Chimichurri “Air” – Adventures in Molecular Cooking [7]

After learning the simple recipe for making flavored “air” at Molecular Gastronomy Class, I thought long and hard about what I wanted to aerate first. Multiple visits to the the Bazaar by José Andrés had me familiar with Bar Centro’s “salt air” topped margaritas, and my favorite “new way” martini with spherified (Ferran Adria) olive is topped with a tangy brine “air”. 

Peter and I love grilling flatiron steak, and I make homemade chimichurri sauce at least once a week. But in our house it’s not just for beef. We also add it to eggs, quesadillas, pastas, and even tuna salad.

To make the “air”, there are actually only two ingredients needed: some sort of liquid and the lecite (aka lecithin), a natural soy-based emulsifier (links below).

Traditional chimichurri is usually made with two liquids: olive oil and acids, usually limes or vinegar. To make my chimichurri air, I left OUT the olive oil and just drizzled the oil on the steak directly, BEFORE adding the “air” on top.

I like my chimichurri REALLY spicy and wasn’t sure the heat would remain after straining and aerating, but it did. The light (and well, airy) texture was a refreshing change from the standard sauce. 

I certainly don’t plan on going crazy with the lecite (although I do think a Heinz 57 “air” would be an awesome return to my childhood). To me, it’s simply about learning yet another delicious (and fun!) cooking technique at home.

My Recipe for Chimichurri Air:

9 oz liquified chimichurri sauce (recipe follows)
1.5 g lecithin (aka lecite), food grade
Olive oil (to drizzle on steak) 

To make the chimichurri sauce:
1 cup chopped parsley
1 cup chopped cilantro
2 medium jalapeno chilies (or more if you like it spicy)
8 oz of fresh lime juice or red wine vinegar
2 or 3 cloves of garlic
Fleur de sel (or sea salt) 

Place all ingredients in a mini-chop or food processor and blend until liquified.

Measure 9 oz of liquid (add vinegar or water if needed). 

Then pour the liquid through a fine strainer to remove any large pieces.

Make sure it’s 9 oz of liquid to 1.5 g lecithin (again, add vinegar or water if needed).

Place the chimichurri sauce and lecite into a large bowl and blend with a stick-blender until foaming. Note: I have a large, plastic container that I use for this. It can get pretty messy in a standard bowl, so wear an apron!

Prepare the steak:
Grill steak to desired doneness and let meat rest for at least ten minutes.

Cut and plate then drizzle olive oil directly on steak.

Add salt then scoop out whipped “air” from bowl and gently place on meat.

If the “air” becomes watery, simply blend again (not too long) until foamy. Serve immediately!

Mentioned Above:

Bazaar’s Martini w/ Brine “Air”

About Texturas (in English)

Albert & Ferran Adria Textura site (spanish)

About Texturas – Lecite (airs)

Where to buy molecular ingredients

Molecular fun at home

My ChimiTuna (tuna salad with chimchurri)

My visits to the Bazaar

Ferran Adria’s “Liquid” Olive

El Torito’s Deep-Fried Ice Cream photo

Adventures in Molecular Cooking 6 (Trisol)

Adventures in Molecular Cooking 5 (Class)

Why I call it “Molecular Cooking”

All my chimichurri “air” photos on Flickr

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“Trisol” for crispier, less greasy frying! – Adventures in Molecular Cooking [6]

“Trisol” for crispier, less greasy frying!

I first learned about Trisol on the Chadzilla website (link below). It’s one of my favorite “molecular gastronomy” blogs and I’m always inspired by the photos and information they post.

Chadzilla wrote:
“We have been working with incorporating the Adria’s Surpises product Trisol into fried food textures. It’s a wheat starch that can be used in a dry mix with AP flour (70% flour: 30% trisol) or in batters.  The great benefit is that it buys time for the chef if the fried product has to sit a minute.  This could obviously be seen as advantageous during large groups or parties, but the real advantage is the texture which is amazingly crispy.”

More about Trisol (as noted on La Tienda’s website):
“Trisol : Is a soluble fibre derived from wheat, especially recommended for the preparation of frying batter and tempura, the result being a crunchy, not at all oily, texture. It is also perfect as a substitute for sugar in the preparation of doughs for biscuits. Characteristics: Available in soluble powder form with neutral taste and smell. It keeps tempura crunchy even with the most moist products.”

I immediately purchased the Trisol and when it arrived a few days later, I was surprised to find it came in a bowling bag size tub! The previous Textura products I’d ordered came in cute, little “V8” juice size cans containing just 100 grams in each. The Trisol tub weighed in at 4 kilos (8.8 pounds)! What a great excuse to have a good old fashioned FRY-UP! All in the name of “research” of course.

Trisol Fry-Up Test #1 – Buttermilk Onion Rings.

Using a simple buttermilk recipe, I incorporated the Trisol:

I sliced the onion rings and placed in a large container.

Poured buttermilk over, covered and placed in fridge for about 1/2 an hour.

Next I prepped two bowls of all-purpose flour then added salt & pepper.

Then I added Trisol to each.

In one bowl I had 70% flour to 30% Trisol.

In the other bowl I had 50% flour to 50% Trisol (just to see if there was a huge difference after frying).

I mixed them both (separately) then heated up vegetable oil for frying (to 350 degrees).

I then drained the onion rings from the buttermilk, but reserved the buttermilk in a shallow pan so I could coat each piece twice.

1. Take wet (from buttermilk) onion ring
2. Dredge in flour / Trisol
3. Dip in buttermilk a second time
4. Dredge again in flour / Trisol
5. Fry in batches for about 3 minutes or until golden brown.
6. Drain on paper towels and add salt immediately (while still hot).

 
The first batch I fried were the 30% Trisol (as noted on the Chadzilla site). They were still crispy after I left them sitting on the counter for four hours. GREAT for dinner parties!

The 50% Trisol were lighter in weight and much crispier of course, but they were almost “too crunchy”.

Trisol Fry-Up Test #2 – Asparagus, Tofu Squares and Mozzarella Sticks.

My sister Janet’s kids loved fried foods. They’re not allowed to have them very often though, because my super-healthy sister does NOT. Needless to say, she was less than thrilled when I showed up at her house carrying the tub of Trisol, for “deep-frying research”.

The twins (ages 13) helped me clean and trim some asparagus and then I asked Janet what things we could grab from the fridge. This is when it got fun! After searching through all the drawers, we decided to fry mozzarella sticks, jalapenos and tofu squares (just for my sister).

We marinated each item separately in buttermilk, then got to the fry-up. This time I decided to test 60% flour to 40% Trisol. Following the same instructions as above, we first fried up the asparagus, then jalapenos, tofu squares, and finally the cheese (in case it oozed).

Janet made a huge garden salad and we sat down to our “Deep-Fried-Enjoy-It-Now” (because it will NEVER happen again dinner)! And what did my marathon-running-healthy-eating sister think of the Trisol? She LOVED it. The fact that it wasn’t so greasy made her enjoy it, and we were all shocked to see her reaching for more.

We dipped some bites in ranch dressing, others in ketchup and ate the asparagus on it’s own. I was surprised how much I liked the tofu, since I had cooked it up especially for my sister, but we were fighting over the last, crispy square. The Trisol did a great job holding the tofu wetness inside and I’m definitely going make agedashi tofu soon.

After trying the three Trisol recipes, I liked the 60/40 combination the best. Unfortunately (or fortunately!) I still have half a TUB (four pounds) of Trisol left, and it’s taking up space in my small kitchen. I really don’t deep-fry too often at home, but I guess I’ll have to plan a few more fry-ups in the near future, all in the name of molecular “research” of course!

The Asparagus

Mozzarella Sticks, Tofu Squares, Onion Rings, (jalapeno underneath)

Mentioned above:

Chadzilla

La Tienda

My sister

The kids

Agedashi Tofu

Adria’s Textura Website (in Spanish)

Texturas products I have at home

All my “molecular gastronomy (cooking) at home” photos

Adventures in Molecular Cooking 7 (Chimichurri “Air”)

The Bazaar by José Andrés [5,6]

Friday night at the Bazaar with the guys. No special occasion, just me and three handsome men celebrating the coming weekend with groovy, “new way” cocktails and platters of mostly “modern” tapas.

Joining me was my husband Peter (of course), our friend Julian (an artist and musician in Peter’s band), and photographer extraordinaire Andrew Macpherson. This was Julian and Andrew’s inaugural visit to the Bazaar, and I’ve jokingly started to call these first timers my “Bazaar Virgins” when I check in with the hostess… which pretty much makes me the devoted “Bazaar Courtesan”, I know.

So what’s better than Friday night at the Bazaar with three adventurous, sophisticated and talented men?

The answer of course is, Saturday night at the Bazaar with three adventurous, sophisticated and talented men! That’s right… we went two nights in a row, but understand this is only because we heard that the man himself, the one and only José Andrés, would (possibly) be in town. Indeed he was, and I got serious goose bumps seeing him standing nearby in his sexy white chef coat! On his PBS show, “Made in Spain”, he usually dresses in casual button-down shirts and khaki pants, but watching him command the room in uniform was sort of intoxicating.

At first I was a little nervous for the staff, especially for the crew in the open kitchen. Andrés is a perfectionist and he was definitely inspecting (sometimes photographing) each dish as it went out to diners. I looked at his face and there was something missing. Where was the exuberant smile that he sports on television? Where was his jovial, “everybody’s my pal” demeanor? 

Then I thought, “oh, he’s WORKING… he’s the BOSS”, it’s the “Bazaar by José Andrés” after all! When he took a seat near our table, I began to hear his familiar laugh as he started to relax. Since I was so used to the “happy-go-lucky” chef on television, I had thrown myself into a nervous state when the “real-life, this-is-business” chef emerged. It was pretty funny that I was the one that was flustered, because when I looked back in the kitchen, I realized that the crew (and the entire staff for that matter) were calm and collected… confidently gliding through dinner service. 

As we enjoyed our drinks and tapas, I kept hoping that I’d get a minute with chef Andrés, so I could tell him how much I love his newest restaurant. By that point he had been out of the kitchen for over an hour or so, and was happily holding court in one of the big, black leather booths against the wall.

We had met before, briefly, at Wolfgang Puck’s American Wine and Food Festival last fall. I told him then how I couldn’t stop obsessing over a Spanish blue cheese that I first learned about on “Made in Spain”. He laughed when I blamed him for my creamy addiction and blurted, “Cabrales is like CRACK”! Not my classiest moment, but it was a good one.

After our extended Bazaar dinner, we did get to say hello and I was happily stunned to learn that José Andrés had visited my website. When I introduced myself, he said “I didn’t recognize you at first, without the bread in your mouth”. 

Note to self: From now on, carry a demi-baguette when dining out.

What we ate:

‘Pa amb’ tomaquet (bread with tomato in Catalan) – Toasted sliced rustic bread brushed with fresh tomatoes AND Jamones (“Flight of all three” platter): Jamón Serrano (literally mountain ham), Jamón Ibérico (Iberian Ham), Jamón Serrano de bellota (higher fat content than Jamón Serrano).

Making the “Dragon’s Breath”, Caramel popcorn bites cooked in liquid nitrogen.

Andrew, Peter and Julian experiencing the “Dragon’s Breath”!  What a shame this has been removed from the regular menu (but may be available in the private Saam dining room).

Japanese “Taco”: Grilled eel, shiso, cucumber, wasabi, chicharron.

Above photos taken on Friday 3/13/09
Below photos taken on Saturday 3/14/09

Our reserved table in Bar Centro

 
The “Magic Mojito” arrives with a martini glass filled with cotton candy. Then the waiter pours rum (strained over ice) which dissolves into the glass!

Peter and Andrew enjoying from top left: Pa’amb Tomaguet (Cataln Style toasted bread rubbed with tomato), Not Your Everyday Caprese (Tomato and Liquid Mozzarella Pipettes), Sweet Potato Chips with Tamarind Yogurt Dip, Jamón Ibérico. In the middle are the Papas Canarias (Salty, Wrinkled Potatoes, with Mojo Verde Sauce on the side) and a partial view of the Organized Arugula Salad (Raspberries, Corn, Cabrales Blue Cheese)

NOTE: Photographing at the Chef’s table is difficult. We jokingly called it the “TRON Table”!

Tortilla de patatas: Potato Foam, egg 63 (cooked at 63 degrees), caramelized onions (served in egg shell). I LOVE this new version of the potato foam. It used to come in a large martini glass and I prefer this smaller portion with more textures. On the right side of photo is the American Caviar Cone.

Foie Gras Cotton Candy! Me, Julian, my husband Peter and Andrew.

Julian, Andrew, José Andrés, Peter

Jo & José

With the chefs that keep us coming back for more! Marcel Vigneron, (LUCKY me), Michael Voltaggio and Ruben Garcia

Bites we usually have on every visit:

Foie Gras and Quince on mini Brioche Bun

Organized Caesar Salad with Quail Egg and Parmesan

Boneless Chicken Wings with Green Olive Puree and Ice Plant

Foie Gras rolled in Corn Nuts and wrapped in Cotton Candy

Latas Y Conservas: King Crab and Raspberries

Philly Cheesesteak: Air Bread, Whipped Cheddar and Wagyu Beef 

Bazaar by José Andrés, SLS Hotel
465 South La Cienega Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90048
(310) 246-5555
http://www.TheBazaar.com

Mentioned above:

Andrew Macpherson’s Photographs

Julian Hill’s Artwork

Peter’s band, Rubylith

Meeting José the first time

Cabrales Cheese

Made in Spain 

<– Bazaar Visit #4

–> Bazaar Visit #7

“Airs & Spheres” – Adventures in Molecular Cooking [5]

Molecular Gastronomy Class #2 – “Airs and Mozzarella Spheres”

“Laboratory Work” was the title of the second Molecular Gastronomy class I attended in February, and it was so much more fun than the first. Instead of learning just one recipe throughout the afternoon, we were allowed to work on several. My favorites included: Airs, Mozzarella Spheres, “Wine” Caviar, and Hot Ice Cream.

Like the initial class I took back in November, this was also taught by Chef Michael Young at Sur la Table in Los Angeles. I was joined again by husband Peter and food-lovin’ nephew Cody and fellow foodblogger Phil (My Life as a Foodie) and his friend, Jill.

Before coming to class, I was most excited about learning how to make “airs”. Since purchasing Ferran Adria’s el Bulli (molecular gastronomy) mini kit, I hadn’t yet had the courage to try out the Lecite, which is part of the ‘EMULSIFICACIÓN’ Group. Lecite is a natural soy lecithin-based emulsifier, and it’s ideal for making flavored airs (links below).

As it turns out, making foams and airs was easy: add the Lecite and whip until frothy!

Recipe for Carrot Air:

18 oz carrot juice
3g lecithin (aka lecite), food grade

Place the carrot juice and lecite into a large bowl and blend with a stick-blender until foaming. Scoop out whipped “air” from top and serve.

In photos: Cody and Peter, Carrot air, Phil, Jill, Cody and Peter

I’ve had mozarrella spheres at the Bazaar several times, so I really enjoyed learning how to make them in class!

Recipe for Mozzarella Spheres:

250 g Buffalo Mozzerella
150 g Heavy Cream
5 g Calcium Lactate (1.25%)
Tomato Juice (optional)
1 L. Water
5 g Sodium Alginate (0.5%)

1. Mix mozzarella with cream and calcium lactate.

2. Fill bowl with water and add sodium alginate.

3. Stir until dissolved.

4. Transfer mozzarella mix to alginate bath.

5. Allow 2 minutes for setting

Optional: Inject spheres with tomato juice and serve. Note: We had a difficult time injecting the tomato juice, so I would probably leave that part out if trying for the first time.

In photos: Trying to inject the mozzarella balls with tomato juice.

Making the apple caviar was easy this time around, since I’ve made it several times myself at home. After our group finished making the caviar, Peter said “to heck with apple juice, where’s the alcohol?” Chef Young overheard and handed Peter an open bottle of wine, and that’s when we REALLY started having fun. The wine caviar was fantastic, and it will make for a whole new twist on “Wine and Cheese” nights for sure!

Recipe for Apple Caviar

9 oz. Apple Juice (or wine, we used red)
2 g (.07 oz.) Sodium Alginate
18 oz. water
2.5 g (.09 oz.) Calcium Chloride 

1. Mix the sodium alginate with 1/2 of the apple juice and blend until dissolved.

2. Mix in remaining juice, strain and allow to sit to remove any air bubbles.

3. Dissolve the calcium chloride in the water.

4. Fill syringe or squeeze bottle with the juice mixture.

5. Softly expel mixture into calcium chloride bath drop by drop.

6. After a minute, remove gently with a tea strainer and rinse gently in cold water.

Apple Caviar

Photo above: Peter’s wine “caviar”!

When Chef Young said he would be demonstrating how to make “Hot Ice Cream”, all I could think about was the deep-fried ice cream balls I used to order at El Torito restaurant, but this was nothing like my favorite high school dinner-date treat! It was also the most difficult “recipe” of the day. So difficult, that we all pretty much just watched our instructor take us through each step over the stove.

Recipe for “Hot Ice Cream”

306 g Whole Milk Yogurt
230 g Cream Cheese
80 g Agave Nectar
154 g Water
1 Vanilla Bean, scraped
1 Pinch of Sea Salt
11.55 g. Methyl Cellulose (1.5%) 
Ice bath 

1. In a blender puree together the yogurt, cream cheese, agave nectar, vanilla and salt. Blend just until the mixture comes together as a smooth puree, but do not aerate.

2. Heat the water to a boil. As soon as it’s boiling remove from heat and whisk in the methyl cellulose.

3. Once the methyl cellulose is dispersed, add it to the blender and puree until the mixture is homogenized, again do not aerate. 

4. Prepare ice bath. Pour mixture into a bowl and chill in ice bath. Set the ice-cold mixture rest in the fridge for at least an hour, preferably overnight before poaching the ice cream.

5. When ready to make hot ice cream, heat a pot of water to a boil. When the water boils, shut off the heat and scoop the ice cream base.

6. As you scoop, wipe the edges of the ice cream scoop and then immerse the scoop and its contents into the hot water. You will see the ice cream set, and then dislodge it from the scoop. The ice cream should poach for about one minute for small scoops and longer for larger scoops. Depending on the size you may have to turn the heat back on to keep the water hot.

7. Once the ice cream is set, remove the scoops and drain briefly on a paper towel and place into serving dishes. As the mixture sits, the ice cream will melt.

Please note: I did not test this recipe myself, but it was fascinating to watch and was delicious. My Cody nephew thought it would be perfect on a freshly-made waffle.

Photos: Phil, Chef young, Jill, Cody and Peter. “Hot” Ice Cream made with Methyl Cellulose.

Class Date: 2/22/2009
Sur la Table, Los Angeles (at the Grove)
Cost $89 

Sur la Table Cooking Classes

Mentioned Above:

All photos from this molecular gastronomy class

Where to buy molecular ingredients

Molecular fun at home

About Texturas (in English)

About Texturas Lecite (airs)

Albert & Ferran Adria Textura site (spanish)

All recipes above adapted by Chef Michael Young

Domenico Ristorante (Chef Michael Young)

Why I call it “Molecular Cooking”

The el Bulli kit!

Check out My Life As A Foodie’s awesome Podcast of our class!

Wine Caviar by my friend Phil

Adventures in Molecular Cooking 4

Adventures in Molecular Cooking 6

Kids & Fruit Caviar – Adventures in Molecular Cooking [4]

“Kids Play!”

I recently took my Molecular Cooking kit to my sister’s house for an afternoon of food fun with the twins (Kindal & Chace, age 12). After setting up the ingredients (including calcium chloride and sodium alginate), I had my niece and nephew read the recipe for making fruit “caviar”. My niece Kindal said “That’s it? This is gonna be EASY!”.

They used the same recipe and ingredients as I did for the ruby red grapefruit caviar, but also added Gummy Bears and Jelly Bellys into the larger balls. They did this by inserting the candy into the juice solution, just as it was scooped into the algin bath. Even my older nephew Cody got in on the fun, and there was a bit of fighting to take turns using the syringes. Next time I’ll make sure to bring three with me!

The caviar were perfect and we served them with lemon sorbet for dinner. The Gummy Bear and Jelly Belly spheres were oddly shaped, but the kids thought they were cool. They loved biting through the spherical balls to get to the candy center. When we plated them, I actually thought they looked like pretty, little river rocks.

All in all, it was a wonderful afternoon watching the kids do what kids do best…. play with their food.

Kindal weighing the calcium chloride.

Weighing the juice.

Chace & Kindal taking turns mixing the sodium alginate with the juice.

Using the Texturas syringe to make “caviar”!

Cody makes larger spheres.

Sucking out the caviar with straws!

Kindal, Chace, Jo, Cody

Fruit Caviar and candy filled balls.

Recipe for Ruby Red Grapefruit “Caviar” (plus where to buy ingredients)

More Molecular/Modern Cooking

The Twins

Fruit “Caviar” – Adventures in Molecular Cooking [3]

“Fruit Caviar” 

Last week I received the elBulli Texturas MiniKit that I ordered from the UK. Not only did it include the groovy Texturas ingredients, but also the tools and guidebook that I needed to really jump into this brave new world. 

The tools that came with the elBulli Texturas kit included a collecting (straining) spoon, measuring spoons and a syringe. I have to say, there is something sort of thrilling about using tools with “Albert Y Ferran Adrià” ENGRAVED on them. It’s silly, but it makes the experience a little more special.

The phrase “Molecular Gastronomy ” (or molecular cooking) used to scare me. It sounded like brainy “science fiction” gibberish, especially when I started reading about techniques called “spherification” and “emulsification”. 

My current obsession with it began after I attended a “Molecular Gastronomy” class in November. The next day I started ordering the special ingredients and tools, then created a “molecular cooking” corner in my funky, vintage kitchen. During that first class, our instructor (the awesome Chef Michael Young) demonstrated how to make Ferran Adria’s fruit caviar, but I didn’t actually get to try the caviar recipe that day.

A couple of years ago, I remember being dumbfounded while watching Ferran and Albert Adrià working at their elBulliTaller (laboratory) in Barcelona, Spain. It was on Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservations” episode titled “Decoding Ferran Adrià“. The brothers Adrià were showing Bourdain how to make mango “caviar” and I thought, “I wish I could do THAT in my kitchen!”.

Well I’m very proud to say that yesterday… I did it. I spent all afternoon making various sizes of elBulli “caviar”. It was AWESOME.

What I’ve discovered thus far is that “molecular cooking” requires three SIMPLE things:

1. Special ingredients such as Sodium Alginate and Calcium Chloride…

2. Tools including a digital scale, squeeze bottle and straining spoon…

3. And most of all… ENTHUSIASM!

Recipe for Ruby Red Grapefruit “Caviar” (I picked Ruby Red Grapefruit for the color… such a pretty pale pink!)

9 oz. Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice
18 oz. Cold Water
1 g Sodium Alginate (or Algin)
3 g Calcium Chloride (or Calcic)
Digital scale
1 large bowl
2 medium bowls
Immersion blender
Fine mesh strainer

1. In one of the medium bowls, fill with cold water until the bottom is covered up to about four inches. Set this water bath aside. It will be used as the final step in making the fruit caviar.

2. In the large bowl, mix the sodium alginate with 1/2 the fruit juice and blend till completely dissolved.

3. Mix in the remaining fruit juice

4. Strain into empty medium bowl and allow to sit to remove any air bubbles. 

 5. In a medium bowl, dissolve the calcium chloride in the 18 oz. of cold water. I used a small whisk and it took about a minute to be completely dissolved.

6. Fill syringe or squeeze bottle with the juice mixture. It will be a little thick and “goopy”.

 7. Gently discharge the mixture into the calcium chloride bath drop by drop.

8. After a minute, gently remove the “caviar” using a straining spoon and add to the cold water bath.

9. Wait a couple of minutes then remove the “caviar” from the fresh water into a serving bowl or serving spoon.

Note: I had a kitchen towel folded next to the water bath. Right after removing a spoonful of caviar (with the straining or collecting spoon), I gently tapped the bottom of the spoon onto the towel and it removed the excess water.

10. Serve and enjoy!

My Trio of Sizes.

   

I see Ferran Adrià’s  “Liquid Olives” in the very near future!!!

Previous Posts: 

 

“Adventures in Molecular Cooking [1]”

“Adventures in Molecular Cooking [2]”

About Molecular Gastronomy:

Video of Hervé This discussing Molecular Gastronomy

Books: Molecular Gastronomy by Hervé This and Malcolm DeBevoise

Where to buy ingredients:
Le Sanctuaire

Texturas elBulli

Infusions LTD sells an elBulli “mini starter kit”. 

Books about Molecular Cooking:

Under Pressure: Cooking Sous-Vide by Thomas Keller

On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen by Harold McGee

A Day at el Bulli by Ferran Adria

Alinea by Grant Achatz

Kitchen Chemistry by Ted Lister and Heston Blumenthal

The Big Fat Duck Cookbook by Heston Blumenthal

==============

Ferran Adrià’s team demonstrates how to make fruit caviar

==============

Ferran Adria’s Pea Ravioli

==============

Molecular Gastronomy & Molecular Cooking  on TV:

Be sure to look out for a terrific molecular cooking episode of “Gourmet’s Diary of a Foodie” titled “The Inventors” (the series is currently in reruns). It features Herve This, PolyScience inventor Philip Preston (Anti-Griddle and Immersion Circulators) and Nathan Myhrvold, a former CTO of Microsoft turned Sous-Vide master.  Short video clip here.

José Andrés Made in Spain. If you missed it the yogurt spherification episode, it’s titled “Paella Day”

Read more about Spherification here

A recent Time Magazine article about Ferran Adria

Very excited to meet Ferran Adria!

 

The Bazaar by José Andrés [2]

Foie Gras Cotton Candy?

Another outstanding dinner at The Bazaar by José Andrés last night. This time celebrating my friend Laur’s birthday in the “Rojo” dining room, which was warmer and had a more seductive vibe than the “Blanco” we dined in last time.

New dishes we tried this visit included three pretty little “cans” of seafood filled with delicious mussels, oysters and crab called “Latas Y Conservas”.

From the Rojo menu: “Canning was invented in 1810 in France by Mr. Nicolas Appert. Spain adopted this technique and today is known for producing the best canned products in the world. Here at the Bazaar by Jose Andres, we make them in house daily.”

Mussels Escabeche, marinated in olive oil, vinegar and smoked paprika $7

Kumamoto Oysters with lemon and black pepper $12

King Crab with raspberry vinegar $16

Organized Arugula Salad with raspberries, corn and Cabrales blue cheese $9

Dashi “Linguini” with tomato seeds, lemon and caviar $9

Traditional Ottoman Carrot Fritters with pistachio sauce (Peter loved these), $7

 
Caviar Cone with crème fraîche

My very favorite bite of the night (so much so that I ordered extra!) was YES … the Foie Gras Cotton Candy! Bites of foie gras rolled in crushed CORN NUTS then wrapped in cotton candy. The salty, sweet and super rich flavor was simply incredible.

Dishes we had on our first visit and enjoyed again:

Tortilla de patatas ‘new way’: Warm potato foam with a slow cooked egg at 63 degrees, and caramelized onions $9

 ‘Philly Cheesesteak’: Air bread stuffed with cheese and topped with Kobe beef $7  

‘Rossejat’ de fideos: Traditional fried pasta, paella-style with monkfish and shrimp, cooked in a seafood broth $10

Mozzarella-tomato pipettes with micro basil $8

The Bazaar restaurant is so much fun, especially when you look around and notice that people are smiling at every table. It’s all about jumping in and sharing an exciting new experience together. Whether it’s Ferran Adria’s Liquid Olive (we each had two), potato “foam”, or succulent bites of Kumamoto oysters. I personally feel incredibly grateful that we have our own little bit of “el bulli” right here in L.A.

Thank you José!

Hanging out after dinner…

Bazaar Visit #1

Bazaar Visit #3

Bazaar visit #4

The Bazaar by José Andrés, SLS Hotel
465 South La Cienega Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90048
(310) 246-5555
http://www.thebazaar.com

The Bazaar by José Andrés [1]

The opening night of the Bazaar by José Andrés was supposed to be last Monday (11/10), but was delayed until last night (11/17). The restaurant is described as “a modern-day indoor piazza where guests and locals alike can enjoy pioneering culinary creations and intricately-concocted libations throughout several spaces: Bar Centro, Blanco, Rojo and the Pâtisserie.” It sounds a little intimidating I know, but when you walk in the front door the friendly staff are ready to lead you through the evening… and what a fun evening it was!

There were four of us for dinner, my husband Peter, my sister Janet and her husband Paul (whose birthday we were celebrating). We started off with drinks at Bar Centro, which offers a traditional bar menu and modern “new way” drinks. I ordered the “New Way” Dirty martini with spherified olives and brine “air”. I was really excited to try Ferran Adria’s “liquid olive” and it did not disappoint. If you haven’t seen the video clip of Ferran Adria making the liquid olive at el Bulli, then you may not appreciate it as much as I did. The segment was on Mark Bittman’s “The Best Recipes In The World” show on PBS. Episode 9 titled “The Cutting Edge”. It’s worth searching for online if you missed it.

Between the four of us we shared twenty dishes (including two desserts) from both the Rojo (traditional tapas) and Blanco (modern tapas) menu. In addition to cocktails we also tried the White Sangria (which was fantastic), Spanish Marge wine and then finished the evening with Pedro Ximénez Sherry.

Our server Skyler was fantastic. He was enthusiastic, paid great attention to us and really knew the menu inside and out. Simply said, Skyler was a wonderful guide on our trip through the Bazaar!

My favorite dishes (that I would definitely order again and again):

Philly Cheesesteak Air Bread filled with cheese and topped with Kobe beef $7.00

Mozzarella Tomato Pipettes with Micro Basil. These were so fun to eat! At the same time you bite the tomato, you squeeze the pipette into your mouth, a really tasty combination of olive oil and a creamy liquid mozzarella. $8.00

Organized Caesar with Quail Eggs and Parmesan Cheese. This plate was so beautiful we sort of just stared at it for a minute. There was only one quail egg and I was lucky to grab it! Delicious. $9.00

Japanese Baby Peaches with Yogurt and Olive Oil. Sweet and Tart. $12.00

Olives Ferran Adrià. Our server Skyler scooped out the liquid olives from a jar tableside (below). The plate came with 4 olives, each on it’s own spoon. $10.00 for four “olives”.  If you don’t want to spend the $10 for four liquid olives, just order the “New Way” Dirty Martini… it comes with the olive!

We also really enjoyed:

Croquetas de pollo – Chicken and Béchamel Fritters. They tasted like chicken and dumplings mixed inside, crispy on the outside. $7.00

Watermelon Skewers with Pedro Ximénez reduction and Tomato Seeds. A GREAT palate cleanser $15.00. Jicama Wrapped Guacamole with Micro Cilantro and Corn nuts (above right) $10.00

Carrilleras de Cerdo con Naranja. Braised Pork Cheeks with California Oranges. $8.00

Gambas al Ajillo. Sautéed Shrimp with Garlic and Guindilla Pepper. $12.00

Patatas Bravas “New Way Jose”. José’s fried potatoes with aioli and spicy tomato sauce. $7.00

Tortilla de Patatas ‘New Way’ – Warm potato foam with a slow cooked egg 63 and caramelized onions. $9.00 (I watched former Top Chef contestant chef Marcel Vigneron make this. It was fun to see him working the foam!)

Bogavante a la Gallega, Galician-style Lobster Medallions with Olive Oil Crushed Potatoes and Smoked Paprika. $15.00

Selection of five cheeses, served with “picos”, Spanish crispy bread, quince jam and almonds and ‘Pa amb’ tomaquet – Toasted sliced rustic bread brushed with fresh tomatoes. The Idiazábal cheese was my favorite. $25.00

Tempura Avocado with Ponzu Air. $8.00

‘Rossejat’ de Fideos, Traditional fried pasta, paella-style with monkfish and shrimp, cooked in a seafood broth. $10.00

Butifarra con ceps y montgetes del gantxet ‘Daniel Patrick Moynihan’. Homemade pork sausage with white beans $9.00

Lomo de corder con patatas y trufas, Lamb Loin with Mushrooms and Potato. $14.00

Desserts: Apples Carlota, bread pudding and Traditional Spanish Flan with Fresh Cheese and Fruit.

The Bazaar by José Andrés, SLS Hotel
465 South La Cienega Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90048
(310) 246-5555

http://www.thebazaar.com

Dining Date: Nov 17, 2008

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Positively Delicious Bazaar Reviews Posted on:

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With Chef José Andrés at the American Wine & Food Festival, Universal Backlot.