Food Network star likes to shake things up in kitchen
For accessAtlanta
Thursday, October 09, 2008
While sampling some of Atlanta’s best restaurants at Taste of Atlanta, you’ll also get to see some of today’s best-known chefs cooking up signature dishes onstage. Joining this cast of celebrity chefs, which includes local favorite Richard Blais and country singer Trisha Yearwood, is George Duran, star of Food Network’s “Ham on the Street” and “The Secret Life of … .” Duran is promoting his new book, “Take This Dish and Twist It,” and took a moment to talk about his career and what to expect from him at Taste of Atlanta:
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George Duran is the star of Food Network’s ‘Ham on the Street’ and ‘The Secret Life of … .’
$25-$95. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Oct. 11-12. 171 17th St. N.W., Atlantic Station. 404-875-4434, www.georgeduran.com, www.tasteofatlanta.com.
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Usually, accomplished chefs host TV shows. But you actually went the opposite route, being in the TV and radio industry, then later getting a culinary education. Did you always aspire to combine these two interests?
I started in television and radio and decided to go to culinary school because I indeed wanted to merge my two passions. When I went to culinary school in France, a local television producer approached me and said, “Do you have any ideas for cooking shows for [Cuisine TV] here in France?” I said, “Of course, I have billions of ideas,” so I went up and met with them and they were like, “Great! You speak French, you’re funny, you’ve got great ideas. …” So I did a whole season’s worth of shows out there and it just flourished from there.
Instead of teaching the French how to cook high-end French cuisine, I was teaching the youth how to take short cuts in the kitchen so they wouldn’t be really intimidated by these high-end chefs.
On your TV shows and in your book, you’re known for finding unique ways of cooking common items and exploring the origins of some of our foods. What will you be cooking at Taste of Atlanta?
What I’m trying to do with my cookbook and my shows is [create] interest in the foods and recipes by using different tools. One of them is humor; the other one is comfort food, something that conjures up great memories. By combining comfort food and humor I hope to get people interested in not only cooking, but to be interested in foods they would otherwise never be interested in. From there, proper nutrition begins.
In Atlanta, I’ll be doing something called the Granny Smith Guacamole. Everybody loves guacamole, but I’ve added an ingredient that nobody would have ever thought of adding to it, which is Granny Smith apples. They give it this sweet, crunchy tartness and everybody goes nuts for it. So what I’m going to do is see who has the biggest mouth in Atlanta.
You’re also scheduled to do a couple of things for the kids.
I like to make recipes that kids usually hate. In this case I’m going to do Balsamic Vinegar Roasted Brussels Sprouts. The balsamic vinegar reduces in the oven into this gooey sweet syrup that envelopes the Brussels sprouts and really brings out the flavors. I’ll bring kids onstage, have them taste steamed brussels sprouts, looking at their reactions, then having them taste my roasted brussels sprouts with balsamic vinegar, and I assure you the difference is enormous. It’s a matter of showing parents and kids that it is actually possible to make these foods that a lot of kids hate very tasty.
