Gordon Ramsay's Seared Salmon

You see this technique everywhere now in every restaurant, but I want to say that I am the hipster of this technique as a home cook when I was 13 years old… joking… (but actually). I learned this from Gordon Ramsay’s The F Word when he was still a screaming terrifying chef (not his soothing MasterClass rebrand).

Scoring the skin like this allows you to get an ultra-crispy finish on the salmon (or any fish for that matter). This is because it allows the fat to render out of the skin and crisp up.

Ingredients:

• Salmon

• Salt & Pepper

• Olive Oil

Directions:

1. Bring a non-stick pan to medium heat

2. Grasp the salmon filet and bend so a little crescent shape is created with the skin side up

3. Use your knife [I recommend one of mine :) ] and slice through the skin and flesh, without actually breaking through the other side of the meat or going to the complete edge of the skin (you do not want strips of skin falling off the fish, nor do you want fish sticks)

4. Salt and pepper your fish, be sure to get into the canals of the cut fish (if you’re feeling fancy, you can add other herbs in between)

5. Put the pan on medium, when it gets hot, splash a bit of olive oil (salmon is very oily so it doesn't take much)

6. Place fish skin side down 

7. Leave for 10 minutes or until the three quarters up the fish’s edge turns opaque 

8. Flip and cook for another 3-5 minutes or until the fish is completely cooked 

9. Done. 

Au Cheval Burger Recipe (my take)

I want to say I was the hipster of Au Cheval... I was there before it was cool. Call it 2012 while I was at UChicago? 

Nonetheless, whenever I return to Chicago, I always make sure I stop by Au Cheval despite its 3-5 hour wait! The $3.50 shots of Evan Williams help pass the time… or the plethora of bars in the West Loop too…

Their burgers are the most heartwarming (and potentially heart stopping) meals ever. I want to say they were one of the pioneers that popularized eggs on top of burgers back in 2012? The creamy yolk, voluptuousness of the dijon-mayo sauce, and fatty burger is a symphony of richness.  Contrasting with the bite of the onion, hidden layers of dill pickles, and finally chased with a pallet-cleansing dill pickle. I'd take this over any three Michelin-starred restaurant. 

(this is a repost of my original recipe that was the top hit on Google from 2018-2020)

Ingredients:

• Two 1/4 pound 80/20 ground beef patties

• Two slices of cheddar cheese

• Toasted brioche bun

• One fried egg, sunny-side up (or as you prefer)

• Minced red onions

• Dijon-mayo sauce (literally dijon mustard, mayo, squirt of lemon juice, s&p all mixed together)

• Slices of dill pickle

• Quarter spear of dill pickle

• Parsley or chives for garnish (I forgot to add it in the picture, so please excuse me)

Directions:

1. Smother sauce on both sides of the bun

2. Layer red onions on the top bun and fan out sliced dill pickle

3. Heat a pan to medium-high

4. When hot, add a touch of clarified butter (or vegetable oil) and fry burgers 3-4 minutes

5. Flip the burger

6. Fry the egg to your liking (preferably runny)

7. Layer the cheese on the burgers, cover the pan, and let it melt for 15 seconds

8. Stack the two burgers in the pan and lay on top of the bottom bun

9. Place the egg on the top bun

10. Plate the burger

11. Done.