Anyone who thinks that an international chef leads a glamorous life should have travelled with me for the last month.
I cooked for 18 days straight in Los Angeles, flew to Singapore for five days and worked non-stop on 80 recipes for the new restaurant there, Chinois by Susur Lee, flew back to Washington for three days to set up a tasting menu at Zentan, and then flew to New York to cook a Chinese banquet at Shang for 300 media foodies and chefs to celebrate the restaurant’s first anniversary.
On a couple of mornings I woke up in my hotel room and had NO idea what country I was in- – or why I was there! I had to look out the window to see if I could recognize the city. When the marathon was over, I was totally “fooded out.”
But I had many amazing experiences, and I was able to create some great recipes, so it was worth it.
In Singapore, I created a palate-cleansing sorbet with green sugar cane juice, topped with diced Asian pear and calamansi lime. It’s a fresh and tingling balance of sweetness and acidity, and leaves such a clean sensation in your mouth. You don’t want to brush your teeth!
When I was in Los Angeles, I discovered a wild new cooking tool called a “smoke gun,” which sucks up wood smoke into a tube (you can use wood chips of hickory, mesquite, maple), and then blows the smoke, like a bellows, over meat or fish or whatever dish you choose. I decided it was the perfect utensil to “finish” my roasted Peking duck recipe with a smoky flavour.
In New York, the Chinese banquet at Shang was planned for 200 people, but 300 showed up! The portions had to shrink a little bit. But it was a great celebration for one of the toughest years in the restaurant business. It was a privilege to host so many top-level chefs and restaurateurs, such as Paul Liebrandt, Executive Chef at Corton, Cesare Casella, Owner and Chef at Salumeria Rosi, Jonathan Waxman, Chef of Barbuto, Drew Nieporent, who owns Tribeca Grill and Nobu, and Todd English, owner-chef of Olives. It was also fun to welcome Manhattan celebrities like supermodel Molly Sims, Constantine Maroulis from American Idol (my wife would definitely have recognized him!) and designer Nate Berkus.
Now I’m back home, concentrating on my New Year’s menus at Lee and Madeline.
Madeline’s is featuring a decadent five-course New Year’s Eve menu for $85, and Lee will offer a three-course for $55. I want people to be able to have a wonderful meal, but not spend the whole night at the table. If you want to go dancing and party, I’m all for that!
The five-courses at Madeline’s begin with tuna sashimi and salmon caviar on marinated artichokes, followed by seared foie gras with maplewood smoked duck on a spiced rice tuile.
Then you can lighten up with herbed goat cheese and poached pear arugula salad. The main is a roasted venison loin in an apple-and-cognac puree, with potato pancakes, and dessert is a chocolate banana cake with butterscotch sauce.
At Lee, the New Year’s Eve menu is shorter but just as sweet. To start, crispy pepper & salt shrimp with avocado and Asian pear salad in a smoked chili dressing. Main course: Grilled sirloin steak with Japanese-style peppercorn and lemon-butter sauce, and Lyonnaise potatoes. And for dessert: Hot banana chocolate cake with creme brulee.
We’re serving champagne by the glass at both restaurants, and of course, oysters — it’s the season to be jolly and to indulge!
Chef Susur Lee maintains two successful restaurants in downtown Toronto – LEE and MADELINE’S — and now has a restaurant in New York (Shang) and Washington (Zentan).