Inductive Reasoning in the Kitchen

My previous post concluded with a turkey-carving demonstration by The River Café's executive chef, Brad Steelman.  Normally, when the turkey is carved, we eat.  But Brad had more interesting plans for these slices.  Before revealing his creation made therefrom, however, he offered a few tips for preparing his Mushroom Risotto.

For this recipe, Brad uses three types of mushroom: portobello (also called portobella), trumpet royale, and maitake.  He likes the trumpet royale for its appearance and its aptness to be julienned.  He also recommends the maitake, or hen of the woods (whose name derives from its resemblance to the plumage of a hen), for its nice, meaty flavor.

After peeling the mushrooms and removing some of their gills, it's time to start cooking.  Brad cautions against salting beforehand:  "When you add salt to an item before you put it into the pan, it pulls out some of the moisture; it then cools the pan down."  That, in turn, diminishes some of the color, caramelization, and, ultimately, the flavor.

Start the risotto with water (to make it light), and finish it with stock, seared mushrooms, mascarpone, truffle butter, and of course, Parmigiano Reggiano—"life is impossible without it," insists Brad. 

"You should think of each little grain of rice being cooked … that's what makes a good risotto," Brad declares.  A common pitfall is to cook it too slowly.  When this happens, the risotto becomes mushy and fails to cook evenly.  To aid in selecting the proper cooking temperature, Chef Steelman uses an Electrolux Induction Hybrid Cooktop.  Unlike gas or electric stoves, induction cooktops use electromagnetism to convey heat directly to the cookware without losing heat.  To wit, the cookware—not the cooktop—is the heat source.  Not only does this abate the heat in the kitchen, it affords more responsive temperature control, greater energy efficiency, and easier cleanup than does the older, radiant technology.  Induction cooking has been used in commercial kitchens for some time, with well-known chefs like Daniel Boulud among its pioneers.  "There isn't a high-end restaurant in New York that doesn't have an induction cooktop," says Brad.  Keep in mind that ferrous, induction-rated cookware is required, however.

The results are most impressive.

So, what became of the bird?  Brad created a beautiful Thanksgiving slider, replete with turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce.  Delicious!  As with sliders in general, one is never enough.  But alas, my solitary sandwich had to tide me over till dessert.

Ah, the final course.  Who doesn't love crème brûlée?  To add a Thanksgiving twist, Brad presents his in diminutive (Jack B' Little) pumpkins.  Jack B' Littles are not merely decorative, they're quite eatable.

Chef Steelman starts by slicing off the top and removing the seeds and pulp (all of which can be used for making soup).  He then rubs in autumn spices and places the shells into a preheated, 350°F oven.  After roughly 20 minutes of convection baking, Brad waits for the little pumpkins to cool, and fills them with the crème brûlée mixture.  (Not wanting to exaggerate the flavors, he opts for the classic vanilla-bean recipe instead of one infused with pumpkin.)  Back into the oven they go for 45 to 50 minutes, whereupon, they are refrigerated several hours.  Brad serves the tiny pumpkins with his signature pecan shortbread.

Simply marvelous!

Comments

[Comestiblog]

Ah yes, it was yummy!

[Starr]

Mmm! I love creme brulee! What an awesome way to serve it. I'm going to do this, the next time I make it!