Sometimes fantasy becomes reality. Sometimes it even becomes a reality show.
“Top Chef,” the Bravo cooking show, was the talk of the kitchen at chef Stephanie Izard’s now-closed Wicker Park restaurant Scylla. “We joked about being on the show,” said Izard, a fan since the first season in 2006. “I really like the way it’s done — a nice mix of getting you into the food and a little into the details about the people.”
Valerie Bolon, a Chicago personal chef with a restaurant background, never missed an episode. “I would watch the show, always putting myself in those positions and in my mind coming up with what I thought I would do.”
Both got their chance to find out if they could take the heat when “Top Chef” producers selected them for the cast of 16 chefs on the series’ fourth season, which was filmed in Chicago.
“Top Chef: Chicago” debuts at 9 p.m. Wednesday, the first of 12 episodes that executive producer Shauna Minoprio promises will showcase the city, its ethnic neighborhoods, and the chefs and restaurants that have helped make Chicago a culinary star.
The choice of Chicago was “a no-brainer,” Minoprio said. “It was a pretty obvious choice, really. It is … the center of cutting-edge stuff that’s happening in the culinary world.” Previous seasons were shot in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Miami.
Whether you’re a chef or a “civilian” who enjoys an inside look, the personalities (sometimes clashing), the high-intensity cooking at an elevated expertise level, the competitive environment with sweat flying and knives flashing, the beautiful food — it all makes for great television.
“What you’ve got are two popular forms of entertainment: cooking shows and reality shows,” Minoprio said. “You bring that together and you’ve got a wide audience.”
Here is what Izard and Bolon are up against: In each episode the chefs face off in two cooking challenges. The first, called Quickfire, is a short segment (usually 20 to 30 minutes), such as last season’s chefs cooking fresh trout over a camping stove next to a Colorado river. The winner can get immunity for the next, more complex test, called the Elimination Challenge, which results in someone being ousted from the show.
At stake is $100,000 (presumably to start a restaurant), a feature in Food & Wine magazine, a showcase at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen and a vacation in the French Alps. Plus, of course, the career boost that can come from proving your cooking chops on a nationally televised show.
For up-and-coming chefs, the show represents an opportunity.
“That is the stage when a really talented chef … feels that ‘I’m ready to take this to the next level and “Top Chef” can take me there,'” Minoprio said.
Chicago chef Dale Levitski, last season’s runner-up, credits the show with exposure that will help his restaurant, Town & Country, which will open in the West Loop in late summer. “I have really been able to preconnect with my customers through the show,” he said. “The overwhelming support from the general public in Chicago is incredible.”
Levitski also credits the show with reviving his love of cooking. He had lost his dream job, chef of Trio Atelier, when that Evanston restaurant closed, and hadn’t cooked in months. “It has boosted my confidence, giving me a good relaxed sense of self in what I do,” Levitski said. “I feel as a chef like I don’t have anything to prove. I’m going to open my restaurant and it’s going to have great service, great food.”
For Izard and Bolon, the glow of “Top Chef” represented different things. Izard had just decided to close her popular and well-regarded restaurant after burning out on the workload as chef and owner.
“I opened it when I was 27. I didn’t do it with any business partners,” she said. She was taking care of the 120-year-old house converted to a restaurant, managing the staff, doing the books and cooking. “It was overwhelming.”
When “Top Chef” producers called to offer her a spot, Izard decided why not? “Hey, it’s a once in a lifetime experience,” she said. “It happened to be really good timing.”
Although she doesn’t want to own and run a restaurant by herself again, she would like to try it with a business partner. And maybe “Top Chef” could provide the exposure that would scare up investors.
For Bolon, who applied when a former boss suggested she give it a go, the challenge itself was the draw.
“I think just being able to experience something in life that not many people get to do is really something special,” she said. “To be picked out of thousands of people from all over the country was quite a surprise and an honor.”
Each of the women had something the producers were seeking. Minoprio said she wants a mix of professional backgrounds and personalities. But the No. 1 attribute: talent.
“We really take it seriously in terms of credibility of the show. People in the culinary world and restaurant business watch the show. It’s really important that our contestants are talented,” she said. “Then, it’s also a television show, so the contestants must have something else to offer in terms of personality or background story.
“It’s important that we’re able to make it aspirational [for viewers], the sensual aspect of being in a beautiful place,” Minoprio said. On top of that is the food, always the food. “I like to think that we take the credibility of the competition seriously. I think that comes across.”
To achieve that authenticity, Minoprio, who has no cooking background (“I’m a pure consumer,” she admitted), relies on a culinary team headed by Lee Anne Wong, a contestant from the original season and executive chef of event operations at the French Culinary Institute, to shape the challenges. Minoprio and her team are “always sort of aiming for the threshold of ‘this is impossible.’
“You want them to sweat. You want them to find it difficult,” Minoprio said. “Do or die.”
Once producers determine a challenge’s rough outlines, they spend a lot of time refining it, doing dry runs with the culinary team to see if it is doable. Though at times crazy or even just silly, each challenge has an underlying point.
“There is something we are really testing and judging. Sometimes it is difficult for the chefs to get past their immediate reaction to the challenge,” she said, explaining that a contestant may become paralyzed by the difficulty or the tight time constraint.
“The chefs who do best get past that and think ‘How can I do this? How can I win?’ “
For Izard and Bolon, the answer to those questions begins tonight.
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Meet the Chicago contestants
Valerie Bolon
Age: 32
Hometown: Glenview
Residence: Chicago
Cooking style: Simple elegance.
“I always use the freshest ingredients with an upscale balance.” She has traveled extensively and draws inspiration from her travels. “I take a little bit of life from every place I venture to.” Bolon cites her Midwestern background in describing herself as “a meat and potatoes kind of girl,” but she also loves all types of Asian food.
Background: Kendall College culinary program. Bolon cooked at Gordon (the now-closed restaurant of Gordon Sinclair) and Emeril’s in New Orleans. Returned to Chicago where she worked as a line cook at Spring and MK. She taught at The Chopping Block Cooking Schools for a year, then wanted to return to a restaurant kitchen, so she worked as sous chef at Hot Chocolate. She works now as a personal chef, cooking for a steady client from three to five days a week. Plus, she cooks private dinners, luncheons or parties for other clients.
What have you been doing since taping wrapped? “I have been cooking for my client and just recently decided it was the perfect time to take yet another journey, so I have been traveling in Southeast Asia for the past five weeks.”
Stephanie Izard
Age: 31
Hometown: Stamford, Conn.
Residence: Chicago
Cooking style: “Very well balanced. I like to use unique flavor combinations, the unexpected. I’m trying to hit all the parts of your tongue so that your mouth is excited while you’re eating: salty, sweet, bitter, sour.”
Background: Scottsdale Culinary Institute in Arizona. Worked for a year under Beau MacMillan (now chef at Elements at the Sanctuary), where she did a lot of Asian-influenced cooking. Upon moving to Chicago, she cooked at Vong. Afterward, she was sous chef at La Tache under chef Dale Levitski, who put her in charge of seafood specials, which is where she developed her style. “I started honing my skills on classic French preparation.” She describes her cooking style as Mediterranean with French, Italian and Spanish influences. In early 2005, she opened Scylla in Bucktown, a seafood-focused restaurant that earned three stars from Chicago Tribune restaurant critic Phil Vettel. She sold it last summer. Izard also has worked with pastry, which has been the downfall of several on “Top Chef.”
What have you been doing since taping wrapped? “I’ve been enjoying the cuisine all around the world while traveling,” including in Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Singapore.
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We asked “Top Chef” local contestants Stephanie Izard and Valerie Bolon for two recipes that are indicative of their style of cooking. The chefs couldn’t give us recipes that will be on the show, as Bravo wants to keep those secret. However, these dishes provide a peek into the types of dishes you will be seeing from them.
Grilled prosciutto-wrapped shrimp with miso-almond butter
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
Adapted from a recipe by Stephanie Izard. Miso, a fermented bean paste, is sold in Asian markets and some supermarkets.
1 pound large uncooked shrimp, shelled, deveined
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
1/4 pound sliced prosciutto, cut lengthwise in long, thin strips
1 cup marcona or blanched almonds, see note
2 tablespoons each: olive oil, miso, water
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon soy sauce
Thinly sliced basil
1. Heat a grill or grillpan. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper; wrap each shrimp in a strip of the prosciutto. Set aside.
2. Put the almonds, oil, miso, water, sugar and soy in a blender; blend until almost smooth. Grill shrimp until pink, about 1 minute per side. Spread a little almond butter on each of four plates; place shrimp on top. Garnish with basil.
Note: Spanish marcona almonds are available in some supermarkets such as Treasure Island and Whole Foods.
Nutrition information per serving: 449 calories, 57% of calories from fat, 30 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 190 mg cholesterol, 14 g carbohydrates, 35 g protein, 1,904 mg sodium, 4 g fiber
Spiced-apple fried wontons
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes per batch
Yield: 12 servings
These dessert wontons, adapted from a recipe by Stephanie Izard, have a bit of heat balanced by a sweet-salty caramel sauce.
Wontons:
1 dried Thai or small red chili
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons butter
4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cut into small dice
1 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
36 wonton wrappers
1 tablespoon flour
Caramel:
1 1/4 cups packed brown sugar
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 to 2 tablespoons salt
4 cups corn oil
1. Combine chili, cinnamon and nutmeg in a spice grinder or small food processor; process until ground. Melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the apples; cook, stirring occasionally, until just softened, about 4 minutes. Season with the chili-spice mixture, sugar and salt. Let cool 5 minutes.
2. Place 2 teaspoons of mixture in the middle of a wonton wrapper; moisten 2 edges of the wrapper with water, using fingers or a pastry brush. Fold in half to make a triangle; seal. Repeat with remaining wrappers; dust lightly with flour. Set aside.
3. For caramel, place the brown sugar and butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat; cook, stirring, until melted, about 2 minutes. Stir in the cream slowly. Add the salt; set aside.
4. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until 375 degrees. Add wontons, in batches. Cook until they turn golden and float to the top, about 3-4 minutes; transfer to paper towel-lined plate. Drizzle with caramel sauce.
Nutrition information per serving: 422 calories, 33% of calories from fat, 16 g fat, 9 g saturated fat, 49 mg cholesterol, 65 g carbohydrates, 8 g protein, 1,027 mg sodium, 2 g fiber
Green papaya salad
Preparation time: 35 minutes
Yield: 2 servings
This colorful, light salad is from Valerie Bolon. Green papayas and tamarind juice are sold in Asian markets.
2 cloves garlic
1 to 2 Thai or small red chilies
1 tablespoon crushed peanuts
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon each: tamarind juice, soy sauce, freshly squeezed lime juice
1 teaspoon granulated or brown sugar
6 grape tomatoes
1/2 each, seeded, cut into julienne strips: small green papaya, cucumber
2 ounces cellophane noodles, softened in warm water
1/4 pound small green beans, blanched
1. Combine the garlic, chilies and peanuts in a mortar, grinding with a pestle until finely chopped, or process in a food processor; set aside. Whisk together the fish sauce, tamarind juice, soy sauce, lime juice and sugar in a small bowl; set aside.
2. Combine tomatoes, papaya, cucumbers, noodles and beans in a medium bowl; add the peanut mixture. Toss with dressing.
Nutrition information per serving: 132 calories, 17% of calories from fat, 3 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 25 g carbohydrates, 5 g protein, 2,069 mg sodium, 5 g fiber
Seared duck breast with sweet potato-parsnip puree
Preparation time: 25 minutes
Marinating time: 2 hours
Cooking time: 35 minutes
Yield: 2 servings
Valerie Bolon likes to serves this duck breast dish with caramelized Brussels sprouts.
1 tablespoon each: mirin, soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 clove garlic, smashed
2 duck breast halves
1 each, coarsely chopped: sweet potato, parsnip
1 teaspoon butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
1. Combine the mirin, soy, sugar and garlic in a bowl; add the duck breasts. Cover; marinate in refrigerator at least 2 hours.
2. Cover the sweet potato and parsnip with water in a saucepan; heat to a boil over high heat. Lower heat to a simmer. Cook until vegetables are fork-tender, about 10 minutes. Strain; push through a fine sieve. Add butter, salt and pepper to taste.
3. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Place the duck breast skin-side down in an oven-safe skillet over very low heat; cook, turning occasionally, until the skin becomes brown and crispy and fat is rendered, about 20 minutes. Transfer skillet to the oven; cook until thermometer registers 140 degrees for medium-rare, about 5 minutes. Let rest 5 minutes. Cut into thin slices; serve with sweet potato-parsnip puree.
Nutrition information per serving: 233 calories, 24% of calories from fat, 6 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 57 mg cholesterol, 31 g carbohydrates, 12 g protein, 1,300 mg sodium, 5 g fiber
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jxgray@tribune.com
IN TEMPO: For Maureen Ryan’s review of the new season, go to Tempo’s TV page.
IN THE WEB EDITION: For weekly blog postings on how the Chicago contestants are cooking, visit The Stew on Thursday mornings: chicagotribune.com/stew.
