The Dish: Chicago Restaurant Week

Chicago Restaurant Week…eat it up! produced by the Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau’s (CCTB) returns this year for one week February 20 – 27 with more than 130 participating restaurants offering three-course, prix-fixe lunches for $22 and $32 for dinner, excluding beverages, tax and gratuity.  View the list of participating restaurants and make online reservations at www.eatitupchicago.com.

Recipes featured on this weekend's shows....

Slow Roasted Gunthorp Farms Pork Shoulder
Dish
Slow Roasted Gunthorp Farms Pork Shoulder, Peruvian Beans, Creamed Celery and Caraway Cabbage Vinaigrette
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
1-3 to 4# Pork Shoulder (boned and tied)
2 pc. Spanish Onion (large dice) 1 for braise and 1 for finished dish
1 large carrot (large dice)
3 sprig fresh Thyme
1 bay leaf
2 clove Garlic (smash)
.25 teaspoon Nutmeg
.5 teaspoon Ground Mustard Seed
5 sprig Parsley
.5 Cup Canola Oil
Fresh Ground Black Pepper to taste
Kosher Salt to taste
Pork Broth or Chicken Stock enough to cover pork shoulder (about 2 quarts)
Pork Shoulder Method:
Preheat Oven to 325° Heat a roasting pan of appropriate size add oil, brown meat on all sides, add Carrot, 1 Onion cook vegetables to achieve light caramelization. Add Thyme, Garlic, Bay Leaf, Nutmeg, Black Pepper and Stock. Cover tightly and place in preheated oven cook for 2 and a half to 3 hours until tender. Remove from oven let cool 10 minutes, strain liquid and reduce by 3 quarters, reserve liquid for plating. Cut Shoulder into thick juicy slices.
 
 
 
Caraway Cabbage Vinaigrette
2 cup Red Cabbage (shredded)
½ Red onion (thinly sliced)
2 Cloves of Garlic (Smashed)
5 leafs of Basil
1 TBS Caraway (toasted & finely ground)
2.5 cups Red wine vinegar
2 cups Grape seed oil
1 cup honey
Salt and black pepper to taste
Caraway Cabbage Vinaigrette Method
Place Vinegar, cabbage, caraway, onion, garlic, honey and basil into blender cup, blend on high until perfectly smooth, pass through chinois. Return liquid to blender, slowly add oil to emulsify, season to taste.
Creamed Celery
5 Ribs Celery (4 inch lengths strings removed)
½ cup Spanish onion(thinly sliced)
½ cup White wine
2 cups Cream
3 TBS Whole Unsalted Butter
Salt and Black Pepper
Creamed Celery Method
Heat sauté pan on medium heat add celery, slightly color for about a minute, add onion continue to cook for another minute add white wine cook to glaze, add cream reduce by half, turn off heat add butter while stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper.
 
 
Peruvian Lima Beans
3 Cups Peruvian Lima Beans (also known as Christmas Beans)
½ small onion
2 Tbs. Whole black peppercorns (in sash)
Water
Peruvian Lima Beans Method
Soak beans in cold water over night, bean will absorb water so use 4 parts water to 1 part beans ratio. The next day rinse beans and place in a large pot with cold water ½ an onion and a sash of black peppercorns, bring to boil, reduce heat to simmer and cook beans until tender, when finished strain, coat with butter and season with salt and pepper.
Plating Method
Place Celery with a small amount of cream in center of large bowl, top with sliced pork, spoon beans around dish and drizzle with vinaigrette.
Fleming's Petite Filet Vigneron
with Olive Dijon Butter & Mushrooms Forestiere
 
Makes 6 servings
 
Filet
6 - 6oz Petit Filet
Salt & Pepper
Chives for garnish
 
Season both sides of the petit filet with salt & pepper then cook in broiler to desired temperature. Remove from broiler and let steak rest
 
Vigneron Butter
1 lb Butter, lightly salted at room temperature
½ Cup Kalamata Olives, pitted
1/8 oz Anchovy Filets, minced
1 Tbsp Garlic, minced
1 tsp Thyme
1.5 Tbsp Italian Parsley
½ Tbsp Chives, diced
1 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
1.5 oz Red wine
½ Tbsp black pepper, coarsely ground
 
Leave butter at Room Temperature for 2 hours .Mince the pitted olives and anchovy filets then place into a mixing bowl with the minced garlic. Place the butter in a food proscessor with the olive mixture and blend for 30 seconds.
Remove the stem on the thyme then mince the leaves and add to the butter/olive mixture with the chopped parsley, chives and mustard, red wine and black pepper and blend for 20 seconds. Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix for 10 seconds.
Spoon the butter mixture onto a sheet of plastic wrap and roll into logs 2 ½ inches in diameter.
Can be frozen ahead of time.
 
Forestiere Mixture
½ lb Bacon, 1/2” Wide strips
½ lb Shallots 1/2” dice
½ lb Mushrooms, quartered
 
Cut bacon cross wise into ½” wide strips. Heat large sauté pan over medium heat and cook until crispy. Drain through a chinoise, reserve bacon. Return fat to sautee pan and cook shallots until tender but not browned. Drain shallots in chinoise.
Return fat to skillet and increase to high heat. Quarter mushrooms and then sauté until gold brown and edges begin to caramelize.
In a mixing bowl combine the bacon, shallots and mushrooms then section into 1 oz portions.
 
To plate:
Spoon Forestiere mixture on hot plate just off center. Place fliet on center and top with vigneron butter cut into ¼” wide slices. Garnish plate with 1/4” diced chives.
 
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