Chef Stuart Stein is an instructor at the Culinary Arts Institute at UVU. He is also the author of The Sustainable Kitchen: Passionate Cooking Inspired by Farms, Forests and Oceans and the soon-to-be-released The New Sustainable Kitchen: Sustainable Cooking for all Seasons, which teach readers how to cook using sustainable food.
Sustainability cuisine is a set of overlapping circles that encompasses environmental, economic and social sustainability. He says there are several reasons people should buy local when it comes to food:
tastes better,
is better for you
is grown for flavor, color and an ability to provide a long season of harvest
preserves genetic diversity.
There are a few things you can do to cook sustainable:
Cook seasonally; do not buy fruits and vegetables out of season.
Buy locally whenever possible and buy directly from the grower or from a source as close as possible to where the product is grown.
Complete the cycle by composting and recycling.
Know your fish:
o ask how the fish you buy is caught
o whether it is wild or farm raised- learn which fish species are endangered from over fishing and where the fisheries are located. Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch List, NOAA Fish Watch, Aquaculture Stewardship Council Certifies Farms list and the Marine Stewardship Council Fish to Eat list are valuable sources.
o Plant a garden and/or help set up a school or a community garden. Retired professional basketball player and Milwaukee urban farmer Will Allen said, 'There is something spiritual about touching the soil.'
o Support mandatory labeling of genetically engineered (GE) foods to give consumers the information they need to make informed choices.
Summer Beet Salad with Pickled Red Onions, Walnuts and Feta Cheese
Beet Salad
2 bunches multi-colored beets with beet greens, separated
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
4 fl. ounces pickled red onions
2 bunches watercress, stems trimmed
½ cup walnuts, toasted
2 fl. ounces walnut oil
4 wt. ounces feta cheese
kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste
Honey-Mustard-Dill Dressing
1 teaspoon garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1-teaspoon smooth Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon honey
¼ cup pure olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh dill, finely chopped
kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste
TO PREPARE THE SALAD: Preheat oven to 375°F.
Wash the beetroots but do not peel. Toss beets with oil. Wrap beets, separately, in foil. Place the beet packages on a baking pan and roast in the oven for approximately 1 hour, until tender. Remove beets from oven, unwrap and allow to cool.
Remove skins from beets and cut each beetroot into quarters. Keep colored beets separate.
TO PREPARE THE DRESSING: In a small bowl, whisk together garlic, vinegar, mustard and honey. Slowly whisk in oil until a smooth emulsion is formed. Season with salt, pepper and dill. Cover and chill.
TO SERVE: Trim, wash and dry the beet greens. In a large bowl, combine the beet greens, watercress, pickled red onions, salt and pepper. Dress the greens mixture with ½ of the dressing.
Add different colored beets to separate bowls and dress with a little of the dressing.
Place some of the greens mixture on each plate. Top with beets, walnuts and feta cheese. Drizzle additional dressing and walnut oil.
Olive Oil Poached Albacore Tuna Sliders
Tuna
12 wt. ounces fresh albacore tuna loin cut into 4 - 3 wt. ounce medallions
2 cups pure olive oil; more if needed to cover the fish during cooking
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
8 slices ciabatta bread or 4 ciabatta rolls, lightly toasted
1 ripe heirloom slicing tomato, cut into 4 slices
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
6 leaves lettuce (such as romaine, red leaf, or Boston), washed and dried
kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
Lemon-Garlic Mayonnaise
1 clove garlic, minced
2 oil-packed anchovies, minced
1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
½ cup poaching liquid oil
1-2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, plus more to taste
kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
TO PREPARE THE TUNA: Add the oil to a deep saucepan, wide enough to hold a few tuna pieces without crowding and deep enough to contain the poaching oil without spilling when the tuna is submerged. Heat the oil over medium heat until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the oil reaches between 180°F-190°F. The oil should stay at or near this temperature during the cooking process, so you'll need to monitor and adjust the intensity of the heat under the pan.
Season the tuna with salt and pepper. Carefully submerge the tuna medallions making sure they are in a single layer in the hot oil. The oil must cover the tuna, so add more oil if needed. Cook until the tuna turns pinkish gray on the outside and is slightly pink in the center and an instant read thermometer registers 145°F in the middle, approximately 3 to 6 minutes.
Remove the tuna from the oil and set on a platter to cool. Repeat the process as necessary to cook the remaining tuna. Allow the poaching oil to cool and reserve.
TO MAKE THE MAYONNAISE: In the bowl of a food processor, combine garlic, anchovies, egg yolk and mustard. With machine running, slowly drizzle in ¼ to ½ cup of poaching oil and process until mixture is smooth and starts to thicken, about 2 minutes.
With machine still running, slowly add lemon juice. If mayonnaise is too thick, add 1-2 teaspoons cold water. If mayonnaise is too thin, add additional oil. Process just until mixture reaches a spreadable mayonnaise consistency Do not over mix. Taste and adjust seasoning with more lemon juice, salt or pepper.
Summer Vegetable Slaw
Vegetable Slaw
(You will need approximately 1 pound of any combination of the following vegetables.)
1 red bell pepper, seeds removed and julienned
1 yellow bell pepper, seeds removed and julienned
1 head radicchio, core removed and cut into chiffonade
1 small head Napa cabbage, core removed and cut into chiffonade
1 green zucchini, cut in half, seeds removed and julienned
1 yellow squash, cut in half, seeds removed and julienned
1 bulb fennel, core removed and julienned
½ daikon radish, julienned
1 large red onion, thinly sliced nto half moons
1 bunch green onions, cut on a bias about 1-inch long
¼ cup mint leaves, cut into chiffonade
¼ cup basil leaves, cut into chiffonade
kosher salt and fresh ground white pepper, to tast
Vegetable Slaw
(You will need approximately 1 pound of any combination of the following vegetables.)
1 red bell pepper, seeds removed and julienned
1 yellow bell pepper, seeds removed and julienned
1 head radicchio, core removed and cut into chiffonade
1 small head Napa cabbage, core removed and cut into chiffonade
1 green zucchini, cut in half, seeds removed and julienned
1 yellow squash, cut in half, seeds removed and julienned
1 bulb fennel, core removed and julienned
½ daikon radish, julienned
1 large red onion, thinly sliced nto half moons
1 bunch green onions, cut on a bias about 1-inch long
¼ cup mint leaves, cut into chiffonade
¼ cup basil leaves, cut into chiffonade
kosher salt and fresh ground white pepper, to taste
Cilantro-Lime Dressing
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
¼ teaspoon sugar
⅛ teaspoon ground coriander
⅓ cup pure olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
kosher salt and fresh ground white pepper, to taste
