Winter makes me long for the summer

This recipe is definetly a late summer or spring recipe.  Its winter though, and sometimes you just need a btreak from braised meets and root vegetables.  

CHILLED SHRIMP SALAD

Sometimes we really forget how spoiled we are in this day and age of convenience. We have cars to get places. Grocery stores carry everything we could need. We even have perfectly controlled climates thanks to heat and air conditioning.

The other day my perfectly controlled world got turned upside down. After spending 12 hours in the kitchen, with it being 95 degrees outside and the humidity through the roof, I returned home to find my house at 95 degrees with the humidity through the roof. My Air conditioning had broke during the day. Normally, this wouldn’t be an issue. I would grab a prepared meal that I usually have in the fridge, go to a park, and enjoy the evening. However, on this day, I had no meals prepared, and the last thing I wanted to do was cook. Instead of going out though, I headed to the grocery store and came up with this chilled and refreshing meal that requires no cooking and can be made in less then 5 minutes.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 lb pre-cooked shrimp. Frozen or fresh. Make sure they are nitrate free

1 avocado

1 clam shell cherry tomatoes

1 bunch of mint

salt

pepper

olive oil

lemon juice or rice wine vinegar

TO MAKE:

1)If the shrimp are frozen, defrost them.

2)Clean the avocado from the pit and skin. Dice

3)Tear the mint into pieces. You could always cut it, but I like the big refreshing bites of mint when I am working my way through the salad

4) Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and season with salt, pepper, olive oil, and vinegar.

5) Find a cool place to enjoy.

If you are turned off by the idea of the mint, you can always use basil. Give it a try though. I often use the two interchangeably. I completely understand this recipe is the simplest thing ever. Anyone could have created this, but sometimes simple is better. Who knows, maybe it will come in handy if your AC goes out.

Sesame Salmon

A friend asked for something asian inspired this week.  Instead of stir-fry though, I decided to go with an asian flavor profile, and make a composed dish.  

Ingredients:

6 heads baby bok choy

1/4 cup tamari

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup black and white sesame seeds

3 Salmon Filets.  Aprox 4-6 ounces

cocnut oil as needed

Salt as needed

To Make:

1)Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Also preheat a grill pan over medium heat (an actual grill will work fine too).

2)In a medium bowl, combine Tamari, rice wine vinegar, and a pinch of salt. Add the Bok Choy and let marinate for 30 minutes. 

3)While the bok choy marinates, combine the white and black sesame seeds. Toast in a small saute pan on low heat, making sure to not burn.  Let cool

4)Once cool, spread the sesame seeds over the flesh side of the salmon.  Place the salmon on a parchment lined cookie sheet and bake 40 10-15 minutes or until cooked through.  

5)While fish cooks, grill the bok choy.  Brush the grill lightly with cocnut oil before placing bok choy on the grill.  

As always, Eat well.  Play hard.  Give back.  

What's in Your Pantry?

 

As a Chef, more often than I can count, people ask me how they can make the food they cook at home taste like it came from a restaurant.  For most, the answer issimple-season your food. Chefs taste, re-taste, have their buddy taste, final taste, and taste again and again and again and again; each time adding what they think the item will need to get to that restaurant quality. This may mean adding a touch of salt, pinch of a spice, dash of lemon juice or hot sauce. Really whatever it takes…which brings us to the point of all this: none of the tasting does any good without the pantry of ingredients to back it up.

So, what should be in your pantry?

Spices-everyone’s taste buds have different preferences. Which spices you prefer to keep as staples are ultimately up to you but if you want flavorful andinteresting food, you will need an arsenal. Personally I always keep black and white pepper, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, cumin, garlic powder, chile powder,and dry italian seasoning. Most spices go stale after about 3-4 months, so never buy huge amounts, unless you know you are going to use them.

Vinegars- vinegar can be made from anything, but to keep life simple , stick to the basics. Cider, red wine, champagne, rice wine, and balsamic vinegar are really all you need.

Hot Sauce-keep a few around, preferably homemade, but if not make sure its all natural with no preservatives. Hot sauce usually has enough vinegar in it to have an almost indefinite shelf life.

Tamari- Tamari is fermented soy sauce.  Fermentation removes the anti-nutrientsfound in traditional forms of soy. Tamari is typically Gluten-Free as well. Feel free to do your research on this amazing flavoring sauce.

Worcestershire Sauce-All natural, small batch distillers pump this stuff out all over the country. Your life will be changed forever. If you want, you can make your own too.

Lastly, you need salt. Kosher salt and large crystal sea salt. I know, I know. You’ve been told forever that salt is bad. Don’t eat it. Put it on the black list with white sugar and flour. Your body needs salt though. It is vital in helping retain water during any physical activity. Plus a whole slew of other things. More importantly though, salt is what makes FOOD TASTE GOOD! When a chef is doing the taste and re-taste, more often then not, he is adjusting salt. Plus, real food-from a farm or field-is not already pumped full of salt like processed foods tend to be. Want more info, check out this great post on Marks Daily Apple for some great info.  You will need kosher salt as your basic seasoning salt. Its crystal size is the perfect size to pinch and sprinkle which helps it coat food evenly. The large crystal sea salt, is for finishing, A touch on pretty much anything before eating is always a good choice.

What else? The pantry is an ever-changing beast. It is constantly evolving. You will discover new things to try out as you cook more and more. New spices will be found and familiar ones will just have to share the space. A few simple pantry items though, and you can start building dishes that have you questioning whether to go out to eat or stay in.

Until next time Eat well. Play hard. Give Back.—The Primal Bohemian.

Featured on Charleston Eater

So a few weekends ago I had the absolute privilege of helping out the Cook It Raw event here in Charleston.  While I didn't get to attend all the activities- most were reserved for the truly star studded line up of chefs- I was asked to help at the closing event on Saturday.  It was a bit of playing hard and giving back all rolled into one.  Out of it came the opportunity to reflect on the whole day and the event.  The piece ended up on Eater Charleston and can be seen here!

http://m.charleston.eater.com/archives/2013/10/28/chef-jeremiah-schenzel.php

If you want more info, check out the article in the New York Times Dining Section that was released on Wednesday or visit the Cook It Raw Website.  As always eat well. Play hard.  Give Back.

Caramelizing for Flavor

When it comes to food, there is really only one thing that ultimately matters: taste.  In a kitchen applying heat, seasoning, and different techniques all contribute to how a product will taste.  But what if we didn't have our arsenal of spices and herbs?  What if you are not the greatest cook and versed in multiple cooking techniques?  How then do we get a product to still taste great?

 To do this, we must understand that every ingredient has its own flavor.  Even without seasoning or technique we can make any product taste better by using its own natural flavor and its fundamental reaction to heat. In simple terms, when you apply enough heat to food for enough time, reactions occur.  These reactions  change the natural flavor of that product.  We typically refer to these reactions as caramelizing, as is the case with vegetables, or browning, as is the case with meats.  

Caramelizing vegetables is one of the best ways to optimize flavor.  Its a simple process too.  You need only a hot pan, some oil, and your vegetables.  Once your pan and oil are hot, add your vegetables and stir occasionally.  What is happening? Well, all vegetables contain starch.  At a certain point, the starches in the vegetable begin to gelatinize.  When this happens, the vegetable begins to soften and strands of sugar molecules get released.  These sugar molecules then come in contact with heat and start to cook.  Ultimately, these sugars begin to start the process of burning.  As they are "burning", these sugars take on different stages of color. This is why you may see a recipe call for a lightly caramelized onion or a deep caramelized onion.   

Red Onions..Hot pan..No caramelization 

Now understand that not all vegetables caramelize at the same rate or as well as others.  This is why you never see a recipe calling for caramelized kale.  Could you do it? Sure, but it would probably take more time then you want to spend, and it may not taste all that great.  This is also why you almost always add vegetables in stages when caramelizing.  Usually starting with the items you want to have the most caramelization and ending with items you want to have the least amount of caramelization.  Also, if there is anything that will make caramelizing difficult if not impossible it is overcrowding the pan.  Notice how much space those onions have? you will need all of it.  Keep your pans uncrowded, and your onions happy.  

Oh, you're not interested in vegetables? Well visit back shortly and we will discuss the process of meat caramelization.  Until next time.   Eat well.  Play hard.  Give back.    

Caramelized red onions...un caramelized carrot and celery  

Deep caramelized red onion...lightly caramelized celery and carrots.   

mmmmm, steak.

In the summer, when its hot and balmy outside, the last place I want to spend a ton of my time is in the kitchen. I developed this quick, 1 pan recipe so I could spend as little time as possible in the kitchen but still reap the benefits of all the summer produce coming from the farms around me. This recipe easily makes enough for two, but who doesn’t love leftovers?

 

Ingredients:

2 lbs flank steak

2 baby leeks or 1 large leek

3 medium tomatoes

2 hot peppers-whatever is available and you can always add or take away some of the heat based on your preference. I prefer cayennes or bull horn peppers.

1 tablespoon cumin

1/4 cup cider vinegar

salt and pepper as needed

coconut oil as needed

 

To Make:

1) Season the flank steak with salt, pepper, and cumin. Put into a dish and set aside.

2)Rough Chop all of the vegetables and add to the same dish as the steak.

3)Pour the cider vinegar over the whole mix and cover. Let marinate for at least 2 hours, but overnight is ideal. The vinegar and acid of the tomatoes will help tenderize the meat as well as add great flavor.

4)When ready to cook, heat about 3 tablespoons of coconut oil over medium high heat. I prefer to use a cast iron pan, but any pan that you can get real hot will work.

5)Place the steak into the pan and sear one side. Once a golden brown crust has begun to develop, flip and sear the other side.

6)When the meat is seared to your preference, take the vegetable and vinegar mixture and pour over the steak.

7) Reduce to low heat and cover. Let sit for 5 minutes, or until the tomatoes just begin to soften.

8)Turn the heat off and let the steak rest in the juices for 5 minutes.

9) Slice the steak and top with the tomato mixture.

You can really add any fresh vegetables you want to this mixture. I like the texture okra brings, and the earthy depth some kale can add as well. If you don’t want a lot of liquid in the pan you can strain the vegetables from the pan or reduce the liquid in the pan for a huge blast of flavor. Enjoy!

Roasting Chicken

Want to become a better cook? I can tell you two things that almost any professional chef will tell you if your looking to do so: become really comfortable with a knife, and perfect a roasted chicken. Knife work takes lots of practice, but roasting a perfect chicken only takes an oven, quality ingredients and some friends to enjoy it with!

INGREDIENTS:

1 5 to 7 lb roasting chicken.

1 medium white onion

3 stalks of celery

2 large carrots

1 bunch of thyme

1 bunch of sage

coconut oil or grass fed butter

salt and pepper

TO MAKE:

1) Preheat your oven to 475 degrees

2) While the oven heats, prepare the chicken by removing any of the included awful and the neck. Save the neck for broth.

3) Rough chop all of the vegetables and toss together in a bowl.

4) Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the vegetables and herbs

5) Take the remaining vegetables and place them on the bottom of a baking dish.This will serve as a bed for your chicken to sit on.

6) Rub the skin of the chicken with butter or coconut oil and season with salt and pepper

7) Place the chicken onto the bed of vegetables and place in the oven for 40 minutes.

8) After 40 minutes, turn oven temperature down to 350 and roast for another 20 minutes.

9) Remove the chicken from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes before you carve

10) Carve the chicken and serve!