This past weekend I had the pleasure of meeting Richard Hinojosa, Executive Chef at The Wigwam Resort & Spa, an Arizona landmark for over 80 years. Chef Rich’s passion for food, attention to detail and vast experience in both resorts and restaurants provides the foundation and leadership for The Wigwam’s talented culinary team. He has been recognized with several awards throughout his career and most recently was one of the top 4 restauranteurs in the valley to raise the most money during the city's "Flavors of the Valley" competition.
Nearly $60,000 was raised during the three month campaign as each participating Valley-based restaurant featured a special dining promotion with 100 percent of promotion proceeds benefiting two local food banks. As a top fundraiser, Chef Rich and his team will join Chef Eddie Matney and his famed Eddie’s House in the “Flavors of the Valley” showcase, hosted by Valley GMC Dealers, at TNFL’s Party with a Purpose® held on the eve of Super Bowl XLIX on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015 at WestWorld of Scottsdale.
In our conversation this weekend Chef Rich shared with me the recipe he will be preparing for the event. In anticipation of close to 4,000 attendees Chef Rich was looking for something that would come together easily and highlight local ingredients. His Beef Carpaccio below does just that.
Beef Carpaccio
(Courtesy of Wigwam Executive Chef Richard Hinojosa)
Cleaned barrel of tenderloin-about 1-2oz per person
Fresh chopped thyme
Salt/ coarse black pepper
For Kabayaki:
3oz sugar
1oz water
8oz low sodium soy sauce
For pickled red onions:
do the day before serving
1 cup very hot water
½ cup rice wine vinegar
6 Tblsp sugar
1 ¼ tsp kosher salt
1 red onion, sliced thin
For Potato Chips:
4 fingerling potatoes, thinly sliced on a mandolin
¼ cup Karashi, or chinese hot mustard
4 stalks of asparagus
2 fully cooked king crab legs, thawed
3 scallions, sliced paper thin
For assembly:
Salt
Coarse black pepper
Sea Salt, such as murray river or maldon
For the beef:
Clean all silver skin off of your tenderloin, and dust all around with the salt, and pepper
In a sauté pan, heat canola oil over med-high heat, when very hot sear the exterior of beef all around. Quickly. Remove, sprinkle with fresh chopped thyme and let cool. When cool enough to handle, roll tightly in plastic wrap to help shape a good cylinder. Freeze until very cold, and firm but not frozen solid.
For the Kabayaki:
In a small saucepot, bring the sugar and water to a simmer, allow to turn into a dark amber caramel, be very careful not to burn. As soon as the caramel is dark amber in color, add the soy sauce, be careful, it will rise, so add 50% and swirl around, then add the remainder. Stir well, make sure all of the caramel dissolves, remove from the pot to cool, spoon off any impurities.
For the Crab:
Carefully squeeze excess liquid out of the crab leg, then cut the shell off with a sharp pair of scissors. Make sure to remove cartalidge from the ends of the leg, then slice into ½” discs. Set aside
For the Pickled Red onion: do the day before
Thinly slice the red onion, set aside. In a small container(Tupperware), add the very hot water, then the salt and sugar and mix well until they dissolve completely. Then add the vinegar, let cool slightly and add the onion. Cover and let sit overnight, or up to a week.
For the Asparagus:
In a saucepot, bring water to a rolling boil, add a generous amount of kosher salt, then add the asparagus, cook for about 20-30 seconds, just until barely tender. Remove the asparagus to a bowl of ice water. Let cool completely, then toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and char quickly on a grill. Dice into small rounds.
For the chips:
Wash the potatoes, then slice very thin on a mandolin into water. Let them sit for about 15 minutes, remove from water, pat dry with a towel.
Fry in canola oil at 350 degrees until light golden brown and crispy. Remove from oil, season with salt, set aside.
To assemble:
Thinly slice the firm beef on a slicer if you have one, if not, carefully with a sharp knife. Lay the desired number of slices on a plate. Brush with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and a little sea salt. Randomly drop circles of kabayaki, and hot mustard, lay one or two medallions of crab on top of the beef, sprinkle the asparagus, stand a few chips up on the beef, and finish with slices of pickled red onion and thin sliced scallion. Serve.
1 cup very hot water
½ cup rice wine vinegar
6 Tblsp sugar
1 ¼ tsp kosher salt
1 red onion, sliced thin
For Potato Chips:
4 fingerling potatoes, thinly sliced on a mandolin
¼ cup Karashi, or chinese hot mustard
4 stalks of asparagus
2 fully cooked king crab legs, thawed
3 scallions, sliced paper thin
For assembly:
Salt
Coarse black pepper
Sea Salt, such as murray river or maldon
For the beef:
Clean all silver skin off of your tenderloin, and dust all around with the salt, and pepper
In a sauté pan, heat canola oil over med-high heat, when very hot sear the exterior of beef all around. Quickly. Remove, sprinkle with fresh chopped thyme and let cool. When cool enough to handle, roll tightly in plastic wrap to help shape a good cylinder. Freeze until very cold, and firm but not frozen solid.
For the Kabayaki:
In a small saucepot, bring the sugar and water to a simmer, allow to turn into a dark amber caramel, be very careful not to burn. As soon as the caramel is dark amber in color, add the soy sauce, be careful, it will rise, so add 50% and swirl around, then add the remainder. Stir well, make sure all of the caramel dissolves, remove from the pot to cool, spoon off any impurities.
For the Crab:
Carefully squeeze excess liquid out of the crab leg, then cut the shell off with a sharp pair of scissors. Make sure to remove cartalidge from the ends of the leg, then slice into ½” discs. Set aside
For the Pickled Red onion: do the day before
Thinly slice the red onion, set aside. In a small container(Tupperware), add the very hot water, then the salt and sugar and mix well until they dissolve completely. Then add the vinegar, let cool slightly and add the onion. Cover and let sit overnight, or up to a week.
For the Asparagus:
In a saucepot, bring water to a rolling boil, add a generous amount of kosher salt, then add the asparagus, cook for about 20-30 seconds, just until barely tender. Remove the asparagus to a bowl of ice water. Let cool completely, then toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and char quickly on a grill. Dice into small rounds.
For the chips:
Wash the potatoes, then slice very thin on a mandolin into water. Let them sit for about 15 minutes, remove from water, pat dry with a towel.
Fry in canola oil at 350 degrees until light golden brown and crispy. Remove from oil, season with salt, set aside.
To assemble:
Thinly slice the firm beef on a slicer if you have one, if not, carefully with a sharp knife. Lay the desired number of slices on a plate. Brush with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and a little sea salt. Randomly drop circles of kabayaki, and hot mustard, lay one or two medallions of crab on top of the beef, sprinkle the asparagus, stand a few chips up on the beef, and finish with slices of pickled red onion and thin sliced scallion. Serve.
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