My Creative Process (file under Food Adventures)

When I originally started on this adventure I had a creative process that is very different from the one I have today. I would say that historically my creative process had been uninformed and chaotic. Not that that’s a bad thing but I’ve come to realize as I studied many of the worlds greatest Chefs that there is a much more detailed and rewarding way to create new dishes.

As a writer I am stream of consciousness and for a long time before joining a professional kitchen I applied the same process to cooking. I would go to the store or market as an open slate with little or no idea what I would be cooking that night. C has always loved shopping with me on these excursions because, I believe anyway, that there is a thrill to the uncertainty. It was exciting for me as well. I no longer, by necessity of experience, ‘fly by the seat of my pants.’ I apply a methodology which is heavily influenced by the worlds greatest Chefs. Adria, Achatz, Blumenthal, Alice Waters, Ripert and so many more. I have studied their methods with great interest and hopefully a better creative result.

I have to admit that much of my creative process is taken directly from Adria and Ripert. At the moment these are my two favorite Chefs and though their methods are different the result, on a high level, is the same, delicious and interesting food. For a great insight into Chef Adria's process look at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTuSZHO3GU8 .

The first step in my creative process is to look at (direct influence of Adria and Ripert);

Traditional Cuisine
Local Cuisine
Techniques

To date I have studied the following cuisines both experientially and through books and videos;

Classical French, Nouvelle Cuisine, Classical Italian, New Italian, Mediterranean, Cajun, Indian, Thai, Mexican, Chilean, Peruvian, Brazilian, Caribbean, Spanish, Californian, Moroccan, Irish, Scottish, Soul and Southern, German and some Chinese. I have studied as much as I can get on each of these cuisines and further have broken much of these cuisines down to the local level that is as varied as there are people on this planet. In total I would say that I have read approximately 150 books just on world cuisines making copious amounts of notes.

Thus the first thing I look at is the ingredient with which I want to play. After all, even though your parents always told you at the table not to play with your food, as a cook, I can say they were wrong. PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD. Once I have isolated the main ingredient I want to create with I then turn to traditional and local cuisines to identify the type of dish I would like to create. That is to say do I want to create a dish similar in style to Michael Guerard, meaning Nouvelle, or do I want to create a home style German Dish? Or do I want to create a spin on Pad Thai? These are but examples of a nearly inexhaustible list of dishes I have looked at.
Once I have identified the ingredient and the type of cuisine I would like to cook it in I then turn to the local cuisine or regional varieties of that dish and see how I can best use the ingredient. How I can accentuate the natural flavours of the ingredient without overpowering it? Within each cuisine there is an endless list of possibilities that you can play with.

The final step in the initial component of my creative process is to ask myself what techniques I would like to the ingredient and dish. It would take forever to illustrate all the techniques that could be applied but here is a partial list for illustration; Frying, Sautéing, Poaching, Steaming, Broiling, Baking, Roasting, Sous Vide and Confit.

Next in the process is to start looking at the traditional accompaniments. Do I want to make a traditional dish? Do I want to be adventurous and try something new? Do I want to use various components in different ways to arrive at a new result? Food is so glorious that there is an endless supply of inspirations that you can draw from.

Personally I have been exploring inspiration a lot recently. There is no end to where you can draw inspiration. I draw a lot of inspiration from my endless travels and my innate curiosity when confronted by something new. I also draw a lot of inspiration from nature, writing, music, art and architecture and culture. Recently art and architecture have been big influences on me. I do not want to be a purveyor of ‘haute cuisine’ in the vain of Alain Ducasse or Michael Guerard but that does not mean that I do not want to compose plates that are artistic in nature. I know that as I get closer to opening my own restaurant I will take some time to explore inspiration and innovation as a means of advancing my own personal culinary philosophy. This will entail lots of reading, travel and well LIVING!

When I was at Reservation I had numerous conversations with Executive Chef 1 and 2 (1 now being Director of Operations) and Sous Chef A about the creation of a new dish. With Executive Chef 1 I began to learn that there are a number of different considerations when creating a dish. From his description (and later Adria’s) I came to know that you need to consider flavours but also senses and the way that they receive the dish that you are creating. How does it smell? How does smell affect the dish? I remember seeing a show once about Achatz use of a Lavender scented pillow at Alinea and then having to send an email to him because I thought it was such a wild concept. One that was at the time out of my breadth of knowledge or experience. But it caused me to start thinking.

You also want to consider the way the dish looks. After all food is first a feast for the eyes. It is possible to just slap food on the plate and make it taste good but if you can visually impress the person eating the dish you will be able to exponentially increase the joy and wow factor of the dish for the consumer. You can play with shapes and sizes, plating, different plates, levels, colours, etc. The end result being a dish that really does awaken the senses through the initial impact of sight.

Taste is of course of utmost importance and trumps everything else. But taste is more than just umami, sweet, sour, bitter and salty. Taste can and does include the texture of what you are serving. Moreover you have to consider how the texture plays into the flavours. As well as texture (Soft, hard, crunchy, etc.) so too does the temperature affect taste and the way that the mouth receives the various tastes. It is a delicate balance of these considerations that really imparts the wow factor in a dishes taste component.

Chef Adria also illustrates that there is a sixth sense to food. It is that intangible that can not be measured. This involves as he points out the intellectual enjoyment of the food, the knowledge of where it came from, how it was prepared, the various elements, etc. It is truly intangible and possibly difficult to explain even for the consumer.

So now that I have explained the considerations I put into my creative process I want to illustrate with an example. Lets use a dish that I have started conceptualizing in the past year. It is about juxtaposition and utilizing technique and various ingredients that would not otherwise be put together. I am yet to try it but might at The Club this summer.

Smoked Salmon is one of my great pleasures. It has an awesome oily texture and a sweetness that is evocative of joy, at least in my experience. Knowing that I want to use Smoked Salmon I then ask myself; what do I want to do with it?

Due to the considerations of timing, organization, space, prep and all the other things I need to consider I thought about the various uses for it and how people most enjoy it. Commonly in Toronto Smoked Salmon is served on a bagel with cream cheese. At The Club with do Smoked Salmon sandwich, Eggs Benjamin (Eggs Benedict but instead of Peameal you use Smoked Salmon) and a Smoked Salmon Scramble Eggs. All of which are delicious incidentally. But because I am beginning to branch out in my creativity I started asking myself; what can I do that is different?

I started to consider natural pairings for Smoked Salmon which obviously are dill and cream cheese. Knowing these as the natural pairings I wanted to discover conceptually how I could use them in a new and different way without turning them on their head. Thus I thought about making a quesadilla. Instead of cream cheese I started to think about the texture of cream cheese and what cheeses I could use to replace it. Obviously the creamy cheeses are the mot natural fit because of their texture. This meant that I started to look at Brie, Camembert and Taleggio as obvious choices. Each imparts a different flavour and a moderately different texture. Personally I would like to have it with a nice double cream Brie. Though I will try all three. The next question was how to incorporate dill while not being traditional. Usually quesadillas are served with Salsa and Sour Cream. Knowing this I thought about either an avocado sour cream or a dill crème fraiche. Again I will try both.

The whole process of this conceptualization took about five minutes from beginning to end. But the concept is easy. Ideas are as the expression goes a dime a dozen. Next comes the real work. The experimentation. Trial and Error. PLAYING WITH MY FOOD. It may be that I get a better result with one Brie over another. Or Camembert. Or Taleggio. There are so many different varieties of those cheeses that it could take me months, years even, before I find the right texture and flavour that I want to impart on the dish. Moreover, I need to ask myself; how big do I want it to be? At what point do the flavours fall out of synchronicity? How do I want it to look, taste, feel?

As I start to play with the different variations I take notes as to the flavours, the way they interrelate, the effect no the senses, etc. These notes then become the way that I refine and fine tune the dish until ultimately I am happy with the result.

So this then is the way that I utilize a creative process to create new dishes and flavours. To date I have a repertoire of approximately 300 of my own recipes which are unique and will someday make it to my own menu in various forms. For the time being I continue to tweak and enhance them.

I hope this is somewhat useful to you in understanding my process.

As Chef Adria says; “Creativity means changing your mind everyday.”

Are you dreaming big and inspired?

A la prochaine

SDM