Tag Archive for: Mike Lata

Cook It Raw!

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cook it rawThis past Saturday, I got to go to an amazing event called Cook It Raw.  Here is the description from the website. “Cook It Raw BBQ Perspectives will feature more than 40 local and internationally acclaimed chefs preparing their interpretation of Lowcountry BBQ. This event will be a celebration of all things BBQ with a focus on the regional ingredients native to Charleston, rice, fish, game meats, as well as the bounty of the local harvest. Our chefs will place a focus on healthy and whole foods with a focus on vegetables and grains.”  It was held out at Bowen’s Island, which is a very special place on the way to Folly Beach.  The whole thing could not have been better planned, and the day could not have been more beautiful.  Tables upon tables of oysters, different types of fish, and BBQ of every kind, from goat to tongue to pig’s head, and on and on.  Even with over 500 people at the event, there were no long lines at the tables, and it all ran flawlessly.  Everything was served and cooked in beautiful Le Creuset Flame cookware, and there were several wineries and breweries on site offering delicious beverages.  And the chefs, ohhh the chefs- they ranged from Sean Brock and Mike Lata out of Charleston to Albert Adria from Barcelona and April Bloomfield from NYC to pit master Rodney Scott from Hemingway, SC.  Chefs from Sidney, London, Mexico City, California, and Canada were all on site to provide the most exquisite food.  My favorites, shockingly, were the goat (it was phenomenal) and the pork taco, followed closely by Rodney’s full pig BBQ, which is what the picture is of.  What a special day!

Charleston- Best City in the World!

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Conde Nast Traveler just named Charleston, SC the best city in the world (http://www.cntraveler.com/readers-choice-awards/top-cities-in-the-world-charleston-cape-town-bangkok-vancouver-photos#slide=1). Pretty impressive, and I completely agree, and I am not surprised.  Where else could my sweet Walker play on Civil War cannons looking out over the harbor- this city is amazing.  It is actually surprising how long it has taken for people to acknowledge this fact, a fact we in Charleston have known for quite a while.  And Between Mike Lata of FIG, Sean Brock of Husk, Ken Vedrinski of Lucca, Craig Deihl of Cypress and on and on, Charleston is also in my opinion the best food city in the world.  While the amazing food aspect of Charleston is relatively new- like in the last 15 years, the best parts of Charleston, the charm, the quaintness, and the history have always been here.  If you haven’t been to Charleston, you should.  Here is a very old school Charleston Shrimp and Grits recipe that would win Charleston awards even if it was a hole in the ground!  Very proud of my city.

Old Charleston Style Shrimp & Grits

Ingredients:

1 cup coarsely ground grits
3 cups water
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups half-and-half
 2 pounds uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
salt to taste
1 pinch cayenne pepper, or to taste
1 lemon, juiced
1 pound andouille sausage, cut into 1/4 inch slices
5 slices bacon
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

Directions:

Bring water, grits, and salt to a boil in a heavy saucepan with a lid. Stir in half-and-half and simmer until grits are thickened and tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Set aside and keep warm.
Sprinkle shrimp with salt and cayenne pepper; drizzle with lemon juice. Set aside in a bowl.
Place andouille sausage slices in a large skillet over medium heat; fry sausage until browned, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove skillet from heat.
Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Retain bacon drippings in skillet. Transfer bacon slices to paper towels, let cool, and crumble.
Cook and stir green, red, and yellow bell peppers, onion, and garlic in the bacon drippings until the onion is translucent, about 8 minutes.
Stir shrimp and cooked vegetables into the andouille sausage and mix to combine.
Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat; stir in flour to make a smooth paste. Turn heat to low and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is medium brown in color, 8 to 10 minutes. Watch carefully, mixture burns easily.
Pour the butter-flour mixture into the skillet with andouille sausage, shrimp, and vegetables. Place the skillet over medium heat and pour in chicken broth, bacon and Worcestershire sauce, cooking and stirring until the sauce thickens and the shrimp become opaque and bright pink, about 8 minutes.
Just before serving, mix sharp Cheddar cheese into grits until melted and grits are creamy and light yellow. Serve shrimp mixture over cheese grits.

Charleston Wine and Food Festival

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Charleston Wine and Food Festival starts this Thursday, and I am going to Texas this weekend.  While I am very excited to go to Houston to see Radiohead in concert and see some friends we haven’t seen in a very long time, I am so bummed to miss the festival.  Thanks to my awesome friend at Le Creuset, Corby and I got totally hooked up last year with some passes to the Chef’s event on Thursday night and to the tents on Saturday.  We also have been to the BBQ finale on Sunday for the last two years which is incredible.  Check out the full list of all the fun things going on here www.charlestonwineandfood.com.   Just a word of advice if you do go to the BBQ event on Sunday- we tried every station, and there are about 15 all serving different style BBQ with sides and even some with dessert, in about 20 minutes.  I thought after that 20 minutes that I was going to die as I had just consumed about 30,000 calories, had a whole pig in my stomach, and a couple of beers to top it off.  So, I suggest, if you go, that you maybe take it easy and don’t try all the stations at once.

But back to Houston, or as Corby likes to call it “Ground Control”- we get in Saturday around noon and Radiohead starts at 7:30 I think.  Radiohead is Corby’s favorite band. I really haven’t listened to them that much- the end of their songs seem a little screamy to me but I am not a music buff in any way shape or form, so what do I know.  Anyway, we are going to go to The Ginger Man (www.gingermanpub.com) because Corby loves it, but any suggestions for awesome Mexican food would be greatly appreciated.  Yay Mexican food- yay queso!   I don’t really have much else for now as I am just waiting for the weekend, and its Tuesday.  But, I saw in Esquire Magazine that they featured a breakfast casserole by the amazing Mike Lata of FIG.  Here is the link http://www.esquire.com/features/food-drink/the-community-cookbook/breakfast-casserole-recipe-0312– it looks yummy!