Category Archives: Uncategorized

  1. The dish that changed the way I look at FOOD

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    September 13, 2012 by seanbrock

    The dish that changed the way I look at FOOD

    a simple bowl of rice…………..

    the older we get the more we understand about THINGS. its pretty simple if you really think about it. WISDOM is a crazy thing to try and wrap your head around. somehow it just happens, you can try and force it as much as you want but I believe wisdom only happens naturally.

    this very well be my favorite dish that we have ever served at McCrady’s and maybe my career. this dish is simple in appearance, but it tells an incredible story. Before we serve this dish we tell the diner about the importance of rice in Charleston during the rice era….which I believe was somewhere like 1700-1927….lots of speculation there of course….but regardless, the story is fascinating. it often helps people realize how a foodstuff can influence and help shape a culture. when you tell a story like this before a guest eats a dish their perspective changes completely…especially while sitting in an 18th century tavern in the middle of Charleston…..this is usually difficult to achieve….to truly have the full attention of the diner. but this dish is different….there is a connection between the room, the staff, the history, the city, the future and the diner….people love this kind of thing…i love this kind of thing…this dish is a journey thru the history of eating in Charleston.

    the rice is served in the middle of our tasting menu….its always everyone’s favorite course….it IS pretty damn delicious….its pretty amazing how you can taste care, how you can taste intention, how you can taste respect, how you can taste hard work, how you can taste sacrifice, how you can taste true happiness…and how you can taste wisdom and lessons learned…well, at least I think its amazing…food taste better to me when those words are rolling thru my mind…sometimes these moments happen in your life and they can seem more important than they really are……but this is what makes this journey so fulfilling I suppose…….you never know what the future holds….

    what is your bowl of rice?

  2. sorry for the iPhone pic, my lens is pretty scratched up

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    September 13, 2012 by seanbrock

    sorry for the iPhone pic, my lens is pretty scratched up

    Iphone 5 coming soon!

    anyways…

    thanks to the vinegar man, ideas in food, nordic food lab, JJ and the momofuku lab we have a whole new outlook on the world of vinegar. this is turnip juice that is on its way to becoming vinegar. our goal is to have vinegar for every vegetable and fruit that we work with. We are well on our way with almost 60 different vinegars working between the two restaurants. I am really impatient, i wish things were different but they simply aren’t. I taste these way too much during the vinegar making process. Sometimes being impatient pays off…..but only sometimes. I tasted this turnip juice about 4 days under the bubbler…it was so delicious. It tasted like biting into a turnip straight out of the ground. it almost tasted like prepared horseradish. it instantly brought a smile to my face and my mind started racing. we currently reheat some barely braised turnips in this juice a la minute. the results are mind bending. this is what we are striving for…..things in our pantry that can enhance the natural flavor of the product without getting in the way……cooking is so much fun.

    oh yeah….don’t throw away the pulp from the juicing process……add some salt and ferment that shit….its super tasty

  3. an oldie but a goldie

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    September 13, 2012 by seanbrock

    an oldie but a goldie

    octo cooked low and slow in olive oil, real low and real slow. then charred over super hot embers. raw fennel bulb compressed with fennel essential oil and fennel juice, then dressed with variegated lemon and olive oil. potato puree enriched with squid ink. egg yolk with olive oil and fennel pollen. charleston coriander, fennel flowers, wild fennel fronds. yum

  4. hard to beat

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    September 13, 2012 by seanbrock

    hard to beat

    I’ve been playing a lot with this idea lately. The ember/live fire combo. Its hard to explain how delicious this pork was. You really have to stick with it and keep the fire the correct temperature and the embers the correct temperature while rotating the meat by feel. I adore cooking this way. How can we do this during a busy service? its best right out of the fire.

  5. Amazing Flavor

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    September 12, 2012 by seanbrock

    Amazing Flavor

    Do we have anything like this in America?
    I need a lot and this stuff ain’t cheap.

  6. Does this thing still work?

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    September 12, 2012 by seanbrock

    photo by PFE Husk Shrimp and Grits with Crispy Pig Ears and Preserved Tomato 

  7. Paul Cheney

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    August 22, 2010 by seanbrock

    A Cool Pic from my friend Paul

  8. Smoked Trout

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    June 11, 2010 by seanbrock

    Squash Pickled Ramp Flowering Herbs

  9. Foie Gras Terrine

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    June 11, 2010 by seanbrock

    Pineapple Cashew Puffed Rice Spice Tea

  10. Charleston Roe Shrimp

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    June 11, 2010 by seanbrock

    Pickled Shrimp Radish Frozen Buttermilk Pepper Cress

  11. One Dish, Two Presentations

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    June 11, 2010 by seanbrock

    Scallop Rhubarb compressed with Rhubarb Bitters Ginger-Meyer Lemon Jelly Coriander Berries and Flowers Cilantro Ice Celery

  12. Strawberries

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    June 11, 2010 by seanbrock

    Strawberry Gazpacho Frozen Olive Oil Wood Sorrel Stone Crab Green Strawberries

  13. Cochon 555

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    June 11, 2010 by seanbrock

    Country Pate glued to  a Pork Loin, wrapped in Caul Fat

  14. Pickled Hot Links

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    June 11, 2010 by seanbrock

  15. Ramp Pasta

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    June 11, 2010 by seanbrock

    Braised Lamb Ragout San Marzano Flowering Brassicas Ramp Top Pasta

  16. Peekytoe Crab

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    March 24, 2010 by seanbrock

    Crab, Saffron, Apple, Wood Sorrel, Vadouvan

  17. Garnish A la Minute

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    March 24, 2010 by seanbrock

    I have always wanted a green house on the roof to grow garnishes.  This will have to do for now.  …
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  18. White Chocolate

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    March 24, 2010 by seanbrock

    White Chocolate, Yoghurt, Blood Orange, Strawberry

  19. A Typical Delivery

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    March 24, 2010 by seanbrock

  20. 100 percent Ossabaw

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    March 24, 2010 by seanbrock

    Ecofriendly Foods, Sir Bev Eggleston, outrageous

  21. Running Squirrel

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    March 24, 2010 by seanbrock

      I am crazy about stuff harvested by hand in the forest

  22. Three Little Pigs

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    March 24, 2010 by seanbrock

      Thanks to our friend Mr. Thackeray these made incredible porchettas.  Raised on Wadmalaw

  23. Bar Snacks

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    March 24, 2010 by seanbrock

      we have recently launched a new bar snack program.  Chalkboard menu, changing daily come check it out and have …
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  24. Veal Breast from Bev Eggleston

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    March 24, 2010 by seanbrock

    Brined, Cleaned, Glued, Rolled, Poached in Milk, Rolled

  25. Garnish Tray

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    March 24, 2010 by seanbrock

  26. Yep, That’s a Beef Tenderloin wrapped in Pancetta

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    February 15, 2010 by seanbrock

  27. Cotechino

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    February 15, 2010 by seanbrock

    studded with pork skin and flavored with cinnamon, mace and clove we serve it on toasted bread smeared with a …
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  28. Urchin Powder

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    February 11, 2010 by seanbrock

    Frozen Sea Urchin Powder, parsnip, wood sorrel, leek

  29. Pig’s Head in the Style of Pancetta

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    February 4, 2010 by seanbrock

      After this was cured we cooked it in Pork Stock and rerolled it.  It gets sliced paper thin and …
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  30. Uni

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    January 18, 2010 by seanbrock

      Black Sesame Crystal Lettuce Seaweed (2 types) Basil Seeds Ginger-Togarashi Snow Frozen Nasturtium Leaf powder

  31. Country Ham from our Pigs

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    January 18, 2010 by seanbrock

    There is just something amazing about tasting a ham from an animal that you raised personally.  These hams were from 7oo …
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  32. Vita Prep

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    January 11, 2010 by seanbrock

    Proof that the vita prep is actually tougher than nails I bet it would turn nails into a powder if they …
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  33. Surf and Turf

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    January 10, 2010 by seanbrock

    Scallop, Matsutake, Pine Nuts, Black Garlic, Black Truffle, Bitter Cress, Spruce Custard photo credit: paul cheney

  34. Chocolate Mousse

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    January 10, 2010 by seanbrock

      About to go into the vita prep to make a frozen powder.  The resulting texture is wonderful. photo credit: …
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  35. Geoduck

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    December 31, 2009 by seanbrock

    Clam Ikura Roe Borage Ginger Australian Finger Limes Marsh Grass Grapefruit meringue frozen Black Sesame powder

  36. Uni

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    December 31, 2009 by seanbrock

    Apple Celery Buttermilk Seaweed

  37. Green Tomato Pickle

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    December 27, 2009 by seanbrock

    There is nothing more satisfying than preserving food.  These were pickled with fresh picked dill, mustard seed, celery seed, tumeric, …
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  38. Pork Sirloin

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    December 27, 2009 by seanbrock

    these came from our pigs…cooked them in lard at 55 c for 8 hours.  we then portioned them into steaks …
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  39. Big Ass Pigs

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    December 18, 2009 by seanbrock

    lots of curing to do….these were too big for the scales….I’m guessin 750-800 pounds live…..tasty stuff, kinda like kobe pork

  40. Tamworth Pork from Thackeray Farms

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    December 18, 2009 by seanbrock

    free roaming, wadmalaw foraging goodness these pigs are raised the right way, thanks to shawn for hookin us up with …
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  41. Foie Gras

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    December 18, 2009 by seanbrock

    Foie Gras with Milk, Walnuts and Huckleberry thanks to john for sharing the crispy milk technique

  42. Slow Cooked Vegetables

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    December 18, 2009 by seanbrock

    I love the broth this technique yields…slow cooked with a little butter and some really good vedge stock….everything is cooked …
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  43. Can Anyone ID this Wild Cress?

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    December 18, 2009 by seanbrock

  44. The Winter version

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    December 18, 2009 by seanbrock

      Triggerfish with a pistou of garden vedge and herbs, braised pine nuts

  45. Stone Crab

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    December 3, 2009 by seanbrock

    Stone Crab with Tropical Flavors

  46. Sunchokes

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    December 1, 2009 by seanbrock

    Pickling 220 pounds of sunchokes, that’s alot of jars

  47. A New Egg Dish

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    November 29, 2009 by seanbrock

    A couple of days ago we added a new egg dish to our tasting menu.  Inspired by drunken-late nights at …
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  48. Some Pics from our New Kitchen

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    November 29, 2009 by seanbrock

  49. The New Pork Belly

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    November 29, 2009 by seanbrock

    Fudge Farm Pork Jowls Brined for 24 hours and cooked SV for 36 hours at 71.1C, pressed and then fried. …
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  50. Happy 2nd Anniversary Guerrilla Cuisine

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    November 24, 2009 by seanbrock

    A good time was had by all…. congrats to chef hat, well done sir

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