10 Most Influential Chefs Part 1.
This is a ranking of the chefs I feel have had the greatest influence on the American culinary scene. When the idea of ranking the 10 most influential chefs originally came to me the first thing I had to do was set out a criteria for my ranking. Here’s what I asked myself:
- Have they influenced younger chefs?
- Have they had an influence on the American table?
- Have they influenced the US dining scene?
- Have they influenced home cooks?
- Have they influenced me?
As with any of these types of lists debate will rage. I invite, nay! I implore you to use the comments section to offer your own critiques and substitutions. Let’s get started shall we?
10. Michael Symon (Lola, Lolita, Bar Symon and The B Spot all in Ohio and Roast in Detroit). The first controversial entry? Before you go off thinking I’m nuts check this out. In 2006 Symon opened Parea next door to Gramercy Tavern in New York City. Though professional critics liked it (Bruni gave it 2 stars) the cynical New York diners said that Symon wasn’t ready for New York so it closed a year later. The reality isn’t that Symon wasn’t ready for New York but rather New York wasn’t ready for Symon. Right now virtually every New York restaurant is exploring the pig – pigs feet, pork belly, chocolate covered bacon – all of it is thanks to Chef Michael Symon. Read my exclusive interview with Chef Symon HERE.
8. Graham Kerr (The Galloping Gourmet, The Graham Kerr Show and countless other TV shows and cookbooks). Kerr was the third celebrity chef in American history following chronologically behind James Beard and Julia Child but at his peek he was more famous than his contemporaries by a country mile. His story is interesting, a Scot cooking French cuisine who became famous in New Zealand before coming to the New World to become a star (read more HERE). Kerr’s jovial personality made him the perfect cooking show host because you didn’t have to care about food to be entertained. Weight Watchers, in an amazing stroke of hypocrisy, once proclaimed Kerr “public enemy number one” for his high fat, high calorie French cuisine. Today Chef Graham Kerr is known for reinventing his cooking style with his Mini-Max approach – minimize the fat and calories and maximize the flavor while Weight Watchers is the poster child for overly processed Frakenfoods.
7. Bobby Flay (Mesa Grill in Las Vegas, New York City, and in The Bahamas; Bar Americain in New York City and Uncasville, Connecticut; Bobby Flay Steak in Atlantic City, New Jersey; and Bobby’s Burger Palace – a regional chain). Another controversial pick? Hardly. Whether you like Bobby Flay or hate him you know who he is and what he does. He was one of the first Food Network hires. He was the executive chef of a popular NYC restaurant at age 19. He was the top graduate in the first class ever at New York’s esteemed French Culinary Institute. He pioneered the Spanish/tapas craze. All noteworthy credentials but he makes the list because Flay has done more with Southwestern cuisine than anyone else. Quite honestly Southwestern maybe the culmination of 230+ years of American food. It employees the techniques of French cuisine with Southern and Tex-Mex along with a strong native American influence as well. It’s bold, innovative flavors are the very embodiment of the American spirit and there is no finer practitioner than Chef Bobby Flay. For more on Flay check out my exclusive interview done in 2007.
6. Emeril Legasse (Emeril’s Chop House and BAM in Bethlehem, PA, Emeril’s in Las Vegas, Orlando, Miami Beach and New Orleans, Emeril’s Tchoup Chop in Orlando, NOLA in New Orleans, Delmonico in New Orleans and Las Vegas, Table 10 and Lagasse’s Stadium in Las Vegas). Legasse has his fair share of haters and people who believe that he is more character than chef. However, Emeril is as beloved a chef as this nation has ever seen. He has set the standard for how a cheflebrity should conduct business, fair but firm. He takes care of his people ( check out his post-Katrina efforts sometime) and he truly is an amazing chef. Keep in mind that he convinced the famed Brannan family of New Orleans to turn over the reigns of the Commander’s Palace after Paul Prudhomme left to open K-Paul’s to an unknown Yankee chef from Fall River, MA. That turned out OK didn’t it? But the main reason that Emeril makes the cut is because of his TV work. To put it bluntly the success of Food Network is solely attributed to Legasse’s show Emeril Live which literally put the network on the national radar. It made the network and his work on the show turned a generation of drive-thru devotees into home cooks. That is substantial by anyone’s criteria. Without Chef Emeril Legasse there might not be a Food Network today.
There’s the first half of my list of the 10 Most Influential Chefs. Check HERE for the top 5 chefs.
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My Summer Reading List: Tender at the Bone
Originally published on June 4, 2009.
Recently I ventured over to amazon.com and purchased a box full of foodie books to read over the summer. As I complete each one I will review them here for all to see. The list is an impressive one and I have chosen to lead it off with Ruth Reichl’s 1988 opus Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table.
Others on my summer reading list include Kitchen Confidential (Anthony Bourdain), Heat (Bill Buford), The Man Who Ate Everything (Jeffery Steingarten) and The Making of a Chef (Michael Ruhlman). I know what you are thinking, “Shouldn’t he have read those already?” The answer is yes I should have. You know what? I haven’t seen Rainman or Switch Blade yet either. I’ll get around to it. But first, Tender at the Bone:
First published in 1988, Tender at the Bone was way ahead of the curve. After all, the phrase foodie didn’t really even exist at the time nor the Food Network for that matter. Bobby Flay was still in Culinary School. Emeril LaGasse was only known for being the guy who replaced Paul Prudhomme at Commander’s Palace.
Tender is the story of a lifetime immersed in food, a coming of age tale a lifetime in the making. When reading, one feels that Reichl is telling you her life story over a bottle of red and a plate of brie and grapes rather than leafing through an autobiography. On more than one occasion I was left thinking, What an amazing life – she should write a book about it. That’s how easy the prose is, it reads more like conversation.
Ruth Reichl grew up during an amazing period of strife and growth in America’s history but she was not a bystander; she was in the thick of it. When hypocritical Northerners ridiculed the Deep South while keeping minorities at a safe distance in their own lives Reichl was color blind. While many hippies dreamed of joining a commune, Reichl lived in one. And through it all there was food.
Tender at the Bone is a must read for anyone who loves food and believes in the force that food can be in a person’s life. There is a reason why Reichl sits at the head of the table of food writers with the likes of Bittman, Ruhlman, Steingarten and Burford. The reason? She is damned good at what she does.
Next: Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain.
Fish Dish: Blackened Swordfish
I was excited to find that my local market has started stocking Full Circle all natural, wild caught, US fish in its freezer section. I live on the Gulf Coast and can get fresh Gulf seafood but these are not indigenous fishcicles. So I have decided to share this culinary voyage with you. I won’t be providing recipes per se but instructions on how I fixed each Fish Dish.
Blackened Swordfish
Fish Dish: Blackened Swordfish with Cajun Rice and Crème Fraîche Tarter Sauce.
Contrary to popular belief “blackening” food is not an age old Cajun or Creole cooking technique. It is, however, born from the imagination of one of America’s most important chefs, Paul Prudhomme.
Blackened anything has been seen on menues across the nation ever since Chef Prudhomme made Blackened Redfish the signature dish at K Paul’s, his famous French Quarter restaurant. The technique is as risqué for the cook as it is for the dinner as it temps both with high heat and a touch of danger.
The first thing you should do when attempting any blackened dish is open the closest window and turn your hood vent to HIGH. Coat your swordfish generously with blackening seasoning (Paul Prudhomme’s is available at your grocer or make one from scratch, the recipe for mine follows). Heat an iron skillet to medium-high to high, it should be smoking. Although traditional technique uses clarified butter, the purpose of this is to keep the dish healthy so I used canola oil, about 3 tablespoons. Add the swordfish; there should be LOTS of smoke.
After about 2 to 3 minutes turn your fish; it should looked nearly burnt. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. If you are cooking on electric you may want to remove the pan from the burner for about 30 seconds until the temprature levels out. Remove the fish to a plate. Add finely diced onions, celery and bell pepper to the pan and saute briefly before adding brown rice. Toss until heated through and season with a pinch more of the blackening seasoning.
The tarter sauce was easy. I added a tablespoon of Mrs. Renfro’s Hot Chow Chow to 3 tablespoons homemade Crème Fraîche. Using the same ratio you can add pickle relish to mayo to make a less fancy tarter sauce.
Blackening Seasoning from Third Coast Cuisine
* 6 teaspoons paprika
* 1 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon each finely ground black pepper, finely ground white pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, & celery salt
Mix together and store in an airtight container.
