FOOD&DINING 11 TOP MILWAUKEE CHEFS SHARE THEIR FAVORITE KITCHEN HACKS
Cooking can be both a joy and a chore. Professional chefs often make creating a flavorful meal look easy, when in reality, many details can make or break a dish. While the quality of ingredients typically makes the biggest impact, techniques for prepping, seasoning and cooking all play a major role. Using time and ingredients efficiently is also one lesson from the pros that applies to the everyday chef. So, to demystify the art of preparing a good meal, we asked local chefs for their best tips and tricks. Here you have the trade secrets to enhance your homemade meals, so you can feel like a pro any night of the week.
Gregory Leon, Amilinda
First things first, “Always make a prep list before starting your cooking project,” says Leon, chef and owner of Amilinda, 315 E. Wisconsin Ave. “That way, you know exactly what needs to be done and you can arrange your tasks in a more efficient way. Start items that need to be cooked first, so they can cook while you do other prep like washing and cutting vegetables.”
Leon is also a 2022 James Beard Finalist for Best Chef of the Midwest.
Tom McGinty, Milwaukee Athletic Club
“I’m not an advocate for filling your kitchen with a bunch of kitchen tools, but I believe owning a microplane is an essential tool that helps elevate dishes and can be the final touch for making a good dish great,” says McGinty, executive chef at the athletic club, 758 N. Broadway.
“A zest of citrus adds freshness and zip, and grating hard cheeses like Parmesan can make a little go a long way with this snow-like application. Grate fresh ginger, garlic and horseradish for a quicker option than chopping. Grating whole nutmeg and cinnamon sticks gives the freshest flavors for baking.”
Steve Gustafson, Bridgewater Modern Grill
Gustafson, executive chef at Bridgewater, 2011 S. First St., says, “When cooking poached eggs, I like to swirl the water and add two tablespoons of white vinegar right before adding the eggs. It helps to keep a nice sphere-shape as they poach.”
Dana Spandet, Flour Girl & Flame
“We always have a handmade salt and pepper pinch pot in the middle of the stove with a mix of Kosher salt and Penzey’s ground Tellicherry pepper. Honestly, it makes creating a meal feel a little more special than just cooking,” says Spandet, owner of Flour Girl & Flame and partner in Brazen Standard Hospitality. “There’s something about being able to feel the spices and seasonings between your fingertips as you add them to your dish that just hits right. And you look cool!”
Flour Girl is at 8121 W. National Ave., West Allis, and has a food truck business.
Jason Alston, Heaven’s Table BBQ
“When you need to smoke a brisket, but you
don’t have time to season it 24 hours ahead of time, choose coarse-ground spices like granulated garlic, kosher salt and coarse ground pepper. They penetrate the meat better, and you can use less because they have a higher concentration of flavor,” says Alston, chef and owner of
Heaven’s Table, 5507 W. North Ave.
Justin Carlisle, Ardent, Red Light Ramen and The Laughing Taco
“Whenever butchering proteins or cutting vegetables, save the scraps and freeze them individually. That way, when you make soup, broths or stocks you can just pull ingredients out of the freezer,” says Chef Justin Carlisle, chef and owner of Ardent, Red Light Ramen and The Laughing Taco. He’s also a fan of using Kombu, a Japanese kelp, in
broths and stocks for added umami flavor.
Ardent is at 1751 N. Farwell Ave., Red Light Ramen is next door at 1749 N. Farwell Ave., and The Laughing Taco at 1033 S. First St.
AJ Dixon, Lazy Susan
Dixon, chef and owner of Lazy Susan, takes the mystery out of baking. “People never know when baked goods are done cooking, so I always tell them to stick a meat thermometer in the middle. 200 degrees is the magic number for things like brownies and cakes.”
Lazy Susan, 2378 S. Howell Ave., has been a regular on the Journal Sentinel’s Top 30 Restaurants list. Dixon expects to close the restaurant in April, and Heirloom MKE food truck plans to take over the site.
Ben Nerenhausen, Allie Boy’s Bagelry and Luncheonette
“I like to use cream cheese as a silky thickener in place of heavy cream,” says Nerenhausen, chef and owner of Allie Boy’s. “Cream cheese has lots of plant based thickeners such as xanthan gum, guar gum and carrageenan. It can thicken sauces, salad dressings, dips and soups. It sets up like butter and helps to emulsify oils and liquids, plus it’s a little tangy, which I like.”
Tony Ho, Momo Mee
“We use a ton of garlic, like five to seven pounds a day,” says Ho, owner and chef at Momo Mee, 110 E. Greenfield Ave. “I like to to put it in the mixer for a few minutes to loosen the skin. Then, I soak it in water, so the peels come off right away.”
Peter Ignatiev, Heirloom MKE
“I make a paste of capers, anchovy and garlic, and keep it in the fridge at all times,” says Ignatiev, chef and owner of the food truck Heirloom MKE. “Take a tablespoon and throw into any sauce or pasta dish for added depth to your flavors.
Heirloom MKE plans to take over the Lazy Susan spot, 2378 S. Howell Ave.,
after the Bay View restaurant closes.
Karen Bell, Bavette La Boucherie
Chef Bell, also a James Beard Finalist, never used to cook at home because she was always cooking at her restaurant, Bavette La Boucherie. But now with a little one at home, she has a fresh meal for her and her husband almost nightly by cooking large quantities and freezing in smaller portions.
“For my daughter, I’ll I cook six whole chicken breasts and then portion them into sizes that she eats in one sitting and freeze so I can defrost quickly and use. Or, I make large batches of pasta sauce, pesto, chimichurri, mole, soups, stews, bechamel for mac and cheese, pizza dough, etc., and put it into smaller containers that I can pull as needed.”
As for techniques, Bell loves to use the Japanese mandoline for chopping and dicing vegetables by slicing thinly first to get a stack of uniform pieces, and then she goes through and dices.
Bavette, also a butcher shop, is at 217 N. Broadway.