Chef's Kitchen

Each month, a guest chef gives us a tip that elevates their cooking or simplifies things in the kitchen; something a home cook might not know. They also provide a recipe that uses the tip, so you can practice at home. Our guest chef this month is the Executive Chef at Barking Frog, Dylan Herrick. Barking Frog is noted for innovative seasonal menus, award-winning global wines, and wine country ambiance.

Dylan grew up in Woodinville, and his first kitchen job was washing dishes at The Herbfarm. To pay for his college books, he washed dishes at the Barking Frog. It was the start of a long relationship and his chef career, moving from dishwasher to line cook, then lead line cook. He also took on more responsibility as he managed the sous chef job. He would leave and return several times, including in 2013 to run the Barking Frog mobile kitchen as sous chef. He worked at Miller's Guild, Bin Vivant, the Bookstore at the Alexis Hotel, Preservation Kitchen, Jersey's Wine Bar & Bistro, Microsoft, and Sifted. In 2021, Chef Bobby Moore asked him to return again, this time as executive chef.

Sous vide for more consistent, juicy chicken, by Executive Chef Dylan Herrick

Sous vide is the process of cooking food that has been vacuum sealed at a very controlled temperature using an immersion circulator in a water bath. Vacuum sealing can help maintain the shape of items and allow flavors to penetrate more quickly, much like the almost airless environment of a pressure cooker in a similar manner.

Within a restaurant, chefs also use vacuum sealers to pickle things more quickly, change the cell structure of different ingredients to give a new texture, and a number of other things. Vac sealers can be purchased for a relatively inexpensive price tag these days. Immersion circulators are a kitchen gadget that have a heating coil and pump which allow them to keep water baths at a constant temperature. Immersion circulators are readily available these days and relatively cheap.

Sous vide allows items to be cooked very precisely, allowing for a perfect outcome every time without the work. When kept at a constant temperature, time is the only differentiating factor of final product, changing texture and flavor. Items cooked this way can be enjoyed right away or quickly cooled submerged in an ice water bath and saved for later. Investing in a vac sealer and immersion circulator is a wise move: it's a great way to impress friends and family or just to provide an excellent meal for yourself.

No Gadget Sous Vide Chicken Roulade

Ingredients

• 1.5 tbsp canola oil
• 1 tbsp diced shallot
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• ½ cup sliced mushrooms
• 1 cup spinach
• 2 tbsp white wine
• 1 chicken breast
• Salt (1/2 tsp)
• 1.5 tbsp heavy cream
• 2 slices provolone
• Salt and pepper to taste; about 2 tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper

Additional equipment: 2 pieces parchment paper, mallet or pan, saran wrap, 1 gal Ziploc bag, large saucepot, saucepan, thermometer

Method

1. Start by preparing roulade filling. Put sauce pan over medium heat, and once warm, add 1 tbsp oil, shallots, and garlic. Cook until soft, then pop the mushrooms in. Add a pinch of salt to help draw moisture out of the mushrooms and, stirring occasionally, cook until that moisture is gone. Deglaze with white wine and allow to evaporate then add cream, reducing to a gravy-like consistency before removing from heat to fold in spinach until wilted. Adjust seasoning and place in fridge to cool.
2. Prepare chicken breast by butterflying before placing on one sheet of parchment paper; season with salt (½ tsp) and cover with other parchment paper, lightly pound out with mallet or saucepan until even ½ inch thickness is reached. Transfer to a sheet of Saran Wrap. Place 2 slices of provolone in the middle of pounded chicken then spread an even layer of cooled filling over that. Using the Saran Wrap, start to roll the chicken over itself, starting at the bottom and peeling back the Saran Wrap so chicken is touching chicken. Once done you should have a decent "log" with only chicken exposed on the outside. Now take the Saran Wrap and fold so edges meet. Put your hands over the roulade and use fingertips to pull saran wrap tight with chicken, rolling with the heel of palms until no loose Saran Wrap remains. Finally, grab the Saran Wrap on both sides of the roulade and roll in one direction on a flat surface while gripping tightly, causing the Saran Wrap to tighten and form a perfect cylinder of roulade. Place in Ziploc bag.
3. Fill large sauce pot with water and leave 2 inches at top. Before placing on heat, use the pot of water to remove air from the roulade in Ziploc bag to mimic the effect of vacuum sealing with a method called water displacement. Seal the Ziploc bag but leave one corner unopened just slightly and place bag in water with the open corner just at the water line, allowing the water pressure to force air out through the small opening; seal it shut and set aside. Now clip a thermometer on the side of the pot, cover top with Saran Wrap to keep heat in while preventing water loss and place over medium heat. We are looking for 155F; you may have to adjust burners. Once 155F is held for five minutes without dipping too low or high (a degree either way is fine), don't touch the knob. Place the bagged roulade inside, covering it back up with saran. Cook for 1 hour and remove from bag and Saran Wrap for the next step or place in ice water bath until completely cold then place in fridge for next step at a later time.
4. To serve, heat pan over medium high heat and add .5 tbsp canola oil. Once just starting to smoke, add roulade and sear on all sides until golden. Pull from the pan and set aside to rest for 10 minutes before slicing in coins to reveal juicy chicken with a beautiful pinwheel design. This chicken roulade can be served alongside an array of starches and vegetables.

Barking Frog
14580 NE 145^th St
Woodinville, WA 98072
425-424-2999

 
www.willowslodge.com/barking-frog

November 2022