Carrot salad in its raw glory
Chef of gourmet food truck delivers dazzling dish that’s simple yet full of flavour
The carrot salad stood out at a lunch full of coffee-braised brisket hot rolls, rice and trout croquettes, Creole seafood jumbo, gochujang pork tacos, Filipino sausage musubi, fully loaded corn dawgs, smoked meat knish pockets, arroz con pollo and burnt ends brisket sandwiches.
It was no plain Jane carrot salad, this being the street food-inspired lunch at the Terroir Hospitality Industry Symposium and the booth run by the El Gastronomo Vagabundo food truckers from St. Catharines, Ont.
It was a Tunisian carrot salad with kalamata olives and harissa vinaigrette. So much flavour. So simple. OK, technically not that simple if you want to make it instead of just eat it. But you know what I mean.
Adam Hynam-Smith, El Gastro’s chef and coowner, accepted the challenge of presenting Terroir’s vegan and gluten-free lunch.
He stuffed onions with rice, currants, pine nuts, herbs and chermoula, and drizzled them with a garlicky cauliflower sauce. He also riffed off the Tunisian carrot salad in his new cookbook Curbside: Modern Street Food from a Vagabond Chef.
In Curbside, carrots are cored, roasted and artfully stacked like a woodpile. How Canadian is that? Actually, not Canadian at all. Hynam-Smith credits the recipe and the presentation to his former chef Cath Claringbold at the now defunct Mecca Restaurant in Australia. I’m still stacking my food in woodpiles (food piles?) from now on.
At Terroir, where he was responsible for 400 servings of his two dishes, Hynam-Smith went easy on himself and his crew by shredding raw carrots instead of roasting them, tossing them with kalamata olives and harissa vinaigrette, and garnishing with dukkah (a crunchy Egyptian condiment made from spices and nuts.)
Shredded carrots don’t stack nicely into woodpiles, so this raw salad was presented food-truck style in red-and-white paper trays.
“It’s still a fun version,” says Hynam-Smith. “You’ve got that beautiful crunch and sweetness from the carrots.”
Truth be told, he was asked to handle Terroir’s vegan and gluten-free options, but recommends you eat his carrot salad topped by a grilled steak.
The May 11 symposium at Arcadian Court drew almost 600 people, mainly chefs, writers and food and beverage experts. SwallowDaily.com’s Ivy Knight curated lunch from Canadian, American and Australian chefs.
Steven Gonzalez, executive chef/ el jefe (boss) of Toronto’s Valdez restaurant, liked “the chance to cook with and for” friends.
I was going to tell you how to make his arroz con pollo with fried eggs and edamame, but then he went and “jacked it up a couple of hundred times” with saffron rice, confit duck and chicken and aji (chili) sauce.
So, carrot salad it is — roasted and raw.
Harissa Dressing
Star Tested Harissa is a Tunisian chili paste that’s popular in the Middle East and North Africa. You can find it in Middle Eastern and mainstream supermarkets in small cans or jars. Adapted from Curbside. 5 tbsp (75 mL) harissa (hot chili paste) 1 large clove garlic, chopped 3 tbsp (45 mL) white vinegar 1/2 cup (125 mL) canola oil
Kosher salt In mini food processor, combine harissa, garlic and vinegar. Purée.
Transfer to bowl. Whisk in oil until combined but not fully emulsified. Season with salt to taste. Use immediately or refrigerate in airtight container up to 2 weeks.
Makes almost 1 cup (250 mL).
El Gastro’s Tunisian Roasted Carrot Salad
Star Tested This is the way that Adam Hynam-Smith’s carrot salad is presented in Curbside: Modern Street Food From a Vagabond Chef. Adapted. Toast your seeds in a skillet over medium heat.
8 large carrots, peeled Extra-virgin olive oil 1/2 cup (125 mL) kalamata olives, pitted,
quartered 1 cup (250 mL) cilantro leaves 2 tsp (10 mL) coriander seeds, toasted 2 tsp (10 mL) cumin seeds, toasted 2 tsp (10 mL) caraway seeds, toasted About 5 tbsp (75 mL) Harissa Dressing, or to taste (see recipe above) Halve carrots crosswise, and then quarter each piece lengthwise to make fat “fingers.”
In large mixing bowl, drizzle carrots with oil; toss well. Spread in single layer on baking sheet. Roast in preheated 350 F (180 C) oven until tender, about 1 hour depending on thickness, tossing every 15 minutes. Cool on baking sheet at least 15 minutes.
In large mixing bowl, combine carrots, olives, 3/4 cup (180 mL) cilantro, coriander, cumin and caraway. Add 5 tbsp (75 mL) Harissa Dressing, or more to taste, tossing to coat evenly.
To serve, arrange carrots “in a wood stack formation” on large plate. Garnish with remaining 1/4 cup (60 mL) cilantro.
Makes about 6 side servings.
El Gastro’s Tunisian Raw Carrot Salad
Star Tested To make his carrot dish more manageable during the Terroir hospitality industry symposium lunch, Adam Hynam-Smith used raw carrots. He also added dukkah, a crunchy Egyptian-inspired condiment that’s usually eaten with bread and olive oil. Toast spices in a skillet over medium heat. If you don’t have a food processor with a grating/ shredding disc, use a box grater. Dukkah: 1/4 cup (60 mL) sesame seeds, toasted 2 tbsp (30 mL) hazelnuts, toasted, rubbed to remove skin 1 tbsp (15 mL) cumin seeds, toasted 1 tbsp (15 mL) coriander seeds, toasted Kosher salt to taste Carrot Salad: 8 large carrots, peeled, grated/shredded (about 7 cups/1.75L) 1/2 cup (125 mL) kalamata olives, pitted,
quartered 1 cup (250 mL) cilantro leaves About 5 tbsp (75 mL) Harissa Dressing, or more to taste (see previous recipe) For dukkah, using mortar and pestle, lightly crush sesame seeds. Transfer to small bowl. Add hazelnuts, cumin and coriander to mortar. Using pestle, crush until fine. Add to bowl with sesame seeds. Season with salt. Makes almost 3/4 cup (175 mL).
For carrot salad, in serving bowl, toss carrots, olives and cilantro. Add 5 tbsp (75 mL) Harissa Dressing, or more to taste, tossing to coat. Serve sprinkled with dukkah to taste.
Makes about 6 side servings. jbain@thestar.ca