Voices
Advice from the Trenches: Chefs Spill Their Success Secrets
For Best Chefs America A mentor is a person who can tell you that you don't need to get shot to know you won't like it. Advice is a way of repackaging life's more awful experiences with the blessing of hindsight - to save people some agony, and with it the time it takes to find a silver lining. We asked chefs about career advice, the bites of wisdom that have propelled them forward in a more skillful manner. To rise through the ranks and create sustainable concepts, every chef needs a kitchen vet who is willing to show them what works and what doesn't. It's why the g..
Simpson Wong's Hah Zheung Gai (Shrimp Paste Chicken Wings)
For Best Chefs America Simpson Wong (of Cafe Asean) recently opened Chomp Chomp, a Singaporean restaurant in NYC's West Village. Wong uses shrimp paste in a number of dishes. Here is his recipe for Hah Zheung Gai - shrimp paste chicken wings. Ingredients: 5 lbs chicken wings (about 15 pieces) Oil for frying Rice Flour For the marinade: 4 tablespoons garlic juice 4 tablespoons ginger juice 5 tablespoons sprimp paste (hah zheung) 1 tablespoon salt 1 tablespoon sugar For the..
Celebrating the Life of the Legendary Paul Prudhomme
For Best Chefs America Photo: AP Files Few chefs, in one short lifetime, have been able to accomplish the wide breadth of achievements credited to Paul Prudhomme. The beloved ambassador for Cajun and Creole cuisine passed away Oct. 8, at age 75. Here is our eulogy. Don’t know Paul? Sure you do. You’ve been touched by his creations, although you may not know it. He’s the well-recognized face on the container of Magic ..
Roasted Cauliflower from Boston's Erbaluce Restaurant
For Best Chefs America Try Best Chef Charles Draghi's recipe for roasted cauliflower that he makes at Boston's beloved Italian restaurant Erbaluce. Ingredients: 1 head cauliflower 4 ozs. of taleggio cheese (or fontina for a milder flavor), cut into 4 strips 8 large sage leaves 1 clove of garlic, thinly sliced 1/4 cup of golden raisins 2 TBS of salt-packed capers (rinsed), reserve a small amount of the anchovy salt 6 salt-packed anchovy filets (rinsed) 1/2 cup EVOO Juice and zest of 2 lemons 4 large spri..
Ryan Hardy's Famous Farro Salad from New York City's Charlie Bird
For Best Chefs America Charlie Bird, the hip Italian restaurant in NYC's SoHo district, serves a farro salad that is revered as one of the best salads in the city. This recipe was recently featured in the NY Times. Best Chefs America has a slightly updated version. Follow along to concoct this delicious dish at home. Ingredients: 1 cup farro, raw (preferrably from Abruzzo, Italy) 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar 2 cups water (more if necessary) 1/2 tbsp kosher salt 2 bay leaves 1/2 cup parmigiano cheese (shaved with a v..
Where Top Chefs Eat on a Day Off
After a week of serving others, there's no greater reward than to be served on a day off. Here is where some of the top culinary talent in America go to grub when they have time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the fruits of someone else's labor. Try their recommendations, because - as we like to say - chefs know best. 1) Chef Rick Tramonto, founding partner at Chicago's famed prix fixe French restaurant Tru and chef at New Orleans' Restaurant R'evolution, likes to frequent Girl & the Goat when he's in the windy city. The menu is full of small plates to suit many tastes: oy..
Morning in the Kitchen & Dinner in the Dining Room at Chez Nous
for Best Chefs America Best Chef Jill Mathias If you want to know what’s on the menu at Chez Nous, go straight to Instragram. You’ll find their daily rotating menu on stunning display - white plate after white plate, topped with dishes like chitarra carbonara, frisee salad, roasted whole fish and so much more. Some are inside blue Le Creuset casserole dishes. Each is drool-worthy. It’s rare to see a single dish repeat. Chez Nous the kind of place someone has to tell you about for you to find. And those who are tippe..
Anne Quatrano's Slow-Roasted Porchetta
Ingredients 9 cups kosher salt for brining, plus 1 tablespoon for the spice mixture 1 (15 pound) whole leg of pork, bone-in, skin-on 1 cup fennel seeds 2 tablespoons crushed red pepper flakes 8 garlic cloves 2 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 10 lemons) 2 cups spicy olive oil, such as Arbequina One week prior to cooking, brine the pork. You can ask your butcher to brine the leg for you, or do it yourself. Dissolve 2 cups of salt in 2 gallons cold water in a 5 gallon bucket. After the salt is dissolved,..
So You Want to Become a Professional Chef? Really?
For Best Chefs America When I graduated college, all I wanted to do was cook in a professional kitchen. I’d been writing about the local food movement that was getting coverage everywhere - thanks to organizations like Slow Food, writers like Joel Salatin and Michael Pollan. By the end of a six month editorial internship, I’d accumulated a respectable amount of bylines for a 22-year-old. And in my 22-year-old head, there was no better way to serve others than to nourish them. Working in a kitchen seemed beyond romantic. Like Bill..
Alexandra Ewald Cooks Winning Mediterranean in the Caribbean
For Best Chefs America Best Chef Alexandra Ewald It’s the last week before La Tapa closes for the season. Best Chef Alexandra Ewald takes off two and a half months during the slow spell every year, as do most chefs in St. John. The way of being is different here in the US Virgin Islands. Many of her customers are locals. Some are expats who found success living in the Caribbean. Others are travelers on a tropical getaway, who find La Tapa while strolling down the street past Woody’s, the bar famous for its $1/drink ..