We use Tater-Ware biodegradable and compostable food service utensils for all our corporate catering lunches in the Vancouver area.

What is Tater-Ware? It’s a great line of products made from, you guessed it, potato starch. These incredible utensils are tan in colour and feel very similar to a high quality plastic, however they have been proven to even out-perform plastic in boiling and microwave tests, are dishwasher safe and of course, will completely biodegrade or compost when disposed of.

I encourage anyone planning a large event where disposable food service items would be required to consider using these fantastic products:

http://www.bdfs.net/products/TaterWare/

While they are not the most cost-effective option out there, they are the highest quality and most sustainable product available that we could offer to our clients, so for our business, it was an easy choice.

Pumpkins, gotta love ‘em. Though for the most part, we know 2 good uses for pumpkins: carving and eating large amounts of pie. Well there’s more than meets the eye to our dear old October friend, and I’ve got a great savory pumpkin recipe for you to try out this season.

First things first, cooking with pumpkins 101:

- While as kids we seemed to want to hunt for the biggest pumpkin we could possibly carry, this isn’t the case when picking out a cooking pumpkin. Find a nice small one, they have a much better flavour.
- Don’t shy away from pumpkins that have a duller colour to them, pumpkins can actually get sweeter as they age a bit. So as long as there’s no bruising or other flaws, grab that dull pumpkin over it’s bright orange brothers.
- A good cooking pumpkin should weigh between 4-8 pounds. They may be labeled as Sugar Baby Pumpkins or Pie Pumpkins to help you find them better.

Let’s get to it!

Pumpkin and Sage Risotto with Goat Cheese

This dish not only says fall comfort food, it sings it from the mountaintops.

Ingredients: (Serves 4)

- 1 small cooking pumpkin, approx. 4-5 pounds whole
- 2 cups arborio rice or similar risotto rice
- 6 cups chicken stock (can substitute vegetable stock)
- 1/3 cup goat cheese
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
- 3 cloves garlic, finely diced
- pumpkin seeds, toasted
- fresh flatleaf parsley
- 10 leaves fresh sage
- olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp butter.

Method:

Preheat oven to 350F. Take the pumpkin and cut it in half using a large, sharp knive. Scoop out those pesky seeds and inner pulp. Save the seeds if you did not buy pre-toasted pumpkin seeds for this dish. Take a large casserole dish and add a 1/4″ layer of water to the bottom, season this water with salt. Take the sage leaves and place them inside the pumpkin halves, then flip them face down in the casserole dish, like this:

Roast in the oven for 45-60 minutes until fork tender.

While pumpkins are resting, heat a heavy and large saute pan or heavy bottomed pot with 2 tbsp of olive oil. In a separate pot, heat up the 6 cups of chicken stock until steaming but not boiling. When oil is hot, add in the diced onion and garlic and saute for 3-4 minutes until softened, add in the arborio rice and stir to combine, add in the white wine and let it cook off. Season with salt and pepper. Begin ladelling in the stock slowly, stirring after each addition, and continue doing this until the stock is gone and the risotto is creamy. When rice is nearly cooked through, turn the heat down to low and add in the butter, goat cheese, and parsley. Cover and let simmer for 5 minutes. While rice is simmering, scoop out the flesh of the pumpkins and cut into 1/2″ pieces. Add these to the risotto and stir to combine.

Serve immediately in bowls and garnish with toasted pumpkin seeds and more fresh parsley.

Enjoy!

I’m always surprised how many people have never heard of brining, much less tried it. This incredibly easy technique is the key to most amazingly juicy turkey you’ve ever eaten. It’s not difficult, and it uses ingredients everyone has at home. All you need is a little time and a vessel large enough to hold the turkey and the brine. So what is it?

A brine is simply a solution of water, salt,  sugar and often some other basic flavouring ingredients. These ingredients are mixed and the turkey is submerged in the brine, and allowed to soak refrigerated overnight, or up to 24 hours. The result is the juiciest bird you’ve ever eaten with a virtually fool-proof technique. Ready to try?

Recipe:

2 gallons water
1 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
3-4 bay leaves
a dozen or so black peppercorns
1 lemon, halved
1 bunch fresh thyme sprigs

Step 1: Ensure your turkey is fully thawed. A frozen bird will not absorb the solution and the brining will be all for not.

Step 2: Mix all ingredients in a large stockpot, big enough to hold the turkey and the brine solution. If you don’t have a pot large enough, use a cooler.

Step 3: Submerge the turkey in the solution, what you have at this point should look something like this:

Step 4: If using a cooler, add in a large quantity of ice to keep the solution very cold, and place in a cold place like a garage or a safe place outside. If using a stock pot, place in the refrigerator.

Step 5: Allow to soak overnight, or up to 24 hours. For a large turkey, the brine needs a minimum of 6 hours to have an effect, though longer is desired.

Step 6: Remove from the brine, pat dry and roast as usual!

That’s it, and this technique works on ALL poultry, so don’t hesitate to try it and put the usual BBQ’d chicken over the top. Happy Thanksgiving everyone, and happy brining!

…for the Drew Cooks! van making it’s way around the Lower Mainland!

Let us know what you think of the design by leaving a comment on our blog.

Crispy skin is one of the true delights of cooking fish like salmon, trout or bass. The combination of perfectly cooked fish and skin so crisp you could strike a match on it is in my opinion one of the best textural experiences in the culinary world.

Too often I find people removing the skin, largely due to bad experiences eating fish improperly prepared resulting in soggy, rubbery skin. No thanks! But once you get these few steps down and nail your first fillet, you’ll never go back to sans-skin, trust me.

Salmon is a great fish to start with on this. It’s firm enough that it holds up well in the pan during flipping, and has lots of natural oils which help it to crisp up more easily.

Step 1: Preheat oven to 325F. Start with a smaller piece of fillet (5 oz or so, skin on of course). Ensure all the scales of the fish are removed by running the blade of a knife against the direction of the scales across the skin. Rinse under cold water.

Step 2: The most important factor in crisping skin is removing as much excess water as possible from the skin. Excess moisture will cause steam and prevent the skin from browning properly. Dry the fish thoroughly with a paper towel. Next, use the blade of a knife and draw it over the skin. This is called the “Squeegee” technique and is designed to draw out excess moisture from the skin. Dry again with paper towel.

Step 3: Using a good size sauté pan, heat over med-hi heat. Coat the bottom of the pan a thin layer of vegetable oil or a similar good high heat oil. It is very important to ensure the oil gets hot enough before placing the fish in the pan. It should be hot enough to sizzle right away, but not hot enough that the oil is smoking, this will cook the skin too quickly causing it to burn before it crisps.

Step 4: Season the fillet with salt and pepper and place skin side down in the hot pan. Cook for approximately 5-6 minutes, until the fish is nearly cooked through, and the skin is golden. Flip the fish and place immediately in the oven to continue cooking for an additional 3 minutes.

Remove from the oven and serve…..skin on!

Our latest article has been published in Home Makeover Magazine containing 2 product reviews, summer grilling tips, and a fantastic summer party recipe.

Check it all out here!

Over the last few months we’ve been working on putting together a sister website for our main page. We love making videos and wanted to have a place where we could feature them on their own and expand on what we’ve been doing, and do it better! Without further adieu, we are proud to launch:

http://www.drewcooks.tv

We are still in the process of getting it chock-full of high quality videos, recipes, product reviews and more, but there are still some great videos and recipes up right now for your viewing pleasure, including a brand new HD recipe for a Braised Duck Leg Fettuccine!

We’re still going to be posting great informative content here at the Drew Cooks! Food blog, but from now on all videos will be posted on Drew Cooks TV.

For the latest updates, pictures and more, you can also join our facebook page or follow us on twitter.

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I wanted to take a moment to share some information about a program throughout the Greater Vancouver Area that some may not be familiar with: The Food Runners Program.

When most people think about a food bank, they think of donating non-perishable canned goods, however the Vancouver Food Bank has the Food Runners program set up to take donations of all sorts, perishable produce, meats, anything you can imagine. In fact, they will send refrigerated trucks to your house, kitchen, or restaurant to pick up donations anywhere in the Greater Vancouver area!

I encourage anyone having a large gathering or BBQ this summer to consider donating surplus food to this great program.

For more information or to schedule a pickup, contact Will, manager of the Food Runners Program at 604-834-7457.

Here’s our newest video demonstrating a delicious and simple dish for you all to try at home.

Pan Seared Halibut with Lemon Pesto Risotto – Vancouver Personal Chef Drew Cooks! from Drew Munro on Vimeo.

Recipe: Seared Halibut with Lemon Pesto Risotto (Serves 4)

Ingredients:

- 4 halibut filets
- 1 cup arborio rice
- 5 cups chicken stock
- 1 small onion, diced
- 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
- 3 tbsp basil pesto
- 2 tbsp + 1 tsp butter unsalted
- 1 bunch chives
- olive oil
- vegetable oil
- salt and pepper
- juice and zest from 1 lemon
For garnish:(optional)

- Cherry tomatoes, and shallots, chopped

Heat the chicken stock in a sauce pan. In a large saute pan over med high heat, add in olive oil, onion and garlic and sauté until softened. Add in the rice, a bit more olive oil and stir to evenly coat the grains. Sauté for an additional 2 minutes and begin ladelling in hot stock small amounts at a time, stirring after each addition. Continue this process for about 15 minutes or until rice is just about cooking through.

Remove from heat, add in the 2 tbsp of butter, pesto, and lemon juice/zest. Stir to combine and set aside.

For the chive oil, place the chives in a food processor or blender with 1/3 cup vegetable oil. Blend for about 5 minutes until the oil has turned a bright green colour, then strain and set the oil aside.

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a hot saute pan, heat olive oil and add in 1 tsp of butter. Season halibut filets and saute 2 minutes per side, then transfer to the oven for an additional 4-5 minutes.

While halibut is cooking, saute the cherry tomatoes and shallots, season with salt and pepper.

To plate:

Watch the video!

With ever-increasing popularity, more and more new cooking shows are popping up at an alarming rate. I remember when the Food Network channel consisted of basically 12 hours of Emeril with a few other shows thrown in for good measure (Old school Iron Chef, most notably), but now there are so many shows and spin-offs and hosts its enough to make your head spin. Fear not, here’s my breakdown on what I consider the top 5 best, and worst, food shows on TV. (Some are shown on other networks besides the Food Network, but all food-related shows are included)

Best:

5. Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives
While technically more of an eating show than a cooking show, it’s a great concept hosted by Guy Fieri, whose larger than life personality and appetite really makes the show entertaining. Focusing on local gems and hometown favorites the show helps spotlight the top casual food spots across the US and helps spread the word about family-run or independent food hot-spots rather than large chains. This show is a guilty pleasure for me and I always find myself watching it.

4. Jamie’s Great Italian Escape
I know this was filmed awhile ago, but it’s still aired regularly on food network due to it’s popularity. The producers for this show did a brilliant job making the show not only about cooking, and food, but the characters and culture behind it. Everyone from monks, to farmers, fishermen, and elderly ladies making pasta in the streets was involved. This is also the series where Oliver got heaps and heaps of hate mail for killing a live lamb on film, something previously unheard of on any food network show.

3. Top Chef
Woo hoo! A cooking reality show that actually focuses on the contestants and their food instead of provoking drama and stroking egos! With talented contestants, brilliant guest chefs and judges (Anthony Bourdain, my personal favorite) and great challenges, this is the best cooking reality show on TV.

2. Alton Brown – Good Eats!
How can you not love Alton? Focusing on the science behind cooking in his own unique and entertaining way, I learn something each and every time I watch the show. Sure, some of his scenes are a little over the top, but that’s part of the appeal. At the end of the day his recipes are delicious no matter how many costume changes are required to get there. There’s only one Alton.

1. Iron Chef America
The American Idol of Food Network TV, it’s the clear number one. Brilliant iron chefs, big name competitors, and a more exciting format than its older version, it’s a good watch each and every time. The only thing starting to get to me is the judges they are lining up for the show. Really? Mo Rocca and Criss Angel are judging Mario Batali’s food?

Worst Shows:

5. Hell’s Kitchen
This is the polar opposite of Top Chef, as this show is about one man and one man only, Gordon Ramsay. A brilliant chef, he’s essentially been reduced to a character, far from the restaurateur that held 3 Michelin stars at one time. How many times can we watch someone overcook Wellington or risotto, or be called a donkey? Apparently tons. This show is like watching Big Brother with the occasional cooking session there’s so much drama provoked.

4. Anna Olson – Sugar
I like Anna Olson, I really do. She seems nice and someone who’d be great to have as a neighbour. But each and every single time her show comes on I change the channel. Why? I’m not sure. I think because it’s all baking so it’s just repetitive. Measure this, mix this, bake at 350. She’s never tackling a live swordfish or going spear hunting (like all chefs do, trust me) or doing anything to keep my interest long enough. Plus the white kitchen she cooks in gives me a headache. She does have a new show however which focuses on general cooking and it’s better, but a little spear hunting would put it over the top.

3. Ted Allen – Food Detectives

It was about time Ted Allen got his own show. But really, food detectives? I get it, Ted’s a smart guy, so let’s put him in a white lab coat and get him to talk science no one cares about. Ted’s my favorite regular judge on Iron Chef, but this show is unwatchable. The man can cook, get him in a kitchen instead of talking about dying your shirt with beets.

2. Giada DeLaurentis – Everyday Italian

She’s a beautiful woman, no doubt, but even that can’t get me watching this show long enough. I have decided what actually drives me crazy about this show is her sporadic over-the-top Italian pronunciations of certain ingredients. For anyone who’s watched that show, she doesn’t have the slightest hint of an Italian accent, except when one of her choice ingredients comes up in a sentence. “Now I’m going to add 1/2 cup of grated MOOT-ZARELLLLLLLA cheese and stir to combine.” Bam, suddenly she sounds like Super Mario and then snaps right back out of it. Is that enough to make me write off this show? Apparently it is.

1. Road Tasted – The Deen Brothers

I actually think this may have been replaced with “Road Tasted with the Neeleys” (also terrible), but this without a doubt is the worst show I’ve seen on the Food Network. Riding on momma Paula Deen’s coat tails has never paid off better for 2 boys who basically drive around high fiving for half an hour. Asking ridiculous questions, creeping out most of their guests, I wonder if they ever get tired of people asking if they can meet their mom? Unwatchable.

Honorable Mentions:

Nigella Feasts
She’s not re-inventing the wheel with her food, but can anyone in the food business work a camera like a Nigella can? She is mesmerizing to watch, peppering everything up with colourful adjectives and mild innuendo. She’s found her niche and works it well.

Throwdown with Bobby Flay
I like this show. I like how average cooks from small towns can smoke a professional chef at their specialty they’ve perfected throughout the years. People like to root for the underdog, me included.