ATHLEISURE MAG: So we’re excited to have you in Athleisure Mag and Athleisure Kitchen, our readers have loved you for a very long time. Chef, with Valentine’s Day being this month and just date night dinners in general, what should we be making so that we can always stun our significant other?
CHEF MARCUS SAMUELSSON: Oh cool. I’m excited that you guys came today. For me, I feel very fortunate that I have been lucky to partner with Pure Leaf. Pure Leaf is always looking for great flavors and unique flavors that are super delicious. I think with this collection, Pure Leaf has found something really cool and interesting. Hibiscus, being African you find this all over the Caribbean and Africa. Sometimes, it’s known as Sorel. A beautiful flower that has that beautiful floral note that has become a really big trend in restaurants. What would be more fun than to be able to bring that trend setting food back home to a cocktail or through a simple appetizer. We’re going to do both.
The collection has all hibiscus and is caffeine free. They’re herbally brewed, also all around hibiscus along with a mango, a peach and a cherry. I put some of the mango flavored hibiscus iced tea with a little gin and you can also do it as a mocktail with no alcohol. I also put in some orange bitters and some citrus juice and just give that a shake and put some ice in at and give it a little light shake. This cocktail is called the Valentine and it has this beautiful rose color. It’s light and bright. Then we will put that little bit of sprig of thyme just to add to the floral note.
Making a light bright dish that is a flavored forward dish can be simple. I am going to start with some greens – a little bit of baby arugula and then frizze. I’m searing my scallops just 3 minutes on each side so that they are golden brown. In the pan, which is a cast iron skillet, there is a little bit of olive oil but I am also adding in parsley and adding in thyme so that those herbal notes can come back out again. I said it before that Pure Leaf has this beautiful collection of hibiscus and this one is Hibiscus Cherry flavor. It has a gorgeous burgundy color and it’s light with all of the flavors that you want. We also took some sundried cherries and just soaked them over night in the iced tea which makes them nice and loose in terms of texture.
Remember those scallops?
AM: They’re beautiful.
CHEF MS: Yes, they’re golden brown. When you get scallops like this, you want them to be dry scallops and you want to ask for sushi quality grade A. When you do that, you’ll have the best seafood! You also want to buy seafood from the same person because then you’re building a relationship with them and you’re ensuring that you’ll always get the good stuff. Then garnish with a bit of parsley and nuts – which you don’t have to if someone has a nut allergy. If they don’t it’s good for crunch. Then we will use the parsley that we seared up and top off the dish with some of those fresh herbs.
AM: It’s an easy dish to make.
CHEF MS: That’s the key right? We wanted to make the dish flavor forward, but also very easy to make. Jump in!
AM: It’s one of my favorite dishes as I love scallops.
CHEF MS: Yes, it’s scallops and just that idea that it’s hibiscus with that cherry profile. It’s light, bright and a beautiful appetizer.
AM: This is so good!
CHEF MS: Today I’m serving you for free. When you come to Red Rooster, I have to charge you, this is so much better!
AM: When did you realize that you wanted to be a chef?
CHEF MS: Well I cooked my whole life! You know I grew up in Sweden with my grandmother and she was a cook and just to be here 30 years later and to do a craft that I was taught in her kitchen is an unbelievable experience and it’s not a job. It’s something that I am passionate about and feel that it’s a privilege to work with my passion. To be to work with communities and to be able to create jobs for our inner city kids, whether it is through Careers Through Culinary Arts Program, our restaurants, through our festival Harlem Eat Up! and with that, you need partners like Pure Leaf that sees those opportunities to help me create that.
AM: How do you decide what and where your next restaurant is going to be?
CHEF MS: You know those are tough questions for me. First the city has to speak to me. I love New York and you know it’s not just about the city, it’s about the part of town. You know we just opened in Newark a beautiful town that has a strong African American narrative in terms of culture, music, jazz and we felt that it was a place that we thought was important for us to contribute to for jobs and to hire locally.
We always look at the city, we opened the Red Rooster in London which has always been – I mean growing up in Europe, London is your New York. To be able to be there has been a privilege as well. But then again it has been a privilege to be able to do what I love in so many different cities and Harlem will always be home. We have our festival coming up soon and it’s something that we look forward to.
AM: As the producer of Harlem Eat Up!, how did it come about and why is its intersectionality so important?
CHEF MS: I was always a guest to all of these great food festivals whether it was Miami, South Beach, Aspen or New York. And then I thought, wait a minute, Harlem is such an incredibly rich community in terms of culture and rich history. The chefs there deserve to also be able to tell their story and the food festival has been able to tell that story!
With that, to do it because half of our Harlem Eat Up! is for free, and we can’t do it without sponsors like Pure Leaf, whether it’s to help set the table for Valentine’s Day or whether it’s to set the table for a food festival.
AM: So I’m a huge fan of Red Rooster, what are 3 signature dishes that we need to eat there and you can only choose 3 now haha!
CHEF MS: When you come to the Red Rooster you have to have as starters the Cornbread and the Deviled Eggs. It’s easy and you can have a drink and you definitely need to start off with a Brown Stoner or a Bourbon forward drink and then I love a Shrimp and Grits, which is super super delicious. It’s comforting and you have to have the Yardbird.
AM: This month is the South Beach Food and Wine Festival. Why do you love participating in that, attending and why is it so important?
CHEF MS: SoBe is one of the festivals that started the great festivals. You have SoBe and Aspen. As a chef, it’s such a privilege and you get to also see your chef friends. I’m going to be able to see and hang out with Bobby, Alex and my friend Scott – people that we work together, but we don’t always have time to hang out. That’s the time that we get to hang out. I also go over to Overtown and I get to do cooking demos. This year, I made sure that my events are always at Overtowns so I can bring that South Beach audience over to another part of town that they may or may not have been to before.
AM: Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with us and to make this incredible meal!
CHEF MS: Well you’re good! You’ve got your cocktail – The Valentine and you’ve got your Scallops that are beautiful and I hope that you enjoy it.
CHERRY HIBISCUS SEARED SCALLOPS with Mustard Greens, Tea Infused Cherries, Almonds
For the Cherry-Hibiscus Sauce
1 ounce dried hibiscus petals
1 quart Pure Leaf Cherry Hibiscus Herbal Tea
In a large pot, heat the tea and hibiscus until it’s just barely simmering. Remove from the heat and let sit for 20 minutes. Strain and chill.
For the Tea Infused Cherries
1 cup dried cherries
2 cups Pure Leaf Cherry Hibiscus Herbal Tea
Bring the tea to a boil. Pour over the dried cherries. Let sit at room temperature for two hours to infuse.
For the Roasted Almonds
1 cup whole marcona blanched almonds
1 tbsp olive oil
1/8 tsp salt
Toss the almonds in oil and salt and place in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Roast at 350 degrees until well browned and fragrant, approximately 5 minutes.
To Assemble
4 diver scallops (U10 size)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 ounce frilly mustard greens
1 ounce frisee
1 tbsp infused cherries
1 tbsp cherry-hibiscus sauce
1 tbsp roasted almonds
1 tbsp torn parsley leaves
Heat a sauté pan over medium high heat with half of the olive oil. Season scallops liberally with salt. When the oil is beginning to smoke, sear the scallops for two minutes on each side. Remove from pan.
In a shallow bowl, place the cherry-hibiscus sauce. Dress the mustard greens, frisee, and parsley with the cherries, rest of the olive oil, and a touch of salt. Place on top of the sauce. Arrange the scallops on top and garnish with the roasted almonds.
VALENTHYME
1 oz Pink Gin
2 oz Pure Leaf Mango Hibiscus Herbal Tea
¼ oz Simple Syrup
½ oz Lemon Juice
6 dashes Cranberry Bitters
3 dashes Orange Bitters
¾ oz Cranberry Juice
Shake all ingredients over ice and serve in a coupe. Garnish with Thyme sprig.
Mock
3 oz Pure Leaf Mango Hibiscus Herbal Tea
¼ oz Simple Syrup
½ oz Lemon Juice
6 dashes Cranberry Bitters
3 dashes Orange Bitters
¾ oz Cranberry Juice
Shake all ingredients over ice and serve in a coupe. Garnish with Thyme sprig.
PHOTO CREDIT | PG 88 Cedric Angeles
You can catch Athleisure Studio's podcast show You can catch Athleisure Studio’s podcast show, Athleisure Kitchen and hear our conversation with Chef Marcus Samuelsson next month wherever you enjoy listening to podcasts including Spotify, Apple Podcast and Google Podcast.
Read the latest issue of the Feb Issue of Athleisure Mag and see The Art of the Snack | The Date Night Meal with Chef Marcus Samuelsson in mag.
