Two chefs with Texas connections, Dallas’ Tiffany Derry and Kristen Kish (Austin’s Arlo Grey), recently joined 48 other famous kitchen queens and kings in a fundraising Zoom call for the Harris-Walz campaign. Congressman Eric Swalwell’s discovery of a deal on surplus aprons inspired Cooking for Kamala. With a kitchen whisk instead of a thermometer as the barometer, the initial goal was $45,000. More than $222,000 was raised.
Cooking for Kamala was hosted by comedian Joel McHale, who, incidentally, was a stellar guest star on The Bear. He performed his duty from inside his car, per his usual shtick, with co-host/chef Padma Lakshmi in her own vehicle. Kamala Harris, as an avid home cook herself, cares about food issues, Lakshmi said, which is why so many chefs rallied for this call. As McHale put it, the event featured “so many Michelin chefs, we could open a tire shop.”
Throughout the evening, there were chats with many of the chefs, plus cooking demonstrations, giveaways, and more. Chef Jose Andrés said that since everyone can cook, everyone needs to invite others to the table to support Harris, who, he said, can crack an egg with one hand (very important). Andrés donated two signed cookbooks to the cause. At this point, the donation barometer had already eclipsed $80,000.
As the government controls food policy, legendary food critic Ruth Reichl, who recently won a James Beard Lifetime Achievement Award and was the final editor at Gourmet magazine, spoke about how important it will be to have a cook in the White House, someone who understands how food impacts people’s lives. Reichl also confirmed that bacon is indeed a spice as Harris once famously said. (They’re right!) By this point, the barometer was up to $115,950.
Famous pizza guy Chris Bianco insisted on positive change. Along with talking about why he supports the VP and how service industry people tend to show up wherever needed, the chef offered tips on better pizza dough: Identify what you like in terms of crust style, then choose your ingredients from there. The most important thing is not to rush it. By the end of his segment, the donations had climbed to $133,888.
Photo by Elaine Wilder
Several other appearances later, the whisk hit $156,733 after the two Texans got on camera. Chef Derry is the restaurateur behind Roots Chicken Shak in Legacy Hall (7800 Windrose Av, Plano, 469-546-5961), Roots Southern Table (13050 Bee St, Ste 160, Farmers Branch, 214-345-4441), and the new concept Radici Wood Fired Grill (opening soon). The Texas native and James Beard finalist made the Top 4 of Top Chef in 2010 and also has guested on several other Food Network shows and Paramount’s Bar Rescue. Chef Kish, winner of Top Chef Season 10, runs the high-end Arlo Grey (The LINE Hotel, 111 E Cesar Chavez St, Austin, 512-478-2991) and is a cookbook author. She’s also working on a few TV projects, including Dish with Kish on Peacock and hosting Season 21 Top Chef.
“I am so excited,” Derry said, “and I have such energy when I think about where our country is going. Kamala is putting food policy to the forefront.”
On the recipe front, Derry said to start with high-quality chicken and, like voting this election, spice it “like your life depends on it.” She thinks Harris will be a great president because great cooks know how to help people.
Kish’s segment included a question about programming the buttons in the Oval Office that hail the White House kitchen staff to bring the president their favorite food. Her pick was chicken fingers and fries with extra ranch and extra mayo. Food writer Gail Simmons appeared with Kish and thought the White House needed spicy chicken wings, too, with both selections on one deluxe platter, “making all your dreams come true” with a campaign slogan of “Chicken fingers for all!” At this point, the barometer read $209,610.
The call lasted about two and a half hours, and by the end, Cooking for Kamala had raised $222,570.
The five recipes were: goat cheese bacon appetizers by Chef Stuart O’Keeffe, the Kamala Spark cocktail by Mixologist Tiffanie Barriere, Kamala’s Herb-Roasted Chicken cooked by many using a recipe from Harris herself, and White Dude Tacos and Straight from the Coconut Tree cookies by Susan Feniger. If you make this now-famous chicken recipe, let us know how it turns out!
Courtesy The American Table
Kamala Harris’ Herb-Roasted Chicken from Newsweek
Ingredients
Whole organic chicken (about 5 lbs)
Garlic (6 cloves minced, plus 3 cloves peeled)
Rosemary and thyme (3 whole sprigs, plus 2 tbs minced)
Sage (3 sprigs)
Lemon (1 zested, then cut into quarters)
Pepper (fresh ground)
Salt (kosher, ground)
White wine (any quality, room temperature)
Prep Instructions
The day before you cook the dish, do the following. 1.) Mix the minced garlic, rosemary, thyme, lemon zest, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. 2.) Rub this mixture under the skin of breast, thighs, and legs, being sure to spread evenly under the skin. 3.) Liberally season the outside of the skin with salt and pepper and the inside of the cavity. 4.) Stuff the whole rosemary, sage, and thyme sprigs with two quarters of the lemon and three peeled garlic cloves into the cavity. And 5.) truss up the chicken with butcher’s twine and place in the refrigerator loosely covered (or uncovered) overnight.
Cooking Directions
About an hour before cooking, take the chicken out of the refrigerator and let it rest on the counter. Preheat the oven to 350° F (or 325° F if using a convection oven). Place the chicken in a roasting pan and cook for 30 minutes, uncovered. Remove the chicken from the oven and add up to one cup of the white wine to the pan. Return it to the oven and baste it every 15 minutes. As you’re basting, check the internal temperature. Once it reaches 168° F, it’s done. The chicken should rest for at least 30 minutes before serving. Carve the chicken as close to your serving time as possible.
Optional Gravy
If you’d like to serve gravy with your chicken, use the skimmed pan drippings as a base. Heat the dripping on low on the stovetop, sift 1 tbs of flour into the liquid, add chicken stock as needed for the desired consistency and volume, and then finish it off with a sprinkle of ground pepper.
