If you’ve wondered where chef educators at the famous Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, go for vacation or what Chesapeake Bay regional restaurant would be refined enough to excite a world-class culinary guru, look no further. We have answers.
Five years ago, Bruce Mattel, a senior associate dean at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), was blown away by a four-day culinary tour of the Eastern Shore before judging the Taste of Cambridge Crab Cook-Off. Turns out, it’s not so much polished food he is drawn to...but, rather, real food, fresh off the farm or out of the water. Our gem, the Chesapeake Bay, has become his go-to edible adventure.
Chef Mattel has judged the Taste of Cambridge Crab Cook-Off each July since 2014 and wouldn’t miss it for anything in the food world. He even wraps his family vacation around the festival.
He relayed his experience during a recent interview with What’s Up? Media. “It’s not uncommon for a traveler to have pre-conceived notions about a destination prior to actually arriving,” he explains. “Such was the case for me and my family the first time we visited Maryland’s Eastern Shore. We assumed that the area would resemble the Jersey Shore without the pines.
“Upon arrival in Cambridge, we immediately noticed that there weren’t many tourists, and the town was a local destination for people who lived inland but in close proximity,” he continues. “As we dined and imbibed around town, we saw that the people we talked to showed immense pride when discussing the area and what it offers visitors. The restaurants in the historic district and on the outskirts, although varied in style, all seemed to have some menu items that were indigenous to the area, especially seafood, which one would expect. I also realized that I was in the heart of blue crab territory, which, because of my vast experience with cooking seafood, got me very excited and wanting to taste every incarnation, from the crab balls to the Maryland crab soup. One of the best meals we had was at Old Salty’s in Fishing Creek. I had a fried fisherman’s platter, which was comprised of blowfish tails, locally-caught perch, and a soft crab—the perfect representation of the local catch. The locally-brewed RAR beer complemented the meal just perfectly. The most memorable part was dessert—peach cobbler, made from a server’s home-grown fruit she said ‘went crazy.’
“For our final tour, we went to Assateague National Seashore for a beach day that will always be remembered,” Mattel recalls. “The beach itself was spotless, the water brisk and clean, and the wild ponies added a charming touch to the experience. When we left the beach, we stopped at a produce stand about two miles away and bought produce to take home to New York. I can honestly say that the watermelon, corn, tomatoes, and Roma beans were some of the best that I ever had.”
Perhaps, surprising then, invasive species are part of the learning experience at CIA—to use these fish creatively as a means of clearing our waters of them. For example, Chesapeake Blue Catfish—an invasive despite its name—is prepared as a firm white-flesh fish. Asian Carp and Massachusetts Dogshark are also part of the program. “My work with CIA and my culinary background dovetails with all of the efforts in the Chesapeake region to clean up the bay and offer sustainable seafood,” Mattel says.
At the crab dish judging during last summer’s Cambridge Crab Cook-off, Mattel enthusiastically re-counted his culinary Chesapeake exploration and how he ended up judging a crab cook-off. “My friend, Kevin Scott, with the National Restaurant Association, grew up on the Eastern Shore and first invited me down, along with my family,” Mattel explains. “He also invited another accomplished CIA graduate, Rene Marquis. We were eating at Bistro Poplar in Cambridge and were introduced to Gloria Rojas, who was well-known in our New York-area when she was with Eyewitness News and now writes for the Dorchester Banner. We all decided to share our foraged dinner.”
Mattel has created and judged culinary competitions across the U.S., so how did the local crab cook-off compare? “I think Cambridge treats us really well in the fun, low-key event,” he replies thoughtfully. “It’s not too rigorous, but designed to create a lot of interest in the town and to make sure they get a lot of the local restaurants to participate. The criteria are kind of loose, but it’s consistent enough that, when we judge, we have similar things to consider—the subjectivity is taken out of it. I feel very confident with our decisions about the best entrant in each category.
“With a jam-packed Eastern Shore farm/food loop, Kevin also set up the itinerary and let us explore,” Mattel says of his time in the area. “We bought produce for our dinner from local stands, soft-shells and crab from a seafood market along the way, and we were set for a feast.”
Chef Mattel shared several of the recipes he enjoyed during his latest trip to Cambridge. We also share a winning recipe from Bistro Poplar.
In the heart of historic Cambridge, Bistro Poplar serves traditional French cuisine with inspiration from the Picardy region of France, while blending Mediterranean and Asian flavors for a uniquely American result. Their food is infused with local flavors such as crab, rockfish, and oysters. I talked to pastry chef Emily Salisbury of Bistro Poplar, a Taste of Cambridge winner, to hear how the restaurant approaches the competition. She explains, “There are so many classic crab dishes in the area that we wanted to come up with something lighter and fresh. The simplicity of our Thai vinaigrette highlights the crab’s vibrant flavor. We target our changing seasonal menu to use everything we can that’s whole and fresh from the area, within about 10–20 miles away.” Their winning Taste of Cambridge Crab Cook-Off recipe was a divine example of this approach.
Fresh Maryland Corn and Tomato Relish
Yield: 10 servings
Ingredient:
Fresh sweet corn, shucked 3 ears
Red onion, minced 2 tbsp.
Heirloom tomatoes, assorted 2-3 each
Sugar 1 tsp.
Garlic, minced 1/2 tsp.
Olive oil 1 tbsp.
Lemon juice 1 1/2 tsp.
Tarragon, chopped 1 tsp.
Parsley, chopped 1 tsp.
Method:
Simmer corn in water for 2–3 minutes. Remove and let cool. Cut off cob and reserve. Chop tomatoes roughly into small pieces. Combine all ingredients and leave at room temperature or refrigerate if not used in two hours or less.
Bistro Poplar Taste of Cambridge Crab Salad
Serves 8–10
1/4 cup fish sauce
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon Sriracha hot sauce
1 pound lump crabmeat
2 tablespoons chives, chopped
1 tablespoon shallots, chopped
1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped
2 medium watermelon radishes
Directions:
Whisk together the fish sauce, lime juice, dark brown sugar, and Sriracha in a small bowl. Gently stir together the crabmeat, chives, shallots, and cilantro in a medium bowl. Pour the fish sauce mixture over the crabmeat mixture and gently toss to combine. Very thinly slice the watermelon radish and serve the crab salad on top of the radish slices.
Soft Shell Crabs Meunière
Yield: 10 servings
Ingredient:
Soft crabs, dressed, jumbo 10 ea.
Salt, kosher 1 tsp.
Pepper, black ground 1 tsp.
Milk 1 1/2 cup
Flour, for dredging as needed
Olive oil 1/4 cup
Butter, cold diced 1 stick (4 oz.)
Lemon juice 1/4 cup
Parsley, chopped 1 1/2 tsp.
Season crabs with salt and pepper, and place in the milk. Heat olive oil, medium/high in a large sauté pan. Dredge the crabs in the flour and place smooth side down in the pan. Cook for one minute or until light brown, turn over and cook for another minute or so. Remove crabs from pan, place on a platter to keep warm and let the pan cool for 30 seconds. Add butter to the pan and place on a low flame. When butter is light brown, shut off the flames and add lemon juice and parsley. Pour sauce over crabs and serve immediately.
Day-to-Day Itinerary of Bruce Mattel’s Farm/Food Tour through Maryland’s Eastern Shore
Day 1 Tour of J. M. Clayton Company, Cambridge; visit to Tubman Museum; drive through Blackwater Preserve; dinner at Old Salty’s in Fishing Creek. At Clayton’s: saw the picking room, local watermen dropping off crabs, and boiling units out back; bought some soft crabs and lump crabmeat. At Old Salty’s: had a ‘true’ fisherman’s platter and cream of crab soup (“best version in the area”)
Day 2 Charter fishing in the Chesapeake Bay: caught two nice keeper rockfish (“I call them stripers up north!”). Cooked local feast (see Foraged Menu) back at a friend’s house on the Choptank River; toured corn and soybean fields
Day 3 Taste of Cambridge Crab Cook-Off. Foraged Menu: Grilled Rockfish, Fresh Maryland Corn and Tomato Relish, Soft-Shell Crabs Meunière, Crab Gratinée: lump crab with creamy sauce and cracker meal browned under the broiler, Cucumber salad, Grilled asparagus, Lots of local RAR beer
