."

After four months of two programs a week at prime time, he won the third season competition of the Israeli cooking program MasterChef with 200,000 shekels (around 40,000 euros ) in January 2013 . In the finale, the series reached a record level of 52.3% viewers, which is the second highest audience rating in Israeli television history to date. Franz became a well-known and popular figure in Israel. “People love him. No matter where it appears, they want to touch it and get to know it. ”“ Suddenly, German is something good, and that is really something special in the history of our two peoples, ”says Dana Franz about her husband.

Projects

An important goal in life for Franz is to raise the quality of kosher cuisine to the level of haute cuisine . Even so, only a minority of believers in Israel live kosher. "For the average Israelis , kosher food is disgraceful home cooking, " says Michal Anski, one of the judges at MasterChef . To change that, he wants to combine German dishes with Israel's Mediterranean cuisine. Examples include the Rhenish potato pancake with apple and Birnenmus and a syrup is cooked beetroot , a commonly used vegetables in the Israeli kitchen, or an Israeli-Rhenish sauerbraten with dried figs and pilaf .

Franz is currently cooking on television and for magazines, and he also accepts invitations to events. He has postponed plans for a culinary upscale restaurant or an innovative snack chain because of his small children.

Private life

Tom Franz has a younger brother who lives in Cologne. He and his Israeli wife have two sons and a daughter, and a fourth child was added in 2018. The family lives in the Tel Aviv suburb of Raʿanana . Out of love for him, his wife began to dress in religious costume (headscarf, knee-length skirts, arm-length outerwear, black shoes). In order to continue doing sports, she designs sportswear for herself and other Orthodox women. Tom Franz prays three times a day and goes to the synagogue on Shabbat . He “particularly enjoys” the culinary preparations on Shabbat. In addition to cooking, Franz spends his free time taking photos. He is fluent in Hebrew and English.

Publications

  • with Regina Carstensen: Sehnsucht Israel. My life between kippah, kitchen and coriander. Gütersloher Verlagshaus, Gütersloh 2018, bound, ISBN 978-3-579-08680-4 , excerpt , (PDF).
  • Israel cooks vegetarian. The most beautiful recipes from my new home. AT Verlag, Aarau 2017, hardback, ISBN 978-3-03800-957-3 , excerpt.
  • This is what Israel tastes like. My favorite recipes from Israeli cuisine, seasoned with a pinch of home. AT Verlag, Aarau 2013, hardback, ISBN 978-3-03800-781-4 reading sample , (PDF).

Films (selection)

Web links

Commons : Tom Franz  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Hans-Christian Rößler : Thomas Franz in the cooking final. Quark balls for Israel. In: FAZ , January 30, 2013.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f Kitchentalk with Tom Franz. In: daskochrezept.de , bongusto.tv , ( Memento from August 11, 2016 in the Internet Archive ), January 22, 2014, accessed on July 30, 2020.
  3. ↑ a b c d Inge Günther: Cooking kosher: Favorite of gourmets. In: Frankfurter Rundschau , January 24, 2013.
  4. ↑ a b c Gil Yaron: Reconciliation goes through the stomach: The Israelis love the German chef Tom Franz. In: Tagesspiegel , January 29, 2013.
  5. ↑ Spelling in the English original: MasterChef and MasterChef. In: BBC One .
  6. ↑ Kirsten Schiekiera: German celebrity chef in Israel: Tom Franz cooks everything very kosher. In: manager magazin , November 22, 2013.
  7. ↑ Culinary bridge builder. Tom Franz on a kitchen trip through Israel. ( Memento from February 17, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) In: B5 aktuell , October 16, 2015.
  8. ^ Obituary notices: Karin Elisabeth Franz. In: wirtrauern.de , November 2016.
  9. ↑ a b c d e f Philip Kuhn: “Masterchef”. A German dominates Israel's biggest TV show. In: Die Welt , January 14, 2013.
  10. ^ Gil Yaron: Germans in Israel. When love is stronger than prejudice. In: Die Welt , May 11, 2015.
  11. ↑ a b c d e f dpa / Sara Lemel: Master Chef. German wins Israel's largest TV casting show. In: Die Welt , January 30, 2013.
  12. ↑ a b c d Gil Yaron: From lawyer to celebrity chef in Israel. Can this German be kosher? In: FAS , April 12, 2013.
  13. ^ Inge Günther: Tel Aviv's man for German cuisine. In: Stuttgarter Zeitung , January 22, 2013.
  14. ↑ Linda Chevreuil: Chatuna: The Jewish wedding. In: gofeminin.de , January 28, 2011.
  15. ↑ Chaya Tal: Tom, the bridge builder. A cook is the most famous German in Israel. In: Jüdische Rundschau , May 13, 2015.
  16. ↑ a b c Lissy Kaufmann: “This is how Israel tastes.” The culinary ambassador Tom Franz. In: Deutschlandradio Kultur , December 20, 2013.
  17. ↑ Daniella Cheslow: New Israeli MasterChef a German-Born Convert to Judaism. In: Public Radio International , February 6, 2013:
    "I bought best books I could find, and from that day I read two or three hours every day and spent an hour in kitchen."
  18. ^ Franz in: Night Line. Out and about with Tom Franz. In: Bayerischer Rundfunk , April 7, 2014, online video.
  19. ↑ Daniella Cheslow: New Israeli MasterChef a German-Born Convert to Judaism. In: Public Radio International , February 6, 2013:
    "He is accurate in a way that only a German can be."
  20. ↑ Monika Hebbinghaus: "Potato pancakes are good for international understanding." A Rhinelander is Israel's most popular cook. In: Deutschlandfunk , April 10, 2013.
  21. ↑ Lars Reichardt: "The rules of kosher food are not logical". In: SZ-Magazin , November 28, 2014, issue 48, interview with Tom Franz.
  22. ↑ Tom Franz: potato pancakes with spice compote. In: daskochrezept.de , bongusto.tv , ( Memento from August 11, 2016 in the Internet Archive ), January 22, 2014, accessed on July 30, 2020.
  23. ↑ Tom Franz: Israelisch-Rheinischer Sauerbraten. ( Memento from February 17, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) In: BuchGourmet.com , accessed on February 17, 2016.
  24. ↑ a b Paul Stänner: A German cooking thrilled Israel. Tom Franz in portrait. In: Deutschlandradio Kultur , June 18, 2014.
  25. ↑ Godel Rosenberg: Tom Franz. A German celebrity chef in Israel. In: Sankt Michaelsbund , September 24, 2019, with audio file, 14:38 min. , Accessed on July 30, 2020.
personal data
SURNAME Franz, Tom
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Franz, Thomas
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German lawyer, winner of the Israeli cooking show MasterChef
DATE OF BIRTH May 10, 1973
PLACE OF BIRTH Cologne