p014

BM042014

FOOD 14 | BOROMAG.COM | APRIL 2014 Last week, Marketa started serving lunch, so of course we had to swing by and sample some of the newest items on the menu. From fried chicken with habanero-elderflower butter to a colossal meatball hero, and even a crisp and classic version of a nicoise salad, these recipes are pretty wonderful, utilizing some impressive techniques you just don’t see all over Western Queens. This month, we thought we’d share some of Chef Yair Lenchner’s personal notes to provide some insight into how Marketa makes its magic so worth masticating. Chef Lenchner comes to Marketa via Milkflower and The Mark by Jean Georges, among others. Fried Chicken All natural free range, organic, happy FreeBird (brand name, google them, they are really great farmers doing great things for poultry) chicken, brined for 24 hours and then soaked in buttermilk at least 12 hours. It is then dredged in seasoned flour: ancho chili powder, cayenne, and smoked paprika, then fried at a low temperature to maintain the light color on the crispy skinned outside and the juiciness outside. It is served with a buttermilk corn and cheddar biscuit, mustard cole slaw, and habanero-elderflower butter, all of which of course is done in house with fresh and never frozen products, as with the rest of our menu. We make ALL our sauces here, from basic mayonnaise, to all our hot sauces—including Sriracha—rather than buying it. Salmon Fresh, never frozen salmon filet (6 oz. at lunch, 8 oz. at dinner) is slow-roasted, and served with a spring onion vinaigrette made by sweating spring onions, scallions, lime peel, and thai chili, before pureeing it with guar gum, agar (both all natural vegetable based gelling agents/ thickeners), champagne vinegar, lime juice and fermented jalapeno paste. The dish is garnished with a spring vegetable medley of sugar snaps, snow peas, garden peas, asparagus batons, and fingerling potatoes cooked in rosemary, thyme, and garlic. It is finished with Maldon sea salt (large pyramid shaped salt crystals from Northern England) and our herb blend of celery leaves, parsley leaves, chive batons, and microgreens. This is one of my favorite plates on our new menu, and it is inspired by elements I learned at Jean Georges, adapted to a Queens restaurant. Meatball Hero My now (semi)famous meatballs— thanks to their success at Milkflower— have finally made their way onto our menu. In addition to the spaghetti and meatballs, and the often-specialed meatball appetizer, we have also added a meatball hero to our lunch menu. It is the same hand-chosen blend of beef, and fatty pork, ricotta, parmesan milk and bread crumbs, served in my roasted garlic tomato sauce, dripping with melted fontina cheese, and topped with fresh basil and buttermilk fried onions. Salad Nicoise A classic, ours isn’t much different— other than the fact we use a salmon filet instead of tuna, resting in a bed of haricot vert, red onion, hard boiled egg, bell peppers, nicoise olives, and red bliss potatoes. It is a welcome array of spring vegetables on a light salad, dressed in a lemon-dijon vinaigrette Beef Tartar All natural, black angus sirloin, hand cut to order, mixed with a spicy mustard sauce, also inspired by The Mark by Jean Georges’ tartar, (which by the way is f@#$ing bomb), and topped with fresh basil and a quail egg yolk and served with a toasted baguette. The mix has raw egg yolk, whole grain mustard, shallots, cornichons, chipotles, and olive oil—another refreshing new dish for the spring. Chef Yair Lenchner Marketa 37-17 30th Ave, Astoria, NY 11103 (347) 813-4437


BM042014
To see the actual publication please follow the link above