Alison Trent – The Future is Creative Collaboration - (flavors unknown podcast) Podcast Details

Description

You walk in and it opens up into this beautiful urban oasis and you’re sitting with fairy lights and olive trees and really beautiful sort of antique furniture everywhere just really really beautifully designed. And then the menu is not fine dining, it’s definitely more casual. We encourage people to share. But really high end ingredients. Information sourcing ingredients is one of the most important things for being a chef. My biggest thing: I’m just so done with all the ego in the kitchen. You know I put up with so much. I do not want that to be a part of what I do in the future. So I honestly think that you really have to listen to the demographic and say what do these people want to come here and eat. You know it’s a very social place.

What we covered in this episode

Chef Alison Trent is originally from Canberra, Australia.
She moved to the US with first stop in the former Culinary Institute in NYC and ended up after in L.A., California.
Cooking as a profession was an easy decision for her.
Her mentors were Chef Michael Cimarusti at Providence and Thomas Keller at Bouchon and then at The French Laundry.
Her time there was challenging and rewarded as well.
She remembers her time at The French Laundry and the intense environment. It was like knowing nothing about cooking and starting from scratch again!
Chef Alison Trent believe that industry is changing and that this is a bit easier for women.
Ysabel restaurant in West Hollywood is a beautiful “oasis” with a menu with high end ingredients. No ego in the kitchen!
Laurel Hardware restaurant close by became an institution at this point with a local vibe. Simple food. Pizza et pasta.
Sourcing and selection of the ingredients are very important to her.
Interact with local farmers and buy fresh produce at your farmer’s market.
Chef Alison Trent talks to us about “Alison Trent Events”. Rich experiences for people.
She mentions her collaboration with other artists such as ceramic makers, farmers, pastry chefs, beekeepers, etc…
Working together with a Pastry Chef, Chef Alison Trent mentioned ingredients that would cross-over between savory and sweet worlds.
Her latest ingredient obsession: tomatoes!
She has done in a past a lot of molecular gastronomy but now she likes simple food best.
5 rapid-fire questions.

Links to other episodes in Los Angeles area

Chef Brad Miller – Inn of the Seventh Ray

Chef Alison Trent Summer Pasta Salad

For people cooking at home simplicity is just absolutely right. When we’re talking about pasta in summer which is obviously sort of a heavier carb driven scenario, it’s really about keeping it simple. Go to the farmer’s market and try and eat meat less. So get these amazing tomatoes and some garlic. The biggest thing if you’re gonna do pasta in summer is to pair it with a salad. But you’re not doing some big heavy oxtail ragu. You’re doing something light. A bit of a white wine base so you have that nice acidity and even though it’s sort of carb driven it’s still acidic and balanced. And I think that’s the biggest thing for people cooking at home is to not overthinking it. You know you have friends coming over you do a nice Bucatini with a really simple beurre blanc and black pepper and then paired it with a really lightly dressed mixed green salad. Is sort of enough you know.
And definitely all the herbs. I mean I’m fortunate enough to have a garden so whenever I cook I will do something really simple like a maybe penne with a butter and lemon sauce and then just go out into the yard and grab some fresh oregano, some fresh parsley, some interesting different basils, some pineapple basil, fine French herbs aspect where you really get this whole basis right and then finish it all with a ton of lemon juice so you don’t feel like you’re eating this heavy meal.

: Black Truffle Tagliatelle

: Oxtail Raviolo

: Grilled Shrimp

: Canapés from Alison Trent Events

: Seared Scallop

: Hamachi Collar Salad

: Butternut Squash Agnolotti,

: Tuna Tar-tare

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Sustainability for me is extremely important. I want to see this profession moving forward and evolving in a way that is sustainable and using waste in an appropriate way.

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The best possible thing you can do as a consumer is to go to your farmer’s market. Support local farmers who, honestly work harder than chefs.

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You have to be competitive. But working alongside other artists and people that are like minded is extremely important. And I honestly think that collaboration is the future of the industry.

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When I first started out in the industry I was obsessed with cookbooks and got myself a nice sort of inventory of them. Now I gotta be honest I don’t even pick them up.

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