Talk about cooking your way into someone`s heart. Jack Hedrich, who received the 1992 ”Mr. Big Heart Award” for philanthropy and community involvement on June 14, has cooked his heart out for charity over the years.
In addition to his recent gift of a ”unmatched” collection of more than 150,000 photographs of Chicago architecture to the Chicago Historical Society, the Henry Davis ”400” Heart Research Organization of Mt. Sinai Hospital Medical Center cited Hedrich`s generosity in auctioning off wild game dinners at his home at charity fundraisers.
But the president of Hedrich-Blessing Ltd., the Chicago architectural photography firm, doesn`t just play host at these occasions. He`s a triple-threat player. He hunts the birds always featured in several preparations on the menu, then cooks and (with help from his wife, June) serves them. A member of the International Wine and Food Society, he also plays wine steward, matching the dishes with wines from his cellar.
”I do a couple of them a year,” Hedrich said last week, ”always for six guests. That`s the number that works best for us. I get excited by challenges. Making a multicourse dinner is a challenge and so is taking a tough bird and making it nice. I love (wild Canada) goose as a main course because the breast is a perfect size to work with. It gives you beautiful slices to fan out on a plate. Smaller birds, mourning dove and quail, I use in soup or smoke and serve in salad or in thin slices as an hors d`oeuvre.”
Hedrich was a hunter before he became a cook. In the mid-1940s, he began making weekend trips to a camp on the Illinois River near Granville, but it was nearly 30 years before he put on a chef`s hat.
”I bought some cookbooks and friends began giving more to me,” he says, ”and I began to experiment. I`ve had my share of flops, but by now I know the meat won`t be tough and will taste flavorful.”
Novice game-bird cooks will want to know that Hedrich achieves this state of grace by working only with breast meat except when making soup, allowing marinades plenty of time to work (he never uses commercial tenderizing agents) and searing the meat over a very hot flame.
”I use a wok,” he says, ”because the shape helps the meat cook faster. About a minute on one side for a goose or duck fillet, then I hold it out of the wok until the heat comes again and do the other side for a minute. It really seals in the juices and plumps up the meat so I can cut beautiful wide slices.”
Sauces are a test too. But he says that the most important step is to decide, based on the quality and flavor of the meat, whether to make a sauce that is bold and intense or preparing one that will play a supporting role and moisten the meat.
For wine with his goose and duck creations he prefers to serve reds Bordeaux.
All Hedrich`s knowledge will be academic at the dinner in his honor. He`s not cooking. But he will be soon, thanks to another award. As a Father`s Day gift, his wife purchased for him (at a charity auction) the right to be ”chef for a day” at Charlie Trotter`s restaurant.
Here are some recipes Chef Hedrich prepares at home.
JACK`S DUCK BREASTS
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Marinating time: 36 to 48 hours
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Yield: 8 servings
1 small onion, chopped (about 2/3 cup)
6 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/3 cup each: soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon sugar
8 mallard or other duck breasts
3/4 cup prune juice
1/4 cup ( 1/2 stick) butter
1/4 cup each: dry vermouth, olive oil
1. Mix onion, 4 tablespoons of the vinegar, soy sauce, Worcestershire, ketchup, lemon juice and sugar in a non-aluminum pan large enough to hold the duck breasts. Add the duck breasts, cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator 36 to 48 hours, turning breasts from time to time.
2. Remove breasts from marinade and pat dry with paper towels. Reserve. Strain marinade and discard onion. Combine marinade with prune juice, butter, vermouth and remaining 2 tablespoons vinegar in a saucepan. Heat to a boil, reduce heat and cook at a bare simmer to reduce sauce and intensify flavor, 35 to 40 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, heat oven to 475 degrees. Heat olive oil in a wok or frying pan until almost smoking. Cook breasts, 2 at a time, 1 minute on each side. Transfer to a non-stick baking pan and put 1 tablespoon of sauce over each breast. Bake 20 minutes for rare meat. (For medium-rare meat, bake 35 minutes at 375.) Serve with a grain such as wild rice and pass remaining sauce separately.
SWEET ORANGE-MUSTARD SAUCE
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Yield: 2 cups
Use this intense sauce with breast of wild goose (or farm-raised goose or duck).
1 can (6 ounces) frozen orange juice concentrate, defrosted but undiluted
1/2 cup each: honey, Dijon-style mustard
1/4 cup dry vermouth
1. Mix all ingredients in nonaluminum saucepan. Place over medium heat, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 8 to 10 minutes. Serve warm.
