STUDIOKITCHEN

Scapes

Garlic Scape Risotto
Nantucket Bay Scallops
Lovage
Foamed Infusion of Sesame Oil and Lemon

The Same But Very Different.......Vadouvan !

As cooks, one certainly expects variations in flavor between spice blends, no two Garam Masalas or Quatre Epices are ever the same.
There is variation in the quality of initial spices, whether or not they are toasted, airtight container etc.
However one does not expect two samples to be totally different as it is with "Vadouvan" sourced from two different places.
The yellow stuff is from Jing at Le Sanctuaire and the black from le Grande Epicerie in Paris.
Two completely different characters, not even remotely the same.

My first Vadouvan dish was a few years ago at the Gagnaire inspired London restaurant SKETCH. Interesting menus in the formal room.

Black Vadouvan is about 10 times as savory as the yellow stuff and is more compatible with deeper flavored meat and game dishes.

Above is a previous roasted squab with vadouvan.

Marbling

At some point when the marbling is way more than the beef, 4 ounces of steak seems like a chore to eat.

Cooking some *actual* Kobe Zabuton.

SV @52C and the Bincho-Tan Charcoal.

Menthol

My favorite new herb, a type of purple African basil with an intense stinging cool menthol sensation. I actually planted from seed and it is amazing freshly clipped from the garden. I am using it for a Scallop Carpaccio.

New York Stories 2

A lovely day in Central Park today, after a quick client consultation and a nice chat on the benefits of CVap VS Rational Combi Oven with JOEL , I decided to get out of Manhattan for dinner.
A short scenic drive to the barnyard.
Very good food, great philosophy.
I suggest you go if you haven't already.
Anything else you want to know ?

Click HERE.

Sorrel Margarita with Arugula Salt.
Who knew ?

Foie Gras #18

Foie Gras

Smoked "Corn Muffin"
Corn "Anglaise"
Apricot "Raviolo"

Much to my chagrin, I used alginates and quotations.
A sign of bad things to come.

Spring

Spring is here. European Morels. Ramps.

Foie Gras #17

SUMI Charcoal.
Smoked Japanese Salt.
Maple Vinegar.
Yuzu Oil.

Technicalities:

Don't you dare use wooden skewers.

Get the thin Japanese ones from Korin NYC.

Skewer the Foie Gras before freezing in for 30 minutes.

Grill it from frozen state so you can char the outside properly.

Make sure SUMI is superhot, glowing like a nuclear reactor.

You don't know beans.

I stopped buying precooked beans in a jar or can after I discovered RANCHO GORDO and a pressure cooker a few years back. These Asturian broad beans are the exception however, large, plump and creamy. Great bean flavor and ready for quick stews, dips and ragus. You can get them at Despana on Broome Street.

Foie Gras #16

Foie Gras
Unagi Kabayaki
Mineola Orange Glaze
Watercress.

Paired with Zind Humbrecht 1996 VT

Parsley Duo

Parsley Root Soup.
Roasted Parsley Soup.
Sweetbread Crusted with Marcona Almond . Fennel Pollen.

Paired with Ampeau Meursault.

 

Ocean Trout Replated

Pink Ocean Trout

Tasmanian Ocean Trout
Purslane . Mache . Red Chard
Daikon "Apples" . Yuzu Kosho
Black Salt
Seaweed Graham Cracker

Pink ocean trout is rare on these shores but quite delicious when you can find it super fresh.
There is a luciousness to the flesh that's a bit more complex than salmon and char and certainly much better than the overrated Copper River stuff that everyone raves about.

It's fantastic as a tartare,  cured with salt, sugar and lemon for about 30 minutes and finished with a Nyons olive oil.

A process that's just as fantastic with Kona Kanpachi or Hamachi belly.

The daikon "apples" are simply radish batons vacuum compressed with tart green apple juice.

Get your Jam-on !

This very well may be the tastiest substance known to man.
It makes foie gras taste like a rice cake.

Peanut

In the never ending quest for deliciousness, people always hand me stuff to blog.
Today my good friend Stephanie who owns THIS place handed me a jar of peanut butter declaring, this is the best peanut butter in America.
It's preeeeeeeety damn good.

Foie Gras 15...barely foie.

Boudin of Foie Gras, Sweetbreads and Truffle.
Lobster Nuggets.
Black Trumpet Mushrooms.
Coteaux De Layon.

Completely old school cookery but quite tasty.

At the end of the day, that's what it's about.
Deeee liciousness.

This should be named Foie gratuitous, every luxury ingredient short of Kobe is in this dish.
How about a $175 surf and turf appetizer....haha!

By the way here is a little competition.
Pick what wine works best with this dish and I give you a free seat at my next guest chef gig whenever it happens.
Lets hear it ....

Foie gras #14

Foie Gras Dulche de Leche.
Sickeningly good.
To be paired with celery mostarda.
Variation on the custard with caramelized milk.

Special Delivery.

Guess who showed up from Alba this morning.
Yup, it's that time of the year again.

Getting Fresh

Isn't that just a lovely piece of fish ?

The Lovely Bones

I havent had the desire or need to make Jus de veau in the last 9 months however a current prroject requires it. I am very much into new sauces that do not require endless simmering of stocks, bones and all that stuff. I called my butcher with some trepidation and lo and behold, I open the box and they are sliced veal shanks for 50 cents a pound. Now that ought to make a delicious stock.

Kosho

Another great ingredient.
Yuzu Kosho.

Green Fragrant.
Red Incendiary.

Japanese Citrus -pepper pastes.
Available at Sunrise Mart.
Broome just before West Broadway heading into Holland Tunnel.

Foie Gras #13

Foie Gras wrapped in poached pineapple with Yuzu Kosho.

Celery in two textures.
Leaves with lemon and candied olives.
Stalks as mostarda.

Salted Curry Peanut Praline.

Strangely these bizzare conflicting flavors work.

Not quite the choir at Westminster Abbey but a rather interesting juxtaposition of voices.

Verjus

Home cooks, get to know me.

Mushrooms

Doesn't it piss you off when menus say "Wild Mushrooms" and it's just Shiitakes and Creminis ?

Mushrooms are plentiful this time of year.
Get to know them.

Honey where are you ?

Really good stuff.

Basque

Certainly most professionals know but rarely do home cooks ever use Esplette Pepper.
Get to know it.

Butter

It occurred to me while having dinner at a friend's home tonight, I have actually never ever tasted Margarine. According to all sources, I am not missing much.
I can't believe I haven't tried I can't believe it's not butter.
Actually yes I do.
Yuck.

Passion

Fantastic Vinegar.
Enough said.

Playing with Chocolate

Today on a cool Eastern seaboard sunday......(to you non Americans the eastern seaboard is everything from Nantucket to Mahami as my Japanese friend Yoshi says) I decided to just play with chocolate in the afternoon.

Nothing new, nothing borrowed, nothing blue.
Just a solid chocolate dessert.
Sometimes we get cravings, we look in our pantry and satisfy them.
Chocolate cures all ills that Champagne doesn't. Anger, depression, melancholy attitudes, reflection, cold.
I was already in a perfectly good mood. I just wanted chocolate.

Chocolate Cherry St Nizer.
Malted Milk Ice Cream.

St Nizer is an old school Frenchie flourless chocolate cake.
"Seh Knee ZEEE-AY" with the Frenchie accent.

Basically your childhood in a fancy presentation on Limoges China and gratuitous Amarena cherries.
What's wrong with that ?

Parsley

Parsley Root Soup
Grapefruit . Lemon

Roasted Parsley Soup
smoked Chicken
Cepes

Where The Beef Is......

Wagyu hanger steaks are insane, it's like eating meat flavored bubble gum larded with pork fat.
A quick blast on sumi charcoal give a fantastic crust after CSV cooking.

Delicious.

Foie Gras #12

Foie Gras.
Red Beans and Rice.
Adzuki Beans.
Sweet Glutinous Rice.

Okinawa Kokuto

Has anyone tried this artisan brown sugar from Japan ?
Very interesting caramel flavors.
The question is what to do with it ?

Foie Gras 11

Foie Gras "Milk Shake".
Amarena.
Smoked Chocolate.
Cookies.

Foie Gras 10

Peppered Foie Gras.
Cipolline Tart Tatin.
Cara Cara Orange Brown Butter.

Foie Gras 9

Foie Gras Custard.
Ginger Maple Glaze.
Salad of Herbs.

Foie Gras 8

Pineapple.
Ginger Consomme.
Yuzu Kosho.
Delfina Cilantro.
Yuzu Oil.

Foie Gras 7

Curing Foie Gras in vaccum for foie gras bacon tommorow.
Curing will be followed by a light applewood smoke.
Freezing and deep frying.
Expect Blis maple syrup to make an appearance.

Foie Gras 6

Certainly can't forget the all American burger.
Quasi-candied tomato.
Baby Limestone lettuce.
Brioche Roll.
Onion Marmalade.

Freaking Rocks.

Foie Gras 5

To be well chilled.
Grilled on Sumi Charcoal.
Topped with Yuzu Kosho.
Results later.

Foie Gras 4

Foie Gras Creme Brulee
Chocolate Salt.
Though the vial says "Keyah Grande" the salt was actually from Alex Talbot of Ideasinfood at his previous post in Colorado.

Foie Gras 3

Roasted Foie Gras
Stonefruit Chutney
Basil Emulsion

Foie Gras 2

Just the facts.

Foie Gras 1

Chinese Lacquered Duckling
Celeriac Puree
Prunes
Bergamot Syrup
Marcona Almond-Candied Ginger
Albufera Sauce

FOIE GRAS WEEK

Starting today, our lovely friends at D'artagnan and doing a promotion in several different restaurants in Philadelphia offering foie gras dishes for $5 at obviously greatly reduced cost to strengthen the awareness of the legitimacy of the food product.
I have had a strong relationship with the company for several years and my contribution to the campaign is to cook and photograpgh several foie gras dishes over the next several days.
Sadly  you wont be ably to consume them however you get to stare at them for weeks and salivate.
Several ideas are in the works from the mundane searing, Foie gras burgers, cavatelli, Foie gras bacon, the ever popular custard, ganache, Albufera sauce with Niku-jaga, Unagi and quail eggs, and one I cant resist..........."Pho-gras".

In any case thanks to Ariane Daguin for the two pristine lobes of Hudson Valley grade A lobes and her continued dedication to cuisine in America.
As George Bush #41 (Herbert-Walker) used to say, "there is no quid-pro-quo".
In fact I am putting my money where my mouth is and actually paid for the product as opposed to shilling for D'artagnan.
Got problems with that ?
Eat some Tyson chicken or some of that "other white meat" garbage.

Now off to the salt mines.
Look for results starting tonight.

Peas

The rewards of growing peas to maturity in the pod are just truly outstanding. They seem like they were injected with simple syrup.
Click this picture, it's almost good enough to eat.

Foie Gras Wings.

Chicken wings stuffed with foie gras, parsley puree, celery, marcona almond.

Mostarda

Thanks to Dame Judy at Aromacucina I finally got my hands on some Senape. Potent stuff indeed. The first batch of mostarda  is fennel and green coriander seed.
Water
Pernod
Sugar
Shaved Fennel
Green Coriander

Not particularly Italian but stunning on whipped robiola on brioche.

Micro Tangerine Leaves

These are particularly delicious. A slight peppery citrus burn, I willbe using these as a garnish for a foie gras dish I am revisiting.

Peach Chutney.

It's hot, peaches now actually smell and taste like peaches. Assuming one has a balance on the basic relationship between acidity and sweetness, even the most unambitious peach chutney you make is much better than most commercial products unless of course you are talking mostarda. Mostarda unfortunately has a key ingredient that isnt allowed in the country so chutney will have to do. Depending on the sweetness and spice balance of the final product, it will work with some cheeses, foie gras and roasted meats. Peach chutney for me includes:

Peaches.
Brown sugar.
Onions. Ginger.
Golden raisins.
Cinnamon.
Clove.
Allspice.
Low acid tomatoes.
Rice vinegar or Apple cider vinegar as a last resort.
Peach eau de vie.

Peach eau de vie is KEY.
Find it, use it.

Sansho Buttons

Sansho buttons are the same flower bud as what the folks at koppertcress call Sechuan buttons, it seems the name Sechuan button is a figment of someone's imagination as research shows it has no verifiable connection to the Sechuan province of China. In addition Koppercress makes it rather annoying and cryptic to get thier products. Thankfully in America, there are always other avenues of progress. Take a look at Sungrown's website.

Click HERE.

Chive Flowers

The common chive "Allium Schoenoprasum" yields these lovely purple flowers with a 10 second delay of an explosion of garlic flavor when chewed slowly. Fantastic in composed salads and raw shellfish dishes. Available from Sungrown Organics.