QUARANTINE COOKING
Top chefs share menus, tips from self-isolation
With restaurant dining rooms temporarily closed, many of Montreal’s top toques are bound to be cooking something delicious at home.
After the following six chefs canned, froze, divvied up or donated their restaurants’ leftover perishables, they headed home, where their culinary creativity has ranged from simple chili dogs to rib steaks that couldn’t be wasted when their establishments shuttered. Here’s what they’ve been cooking, plus some advice for the rest of us.
JONATHAN LAPIERRE-RÉHAYEM
RESTAURANT DE L’ITHQ
(closed)
Though Lapierre-réhayem is used to instructing chefs-to-be at the Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie du Québec, he now finds himself in a unique situation at home with two bright-eyed students, aged five and seven. His approach to meal planning has been “simple but complicated.” For instance, his sourdough starter — just flour and water — which he uses for everything from bread to croissants, pizza crusts and hamburger buns.
Q What are you cooking at home?
A Actually, I’m teaching my sons to cook. Yesterday we woke up at 5 a.m. to make croissants with a starter I made a week ago. My son was super psyched. Gré des Champs is delivering boxes of cheese at home, so I got a box from them and tonight I might do my sourdough bread with cheese and falafels made from dried peas that I sprouted and that I’ll blend with onions and herbs. I’m making sourdough every day pretty much right now. I have 20 kilograms of organic flour from Moulin des Cèdres. I’m trying to be self-sufficient. I also bought a box of food from our supplier Gaspor Farms, because I wanted to help them. I’m thinking of making some piglet burgers. And maybe I’ll try making chocolatines with the kids.
Q Any advice for readers?
A It’s the time to make your own croissants, bread and pasta, like gnocchi and ravioli.
MARIE-FRANCE DESROSIERS
CHEZ CHOSE
(open for takeout and delivery; 1879 Bélanger St.; chezchose.net; 514-843-2152)
Desrosiers is still running a takeout operation, with a changing menu of smoked chicken, mushroom pâté, boudin and foie gras. But with the dining room closed, the pace has slowed down. She’s taking advantage of the reduced hours to relax at home and read. “I’m not someone who’s sad to be at home,” she says. “There are people worse off than me.” After a few months, she might start missing dinners with friends, she admits, but she still gets a little human interaction with her one employee, who packs takeout and delivery orders, and her sous-chef, who does deliveries.
Q What are you cooking?
A Last night I made pan-fried root vegetables with goat’s milk cheese and cherry tomatoes. I haven’t really changed my way of eating. I usually cook with legumes, a lot of vegetables, a little meat.
Q Any advice?
A Try stews made with legumes. Local poultry and rabbit — I find it’s meat that’s not very heavy and pretty low fat. Follow the mentality to eat less but eat better, especially in a state of confinement. I usually have three meals a day, but since everything’s slowed down, I’ve changed to two meals a day. I’m using less energy, so I’m less hungry.
MAT WINNICKI
SATAY BROTHERS
(open for takeout; 3721 Notre-dame St. W.; sataybrothers. com; menu at instagram.com/ sataybrothers; 514-933-3507)
Though the spoonful of sambal in his restaurant’s Singaporean laksa soup packs some heat, Winnicki says he rarely eats spicy food at home. He’s been focusing on simple and efficient meals of comfort food and is making the best of his time off by listening to podcasts, reading, playing board games and doing lots of cooking.
Q What are you cooking?
A Last night was linguine with white beans, kale and bacon. Tonight is chili cheese dogs with leftover chili. Gotta use what we got!
Q Any advice?
A It’s always good to have vegetables and meat stocks and braised meat in the fridge. You can create so many dishes — it’s versatile. I like to have root vegetables and hardy leaves handy, like kale, chard and spinach. They last, unlike highly perishable salads. Canned beans are a must. But I don’t like to preach. I think everyone has their own methods of coping during these topsy-turvy times.
LEIGH ROPER
FOXY
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Roper is at home with her young daughter and chef boyfriend (Nicholas Giambattisto of Mirabel Brasserie), his server brother, his brother’s chef wife, and their baby daughter. Despite the awful circumstances, Roper says their personal situation has been pretty wonderful. “We’re so lucky to be in a house with another family. We’ve had a lot of much-needed time with our twoyear-old daughter, Clementine. Our workdays leave us around two or three hours a day each to spend with her. Right now we’re sharing three meals a day!”
Q What are you cooking?
A We’ve been splitting the dinner making between the couples. Last night my boyfriend made delicious duck tacos. A couple of nights ago I made quiches — tomato-bacon-cheddar-green onion and zucchini-thyme-feta — a green salad, eggplant dip and pitas. Tomorrow is Kris and Jess’s daughter Penelope’s first birthday, and we’ll be having burgers, and birthday cake for dessert. One very special thing I brought home (from Foxy) was a beautiful cut of rib steak from the producer Ferme Nordest that we had dry-aged 60 days. We fired up our charcoal grill and had it with coleslaw and grilled eggplant. Nick brought home a case of eggplant from his restaurant. We’ve had it grilled, as a curry and in a dip.
Beyond that, Jess wants to try making gnudi. Nick is going to make some tortellini in brodo. I think I’ll make a very dolled-up won ton soup. They’re all sort of pasta ideas. I guess that’s what we’re all thinking, since we have the time. And we’ve been doing quite a bit of baking — cookies and cakes. It’s really fun. I also started a sourdough culture. I want to make some good bread while I have the time.
Q Any advice?
A I think it’s the perfect moment to cook something that will really make you happy. It could be an old favourite or something you’ve been dying to try for the first time. I’m going to make my mom’s rice pudding this week. The whole house will smell incredible, and it’s my favourite comfort food. MARC-OLIVIER FRAPPIER MON LAPIN (closed)
When his restaurant and natural wine bar closed, Frappier spent most of his time calling his suppliers to see how he could help. “Our farmers are depending on the restaurant industry operating at 100 per cent. So if people stop buying, they’re in trouble,” says Frappier, who is married to
Mon Lapin co-owner and sommelier Vanya Filipovic.
“You’d think coming out (from) 10 years of working at Joe Beef I’d be prepared for every situation, but nobody is prepared for this. We’re just trying to make the best decision at every moment.”
Q What are you cooking?
A We do elaborate meals and then leftovers, leftovers, leftovers. We live a hectic life (as restaurateurs). I always wondered what it was like to really stop, you know? What people are missing most is that adrenalin. So we’ve been trying to cook all these fun and delicious meals, but also take it easy. Two days ago I was making a Neapolitan-style sugo with braised meat, and last night we turned on the barbecue and we’re eating crab. I just picked up three whole snow crab at the market, while being very careful with social distancing and placing my order in advance. Looks like we’re going to be eating crab one day, then Nordic shrimp the next until the end of this. I’ve also been practising cannelés (custard-based pastries) — trying to stay sharp and have fun cooking at home. I’m not very good at it, but I’m getting pretty good after making them every day for two weeks. I’ve been giving them all away to the staff daily. We’re just a small team — we’re 12. It’s family. And we’ve been having Italian apericena. That’s when you start aperitif with something like salami and cheese and the plan is to have dinner later, but then we eat too much and don’t end up cooking dinner.
Q With good wine?
A At Vanya’s apartment, wine is never an issue.
Q Any advice?
A Google “farm near me” and buy from there if you’re able. All these guys right now have freezers of everything just ready to be delivered or picked up. Usually you have to buy a certain amount or not every cut is available, but you can buy anything right now. People were going crazy in grocery stores, while you could go to smaller stores or Jean-talon Market. Everything was available and nobody was there. It’s important to stay real to our values and keep supporting the people we support in our restaurant daily as much as we can, even in weird times like now.
JOHN WINTER RUSSELL CANDIDE
(closed)
Though his restaurant is closed for now, Russell is hard at work collaborating on a project with La Tablée des Chefs to prepare meals for the homeless using food donated from large grocers or distributors.
It’s important to stay real to our values and keep supporting the people we support in our restaurant as much as we can, even in weird times like now.
Q What are you cooking?
A Last night was guinea hen soup. We took all the vegetables left at the restaurant and reduced guinea hen stock with carrots, sunchokes, onions and potatoes. Tonight it’s basically going through the kitchen and the more perishable items get eaten first. We’ll finish the fresh stuff and start working through the restaurant’s preserves. We have enough canned things to run a 60-person restaurant at full capacity all springtime, so we’re not going to make much of a dent, just the two of us.
Q Any advice?
A It’s about making the best of the situation. You’re cooking for pleasure and nourishment.