Top Chef of Tomorrow

Confit of Eggplant, Lentils, Garlic Purée, and Radish Salad + 2008 Firefly Ridge Pinot Gris: 4/5

I have pondered, over many a Top Chef viewing, what the food tastes like. You see, while I am not afraid to try anything, ingredients, processes, and preparations seen on Top Chef are as foreign to me as Chinese to a native english speaker. My lips have never touched a truffle, nor have I ever smelled a thread of saffron.

But unfamiliarity aside, I still have the words of Julia Child in the back of my head,

“No Fear.”

Since 2 of the 4 guest I invited for dinner were vegetarian, and the latest Top Chef episode featured an homage to Veggies, I thought I would capitalize on the opportunity to test my culinary ability by making Chef Eli Kirshtein’s Confit of Eggplant, Lentils, Garlic Purée, and Radish Salad. http://www.bravotv.com/foodies/recipes/confit-of-eggplant-lentils-garlic-pureacutee-and-radish-salad

For the future, when attempting a Top Chef recipe it is best to go to Whole Foods. This is where the Chef’s usually shop for challenges, and their selection of produce is superior to that of Dominick’s or Jewel. Unfortunately for me, I did not think of that until I was at Dominick’s already.

While the recipe called for Japanese eggplant, heirloom radishes, spring garlic, and Banyuls vinegar, I could only fine baby eggplant, full grown radishes, cloves of garlic, and balsamic vinegar. Similar, yes, but exact? No. So I picked up some watercress, and herbs to see if I could come up with similar flavor profiles. Since the recipe was also categorized as an appetizer, I decided to add a carrot salad to insure that there would be enough food.

I am not going to lie, the preparation and cooking was stressful. Never have I used so many dishes, spoons, pots, pans, blenders, and heating surfaces for one recipe. Luckily having a serving background has given me the ability to multi-task and handle stressful situations. No Fear, right?

As my guests, Rocio, Shelbey, and Zachary, came into the apartment, I was putting my eggplant medallions into the pan, browning butter, reducing cream, simmering lentils, and blending the garlic and watercress into a purée. Seeing my stress, I was greeted with compliments of good smells, french bread, a bottle of white wine, and a block of brie. Taking a deep breath, I went back to work.

For wine I was feeling pretty confident in my pairing abilities. Since the dish was strictly vegetables and grains, I was certain that the wine of choice would be white. Afraid that a buttery Chardonnay would be overpowering, and a Riesling too sweet, I narrowed my options to Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc. While both wines are un-oaked Pinot Grigio provides more fruity notes, while Sauvignon Blanc offers earthier tones.

As an alternative, I opted for a 2008 Firefly Ridge Pinot Gris. Similar to Pinot Grigio but usually categorized as a new world wine, this particular wine offered tropical and melon flavors, with a smooth and silky body.

Plating is just as important to a Top Chef as taste, so when it was time, I tried aligning each component horizontally. Not liking that, I separated everything into circles on a triangular plate, which looked more appetizing to me. When it came to my plate, I had used all of the triangles, so I plated mine with the circle grouping style on a rectangle(pictured).

With the lentils and eggplant acting as “meat” the carrot and radish salads provided pops of color on the plate. I went for the carrot salad first, familiar with its zesty dressing, sweet raisins, and crunchy carrots. Apprehensive that the carrots would be unrelated to the rest of the dish, I moved to the fennel and radish salad. Providing a spicy crunch, a sweet anise overtone, and a bitter herby vinaigrette, the Top chef salad teetered on the tongue, hitting a multitude of senses before a lingering finish. Finally I moved to the eggplant. Having sat, covered in salt, for a half an hour, the eggplant was tender, and flavorful. The garlic puree, added an additional earthy undertone, brought out by the saltiness of the eggplant. When paired with the lentils the texture was creamy, but though enough to chew. The lentils themselves, on the other hand, were another story.

After I added the reduced cream, the lentils took on a sweet, almost spoiled, milk flavor. I did the best I could to return to the original carrot, celery and onion profile, and even doctored it with spices, salt and pepper, but in the end my palate had been tainted and I could only taste the cream. The others said they liked them, but the only remnants found on anyone’s plate was lentils.

The melon and citrus notes of the Pinot Gris gave off an almost Jolly Rancher or rock candy aroma. Worried that the wine would not hold up to the range of flavors in the dish, I took a sip. The light straw-like colored wine had a silky body and left a lingering fruity flavor in the mouth, but at the same time, was cleansing to the palate. Playing off of the sweetness of the carrots, the spiciness of the radish, and the earthiness of the eggplant, each sip brought out a different colour of the dish, while not loosing itself to the bold flavors. Since the overall effect of the meal was light, the wine was a perfect match.

Obviously I am no Top Chef, but for a first attempt at stepping into the gastronomic world of fine food, I would categorize my meal as a success. My vegetarian friends were pleased, Michael, although left craving meat, like it. Rocio was ready for bed. As I looked over the mountainous stack of dirty dishes, I couldn’t help feeling accomplished. Who knows what the future holds, but I know that food will be a part of it. Another perfect pair.