Thomas Keller Dishes About What He Really Eats At Home
I'm still digesting the incredible talk I heard superstar chef Thomas Keller give earlier this week at the University Book Store in Seattle.
He's on tour promoting his new book, Ad Hoc At Home, though I don't think it needs much promoting. Shortly after this event came word that it's sold out most everywhere after being named one of the best cookbooks of the year. Copies from a second printing won't be available until early next year.
But chef Keller graciously signed copies for the standing-room-only crowd, his penmanship as beautiful as his food. Truly, it looks like calligraphy when he signs: "It's all about family." That's the theme that runs through this tome, starting with the bittersweet tale of cooking his father's last meal.
While giving the audience the background on each of the four books he's had a hand in, Keller revealed some surprising personal details:
He ate a lot of McDonald's growing up and still loves In-N-Out Burger. He'd like to open his version of In-N-Out someday.
He got his start as a dishwasher, working at the restaurant his mother managed. He loved the instant gratification of seeing a dish go from dirty to clean in 30 seconds.
He never gets tired of eating a perfect roasted chicken, but his favorite meal at home is steamed broccoli with tuna and olive oil. That ultra-simple recipe is not in the book.
Though he said he wasn't exactly comfortable talking in front of a group, he was a powerful speaker, as he hammered home this point: Great ingredients plus great execution equals great cooking. There were moments of hushed reverence and lots of laughs, too. He whipped out his phone and took a photo of us taking pictures of him.
I was an ardent admirer before this event and now I'm an even bigger fan. I can't wait to try the family-style recipes in Ad Hoc At Home., which was written with his stellar team, Dave Cruz, Susie Heller, Michael Ruhlman and Amy Vogler with Deborah Jones taking the gorgeous photos. And I'm looking forward to someday dining in the Napa Valley restaurant that shares the name as the book.
-- Leslie Kelly
coggie on December 17, 2009 at 09:11 PM
I got Ad Hoc as an early Christmas present, now the family wants me to try everything in there. Caramelized Scallops were a revelation. Mr Keller takes common items but puts a twist on the preparation/method/ingredients and the outcom is unlike your previous ideas of that food. Its been an upgrade to my cooking philosophy, technique and equipment. A bibliography/sources list provides sources of uncommon ingredients. Bravo to Thomas Keller.