The Chef: Chris Curren (Stout Barrel House & Galley)The Challenger: Matt Troost (Three Aces)The Ingredient: Ghost pepper
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“It’s really hard to even get a flavor out of it, just because the heat’s so overwhelming. It does have a sweetness to it, almost like a bell pepper—a little more so, I think, than jalapeños or habaneros.”
Curren knew that capsaicin—the compound that makes chiles spicy—is soluble in both fat and alcohol, and used that to his advantage. He soaked a few ghost peppers overnight in vodka, then used the alcohol in a Bloody Mary to go with his take on huevos rancheros, which featured quail eggs, toasted sourdough, ghost pepper-tomatillo salsa, bacon confit, and roasted bone marrow. The fat in the bacon and bone marrow would tone down the spiciness of the salsa, he figured.
Video by Michael Gebert/Sky Full of Bacon
Who’s next:
Ryan Poli of Tavernita, working with eel. It’s “one of those obscure things that either you’ve worked with it or you haven’t,” Curren said. “It comes in alive and you have to kill it, and I figured that would be fun for him.”
Candied ghost peppers
Place the bacon in a roasting pan and cover with oil. Cover pan with aluminum foil and place in a 300-degree oven for three hours. Let cool.
8 quail eggs ½ bunch of picked cilantro leaves 1 loaf of artisan sourdough bread
