26038 Culinary Artistry

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Re't.1urant Menus

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Acknowledgments

Xt'll

Preface

XIX

The Chef as Artist

1

Meet Your Medium

23

Compoing Flavors

37

Compo~ing a Dish

61

Why Food Matches?

87

Food ~1atche~ Made in Heaven ~ea'ioning Matche . . Made m Heaven

Composing a Menu

223

Common Accompaniment' to Entrees Evolvmg a Cuisine

196

260

289

The Evolution of Leading Chef' CUismes De~ert Island lists

323

Culinary Art as Communion Re (lurec,

399

BIOgraphies of Chefs

Index

403

409

Ahour the Authors

425

391

307

B\ krm and heauty, we're not referring strictly to Food IS very much theater [he IDL.leasmdv popular, and in some cases misguided, - Jam. Be" c; emphals that Sl'me chefs have placed on the visual presentation of food. In jetermll1U1g what form a dish will take, chefs have the opportunity to conve\ their own sense of beauty with every decision they make about a dish, from the selection of ingredients and their pairing with other ingredients, to Its cookmg techniques, to its presentation on a plate, to its order of presentation on a menu. Just as philosophers have suggested that art is "about" something, and conveys feelings toward that subject matter, so does Alice Waters tell us that "Being a really good cook has to do with having a point of view." Throughout history, great culinarians have likened the culinary arts to arts ranging from architecture to painting to theatre. The press has even used artistic analogies when describing particular chefs. For example, Los Angeles Times food writer Charles Perry once likened chef Joachim Splichal to the late rock musician Jimi Hendrix, who was known for his

artistic daring. "Cooking is indeed an artistry," says Bradley Ogden. "It's a form of creativity and expression, especially the more defined you become with your cuisine. The direction you decide to take It In-your per~onal styleusually depends on your background and your education. I grew up in Michigan, and my cuisine i more traightforward Amencan. Unheknownst to me, I wa developing a palate back when I wa five or IX year old, helng reared on organic blackberrie and wall-eyed pike" "We are certainly associated With the art," Gray Curnonsky's belief that "La cuisine! Thats when Kunz agrees. "There's no question ahout that. But the thmgs taste /Ike themselves· IS none other than affiltatlon hide~ an enormou am unt of hard work. the artist's precept. "Respect your medium This work I very stressful-hoth phy ically and on the transposed Into the world of food. mind. What helps the chef is the 'Imph: de~lre to cre- -RrchCi'd 0 ey ate di he that are con tandy on a very hlf~h le\'el. It' a ,hame you c, n't put me of them on canvas!" Wayne 1 1 i .h, who once tudled architecture, POint- out that "Architecture In the Middle Age wa~ the mother of the art. In or,ler to he t.l'l 10 a fourth who ,pent the pnor even 109 hem'! fed 'trawherrie' hy a 100'er! Cu,romers' level of knowledge WIll al,o color their percertLon of the chef' profe~,ion Ibdf. The ~ame popular cookbook and televi Ion ,how that have ,erved to catapult leaJmg chef. mto hoU',eholJ name~ have perhap, 10 turn, done chefs a db,ervlce. In leading chefs' well-meaning enCllur3!!emcnt to home Loob that the~, too, (an Look the chef' three- Ilt four- tar iood at home, the~ have rerhap, omitted any mentIon ot the Ve,lT of trainIn!? md expenence that are behmd the re Ipe ,md mdeed the p~dCtlCe (If pro~ lonal cookmo-, leadm o- to the genera I pu bl' ll: mt gUided VICW that "an~lxxh c n k .!reat food."

"Perhap~ heL,lll e e\ crybody edt, SI\'e and, by necessity, does it ha\'e to stay rooted in the culture that it come from? I'm not ,ure we\'e rOll

come far enough to answer that l/ue"t1on, Perhars haute cuisine is Itke opera, which e\'el)'one Seem to rec(1l!ni:e a" an art form , albeit not uni\'ersal or easily accessible, In fact It\ pretty arcane, Though opera can be movinl!, it's an n Ilt~ and th II 111 ,lOd the I I In redl n , ulmdr}. rtl t Jitter do m th \' ~ th y pro h the pr e f c mp) IOtnt of c n III 1 n. There I cerof ere ttvlty that I a ch ( 1 d pte. I tl n to f tnl 11e • ut h or, I

ectlO the much

taml no c neath fr m

U ,

.... e don't mean t) ug 'e t ne In r enttn Ie dmg eh 'Idea on the [ pi dl eu d an chron I ~ of our own d \I mg-th t ( tartmg .... tth rh malic t elemen (the com iuon f t1 "l)r ) contanumg thrt u h their c rnhmatlon mto c mposed JI he nd menus-but It' g .... U} ) .... 1m \\ of to tart!

A MaHer of Taste

Both the r t\( n nd th enJ rn nt f center ar un th p tat Th UT tl3S1C ld~V' that can be per elve on the ton ue ar we t, It, ur mJ bitt r

ut. "In Chma, there are five-there's also 'hot.' In southeast la, th re' .11'0 'aromatic.' There's also 'pungent'-something like fish paste \\ hlCh I not ur or bitter. but its sour. bitter, sweet, and salty." ~ary Danko mentions yet another "fifth flavor": "It's called umami. Tne be-t \\ a\' to Illutrate it would be the taste of the combination MSG and \\ater. Thoe are amino acid-like protems. Or another example would be to fut a raW O\·ter in your mouth. The feel or taste is of the sort of numbness in your mouth. It's hard ro describe. "If 'ou close your nose when you start to eat, those five flavors are the only things you can taste," says Danko. "A pure taste is something that goes from your palate to your brain immediately, Without going through your olfactory sensors and then filtenng up. It' an immediate ensation from tongue to brain." How can chefs use this knowledge to improve their cooking? "You hear a lot about balancmg the four points of the tongue," says Danko. "There are people who ay, 'If you just add more lemon JUICe, you won't need so much alt.' But I would disagree with that. I look at it more as a balance-you need a little bit of thi , and a little bit of that, and these are all essential in satiatIng you. You can leave a huge meal 'hungry' if your palate was not atiated. On the other hand, you can be atl fied With Ie ... food if you've had good, balanced flavor coming Into your m uth." In thmking about food, cook houlJ 1m to become can, lOU, of what\ going on in a particular dt h. Wlllch 10 rediem r contnhutin J t the dish's weetne ,or Inne ,or ur on , r bitter n te ? Thr u_h un 1er t,mding a particular ingredient' fla' r pr r t I . a he can m re exp Ttly h. nJle that ingredient and c mhme It \\ Ith ther, hem w re ,·he t the ingredient I contributing

to (

dl h.

I ch, ngeThe natur u rmm r \\ mgr It!nt . . m w ~ that m tml:e n nl fla\'or but en)o ment. Ther • r two pnm r. w } t I thl: thr u_h the ppltc non 0 tim, I c 10 0 echnt u , n thr u h h rm III u mbmatlon 0 tl3\; r. \X'lule It c n be lea ur ble t e t. perfect ra\\ carrot, for exam Ie, 10 h mtddl winter It n be even m re tI rytn to e t th t am carr t h t, perhap ure or a up. An th wh en) y he tlav r of \.:. rr t may flO It e\ en m re appealin d ttl n p t f butter, or« quee:e a lem n or orange. h f mu take the e n e n 10 re(hent lOt Idln wh t to 0 WIth It It t \ Ital or che t bc·r n.... " nllllar With Iff, rent t hnl Ium d I r c UI tn "

Affec ing Flavors

I

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A

the process of cooking changes the flavor and textur avors but we do not have the fight of the ingredients being cooked. to destroy therr; Take sugar, for example, which 1 a recogntzable --,Ioel Robuct)OI flavor in and of itself. Yet if it is heated to a certain . 't wtll begin to brown and melt- the process of carameitzatlon • pomt, 1 " Through the application of cookmg techmques to sugar alone, new flavors and textures can be created. The same is true for nuts. Taste a walnut fresh from its shell. Then toast some walnuts in the oven, or in a saute pan, until they begin to brown slightly, and you'll find that a deeper flavor and crunchine are released. Toa tlng may also increase the perceived bitterness of walnuts as well as of aromatics such as caraway or mustard seeds. Roasting, on the other hand, can increase the sweetness of a dish through the carmeltzatlon process. "There's omething called the 'Maillard effect' that occur when the natural sugars in food are exposed to high temperatures in the pre ence of aCid, which reult in a natural carmeli:ation," explain Jimmy chmidt. "When you roa t thing like garlic or on ions, it creates broader flavor with more depth than the mgredlents would have raw or even cooked at a lower temperatun::. Through roa ring, certain gelatinous vegetable_, uch hallot and p.1r mp', break down. giving the dish a nawrally rich mouth-! el." Techmqu a tnt nly th ctu I flav r hut abo the perceived flavor of a I h. F rex mpl ,heatln n increa e Ib perceIved weetne s, whIle chlllm It mak I eeme er eptthle. A a ca c m point, the mIxture a ut to be poured Into n Ice ere III maker often tastes unbearahly weer. HO\ ever, once fro:en Into I e cre m, the arne ingredients taste merely plea ntly weet. A partl ular mgre Icn n I char tcn ttl: wtll metlme~ ug 'e t u~e of a particular re hOlque. "If )OU have perfect I h rcr, you prob hly J n't want to do anythmg m re than bOll r team It," ay J per White. "But If y IIr lobter aren't fabulous, au [TIl ht want to tum them into a bISque. To get the m t flavor out of the lob ter, I ' not mg to c me fr m the meat, which might be bland that particular time of year; It' g 109 to c me from I wly Immenng the carcasse and makmg a really tron br th With them. And If th season IS prmg, and it' chilly, wup I appropnate. Plu~, lob rer I an exp Ive mgredlent, and makmg a soup with it i a great wa~ to tretch It " Different bnds of fl h lend them lye to different rneth tion. "You can't gnll black cod, for example, lr Chtlean fall apart," explatn Mary ue MIlltken and u an Fem cr. "But the 'r rh great pan- eanng fl h. It' Just that their re ture I n t n hr r h nil nd you'd I all that JUice, mee the} 're th JUlq fl h. Tun n f h re k

we hav£, the nght to enhance or

Ir' Import.mt to u,e mgredlents In the way they are most naturally suited J .1 lum ~rlachal point~ out th,lt there are more than forty different types f porat e . "Mt ~t cu,wmer are only familtar with Idaho and Red Bliss," he ,3Y- "I u e Yukon Golds exclusively for mashed potatoe" for example, f:,ecau,e of their texture an~ golden color. And I'll use fingerlings [tiny potatoe the 'I:e of a fingertip] tor·alads."

Utilizing Kitchen Tools

Even the particular kitchen equipment used can affect the flavor of the finbhed product. Gray Kun: uses only the freshest herbs, and wants the same fre~hne~~ from hiS pices. "That's why we grind all our spices at the restaurant, u:mg a ,mall coffee grinder." says Kun:. ~dark Peel believe" that using simple tools often results In better food than b po~ible from high-tech gadgets. "If you take exactly the same recipe and }OU make pesta or an aiolt with a CUI' market," recalls PeeL "When the) pr ut, chcml.1 h n ur m,klt: the bean, cau,mg them Ilv rton de I led t u t: a heJ of the sprouted legume to ho\\c e a perfectl~ c k d pIC e 01 almon. to become \\e ter." Peel and

For JC r e Jermon clnd J hanne "Iii en, \\ hO'l: rramlng as a rt b ts predat~ their emf) IOta rofe I n I cookll1g, th tnrting lint is vi Ll,d. "I think It' ~I tOur trainmg," ay ermon. "We u e (Jur hr here. "In coming up with ne\~ d~, crt', we run experiment . . In the kitchen a lot, te~ting recipe . T here's a lot of prc"ure to COI11t' up with ne\\' Jessens, both pressure from our cllstomer~ and ,df-Ilnpo t.'d." Wht'n compO'In!; a Jbh, Gary Danko starts hy a,king himse lf, "What I' the mam tn(!redit'nt here? What b the center of the plate? b it a roast eggplant \\,Ith lamh Ie tn, or I~ it mast lamb loin With eggp lant? Ideally, I wi ll Lhoo e h the ,ea on. "When I cook with lamh, because I take all the fat and connective tis,ue ott the meat, I have to omehow in,ulate that meat. In the 'prang, I'll take dried morel mu,hnxlms and powder them, and use that with bread crumbs and aromatic" omon s , ~arlic, parle), thyme, and make a very delicate crust. I'll 'ear the lamh in a lIttle bit of hot oil. cool It dO\m quickly, hrush It With e!!!! white, and then roll it in this cru t. From that, I'll decide. 'What am I !!OLn!,! to put thi on?' I'll thtnk, 'Well. lamb like to !!ra:e on fennel. and fennel\ jut coming tnto ea on, a ~taple of one's diet-I could never live without hread or cereal.

-'

3. Corn. \'m an Italian. and I like my polenta. &. 5. Apple tree and pear tree. I love them hoth. And they're comtantlv1 usabl e,. I cou Id eat th e frUlt. ire'h. or cooked. or even make liqueur from them.

1I

6. Grapes. To ha\'e wine.

i A pig. I love pork. S. Salad greens. A \·ariety. or any kmd . 9. Chickens. I love egg . 10. An orange or tangerine tree. It' a tla\'or I really lm'e a lot. When reminded that .he could brmg al ng ea mn o

,

Shere re ponded, "I don't need ~eas()l1ings. If

you have omethmg that'.; wonderful, you don't need to da a lot to It."

TE

H

IQLE :

1. Baking. How could you have brc. d If you couldn't bake, not to mention the oc(a.,ional apr Ie tart. fruit ens!" and cake? 1

-. tovetop pot-cooking. I'd want to be dble to make cu.-tard and

~oup- and stocks.

3 Cook' f h . h ' '( tOO hot to cook inside! . mg over ire coal. F r vanet . and flavar-and t ere are time ( at It ~ JU"

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369

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L dia Shire BIBA and PIGNOLI Boston. Massachusetts

I ' (,REUlE! T":

1. Garlic. Ilo\'e garlic. It's my fa\'orite thing in the world. (See Lydia Shire's recipe for Crab Fldeo with Broken Garltc O il on pages 371-372, which she characterizes as "major garlic!")

2. Olive oil. Garlic and olive o il go h and in hand. 3.

alt. I cannot eat food Without -alt-it has :ero flavor. Salt might actually be my number one choice.

4. Bacon. I IO\'e good bacon . I love fat.

5. pasta. paghetti gc'es great with o!i\'e o il and garhc-it's my comfort food. 6. Mavonnai e. I'm a closet mayonna i e eater. I can eat mayonnabe sandwiches.

i.

pinach. I crave pinach.

~ Broccoli rabe. I crave !,!reen - I lo ve their bmeme

9. Lemon. I u e lemon .. hke alth .. Beef. To have a creat tea , With

flav r enh ncer. t-n thmOel e qUite r'~.oC It ~ rOle. mmel

If gl\ en Tl:

1.

aut eing. It' a gr at, qUic

meH

he 'lute htr te mm per n."

10\..1: :

c()()km th t 1Ote~ IfIe the fla\'or on the seared ide.

I m m the ummer?

2 Frving. \x'hat' bert r th n 3. Roa ting. Th

H

u e.

a hi ken r.UdC~l1O_ the char

10

ur h use I

e f the top mells m the world.

\ £la\ r Imparted by gnllmg, he admit, "I'm not much of

2-inch pieces. Toss in 1/4 cup olive oil and bake 11\ oven until lightly golden. This should take 5 to 8 minutes. Be careful not to let the noodle get too

t Break 1 pound Goy.l fideos into approximately 135

0

to

brown.

4. Boil fideo in crab stock until al dente. Drain in colander. Set over bowl. Reduce 4 cups of liquid to 1 cup. Re erve.

5. Rub a hallow ca serole dish with a cut clove of garlic and butter lightly. Arrange the cooked noodles tossed with the picked-over crab meat to a depth of 1 inch. You may need two casseroles. It is ill\portant that the noodle only be 1 inch high. 0

6. Drizzle the noodle with the reserved cup of tock and bake in a 400 oven until the top is crispy and the rock absorbed. 7. The beauty of thi di h is the contrast of the crisp noodles on top, and the soft and somewhat dty under· neath. . Pass the broken garlic oil separately, as your guests will want different amounts.

Bn*m Garlic Oil 1 ancho chale

c

priac, peeled

1 cup

tra

1

VlfIUl olave oal t

1

black pepper •

a._

pan for S minuta till 101. sL:JWlv for 45 manures.,...&ld. Slowly drizzle into the c1q1Pinl wkh • knife. Add

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Nancy Siherton CAMPANILE

Loss Angeles. CalifornIa

L (;RE.PH

T~:

1 Salt. Pepper. I real'"I think that, -' jlent and salt and pepper. 1

to

make something good, you don't need anything more th an a goo d .mgre-

3. Arugula.

4. potatoes. j.

Olive oil.

6. Bread. [Silverton gave up her original choice of balsamic vinegar in order to bring bread.] 7. Parmesan cheese. Everything about a baked potato, olive oil. Parmesan, and arugula with salt and pepper is so satisfying that I always say I could eat thi· every day for the rest of my life. 8. Dried pasta. I love dried pata. I love the texture, the toothines . I love fresh ravioli, but too many tlme fresh pasta is gummy. It' not alway a benefit ro make it fre h. 9. Coffee. I have to have coffee. (..,ee! ancy ~ilverton' recipe for Coffee Ice Cream on page 374.) 10. Red wine. I need red wme. St!verton asked, "b It a HawaiIan i land? Do I ha\'c ro bnng .ugar, or

Tf

H

IQl f

I

there sugar cane there?"

:

l. Sauteeing. It's very quick and it' very Imple-and the re ults can be delicious.

2, Boiling. I love pasta-and coffee. 3. Braising. I love the cuts of meat that lend them -elves ro being brai ed, and the results. "I . h out deep frying. Grilling .IS Olce, . butI d on 't ha\' e to h'e I can eas'lI Y I'Ive Wit a\ it . And I could easily . ~ve Without SWeet. For obviou reason, I love baking because of what I do--but not necessanly ecau e of what I eat." --- -

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373 E

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J'

Coffee Ice Cream by Nancy Silverton YIELDS 1 QUART

A coffee flavor at the end of a meal can be doubly pleasing; it can satisfy the desire for both coffee and dessert. Our coffee ice cream has an intense coffee flavor, much more so than traditional coffee ice cream because we use no eggs and less cream. It may not be quite as smooth, but I find it more refreshing. Crush the coffee beans with a rolling pin or with the back of a pan. Do not use a grinder or food processor because the resulting grind is too small and it causes the ice cream to take on an unpleasant gray color. I find that decaffeinated beans produce a smoother ice cream than regular coffee beans.

41/2 cups whole (4%) milk 1 1/2 cups heavy cream 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1 1/2 table poons com syrup 1/2 cup decaffeinated coffee bean~, e .. pres,o roa"t, crushed 1 1/2 tea poem, coffee extract or instant e'pres,ll 1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, brmt:! the mIlk, ere. m. !;ranulated ~ugar, com syru[" and coffee beans to a bod. Bod gently. ttrrint:! cantm u Iy u lOt:! .1 mbber ·p.Hula. reducmg until the mixture ha_ thickened very ,lightly, about _ to 2 ~ ITltnUtl: \\ Ith ufflclent bo Iy to provide an envelopmg nchneo;'i, as 0['1'0 ed to a water~ mdkme ,In )ur m uth.

2. Remove the ~aucerut the expenence." It' often JU t tiny,llttle actS of human ktnJne ,for the mo t part, that t< htn o to them-ho\\ the~ were treated ~y the t. ff, or how the taff went OLlt of theIr way tn' h IWy about It to accommoJate them. It

Iml'< n tnt tv rem

m~er that

tht: I not

d

bu me . It' a ltfe' work.

3 A

"A, a hlzarre examrle. our dng Rllse [d dalmaulln} I III the re t ur nt at th~ twnt d1111f. Sl1metlme' it's .llmnst clllnical-you think, H ven'r th people ever , een a dog hefore, for GIld's ,ake? ~Of cour~e he' pretty md We love her to plece~ and all this. But they get ur trnm their dinner .10 \ the, roll on the flollr with her in their little Chane I "uit. . , and the next thing YOll kn W she \; got a string of rearls on. It's entertainment! It's novel. "Chefs and restaurateurs could ask themselve~ whether there are one or two l1lwel ideas about how they could communICate a broader dimenSion of themselves to their clients-whatever it might be. They would pmhahly he a toni shed by the imract that might create." says O'Connell. "It's all inside \'ou-if you wdl Ju~t take the ~andbag, off."

An Opportunity for Community

In her fascmating hook A

Natural History

of the

ense~.

Diane Ackerman romt - Ollt th,1(. "The other senses may he enjoyed in all their he, ut \\ hen one I.~ alone. hut taste I~ largely acia!. Humans rarely choo e [U Jtne II1 !HuJe. ,mJ (0(1\.! has" powerful 'ocwl component." Leadll1!:! Lht:f.- !!ree. "F 1 h\)uld ,dw.lYs be eaten m company," say Dieter - h mer. ''t eat It alan bring, on! half rhe rlea'lIfe. Being With other pe pi I \\h ( m lk I d be llHlfu!." LtnLI~ey Shere concur.. "Food h uld be n) \ lhl , md "nno p Ie together omeho\\'. It people ate Ja ,thm \ uld be dlt ert:nt. n I It people cite and cooked t

uld

re \

It

rem." r re [ ur tnt thell re o!.!nt:e the IInporrance ot 1 h It tl pr h t th 1010 I erlt:n e. "I think th,lt Patrick [ )'Conn 11) nJ RelOh r j IL~ n hl h VI: b n there h r .llml) t twenty year~ ut In (h mll.l I the wIIJ me (I The Inn .il Little W,I htngt t n in the be t Amen 10 h PltcllH) and the ~e t ot rt:n't en u h pc pIe Itkc [hem \\ ho .Ire pIOneer. re te th If 1\\'l1 m loe. It' !:!1\Jcn Amefl