Chef Pichet Ong’s Adventure in Beets
Posted in Exhibitions, The Edible Garden on August 20 2010, by Plant Talk
From Traumatic Childhood Episode to Experimental Dishes
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Pichet Ong is chef and owner of P*ong and Village Tart, and author of The Sweet Spot. He will present cooking demonstrations at The Edible Garden Conservatory Kitchen on Sunday, August 22, at 1 and 3 p.m. |
I was born an adventurous eater. While the lunchboxes of my elementary school mates were filled with aluminum-wrapped peanut butter and jelly, ham and cheese, and egg salad sandwiches, mine often had well seasoned leftovers from our previous night’s family dinner—duck liver and minced quail stir-fry, bitter melon soup, twice-cooked pork belly, or potato vinaigrette with Sichuan peppercorns.
I remember the first time I had beets; my mother, Ruby, warned me: It’s not like eating a red plum, steak tartare, or raw tuna. She also promised me, like with all red foods, including watermelon, that it is good for the blood.
My first taste of beets came in the form of a borscht—a traditional Eastern European soup that made its way into modern Chinese cuisine due to the Chinese’s obsession with red-colored food. Inspired by the Hong Kong-style borscht, which is beef- stocked based with tomatoes, ketchup, and red vinegar (which has food dye), and last night’s leftover vegetables thrown in, my mother came up with an all-natural version that incorporates beetroots in lieu of artificial color in the recipe. More vibrant in fuchsia and red tones, and tastier than the ubiquitous version found in restaurants, despite my mother’s warning, I helped myself to seconds at the dinner table, and even packed up some for my lunch the next day. The next morning when I went to the boy’s room, I understood—explicitly—my mother’s warning. I left for school queasy, confused, and mellow—sans borscht.