Folks who stopped by the cooking demonstration table this weekend had quite a treat. Our Sept 8 market marked the return of Chef David of Meridian Pint, who, along with his assistant Victor, deftly cranked out plate after delicious plate of poached egg over spicy salad greens and heirloom tomatoes, topped off with some chevre and a shockingly scrumptious fennel vinaigrette. Even some of the farmers patiently lined up for a taste.
As curious market patrons flocked over to await the next delectable batch of samples, David offered tips on poaching eggs. Things like mixing (acidic) vinegar into the water to help the (basic) egg remain more cohesive while it cooked. And, ideally, using a slotted spoon to swirl each individual egg in the hot water to keep the egg white more intact. Not that you can do this when you’re poaching 20 eggs at a time, as David was on Saturday, but I was impressed by the very practical tips he passed along to those of us patiently waiting for the water to simmer and fantasizing about making similar dishes at home. (I suppose these are the sorts of practical things one learns in culinary school, but the chef revealed these tricks of the trade in a way that managed to make those of us who had previously considered ourselves pretty good cooks not feel like total cretins.)
Should you want more of Chef David’s creations, get yourself down to Meridian Pint (at 11th & Park) one of these days. There’s always something new and interesting on offer — often daily and/or seasonal specials based on what is most beautiful and bountiful at local farms.
Should you want to recreate this delicious poached egg and salad, you’ll need:
- local, pastured chicken eggs from Twin Post Farm
- plain chevre (soft goat cheese) from Spriggs Delight
- heirloom and mixed tomatoes from Chesley and Pleitez
- mixed greens from Five Seeds Farm
You could even pick up supplies this coming weekend at CHCM. How convenient!
[Photos courtesy of Andrew Krieger]
