Marcus Samuelsson was declared the winner in this season's Top Chef Masters. Marcus is an intriguing story of an Ethiopian child, adopted by a Swedish family - ultimately rising to some serious fame in the USA and reknowned for his world cuisine.
He is bringing African cuisine to the plate, and this is a great thing given the spicy, hearty, rich, soulful and heartfelt dishes that eminate from such a vast continent.
I am new to African cuisine, but have loved any ventures I have taken there. A quick sweet potato soup, with vegetable stock, sweet potatoes, onion, garlic, cinnamon and cayenne, thickened with a bit of peanut butter and garnished with green onions and chopped peanuts instantly became a favourite in the house. (And as I write this, I am thinking "why don't I make that soup more often?").
Last month, a sweet potato and dried fruit sidedish at Jay and Melanie's met with serious approval from a table of 6. Again the prominent and simple flavours of peanut, coconut, garlic, sweet potato and cinnamon, with some apple juice, just transformed an ordinary sliced tuber.
Tonight, I got a bit bolder with the flavours of turmeric, cayenne, cinnamon, garlic and coconut powder, adding a 1:2 ratio of mixed lentils and water, some tiny 1/4 inch pieces of sweet potato and some leftover braised leeks with carrots and celery. My brazen application of turmeric had less to do with guts than it did with the top falling off, dumping a heaping tablespoon into the pot instead of the shakes I was intending. I have no peanut butter in the house, so I subbed in almond butter and some tahini (which is a ground up sesame paste)used in hummus.
Stirring the rich, yellow pot just screamed Africa - hot, alive, unusual and exciting. But I am in unfamiliar territory with how it should taste. SO I relied on the basics...striving for balance.
Salty - it's well salted
Spicy - it's BEAUTIFULLY seasoned
Sour - a nice dash of red hot adds a tangyness and an acidity that is delicious
Bitter - the lentils aren't sweeping me away, and offer just the right bit of pull back from the spice.
It is spicy enough. It's flavourful. It's got a nice acitity. Bill comes around the corner, right as a puzzled expression crosses my face, exclaiming "that smells really good" and then declaring the pot "great".
But it's not great yet. It's missing something.
SWEET.
Whenever I cook with a cuisine, my choice of spices, oils and additions should roughly correspond with the region I am cooking for. So a sweet, sticky agave syrup (from cactus) hits the pot, and mixes.
The next spoonful to my mouth actually prompts me to applaud out loud, and the song "Woom....there it is" rings out in my head.
This stew is spectacular. Creamy and rich, spicy and sweet, hearty and healthy. It was fast, inexpensive and simple to make. Harrison's only request while devouring the stew was "can I have a glass of water?".
I think of the children in Africa right now who will benefit from Marcus' victory on Top Chef - Unicef's clean water project, the new beneficiaries of $100 000.
I think of all the orphan children whose lives are being ravaged by starvation, and AIDS, and malaria. How many of them are the same age as Harrison? I think of the title of Marcus' book, which was sold out at the bookstore today, the Soul of a New Generation. The combination of flavours have soul and I can't wait to learn more about them.
I am intrigued, and inpired and impressed with these flavours. But I won't take my clean drinking water for granted tonight.
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