Chef Steve Schimoler knows how to blend cooking and science
as well as anyone. His definition of simplicity, however, could use a bit of
work.
“[The dishes] are actually deceptively simple. I don’t
overcomplicate stuff,” said Chef Steve of his culinary concoctions. “The smoked
trout, we finally got it perfected now. It only took me 15 years to get it
right.”
It is that commitment to his craft that has lifted the
current owner of Crop Bistro & Bar in Ohio City to national notoriety,
warranting showcases such as The Fusion of Food and Science at the Great Lakes
Science Center on Monday night. Chef Steve, who has been featured on Food
Nation, the PBS MasterChef series and served as a two-term president of the
Research Chefs Association, is notorious for his innovative creations that mesh
food and science in order to attain distinctive dishes that are both tasty and
healthy.
“The whole foundation of cooking is science. It’s all about
heat transfer and physics and chemistry,” said Chef Steve. “What we’re going to
do is get more in-depth to understand the physiological and psychological
connection of how we eat.”
The evening, which played host to more than 125 VIP guests
from prominent local businesses, began with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. The
two specialty drinks featured were a watermelon margarita and a Caprese salad
“appitini” — a fusion of a food appetizer and a martini.
 |
| Caprese salad "appitini" |
Cherry tomato veggie bombs (stuffed with vegetable cream cheese), Cropspacho shooters (with yellow
peaches, carrots and cucumbers), steak truffled mushroom crostinis (with
grilled rib-eye, asiago and goat cheese, and a trio of mushrooms) and the
now-perfected trout cakes (with smoked trout, celery, apple and horseradish
crème fresh) were just a few of the creations accompanying the beverages.
 |
| Cropspacho shooter and smoked trout cake |
This was followed by a quick culinary experiment for those
in attendance, using vanilla and different milks and creams to examine the
impact fat content has on taste. Each attendee was presented with 2 percent
milk, half-and-half and heavy cream. Using a dropper, small dribbles of vanilla
were placed in the 2 percent milk until it reached a distinctive vanilla flavor
for each individual. The same amount of vanilla was then added into the
half-and-half and heavy cream before being tasted, displaying how the higher
the fat content, the less vanilla flavor that came through. Chef Steve was able
to show and tell how a lack of fat, sugar or salt in a dish does not also
invoke a lack of taste.
 |
| Our food experimentation station |
The final treat of the night was a demonstration by Chef
Steve on how he prepares his crème anglaise, as well as a bit of his own
background and history in the “food-science” field.
“My father was a veterinarian, and I grew up very heavily
involved in science and biology. The cooking part was because we entertained a
lot,” said Chef Steve, all while preparing his signature dessert sauce. “I was
always intrigued by the influence of science and food. From an early age, I
tried to understand what, 35 years later, I’m doing tonight.”
Each guest was able to try the crème anglaise poured over a
dessert of cornbread, mixed fresh berries, cracked black pepper, basil,
tarragon and balsamic syrup. Chef Steve’s crème anglaise uses less eggs and 2
perent milk instead of cream to bring the fat content down, while also mixing
in fenugreek, a rare spice found in curry. The trick of fenugreek is that it
adds a maple smell and taste to the dish without adding any unwanted fat or
calories.
 |
| The cornbread and berries dessert, covered in créme anglaise |
A quick Q&A session was interspersed among the bites of
dessert, with Chef Steve continuing to stick to his simplistic guns.
“People take for granted the most basic things: Boiling
water is science,” said Chef Steve. “When you look at how we approach cooking,
I look at it more analytically in the sense that I’m trying to understand what
impact those roles — the physics of cooking — play.”
Even with Chef Steve Schimoler’s guidance, understanding the scientific aspect was still a tad challenging. But tasting the difference? That was easy.
