Top Chef

OK, just got to watch the latest episode of Top Chef. No big surprises in this one as it played out fairly predictably. Bravo usually tries to create drama by throwing out red herrings in an attempt to keep you from guessing the outcomes, but this was fairly straight forward. I don;t have much to say on the contestants as they finished as I would expect. The nasty hot dog spring roll did not bode well for the poor girl (I'll remember names later when I get to know everyone better).

The quickfire was interesting, but not all that challenging if you ask me. 40 minutes to make a sausage of some kind and dress it appropriately? I found the rules and the goal a little confusing though. It wasn’t clear to me if they were supposed to attempt to duplicate a traditional New York dog or re-create one of their own choosing. Based on what was delivered through, I guess everyone felt the latter. I find it kinda stupid then, to have the street vendor in there and say that you have to compete with her dog.

I like New York dogs, but my favorite is the Lucky Dog I can get on the street in New Orleans. I am also familiar with the style of Coney that they serve in Detroit, which is pretty good. I now live in Chicago, but I have to blasphemous and say that I don’t really care for the traditional Chicago dog. Too much going on, but it is an experience. Also, in Chi you never, ever, put ketchup on it. You will receive angry stares and people will shake their heads at you. Below is a link to a site that describes the Chicago dog in all its glory.

http://www.hotdogchicagostyle.com/chicagodog.php

And from my old haunts in Michigan, A Coney:

And finally…Here is a listing of regional dog varieties:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_dog_variations


I would have tried to make a traditional dog and then spend the bulk of the time on unique versions of the condiments. For the dog, I would have used some pork butt (60%) and some beef chuck (20%), leaving in about 20% fat from both. I would then grind it in the processor until very smooth and add a little bit of garlic, turmeric, salt and pepper. This would give a slightly sweet flavor that would balance with the meat but not be too overpowering. Using the natural intestinal casing would provide the requisite “snap” that you should have with a great hotdog. Most street vendors steam their dogs, but a quick flash on the grill doesn’t hurt after the steam bath.

For the condiments, I would make mustard, by lightly toasting some seeds and then grinding them with some apple cider vinegar and turmeric and then straining. I would also have done a quick pickle on some Napa cabbage (just boil some julienne cabbage in vinegar for 5 to 10 min), caramelize some onions, and top with a small shake of celery salt.

Tomorrow, I’ll get into the elimination round.

Top Chef Begins

Well, in my last post, I mentioned something about posting again in time for Top Chef. I can dream, can’t I? To be fair to myself, I no longer have cable and so have to download all of the episodes before I can watch. This puts me a few days behind but I can then watch at my leisure.

Anyway, I wanted to set forth my qualifications for commenting on this show before I begin to share my opinions. While I enjoy Project Runway, I can never really get too fired up into the critique. I can say “That’s a pretty/ugly dress.” or “…it is not constructed well…”, but I can’t speak to the “fashion” of it. That is why I took to Top Chef better.

I started my cooking career fairly early. I can remember the X-mas when I asked for an easy-bake oven (what budding homo didn’t want one). I was about 8 or 9 and received a good amount of ribbing from my older brothers. I will give my parents props for how they handled it though. Instead of the cheesy item I requested, I received a full bake-wear set. A couple of layer cake pans, a sheet pan, utensils and a large assortment of Jiffy baking mixes. Needless to say, I received far less ribbing after I began to turn out cakes, cookies and brownies for the family.

From there, I began working with my Mom and grandma when they were cooking. My grandma was an old-fashioned granny, who baked pies and made jams, jellies and preserves. I learned a lot of basics there. My mom was more of a practical cook. Everything tasted good, but was simple by necessity. I have nine brothers and sisters, so learned early on how to cook for the masses. When I hit 12, my mom went back to work and I started to do a good share of the cooking. It was usually just heating things and making mixes and such, but I slowly started to experiment and elaborate on classic white trash cuisine.

When I hit 16, it was time to go to work, so I picked up jobs in local diners where I learned the art of short order (I thought that was a great challenge last season!). I also did my requisite time in fast food land, spending a couple of years at a KFC and Big Boy. Believe it or not, but KFC was a very good learning experience. I learned all there is to know about frying and spice blending.

Things didn’t really pick up until I went to college in Ann Arbor, MI in 1986. I was on scholarship and work study, but still needed to work as I didn’t receive any money from anyone else. I spent three years at a place that specialized in Northern Italian cooking. I worked for a great chef there and was already on my way up the food chain and reached a point to where I was beginning to have a say in the specials and developed plates for the menu. I ended up leaving there (OK, I was fired) because of general disagreement with new management. From there, I spent another year in a small bistro, where I was exposed to French Country. Not sure if it was a chicken/egg thing, but I worked out that those two cuisines are representative of the type of food I enjoy. Quality, seasonal ingredients, minimally processed and cooked properly. I can certainly appreciate more elaborate preparations, but will always go for taste over an overworked presentation. Nothing puts me to sleep faster than a dish that takes four minutes to describe…” a blah-blah filet, marinated in some esoteric something, served with the currently trendy ingredient, drizzled with hah-falutin-foofoo…” Drives me up a wall!

This is Gratzi in Ann Arbor

I followed that with a gig running the kitchen for a catering company. I moved to Chicago in ‘92 and did a little here and there, but eventually sold my soul to Corporate America. Since then, I’ve mostly done catering, which gives me more freedom than a restaurant job. As mentioned before, I get to cook for my neighborhood bar and I have a standing offer to my numerous nieces and nephews (more than 40 at this point) to cater their weddings at cost. 3 down, XX to go!

Well, there you have it! My 600 or so word description of my cooking experience. I plan on being very opinionated, as I can be. Feel free to share yours.