Connecting With Food

Winnipeg chef values harvesting his own ingredients

Story by Nigel Simms - Photos by Fred Greenslade

CHEF BEN KRAMER is fast becoming one of the leading lights in a crowded array of culinary celebrities. As executive chef for Diversity Food Services at the University of Winnipeg, he has replaced frozen with fresh, revitalized the predictable and set new standards for institutional menus.

Kramer’s revolutionary work at the University now provides affordable, homemade food on a large scale. With a focus on sustainability, the Diversity model breaks the institutional business mold. It is a new approach many people believed wasn’t possible.

“I was lucky to have been trained by very conscious, ethical chefs,” Kramer said. “So I wasn’t really exposed to how ridiculous our food system is until much later. That’s when my eyes were opened and I said, ‘Wow, the food industry has gone completely backwards in less than a generation or two.’ ”

The economics of the food industry, along with its dependence on conformity and mass marketing, has created a gap in our lives. Good food is transformative — physically, socially and culturally, Kramer said.

The 36-year-old chef encourages us to better understand the choices we make when preparing a meal. He says it’s important to know where our food comes from. And one of the most honest, ethical ways to do that is to harvest the animal yourself.

“For all of us here at Diversity, it’s not just about how you prepare it, how you season it. It’s about where your food comes from, how you’ve handled it, the respect you’ve given it and what the farmer or hunter has put into it. All of that will eventually translate to the plate.”

Kramer and his partner, Chef du Cuisine Aron Epp, enjoy working with all types of game. They put duck at the top of many ingredient lists.

“The challenge and the beauty of all wild meat is that sometimes you’re gong to get this, sometimes you get that,” Kramer said.

“It’ll always be different, and it should be like that. It should be different. It should be a new experience every time.”

The key with duck is not to overcook it, he said. A beautiful duck breast can quickly become tough and dry, losing a lot of flavor. Ignore the instinct to trim as much fat as possible. It’s the fat that works the magic.

“We love the duck fat,” Kramer affirmed. “We’ll use duck fat independently with other dishes just because of its unique richness. We’ll use it sometimes in lieu of butter because it just tastes so good.

Smoked duck breast with dandelion greens, herb oil and fresh lemon

Kramer and Epp like to prepare duck by smoking it. For this recipe, Epp picked young, tender dandelion greens from his front yard. Talk about knowing where your food comes from. Enjoy.

Brine for duck breast
2 liters water
½ cup salt
½ cup maple syrup or brown sugar
Fresh thyme (a good handful with the stems)
¼ cup fresh rosemary leaves
6 to 8 cloves of garlic (crushed)
1 tablespoon cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon lemon zest

Bring mixture to a simmer, just long enough to dissolve the salt and sugar. Remove from heat, and then chill in fridge until completely cool. Trim any excess fat from duck and cover with cooled brine. Leave breasts in brine four to six hours. Because of the salt content, this brine will last up to two weeks in the fridge. It also works well with other fowl and pork.

After removing breasts from brine, rinse them well under cold water to remove excess salt. Dry meat with paper towel and score with a crosshatch pattern. Hot smoke the duck at 300 degrees Fahrenheit to medium or preferred doneness. Finally, pan sear the skin side of the breast to caramelize and crisp the fat.

Fresh herb oil
½ cup rosemary leaves
¼ cup thyme leaves
¼ cup chopped parsley
¼ cup chopped chives
3 cups olive oil

Place all ingredients in blender. Blend until smooth, season with salt and pepper to taste. Unused oil will last a week in the fridge. It also freezes well.

To serve, wash and trim dandelion greens (if none are available, arugula works well as a substitute). Dry greens well, and toss with herb oil. Once the duck has cooled slightly, slice as thinly as possible and place on greens. Serve with wedges of fresh lemon and fresh cracked pepper.