Food Front: Francis Mallmann goes green in his new cookbook

article content

When Patagonian chef Francis Mallmann visited Vancouver for dinner at CinCin Ristorante in 2014, he closed off a large section of Robson Street to build a wood-fired barbecue. The fragrant smoke scented the air for hours, even days, and passers-by couldn’t take their eyes off the dozen ribs dangling over the coals.

article content

Mallmann is famous for cooking over open fires, with wood and charcoal, and for simply being Francis Mallmann: Outsized personality, owner of nine restaurants around the world, and star of Netflix’s Chef’s Table.

It is also famous for cooking meat. He is, after all, Argentine. His ribeye with chimichurri is almost as famous as he is.
But these days, like many of us, she’s cooking a lot less meat and a lot more fruits and vegetables, and that’s what her latest cookbook is all about.

Green Fire (published in Canada by Appetite by Random House) opens with Mallmann recalling the garden he tended as a teenager and saying, “Now I ask you to come with me, back to the garden, and cook through a book.” where vegetarian and vegan recipes are the stars.”

article content

It is a beautiful book, even poetic. But it’s also practical and will surely inspire you to pop some carrots on the grill or stick a couple of eggplants on the coals and maybe even give up on the steak.

Start by trying to define why food cooked outdoors is so much more delicious. “Outdoors,” he reflects, “many other elements come into play: the wind, the scent of the pine trees, the grass and flowers, the sunset painting the hills.”

It then goes into the practicalities, such as the different types of fire, fuel, and cooking surfaces: the griddle, a flat-top griddle that “looks like a cast-iron coffee table”; cauldron (a cauldron); grill (a grill grate); oven (a kind of oven); and embers, a method of cooking food on hot coals.

article content

Then there is his dome made of iron rods from which he hangs whole cabbages, bunches of grapes, squash, peppers, and other produce to cook slowly over a fire pit, whether it’s that hole on his private island in Patagonia or in the Plaza. Mayor in Madrid.

Lest you think that means you need to reconfigure your outdoor cooking space, he also points out that all of the recipes in the book can be prepared on a basic Weber 22-inch charcoal grill, though you’ll probably want to invest in a griddle. molten iron. .

Most of the recipes are pretty simple and straightforward: Four Way Smashed Potatoes, Grilled Carrots with Charred Mint Sauce, Grilled Corn Salad with Avocado and Cherry Tomatoes. There’s a delicious dessert section (burnt cherries with ice cream, anyone?) and even some tempting cocktails like the G&T with charred lemon and cucumber.

article content

Simple, but spectacular. It’s what Mallmann calls “the transformation of the vibrant colors of the harvest into the muted blacks, browns, and golds of fire-baptized food: sensual, carnal, delicious.”

Recipe: Roasted Strawberries with Ricotta and Mint

Excerpted from Green Fire by Francis Mallmann (Appetite by Random House): “Strawberries have a great affinity for dairy. The English love their strawberries and cream as they watch tennis players compete at Wimbledon. Strawberry Shortcake with Whipped Cream is a classic American dessert. Eastern Europeans make blintzes with strawberries and farmer’s cheese. In this sumptuous dessert, I caramelized sugar, butter, and strawberries and spooned the melted stew over a dollop of ricotta topped with fresh mint.”

article content

for 6

Prepare a fire over medium-low heat and place a grate on top.

Peel the berries and place them in a bowl. If they are large, cut them in half lengthwise. Add the sugar and gently toss the berries to coat completely.

Pour the berries into a 9- to 10-inch (23 to 25 cm) cast-iron skillet and sprinkle with butter. Place skillet on grill (or stove over medium heat) and cook until sugar melts and berries begin to caramelize, 3 to 4 minutes.

Stir occasionally as the butter melts into the caramelized sugar and berries and forms a sauce. Remove the pan from the heat and strain the sauce into a bowl, leaving the berries in the hot pan. Return the skillet to the heat to brown the berries for a minute or so.

Pour the ricotta onto a serving plate and top with the toasted berries. Top with mint and serve warm sauce on the side.