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What's on the horizon in the culinary world? Where should we book our next vacation? And what does a top chef keep in the fridge? We pick the brains of our favorite travelers and foodies to find out.
5 questions with..Diane Kochilas
By andrew.zimmern on Tue, 08/31/2010 - 04:54
![]() Diane Kochilas has made a life long career out of her family's Greek hertitage. As a highly sought after food expert of Greek cuisine, Diane piles her plate high with writing books, news articles, critiques and even teaches classes at her own culinary school in Greece. AndrewZimmern.com: Your expertise is primarily in Greek cuisine and food history. Compare and contrast that with France or Italy or Spain?
Diane Kochilas: Greek cuisine is more direct, with simple techniques. But there is an impressive regional cuisine that has yet to come to the fore in the U.S.
DK: Olive oil, olives, honey, simple goat's cheeses from the islands, sweet cheese cakes from the islands, snails, combos of nuts and honey and pastry, whole grains, wild greens, the array of Mediterranean fish, game, especially rabbit/hare and small birds, among other things--these are the ingredients that have always been in use in the kitchen here and in many instances used in similar preparations. The ancient Greeks were also the first to develop a sense of regionality and a kind of appellation of origin system. DK: All Greeks love to eat and love to sit around the table with lots of other Greeks, family and friends, to argue with them over mama's great cooking! We were no different. AZ.com: Your cookbook Aegean Cuisine pays a contemporary homage to Greek cuisine. How have you gone about modernizing traditional recipes? 5 questions with..Marissa Guggiana
By andrew.zimmern on Wed, 08/04/2010 - 17:22
![]() Ever wonder about the meat you're eating? Marissa Guggiana is a writer and food activist who's traveled the country looking into the lives of some of America's best butchers. She writes about the rivival of butchery, as well as the challenges and issues facing the U.S. meat industry. AndrewZimmern.com: What inspired you to get involved in the meat industry? MarissaGuggiana: My family has been in the meat business for four generations and so I have meat in my blood, so to speak. My father gave me the reins to Sonoma Direct and I quickly learned that I had the infrastructure to change our local food system. We are a federally-inspected meat plant, which is an enormously important piece of a local food economy, as it sits smack in the middle of the food chain. In many ways, I am the communicator and intermediary in the meat world, turning carcass into cuts, taking livestock and creating food. I have the lucky job of working with ranchers, chefs, butchers and consumers. AZ.com: Butchery has become a rediscovered culinary art. What do you think brought about this change? How is butchery different today than it was 50 years ago? 5 questions with..Sunny Anderson
By andrew.zimmern on Wed, 07/28/2010 - 17:48
![]() Sunny is one of the newest additions to Food Network's popular "In the Kitchen" weekend block with her series, Cooking for Real. Combining her approach to classic comfort foods along with her passion for unique flavors inspired by her many travels, Sunny offers real food for real life. AndrewZimmern.com: You're a self proclaimed Army brat, and later served in the United States Air Force. How did life in the military shape your perception of food? SunnyAnderson: I owe my palate to my parents and my military journey. As a child, moving around to different regions and countries almost every year was tough socially, but when talking about food, It was heaven!! My parents were foodies before the term was even coined, so as soon as we knew the next place we were to move to, all they did was research on the local foods, trends and language, really so we could order at a restaurant. No "how do I get to the train station" lessons, but more of the "I'd like to order another one" phrases. Then all I did as an adult when I joined the Air Force is to continue the foodie journey around the world.
AZ.com: You've lived and traveled all over the world-- which country or city do you find the most inspiring? 5 questions with..Andrew Miller
By andrew.zimmern on Tue, 07/20/2010 - 16:02
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AndrewZimmern.com: What or who inspired you to start Café Imports and what has been the hardest part of running a small business?
AndrewMiller: In 1993 I was working at D'amico Cucina in
downtown Mpls. A friend /co-worker Jose Vido, was from a coffee farming
community in Brazil and his dad was a coffee farmer. Caribou was just
opening up and Specialty coffee was coming to the
AZ.com: Climate change has really put a damper on the coffee industry in the last
year. How is Café Imports dealing with the rising price of coffee beans? 5 questions with..Michael White
By andrew.zimmern on Mon, 07/12/2010 - 15:10
![]() Endlessly inspired by the notion of taste memory, Chef Michael White strives to recreate the sensory feel of true Italian dining experiences with each dish he creates. Although his soulful, flavorful interpretations of Italian cuisine indicate otherwise, he is not an Italian native who absorbed generations of recipes at birth. He is, in fact, a Midwesterner who grew up in,Wisconsin playing football and swimming competitively. After winning a James Beard Award this year for Best New Restaurant, Chef White gives us the scoop about Marea and when he discovered his passion for Italian cuisine.
AndrewZimmern.com: How does a Wisconsin kid develop a world-class passion for Italian food?
MichaelWhite: I’ve always loved to eat. I got injured playing football in high school and decided to go to culinary school. I moved to Italy and the rest is history. Italian food is now my life and an Italian woman is now my wife.
AZ.com: How did your perceptions of Italian food change after living in Italy for seven years? Do you think Americans understand authentic Italian cuisine?
MW: Being able to work with the raw product at the source is obviously an invaluable experience – and I did it for seven years! Cooking Italian food would be virtually impossible without travelling to Italy. AZ.com: Is authenticity important? Why?
MW: I think to a certain degree it is. More than anything though is taste and taste memory. I don’t think those things can be duplicated. Authenticity – but to who? Every Italian mom does their version of a ragu. One tradtion to one is interpreted completely different to another. It is more about personal taste and taste memory. |
User loginPollWhat's the most bizarre food you've tried at the state fair? Teriyaki ostrich on a stick 18% Deep-fried twinkie 29% Fried frog's legs 17% Krispy Kreme hamburger 11% Alligator on a stick 25% Total votes: 115
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