It's All About the Ingredients

As I was multi-tasking the other day while watching Mario Batali prepare Gnocchi Verde Carduta Del Formaggio (Green Gnocchi with Blue Cheese) on his Food Network Molto Mario show, I heard him say something that made me stop, listen and smile.

Mario’s simple, straight-forward feedback was “it’s all about the ingredients”. He then went on to discuss how the key to great cooking is to get the freshest, highest quality ingredients available, and that the best chefs prepare food that focuses almost exclusively on using those ingredients.

I was struck that one of America’s greatest Italian chefs had a point of view consistent with my thinking, and that this perspective has important implications on us everyday “pedestrian” cooks.

I love to go shopping for fresh food. Going to a market, smelling, touching, tasting, and buying the best looking food of the day is great fun! I enjoy doing this at home, in the office, and while traveling on business or for pleasure. I typically try a visit the local markets and ethnic areas, because that is where you usually find the freshest food.

As a teenager, I remember being awed by the European open air food markets during a summer of living and traveling in France. It’s really no different today, and I’ve sought out and visited food markets in Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Germany and Austria on more recent trips. These markets not only provide insight into the local foods that people enjoy and offer the freshest food available, but you also get a feel for the people, and the diversity of the region. And, of course, you always have a meal at the market, and take home enough to put together at least a fantastic sandwich lunch or an easily cooked dinner depending on your access to a local kitchen.

In the US, while there is an increasing interest and focus on fresh foods, the local markets are still not as pervasive as I’d like. Of course there is Pike Place Market in Seattle, the Reading Terminal Market in Philly, and the Haymarket in Boston. Smaller downtown markets in Portland, St. Louis, and Baltimore are also good. In New York, there is the Union Square Farmers Market, Chelsea Market, and the Grand Central Market, and while all these markets are decent, they lack the diversity and variety of food and the number of food purveyors that are emblematic of the best worldwide markets. (Note: in many respects you can find greater variety and diversity within ethnic market areas like Chinatown, Little India, and Arthur Avenue).

At the same time, the local farmers markets continue to grow, particularly during the spring, summer and fall months, and these markets typically enable you to find quality fresh fruits and vegetables, and sometimes bread, cheeses, and even fish and meats.

If I had my druthers, I’d wake at the crack of dawn (unfortunately I have little control over this), grab a good cup of coffee, and head to a local open air market to see what looks good. I’d enjoy getting there early when the vendors are setting up, watching their activity and seeing the food being placed on display. After milling around a bit, maybe having a quick breakfast bite of a freshly baked roll, or croissant, or some delicious bread, and a fresh fruit, I’d walk around and select my daily purchases from the different vendors. These of course would become the ingredients of a fantastic lunch and dinner.

Unfortunately, this is difficult to accomplish. If I’m headed into New York, I always take the time to walk through Grand Central Market and view the beautiful food there. It’s way overpriced, but the vendors there are high quality. Perhaps during the day, I’ll take a walk to Kalustyans (http://www.kalustyans.com/), to get some specialty spices, and have a Mediterranean lunch from their upstairs deli counter, I love the falafel platter there.

In Connecticut, I typically head out to Stew Leonards, http://www.stewleonards.com/, which is the closest I can get to a “local market”. While the selection may not always be as broad as I’d like (Stew’s caters to the mass market and is volume driven), there is typically a nice selection of fresh ingredients. So, based on what looks good and what I have a taste for, I’ll come home with the dinner fare. Last week, the first fresh Alaskan salmon of the season was at Stew’s, so we combined that with some fresh zucchini, eggplant, and Vidalia onions, and mix of locally grown lettuces, for a nice, summer meal. Of course, I might supplement the salad with some fantastic homemade, hand pulled mozzarella from Fratelli Market http://www.fratellimarketct.com/, but think you get the idea.

I do wish there was a better way to replicate the access to fresh food and vegetables that you can get at the European markets or at a Pike’s Place Market. I’m surprised some of the struggling cities across the country (e.g. Cleveland, Detroit, etc.) have not developed these venues as a means to increase downtown traffic, and build a local community environment. Perhaps there’s an opportunity here, on the other hand, I may be too far out in left field (or perhaps more right field for me).

Sorry for this long winded blog.

Today’s message is simple:

Take advantage of what’s fresh, in season, and looks really great at the markets you shop. (Note: if the items are in season, you’ll be paying less too.) Starting with these fresh ingredients, you can build as simple or extravagant menu as you like, and if you don’t screw it up, you will be eating a fantastic meal!