fusion food

[cookM]

What do you guys think about fusion? I went to look at Eos' ( a restaurant in San Francisco) and I saw caesar salad with GINGER. I just couldn't get into it. But then when I go to my fave Vietnamese place, they serve a scrumptious duck soup. The leg is expertly braised, the stock is flavorful and clear, there are fried shallots sprinkled over as garnish...I love that Vietnamese/French style. There's a lot of *fusion* happening here because of all the Asian and Latin American influences, but it just seems forced, awkward, and nasty sounding. Any thoughts?

[This message has been edited by cookM (edited August 29, 2000).]

[shroomgirl]

Yep~fusion can be nasty.
I made a shrimp creole arincini....won a Mardi Gras contest...wonderful, but the components went together. I donot like my food overfingered, sometimes the stacking thing is just overplayed with food.
Fusion is not going on too much here anymore.
Probably a good thing.

Fusion can be a good thing when done properly. When done poorly it is awfull. You can have a very nice duck confit flavoured with star anise. You can also have "white-guy-stir-fry"

[Wambly]

I never have thought of Vietnamese as fusion.. although it is probably one of the original east/west combinations.

Something different about a cuisine that is formed over many years compaired to someone making a special for the night with truffles, soy, and ginger....the latter being what I refer to as conFusion.

[Nick.Shu]

i personally dont have a problem with mixtures of cuisines. The major thing to bear in mind, is that, balance rules. If something tastes like s**t, it will taste like s**t.

Unless you take the time to experiment or your background knowledge permits you to know, how are you going to know?

I think that the idea of utilizing different techniques is fine, but the marriage of bizarre flavors just to be different is offensive. Fusion never really did it for me even when it was started to become popular, but it has the hip feel that this younger generation likes. Give me the classics, a good osso bucco, or a great poached sole vin blanc. You can't go wrong.

[chefjohnpaul]

Fusion can be outstanding if done right, but first the chef needs to really understand the ingredients and techniques of what he is trying to fuse. I hope the days are over where cooks are dousing everything with soy and ginger and calling it fusion, that's not fusion, that's wanna'be. I think everyone should get off the bandwagon, get down to earth, know their ingredients, techniques, where they want to take it and stop trying to be Roy Yamaguchi for the sake of being hip. Fusing flavors and ingredients is great but give the dining public something that has substance and is well grounded.

[shroomgirl]

NY TIMES had an interesting dish in Diner's Journal this am...
Bread pudding soaked in coconut milk, on a layer of pineapple bits surrounded in basil syrup, with a sheet of burnt sugar and a scoop of ginger ice cream.
HUMMMM sounds pretty yummy....now what type of basil..Thai??and just throw it in a warm simple syrup?

[Chef Mark Hayes]

Fusion for the sake of fusion can be ridiculous in hands of someone who doesn't have knowledge of or respect for classic preparations and techniques. And by classic I don't just mean "french". Because we are a Globally-Influenced Restaurant, Many people ask if that means fusion, I say NO WAY! It simply means that the menu is not bound by one type of cuisine, but influenced by many (separate but equal) regions of the world. However we do not mix the cuisines on one plate, but rather present a dish as close to authentic as we can. Now, as far as Vietnamese Cuisine goes (or many others for that matter), we as chefs need to know a little history; Vietnam was a French colony! So I can't help but think that they would be influenced by their colonizers (if that's a word!)

------------------
M.W.H.

[shroomgirl]

My definition of fusion is taking a dish and adding ingrediants from other cultures...
ie..bread pudding which is Creole and adding Asian ingrediants. Or Shrimp creole arincini which is an Italian classic (fried risotto balls stuffed with mozzerella) and adding New Orleans ingrediants...spicy boiled shrimp, shrimp stock, garlic, peppers, celery, onion to the arborio rice.
Then instead of Marinara make a Creole sauce.
What do you guys think, is this the fusion you know???

[Isa]

Too much of anything is not good. It is nice to mix flavours in a dish but too much flavours and you don't know what you're eating. Some ingrdients are best standing on their own.


I went to a cooking demonstration a few weeks ago. The chef was preparing mahi mahi. He reduce the fish to purée and made some kind of quenelle qith spinach and other ingredients. In the end you couldn't even taste the mahi mahi. At 30$ a pound I would have prefer a dish that brought out the flavour of the fish instead of a dish that had so much different things in it you had no idea what you were eating.


Sisi

[cookM]

I agree; that mahi mahi sounds really nasty.
Here's another example of some fusion that I thought sounded nasty!!! A cook friend of mine actually had to do this a couple Christmases ago. Her heart wasn't into it at all, but she had to do it.

...Yorkshire pudding with fish essence...

[cape chef]

your kidding aren't you?
That is the most aweful thing I have ever heard of

[shroomgirl]

LOL Gross! That goes under the gross food thread. What do you serve that with????
Prime Rib with Korean Fish Sauce, What wine would you serve? The one with the cow on the Btl or the one with the fish? (have you guys seen that new line of wines for those that need visual cues)

Has Gray Kunz finished writing his book yet?
Jean Georges' book is great...dried orange dust!

[This message has been edited by shroomgirl (edited September 02, 2000).]

[This message has been edited by shroomgirl (edited September 03, 2000).]

[Isa]

Yup the mahi mahi cost around 30$ a pound here in Quebec and that is when it is available. At that price I'll never buy it though.


Sisi