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Culinary Direction
What’s culinary direction? It’s an overlapping set of creative services that includes the creation of recipes and other taste experiences, the styling of food and accessories, and the definition of an overall conceptual/visual approach. It can also take the form of a brief, a strategic outline, or creative leadership that guides the work of our collaborators or an expanded team. Here is a selection of work that shows our culinary direction.
The Flavour Bombs are also no-recipe recipes – they’re a series of 24 flavour concepts developed for Liberté, using their plain yogurt as a starting point. Many of them reconstruct or deconstruct favourite dishes and taste memories, others are playful riffs on traditional flavour combinations.
Client: Liberté Canada | Creative Director: Janine Hopkinson
Photography, Copywriting and Content Editorial Planning: Les Garçons
Art Direction: Chantal Gobeil | Food Styling: Heidi Bronstein | Accessories Styling: Karine Blackburn | Agency: Cossette
Melon with Crab
and Jarlsberg Sauce
SERVES 6
- 6 slices honeydew melon
- 1 cup (2 120 g tins) crabmeat
- 2 tsp. cornstarch
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 tsp. dry mustard
- 170 g grated Jarlsberg
- salt
- white pepper
- 1/3 cup toasted almond slices
- smoked paprika
- red pepper flakes
Trim the rind off the melon slices. Drain the crabmeat in a sieve. Stir the cornstarch into 2 tbsp. cold water. In a medium saucepan, warm the milk over medium heat until steaming and frothy. Do not boil. Whisk in the cornstarch and dry mustard, then gradually whisk in the Jarlsberg.
Stir in the crabmeat and season with salt, white pepper, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Spoon the sauce over the melon slices. Garnish with almond slices and a light dusting of smoked paprika.
Client: Norseland Canada | Culinary Direction, Photography, Styling: Les Garçons
We developed this trio of recipes as part of a travel piece about Bali published on Mortar & Pestle.
Balinese Chicken Satay
makes 8 skewers
- 2 pounds chicken breast tenders, or whole breasts
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 tsp. sesame oil
- 1 tbsp. kecap manis (or soy sauce)
- 2 tsp. sambal oelek
- 1 tbsp. turmeric powder
- 2 large garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 1 small shallot, roughly chopped
- 1 three-inch piece of ginger, roughly chopped
- 1 tbsp. coriander seeds
- 1 tsp. grated nutmeg
- 1 two-inch piece of lemongrass, minced
- 2 keffir lime leaves, torn (or zest of one lime)
- 1 tbsp. lime juice
- 1 tbsp. palm sugar
INSTRUCTIONS
1. If using whole chicken breasts, slice them into long pieces for threading on skewers.
2. Combine the remaining ingredients in a food processor and process for about 20 seconds, or until the marinade is mostly smooth, with some small chunks for texture.
3. Coat the chicken with the marinade and refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours. (Longer than this can over-tenderize the chicken.)
4. Soak 8 wooden skewers in water for half an hour. Thread the chicken onto the skewers, and grill at 450° F for about 8 minutes, turning every couple of minutes.
