(Well…no more than they’d normally complain about never having enough lobster.)

Drink Pairings: White Bordeaux

Ingredients:                                     Makes Eight Servings
1 Large Butter Poached Lobster Tail, Cubed (How to Butter Poach Lobster)
2 large Sweet Potatoes
3 tbsp Olive Oil
1 Onion, roughly chopped
3 Carrots, roughly chopped
2 spears of Celery, roughly chopped
1/2 cup White Wine
1 quart Chicken Stock or Broth
1/2 cup of Heavy Whipping Cream
Juice of 2 Oranges
5 Fresh Sage Leaves

Corn Cream
Kernels from 1 Ear of Corn or 1 cup Frozen Corn
1/2 Cup + 2 tbsp Heavy Whipping Cream
1 Bay Leaf
Pinch of Salt

Optional: Chive Oil

Directions:
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

2. Roast the sweet potatoes on a sheet pan until tender, then remove them from the oven & set them aside to cool.

3. Make the Corn Cream – In a frying pan combine the 1/2 cup of cream, corn, bay leaf and salt.  Bring the mixture just to a boil, then remove from the heat.

Remove the bay leaf from the corn mixture.  Move the mixture to a blender, add the remaining 2 tbsp of cream & blend to a smooth puree.  Reserve until the soup is finished.

4. In a large pot, saute the onions, carrots and celery in the olive oil until softened.

5. Deglaze the pot with the white wine & simmer to reduce by half.  Add the chicken stock & simmer until the vegetables are tender.

6. Remove the bay leaf and move the soup base to a blender.  Blend until smooth.

7. Peel the cooked sweet potatoes & add them to the soup base.  Blend until smooth.

8. Taste and add salt & pepper as needed.  Add the heavy cream, sage leaves & orange juice.  Blend until smooth.

9. Put the soup in individual bowls.  Top each with a dollop of the corn cream, a few pieces of butter poached lobster, and (if desired) the chive oil.  Serve.

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Fresh wasabi rhizomes (colloquially known as fresh wasabi roots) are a rare and precious culinary commodity prized by high level sushi and fine dining chefs. Fresh grating is key with fresh wasabi rhizomes.  Below are instructions for how to get the best flavor out of fresh wasabi. 

How to Use Fresh Wasabi:

1. Rinse the wasabi rhizome.

2. Trim the tip off of one end. Put this end down, then use a knife to strip the outer peel off the end of the wasabi (try not to expose any more than you plan on using).

3. Using the finest grater you can get your hands on, grate the wasabi root into a fine paste. In the picture below, we used a microplane, but a metal Japanese wasabi grater would be even better, with the best option being the traditional Japanese sharkskin grater (called “oroshi”).  In a pinch, you could also use the finest hole size on a box grater.

4. Form the wasabi paste into a small pile to minimize its exposed surface area.

5. Use the fresh wasabi paste in the next 5-10 minutes for optimal flavor.

Reviving wasabi:  About 15-20 minutes after being grated, wasabi starts to lose some of its nuanced flavor, becoming simply hot. Its subtle flavor notes can be somewhat revived, however. Vigorously mix in 1-2 pinches of granulated sugar (we recommend superfine sugar) per teaspoon of wasabi paste. The paste will briefly regain some of its complexity.

How to Store Wasabi Rhizomes: Store whole wasabi rhizomes in the fridge, wrapped in a damp (not wet) towel. Check the towel daily to make sure it hasn’t dried out and re-dampen or refresh with a fresh towel.  Though they are often most potent in the few days after arrival, wasabi rhizomes can remain fresh for as long as three weeks if carefully stored.

Recipes Using Fresh Wasabi Rhizomes

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It is better than store bought.   And, simple to make.  But you have to really want to make it because it is hard on the eyes, nose and throat.  Really hard.  If your eyes can’t handle you chopping onions, don’t even think about making fresh horseradish.  I made the mistake of making horseradish inside — oh, boy — I felt like I was in a tear gas cloud.  Seriously…I have actually been in a tear gas cloud, so I know what I am talking about…it was in Lima when Fujimori was being evicted … Anyway, that’s a story for another day. 

I think it is worth it.  And, so did my grandparents (who I got this recipe from).  They made it every year so that it could be piled upon gefilte fish.  But, they were smarter than me and made it outside.

Here’s how to make homemade horseradish:

Peel the fresh horseradish like you would a carrot and then chop it in chunks that are small enough to fit in a food processor.  Process it until your throat burns, you are crying and you have been pushed beyond your pain threshold.  That is at least when I decided to stop.  Fortunately, it was at the same time that I arrived at the other indicator of completion: the horseradish was finely minced.

Add a pinch of salt.  Fill up your jars with horseradish and then top them with some white vinegar (or any other vinegar that you want). 

It lasts a long time.  At least six months.

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Culinary Techniques

Wasabi Gremolata

While gremolata is traditionally used to balance the richness of braised meats like osso bucco (traditional germolata recipe), this version has lighter, more complex flavors that are better suited to rare steaks, kurobuta pork, or seafood (particularly halibut or tuna).  Here it’s depicted on a grass fed steak.

Ingredients: (per 3oz of protein)
1 tsp Fresh Wasabi Rhizome
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp fresh flat leaf parsley
½ tsp fish sauce (nam pla)
1 tsp peanut oil

1.  Finely grate the wasabi and let it rest for ten minutes, covered (how to use fresh wasabi).

2.  Finely chop the lemon zest and parsley.

3.  Toss all ingredients.  Serve immediately.

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Fresh Wasabi Recipes
Fresh Herb Recipes
Citrus Fruit Recipes

Herby & herby with a bit of zing from the fresh horseradish, this gremolata is a luxurious addition to cooked meats, elevating them into the culinary stratosphere.

Awesome on steaks (we put it on Kobe Beef Tomahawk Ribeye Steaks) also would be great on other steak cuts, short ribs, prime rib and more.

Ingredients:      Makes Enough for 1 Tomahawk Steak or Two Smaller Steaks
1/2 bunch Fresh Flat Leaf Italian Parsley, rinsed & roughly chopped
1/3 oz Fresh White Truffle  (we used fresh White Alba Truffles)
1 tbsp Fresh Horseradish Root
3 tbsp Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper to Taste

Directions:
1. Grate the horseradish with a microplane grater, toss with the parsley, salt, pepper & olive oil.

2. Slice the fresh truffle 1/2 mm thick using a truffle slicer or mandoline.  Cut the truffle slices into fine julienne sticks.  Stir into the mixture.

3. Serve the finished gremolata atop cooked & rested steaks, braised meats, roasted meats, etc.

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Orange, Pine Nut, Chive Gremolata Recipe
Fresh Wasabi Gremolata Recipe
Truffle Recipes
Meat Recipes

Roasting sunchokes (aka Jerusalem artichokes) is easy, and they’re a delicious alternative to roasted potatoes.

Ingredients: (makes 4 servings)
1 1/2lbs of Sunchokes
Olive Oil to coat
1 clove of Garlic, crushed with the skin on

Directions: 
1.  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Rinse the sunchokes and scrub off any dirt that might be clinging to them (particularly around where the nodules branch off).

3.  Slice the sunchokes in half.  Coat them with olive oil, salt and pepper.  Place them in a small baking dish with the garlic clove. 

4.  Roast them in the oven until tender (about 45 minutes).

5.  Serve.

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As delicious as mashed potatoes are, it’s sometimes nice to use a different vegetable that fills a similar role on the plate while bringing a different flavor and texture.  Jerusalem artichokes (aka sunchokes) are a great way to add even more exciting novelty to entrees involving exotic meats (like kangaroo meat).  This puree is smooth, sweet and creamy with occasional crunchy bits.  It can also be made ahead of time and easily reheated on the stovetop when the other components of your meal are complete.

Ingredients: (makes 6 servings)
1.5lbs Jerusalem Artichokes
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp heavy cream
Olive Oil
Portuguese Sea Salt to taste
Freshly ground Tellicherry pepper to taste

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

2. Wash the Jerusalem artichokes and rub them liberally with oil, salt and pepper.

3. Put the Jerusalem artichokes in a single layer on a roasting pan and move to the oven to roast for about 35 minutes (until browned on the outside and fork tender).

4. Warm the butter and the cream in a small saucepan on the stove.

5. Mash the Jerusalem artichokes using a food mill or hand held potato masher.  If the skins are too thick and aren’t breaking down in the mash, take them out, finely chop them, and then mix them back into the puree.

6. Mix in the butter and cream.  Taste for seasoning and stir in extra salt if necessary.  Serve immediately or reheat as needed later.

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Raw Oysters with a Wasabi Mignonette Sauce

Wine Pairing: Daiginjo Sake or Muscadet

This delicious mignonette brings the bite of fresh wasabi root (far more complex and less powerful than the horseradish in fake wasabi pastes) to your next platter of oysters on the half shell.

Ingredients:
1 tsp fresh wasabi rhizome
1 sprig fresh chervil or other fresh herb
1 tbsp champagne vinegar
1 tbsp finely minced shallot

1. Finely dice the shallot, mince the chervil, and grate the fresh wasabi root as finely as possible (how to use fresh wasabi).

2. Let the fresh grated wasabi root rest, covered, for ten minutes (you can use this time to shuck the oysters).

3. Mix the fresh wasabi root, chervil, vinegar and shallot.

4. Serve atop shucked fresh oysters (Virginica oysters depicted).

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Fresh Wasabi Recipes
Oyster Recipes & Techniques
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Seafood Recipes

Frying potato chips at home is surprisingly easy, and fresh potato chips are much more delicious than store bought.  That said, you don’t have to just fry potatoes.  Lotus root chips have a slightly creamy, slightly sweet flavor, look gorgeous, and crisp up even better because of their holes.  Taro root also makes great chips, and this same technique can even be used with sunchokes, as in our Perch Fish & Chips Recipe.

You can use any of our specialty salts to season your chips, but we’ve suggested a few varieties below that work particularly well.

Ingredients: (makes approximately 5 servings)
3 Fresh Taro Roots
2 Fresh Lotus Roots
2 large Heirloom Bintje Potatoes
Flor de Sal, Green Chile Salt, Szechuan Pepper Salt, or Truffle Salt to taste
Freshly cracked Tellicherry Peppercorns to taste
High heat oil (canola, peanut, etc) – amount depends on your pot or fryer.

1. Wash the taro, lotus, and potatoes.  Remove skin from the taro, but leave the skin on the lotus root and potatoes.  Slice them into 1/16th of an inch thick disks.  Though you can use a knife if you have exceptional knife skills and an exceptionally sharp knife, it’ll be easier (and you’ll have much more uniform results) to use a mandoline.

2. Soak the slices separately in bowls of cold water for at least 1 hour (up to 6 hours)  to draw out the starch.

3. While the root vegetables are soaking, heat at least an inch of oil in the bottom of your pot (or the amount of oil called for in your fryer’s instructions) to 375 degrees.

4. Remove your chips from the water and dry them off thoroughly sandwiched between two towels (the water running off the taro chips may be slimy to the touch…but don’t worry, that’s normal).  Be sure to dry the potato chips, as excess water can cause the oil to sputter.  Have a large bowl handy to toss the finished chips with salt and pepper.

5. Add the chips to the fryer one at a time so that they do not stick to each other.  Be careful not to overload the fryer or pot, as this can drop the temperature and result in oily chips.  If using a pot on the stove, do not put more than a single layer in at a time.  Use tongs or a spider to turn the chips in the oil, frying them until golden brown and crispy (taro chips will be darker).  Make sure your oil is back up to 375 degrees before adding more chips.

6. Remove the chips from the oil, shaking them gently over the oil to drain.  Put them in the large bowl, and top with fresh cracked pepper and the specialty salt of your choice. Toss to coat.

 7. Serve immediately.

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Sea Salt Recipes

Ingredients:
1 small Red Beet
¾ cup Fine Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions:
1. Preheat your oven to 350.

2. Wash the beet and cut off the ends. Rub it with olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Wrap it in aluminum foil & roast it in the oven for about an hour, until tender.  Scrub the skin off.

3. Puree the beet with the extra virgin olive oil.  Strain through a fine mesh strainer.

4. Drizzle over your cooked food, toss with grain salads, or use to make homemade vinaigrettes.

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