September, 2010 -

by Borracho

An ES Video Interview with Iron Chef Michael Symon

Maybe it was the flamboyantly dressed and incredibly intense Asian gentleman simply called “The Chairman.” Maybe it was the exotic ingredients like river eel and udon. Maybe it was the hastily dubbed frenetic pace of kitchen stadium. Whatever the reason, Iron Chef was the first show that truly sparked my interest in cooking and the limitless options cooks have when they use their imagination. To be fair, I was in college when I came upon the Iron Chef series, when my diet consisted of things like Easy Mac, the cafeteria salad bar and PBR, so it was all outside my small comfort zone. But still, it was amazing.

This was the time when the Food Network was beginning to gain a foothold and many of the programs were as much about technique as the recipes. Shows like Iron Chef, A Cook’s Tour, Good Eats, Food 911, etc.. really sparked a whole generation to step into the kitchen. Unfortunately since then, much of food television has moved towards personality and recipe driven programming. Even Top Chef seems to be shifting this way.

Today, my favorite food related show airs on the Travel Channel, but I still catch some others and I’ve really enjoyed the 2 seasons of The Next Iron Chef. Through that competition and Michael Ruhlman’s book The Soul of a Chef, I have come to appreciate the way Chef Michael Symon approaches food. While this appreciation is nowhere near TVFF’s foodie man crush on Season 2 Next Iron Chef winner Jose Garces, I still jumped at the opportunity to speak with Chef Symon about his new shows, Philly cheesesteaks, and his thoughts on tofu bacon. Click play above to watch my video interview with Michael Symon.

The Next Iron Chef premieres 10/3 on the Food Network. Michael’s new Food Network show, Food Feuds premieres 10/14. His current show, Cook Like an Iron Chef, airs Thursdays on the Cooking Channel. Phew.

in Bacon / Celebs / TV 0 comments

by gansie

We’ve Changed it for American Tastes

“We’ve changed it for American tastes.”

It’s something I’ve heard a lot while reporting on food in this country. When I was interviewing Fikru “Chu Chu” Bekele about his Italian restaurant, La Carbonara in DC’s U St. area, he continually told me about how he changed his recipes to accommodate American tastes. He added more cream than necessary. In Ethiopia, where he is from and once owned an Italian restaurant, he needed to adjust recipes for our taste here, not there.

Last night, at a press dinner at Taberna Del Alabardero, our host explained the make up of the gifts we’d be receiving that night. It was olive oil. In Spain its citizens are used to a more bitter oil, here, a sweet oil. Instead of adhering to its home county for inspiration, the restaurant uses a sweeter oil to cook with. Guests were given a 250ML bottle of extra virgin olive oil packaged in Sevilla, Spain, but given the American taste treatment.

Kushi, a Japanese restaurant in DC, at times creates presentations so authentic it literally made my heart ache for the real thing. But it doesn’t serve the cuts of meat so familiar in Japan: heart, cheek, liver….instead, it serves chunks of American-favorite pork belly on a stick.

I was discussing this “dumbing down for Americans” concept with DC food expert David Hagedorn. He reminded me that restaurants are businesses and need to make money. They need to sell food that we will buy and enjoy.

I told him I wished restaurants weren’t always businesses. That they could be institutions for learning, places for people to explore authentic flavors of the world, without the requisite dumbing down for American tastes.

And then I remembered that our national past time is eating Doritos.

Photo Credit: Flick User Mattieb

in Restaurants / Trends 7 comments

by Roo de Loo

Crash and Burn

I was recently fortunate enough to land an invitation to one of the largest distributor wine-tasting events in Manhattan. These freebie drink fests allow wine and spirit makers the ability to peddle their wares in front of restaurateurs, buyers, and a few select people who manage to weasel their way in. That would be me. I guess on paper I’m a good fit: trained chef, food and travel writer, face-that-can’t lie taste tester. But I don’t spit.

This has nothing to do with that fact than when tasting a 144-page portfolio I don’t want to spit. I pay no attention to the polished spittoon or the carafes of water intended to rinse my glass. I’m holding on to every drop. So for this momentous occasion, I gave myself three parameters:

Red only (which I broke almost immediately).
Choose wines based solely on their label design.
Make sure to taste the expensive stuff, regardless of two previous rules.

So I could make some grandiose statements about the relative merits of all the different wines I tasted, but instead we’ll do this the ES way. I’ll just share my complete notes from the event. They’re scattered at best—muddled descriptions easily influenced by knee-jerk reactions to those pouring and an over-consumption of pigs in a blanket and spinach dip. But I stand by them.

Pay What You Want

Driving through rural Pennsylvania I came across a great roadside family farmstand. In addition to all of the late summer and fall produce, the warm summer weather has made the apple harvest in the state come a little bit earlier. Think crisp apples with intense sugars.

Especially surprising was the fact that payment at this stand was based on the honor system. There was even a sign saying if an item wasn’t marked, to pay what you wanted. In a world where organic often means more expensive, there is something beautiful about the simplicity.

in Rants & Raves 4 comments

by BS

Follow ES for the Best of Groupon (and some freebies!)

I’m sure lots of you ESers are already fans of Groupon, considering it’s, um…the fastest growing company in the history of the whole world wide webs. If you’re not familiar, Groupon has local versions in a whole bunch of cities now, each one offering a single daily deal — usually in the neighborhood of half-price — at restaurants, cafes, bars, and more.

And starting today, your ES editors will be giving you an advance headsup every time Groupon has a great deal going on at a restaurant that we love. Start checking out our twitter feed for the news now.

To get things started, we’re giving one lucky reader $20 worth of Groupon Bucks, which can be used on a Groupon of your choice in any city. To enter, just start following ES on twitter. Already following us? Simply retweet this post to enter.

Update! Don’t forget to keep checking our twitter feed for more prize announcements (hint…look now).

in Personal 0 comments

by Russell Warnick

Can-struction

Each year the Washington Architectural Foundation and Society for Design Administration take over D.C.’s Shops at 2000 Penn to create Canstruction, when local architecture and design firms create structures made out of canned foods. By showcasing the cans and colors of the labels, they are able to create structures that will later be de-canstructed and donated to the Capital Area Food Bank. Visitors can vote for their favorite structure by bringing their own cans — next to each design there is a food bin, each food item donated equals one vote and one structure will go on to win the People’s Choice Award. You have until October 2nd to swing by 2000 Penn to cast your vote.

If you can’t make it, check out my photo gallery of this year’s entries.

Metallic Is Welcomed in My Nail Polish, But Not My Squash

I had such a complete vision for dinner last night that I sketched it out at 3pm, eagerly waiting to start cooking. Initially I wanted to try beets, as I’ve been too afraid of a magenta kitchen, but didn’t want to alienate my beet-hating boyfriend so I omitted the ingredient.

Instead I subbed in eggplant and bonita squash, a lighter-skinned zucchini and a apparently a dish ruiner.

Browned corn kernels, chopped onion, rounds of eggplant and squash, mixed with roughly chopped mizuna and great northern beans. A feta-basil sauce, thickened with a roux, is splattered on top. And on top of that, a scant layer of buttered pumpernickel breadcrumbs.

Actually, let me be clear on the process: the squash was seasoned with salt and pepper then laid season-side down on a non stick pan hot with oil. Only one side was cooked, as I didn’t want the squash to turn mushy when baked.

The dish smelled strongly of feta upon exit of the oven. Success, I thought.

And then the whole fucking thing tasted metallic. Like totally off. Not like I need to spit it out, but more like I’ll eat this fast so it’s over and then I’ll go in the kitchen and eat the remaining pumpernickel and slather it with butter.

I’m now trying to figure out what went wrong. I bought the squash this weekend at the Bloomingdale Farmers’ Market, so it’s new to me, but I have no idea how long the vendor had the squash out of the ground. The reason I’m jumping to accuse the squash is that I had used one on Sunday and it made my scramble with potatoes and eggs taste metallic too. I thought it was one bad squash, but its metallic-itis seemed to inflict all of the squash I bought this weekend.

Is there something that I could have done to avoid this nasty taste? Is it too late in the season to be eating summer squash? Do I suck at cooking?

in Veggie 12 comments

September 2010