ESEchefs
Professional Chef, entrepreneural spirit, soon-to-be cookbook author, loving husband and adopting father, with a passion for all things culinary.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Savoring the Seasons
Sunday, March 21, 2010
My style of Pho
For the Roast Duck:
1 6lb whole duck, Long Island preferred
2 cups boiling-hot water
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 425°F.
Rinse duck inside and out and remove any excess fat from neck, tail, or cavity. Poke skin all over with the point of a sharp pairing knife. Fold neck skin under body, then put duck, breast side up, on a rack in a deep roasting pan and pour boiling-hot water over duck to tighten up the skin. Let duck sit and allow to cool and pour out any water from cavity into pan. Pat duck dry inside and out and season with salt and pepper. Place duck inside oven, breast side up, for approximately 30-45 minutes. Rotate duck and roast for another 30-45 minutes. Flip up duck to drain any liquid from cavity into pan. Rotate back to original position and continue to roast duck until skin is brown and crisp. When duck is finished roasting, allow duck to drain any more liquid into pan. Transfer duck to a cutting board and allow to rest for at least 20 minutes before carving. Once meat is removed reserve bones for broth.
For the broth:
Bones of the duck
3 oz shredded carrots
1/2 medium onion, julienne
1 leek, dark green parts cut and discarded, cut 3" julienne
1/4 cup fish sauce
1 qt chicken stock
1 qt beef stock
1 knob of ginger
1 lemon grass stalk, crushed with back of knife
2 ounces whole star anise pods
1/2 cinnamon stick
2 whole cloves
1 teaspoon black peppercorns, lightly crushed
1 tablespoon white sugar
Sea salt to taste
Place the duck bones in a stock pot. Season with salt, and fill pot with chicken and beef broth. Add in vegetables. Bring to a boil, and cook for about 2 hours. Assemble the anise pods, cinnamon stick, cloves, peppercorns and ginger in a bouqet garni or place in a spice bag; add to the soup. Stir in sugar, salt and fish sauce. Simmer for at least 4 hours. Check broth for seasoning. Strain broth and keep hot.
For the vegetable ganish:
4 Shiitake Mushroom caps, sliced julienne and lightly saute
2 oz shredded Napa cabbage
1/4 red onion, sliced paper thin
2 Serrano chiles, sliced paper thin
1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
Saturday, February 27, 2010
The most famous application is obviously bbq. Nothing beats a whole roasted pig cooking on wood-fired grill for hours on end, slopped with a vinegar-based mop sauce. To have the pleasure of attending a "pig-pickin" is a sight to be hold. Sampling all what the pig has to offer in one seating....priceless.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Old dog, new tricks?
By now everyone has heard of the term"molecular gastronomy" and this style of cookery has made quite a few chefs very famous. Homaru Cantu started making edible menus, while Wylie Defresne whipped up "fried mayonnaise" and Grant Achatz seared mango puree on an "anti-griddle". I believe Ferran Adria, of El Bulli, is considered to be the "father" of said cookery. Adria even has branded his own line of chemicals called Texturas (which I happen to have in my own pantry).
I happen to be very intrigued by this form of culinary art and have experimented with a few techniques. However, when conversing with older colleagues, their response is typically the same: "It's on its way out" and "that's just a fad". One associate even said "it's not even cooking at all". My question is, why do some chefs find this style offensive? With today's society, people are looking for the next best thing. I don't believe this is taking away from the art of cooking, but is just a new chapter in the big book of gastronomy.
My father has always said "you never stop learning...either you learn what to do or what not to do". So isn't that what this is all about? Trial and error? Experimenting to see what you are capable of? So to the old and new "dogs" I say there's nothing wrong with bringing something new to the table, so keep doing what you do best.