Foodie Chap: Lafitte Restaturant
KCBS radio 'Foodie Chap' and CBS 5 television 'Eye On The Bay' host Liam Mayclem introduces us to the culinary stars behind the food and wine loved by so many in the Bay Area.
By Liam Mayclem, the KCBS Foodie Chap
Russell Jackson made his culinary debut at the age of three when he created an applesauce bombe for his mother and little sister. Take one pressure cooker, one jar of applesauce, one match-lit stove, and boom! You have breakfast on the ceiling.
Though his technique has improved with age, Jackson's insatiable desire to "Feed The People" has endured. He honed his craft in some of the hottest restaurants in Los Angeles before graduating in the top of his class from the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. He returned to Los Angeles to open Russell's, his first restaurant. After Russell's, he became a private chef for several A-list celebrities, and in 1999, returned to San Francisco to serve as the chef of the James Beard-nominated Black Cat Restaurant in the North Beach district.
In the years that followed, Jackson achieved notoriety and amassed a cult following with SubCulture Dining, a radical underground supper-club. SubCulture Dining (SCD) menus were strongly geared toward what makes sense that day based on a myriad of factors including what may be blooming on his rooftop garden. Simply put, Jackson calls it a menu of logic. SCD broke culinary boundaries and earned Jackson his reputation as the "Dissident Chef."
"Cooking to me is life, fire, sex." - Chef Russell Jackson
I had the joy of playing sous chef at a number of Chef Russell's underground dinners. He named a few of these delicious events "Burning Brit Dinners," because inevitably I burned the food (a little) and sometimes myself when helping out in the kitchen.
Our next culinary event together is a "Burning Irish Dinner" on St. Patrick's Day, March 17th, where you are invited to come and watch the fun unfold at Chef Russell's Lafitte restaurant in San Francisco.
Meantime visit Chef Russell and his terrific team at Lafitte where he harnesses his signature style pushing culinary boundaries and doing what he does best: "Feed the People"!
5 Tasty Questions with Chef Russell Jackson
1. Chef you spent many years on the road with rock stars (Counting Crowes). What surprised you most about the eating habits of rock stars?
Diversity. You have guys who are hard core foodies and they want foie gras or Beef Wellington. And then you have the guy sitting next to him who wants a bologna sandwich.
2. Biggest passion outside the kitchen?
Napping inbetween skydiving. But yes napping.
3. What music is pumping while you are cooking?
Diversity. JayZ. Stones. Stone Temple Pilots. Christina Aguilera. Anything under the sun except country.
4. What is always in your fridge at home?
Lots of foie gras. Pate.
5. Last supper. Who would be at the table and what would you eat?
Marco Pierre White. Jessica Biel. The combo of Pamela Anderson and Jenny McCarthy. But they have to come as a set. We would eat something with fingers. Morroccon food. Lots of vegetables. Hummus. A touch of Greek.
LM: Tasty answers. Thank you Chef.
Lafitte's Bistro Style Steak Tartare
(Pictured above)
Serves 6
Ingredients
2 lbs Creek Stone New York, Cleaned-Fat Cap Removed
3 egg yolk
2 tbls Dijon mustard
2 tb shallots, finely chopped
1 tb capers, drained and chopped
A few drops of Tabasco Sauce
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tb olive oil
2 tsp fines herb, minced
Dash of Brandy
Salt and pepper
Method
1. Trim and grind the meat twice. Chop finely the shallots and capers.
2. In a bowl, mix the egg yolk, shallots, capers, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco sauce.
3. Add olive oil and best lightly for a few seconds.
4. Add meat and fine herbs. Season with salt, pepper and brandy. Mix lightly for a few seconds, careful not to over mix. Form into a loose patty.
5. Refrigerate or serve immediately.
6. In a hot sauté pan, lightly coated with EVO, sear the patties for a brief five seconds, turn over and immediately remove from pan to cool plate.
7. EAT IT…NOW…
Serving: Steak Tartare cannot be preserved more than 2 hours, even in a fridge. Served with French fries or as a starter and a spicy Dijoinaise (aioli mixed with Dijon and a touch of white pepper).
Wine Suggestion: Red wine, such as Cabernet Franc, Crozes Hermitage or Cahors.
Lafitte - www.lafittesf.com
(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services may have contributed to this report.)
