Tomato soup, tomato sauce, fried green tomatoes—all good in Bergamot chef/co-owner Keith Pooler’s eyes. But uncooked tomatoes? Those hit a raw nerve. “I can visualize liking them, but can never get over the hump,” says Pooler, who finds the flavor tolerable, though he can’t stand the texture of the flesh and skin. That made for a memorably tricky evening plating an heirloom tomato salad while staging at New York’s Chanterelle. “It was a rough couple of hours,” recalls Pooler, “and the only way I made it through was drinking a lot of water.” His distaste hasn’t stopped him from dreaming up tomato-centric dishes at his Somerville restaurant every August. “I am very particular on how we treat tomatoes, from the moment we receive them to the moment they go on the plate,” he says, explaining they’re carefully set on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and checked every day until ripe. For this recipe, he looks to a (nearly) universally liked sandwich, the BLT, and suggests opting for heartier heirloom varietals, like brandy wine, Genovese or black zebra. “I like the dish and can see someone enjoying it,” he says, noting that chefs learn to evaluate plates even when they’re not pleasing to their own palates. “You are taught to taste everything, and I can in my head. I watched an instructor that had dietary restrictions in culinary school critique each dish by sight alone. Boy, was he accurate.”
For the herb aioli:
1 egg, plus 1 egg white
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 lemon
Salt to taste
1 1/2 cups canola oil
2 tablespoons basil, lightly chopped
1 teaspoon marjoram, lightly chopped
1 teaspoon mint, lightly chopped
- · Add eggs, Dijon mustard, one squeeze of lemon juice, salt and a splash of water to a food processor and pulse until smooth, adding a steady stream of canola oil while running. Transfer the thick aioli to a bowl and add the basil, marjoram and mint. Pulse with an immersion blender, leaving pieces of herbs intact. Adjust the consistency of the aioli with water; it should be thick.
For the breadcrumbs:
2 cups slightly stale bread
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon thyme, chopped
Pinch of salt
- · Tear bread to dry it out and then pulse into large pieces. In a frying pan over medium heat with oil, lightly brown breadcrumbs. Add garlic and cook until golden and fragrant. Finish with thyme and a pinch of salt, straining extra oil through a China cap.
For the red onion vinaigrette:
1 cup red wine
1 medium red onion, diced
Pinch of sugar
1 teaspoon thyme, minced
Small pinch of mace
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
Salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
2/3–1 cup canola oil
- · Reduce wine to a 1/4 cup. Then add in all ingredients except the oil and marinate for 10 minutes. Strain dressing and set aside. Whisk in oil and then add back in the strained contents.
For the salad:
Salt to taste
3 thick slices of tomatoes
Olive oil
1 thick slice of maple-smoked bacon
Assorted greens
- · Five minutes before plating, salt room-temperature tomato slices. Place a few dollops of the aioli onto a plate and smear with an offset spatula. Set tomato slices on top of the aioli and squeeze a little olive oil on the tomatoes. Cut smoked bacon into 1-inch pieces and place on the plate. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over the top. Toss a mix of greens with a tablespoon of the dressing and place strands of greens around the plate. Spoon a little of the garnish and vinaigrette around the plate.
Eat Your Veggies!
By Sarah Hagman & Meghan Kavanaugh | Photo Credit: Brian Samuels | Feb. 10, 2017
Tomato soup, tomato sauce, fried green tomatoes—all good in Bergamot chef/co-owner Keith Pooler’s eyes. But uncooked tomatoes? Those hit a raw nerve. “I can visualize liking them, but can never get over the hump,” says Pooler, who finds the flavor tolerable, though he can’t stand the texture of the flesh and skin. That made for a memorably tricky evening plating an heirloom tomato salad while staging at New York’s Chanterelle. “It was a rough couple of hours,” recalls Pooler, “and the only way I made it through was drinking a lot of water.” His distaste hasn’t stopped him from dreaming up tomato-centric dishes at his Somerville restaurant every August. “I am very particular on how we treat tomatoes, from the moment we receive them to the moment they go on the plate,” he says, explaining they’re carefully set on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and checked every day until ripe. For this recipe, he looks to a (nearly) universally liked sandwich, the BLT, and suggests opting for heartier heirloom varietals, like brandy wine, Genovese or black zebra. “I like the dish and can see someone enjoying it,” he says, noting that chefs learn to evaluate plates even when they’re not pleasing to their own palates. “You are taught to taste everything, and I can in my head. I watched an instructor that had dietary restrictions in culinary school critique each dish by sight alone. Boy, was he accurate.”
Tomato Salad
For the herb aioli:
1 egg, plus 1 egg white
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 lemon
Salt to taste
1 1/2 cups canola oil
2 tablespoons basil, lightly chopped
1 teaspoon marjoram, lightly chopped
1 teaspoon mint, lightly chopped
For the breadcrumbs:
2 cups slightly stale bread
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon thyme, chopped
Pinch of salt
For the red onion vinaigrette:
1 cup red wine
1 medium red onion, diced
Pinch of sugar
1 teaspoon thyme, minced
Small pinch of mace
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
Salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
2/3–1 cup canola oil
For the salad:
Salt to taste
3 thick slices of tomatoes
Olive oil
1 thick slice of maple-smoked bacon
Assorted greens
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