New Nordic Open-faced Sandwiches
I've been thinking a lot lately about the whole New Nordic cooking craze, which is now getting a lot of attention thanks no doubt to the popularity of NOMA in Copenhagen.
By blog has always been about traditional Danish open-faced sandwiches, so I can safely say that I am completely clueless on this new-fangled Scandinavian cooking movement, but people keep asking me about the relationship between my recipes and those of, say, NOMA, and I'm tired of dodging the questions. So now I am really curious to know more about what New Nordic cooking is all about.
I did a little digging and here's what I learned...
The movement began to take root after NOMA was founded in 2003 by head chef Rene Redzepi and Claus Meyer. It was basically a backlash against the bland eveness of food created from hundreds of years of puritanical eating habits, the latest in mega-farming agro efficiencies as well as the institutionalized concepts that only great foods from Europe's culinary meccas meritted the attention of smart local foodies. Olive Oil, Iberico Ham, Truffles, and Foie Gras were all the rage, yet had nothing to do with the local Scandinavian ingredients. Could these be the only foods worthy of eating? Meyer, Redzepi and other great Nordic chefs did not think so. And so, they created the New Nordic Kitchen manifesto, which has allowed Nordic food culture to take its place among the giants of culinary tradition.
As best I can tell, there were three main concepts at the root of the New Nordic manifesto:
And I couldn't agree more! I've tried, with the recipes in my blog, to use high-quality local ingredients to produce beautiful and delicious open-faced sandwiches.
Here are a few of the names (that I know) in today's New Nordic Kitchen movement:
Claus Meyer - Co-founder of NOMA and Danish culinary enterpreneur. Meyer has hosted TV shows such as PBS's "New Scandinavian Cooking" and runs several differnt food-related companies. Learn more about Meyer here.
René Redzepi - Co-founder and the genius head chef of NOMA, the world's current #1 restaurant. I've watched a number of his videos on Youtube, and have found it fascinating how he is able to create beautiful looking meals from locally forgared ingredients. Check out one of his Youtube videos about oysters here.
By the way, the name NOMA is a contraction of nordisk (nordic) and mad (food).
I know it's random, but the name NOMA always made me think of the Roberto Duran quote after his last fight with Sugar Ray Leonard. ("¡No mas!")
Trine Hahnemann - Chef, enterpreneur and caterer to the rich and famous, Trine Hahnemann has authored a number of great books on Nordic cuisine including one of my kitchen bookshelf favorites - The Scandinavian Cookbook - with seasonal recipes from different parts of Scandinavia (including several open-faced sandwiches and useful bread recipes). Maybe if I had her books 10 years ago, I wouldn't need my blog today! Learn more about Trine Hahnemann at her website.
Adam Aamann - Possibly my favorite of the bunch due to his excellence in smørrebrød, Adam is the owner and head chef of Aamanns, a Copenhagen restaurant focusing on the open sandwich, using organic and seasonal ingredients. In 2007, he was awarded an honorary diploma from the Danish Academy of Gastronomy for his efforts to raise the open-sandwich to an art form. I love eating his art! He has recently opened an Aamanns restaurant in Tribeca in New York City - if he can make it there, he can make it anywhere!
OK, so why am I thinking about all this stuff at this point? Well as much as I love the traditional open-faced sandwiches that I've described and documented in the blog, I feel like it's time to begin exploring a few new ideas, based on many of the same principles of New Nordic cooking, but of course, using ingredients that are more commonly found in my part of the world - Montreal and the Quebec region (which has it own culture of locally-produced and seasonal ingredients). Who knows? Maybe I'll end up opening a new eatery showcasing the finest in Montreal area foods. If it happens, I'll be naming the place MOFO for sure!
I'm not sure what I'll come up with yet, but I'm looking forward to delving into the new possibilities. Meanwhile, I've still got a few traditional recipes to work on - think CHEESE - so keep following and hopefully you'll find a recipe or two you might actually want to make yourself one day.
By blog has always been about traditional Danish open-faced sandwiches, so I can safely say that I am completely clueless on this new-fangled Scandinavian cooking movement, but people keep asking me about the relationship between my recipes and those of, say, NOMA, and I'm tired of dodging the questions. So now I am really curious to know more about what New Nordic cooking is all about.
 |
| Juicy Red Currents in Danish Backyard |
The movement began to take root after NOMA was founded in 2003 by head chef Rene Redzepi and Claus Meyer. It was basically a backlash against the bland eveness of food created from hundreds of years of puritanical eating habits, the latest in mega-farming agro efficiencies as well as the institutionalized concepts that only great foods from Europe's culinary meccas meritted the attention of smart local foodies. Olive Oil, Iberico Ham, Truffles, and Foie Gras were all the rage, yet had nothing to do with the local Scandinavian ingredients. Could these be the only foods worthy of eating? Meyer, Redzepi and other great Nordic chefs did not think so. And so, they created the New Nordic Kitchen manifesto, which has allowed Nordic food culture to take its place among the giants of culinary tradition.
As best I can tell, there were three main concepts at the root of the New Nordic manifesto:
- Use only local ingredients - they have such rich and diverse foods to choose from, why go elsewhere?
- Use seasonal ingredients - to better live harmoniously with nature
- Prepare healthy foods - rich in grains, fish, fruits and vegetables - without being bland. Good food is meant to delight and give pleasure to the eater
And I couldn't agree more! I've tried, with the recipes in my blog, to use high-quality local ingredients to produce beautiful and delicious open-faced sandwiches.
Here are a few of the names (that I know) in today's New Nordic Kitchen movement:
Claus Meyer - Co-founder of NOMA and Danish culinary enterpreneur. Meyer has hosted TV shows such as PBS's "New Scandinavian Cooking" and runs several differnt food-related companies. Learn more about Meyer here.
René Redzepi - Co-founder and the genius head chef of NOMA, the world's current #1 restaurant. I've watched a number of his videos on Youtube, and have found it fascinating how he is able to create beautiful looking meals from locally forgared ingredients. Check out one of his Youtube videos about oysters here.
 |
| Contemplating the NOMA cookbook - things I will probably never make |
I know it's random, but the name NOMA always made me think of the Roberto Duran quote after his last fight with Sugar Ray Leonard. ("¡No mas!")
 |
| Trine Hahnemann Cookbooks |
Adam Aamann - Possibly my favorite of the bunch due to his excellence in smørrebrød, Adam is the owner and head chef of Aamanns, a Copenhagen restaurant focusing on the open sandwich, using organic and seasonal ingredients. In 2007, he was awarded an honorary diploma from the Danish Academy of Gastronomy for his efforts to raise the open-sandwich to an art form. I love eating his art! He has recently opened an Aamanns restaurant in Tribeca in New York City - if he can make it there, he can make it anywhere!
 |
| Outside Aamanns in NYC: I guess they don't eat smorrebrod for dinner in NY either! |
 |
| Use seasonal, local ingredients |
I'm not sure what I'll come up with yet, but I'm looking forward to delving into the new possibilities. Meanwhile, I've still got a few traditional recipes to work on - think CHEESE - so keep following and hopefully you'll find a recipe or two you might actually want to make yourself one day.
About the Author
0 komentar