Skip to content
Left arrow
FOUR Magazine logo
Search icon

Heritage by Sean Brock

Recipes
|
26 Jan 2015
|
4 min read
Diving into the deep south of the United States, Chef Sean Brock’s new book Heritage takes a look at the recipes that inspire his two restaurants, Husk, in Charleston and Nashville. Here are two inspiring recipes from the book.

Many chefs have their first exposure to cooking at a young age. For , who wasborn and raised in rural Virginia, it was the experience of his family growing their own food that left a deep impression. “This was a coal-field town with no restaurants or stoplights,” he explains. “You grew and cooked everything you ate, so I really saw food in its true form. Youcook all day, and when you’re not cooking, you’re preserving. If you were eating, you wereeating food from the garden or the basement–it’s a way of life.” These were the buildingblocks that Brock remembered as he began his career as a chef, inspiring a lifelong passionfor exploring the roots of Southern food and recreating it by preserving and restoring heirloomingredients.

Quail Stuffed with Morels and Cornbread, with Baked Red Peas and Green Garlic Puree

Serves 6

Quail graces many a table in the South. I like to serve it stuffed, because the stuffing helps to keep the bird moist while cooking and the meat is less likely to overcook. This stuffing with fresh morels is one that I often make for Thanksgiving. The baked red peas were inspired by BBQ baked beans. It only seems right to serve them alongside an iconic bird like the bobwhite quail. Both speak to the long history of hunting, gathering, and gardening so precious to the South.

Stuffing

  • 3 cups kosher salt
  • 1 pound fresh morels
  • 1 recipe Cracklin’ Cornbread
  • ½ cup small dice Vidalia onion
  • ½ cup small dice celery
  • 2 tablespoons chopped tarragon
  • 1 teaspoon celery seeds
  • ½ cup Chicken Stock
  • 1 large egg, lightly beaten

Quail

  • 6 semiboneless quail (about 4 ounces each), rinsed under cold water
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • ¼ cup duck fat
  • 1 bunch thyme
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 4 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled

Green Garlic Puree

  • 2½ pounds green garlic
  • 1 cup Vegetable Stock
  • 1 tablespoon cream cheese
  • Baked Sea Island Red Peas, warm

Methods:

For the stuffing:

1. To clean the morels, fill a large, clean bucket or deep container with 5 gallons warm water, add 1 cup of the salt, and stir until it is dissolved. Add the morels and let them soak for 1 hour.

2. Using a wire rack, push the morels down a little and, with your other hand, skim any leaves and debris off the top with a mesh strainer. Remove the rack and gently lift out the morels, being careful not to disturb the debris that falls to the bottom. Repeat this procedure twice using the remaining 2 cups salt, then lay the morels out on a wire rack and let them air-dry at room temperature for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until they are completely dry. Slice the morels into ¼-inch rounds.

3. Crumble the cornbread into a bowl, add the sliced morels, onion, celery, tarragon, celery seeds, chicken stock, and egg, and stir well. The stuffing should be evenly moist.

For the quail:

1. Stuff each quail with about ½ cup of the stuffing. You will have some left over, which you can bake (in a 350°F oven) or freeze for later use. Season the quail with salt and pepper.

2. Heat two large cast-iron skillets over very high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of the duck fat to each skillet. When the fat shimmers, add 3 quail to each skillet, breast side down, and cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Remove the quail from the skillet, reduce the heat to medium, and arrange half the thyme in each skillet to make a bed for the quail. Place the quail seared side up on the thyme and divide the butter and garlic between the skillets. Cook, basting the quail, until they are cooked through, about 6 minutes. The quail are best served at once, but you can hold them in a 200°F oven for up to 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, for the green garlic puree:

1. Shave the garlic, equal parts green and white, as thin as possible on a mandoline. Wash the shavings in several changes of water.

2. Place the garlic and stock in a large saucepan, bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, and simmer until the garlic is tender, about 7 minutes. Blend the vegetable stock and garlic in a blender on high until very smooth, about 5 minutes. Add the cream cheese and blend for another 2 minutes.

To complete:

1. Pour ¼ cup of the garlic puree into the center of each of six warm plates. Place the baked peas on the puree and top each plate with a quail.

Extracted fromHeritagebySeanBrock (Artisan, £27.99). Copyright©2014. Photographs by Peter Frank Edwards


Charleston Ice Cream

Serves 4

Gullah people of West African origin often cooked rice using a one-pot method known as “soaked rice,” where the rice is simmered covered with twice its volume of water for about twelve minutes and then left to sit without lifting the lid for at least another fifteen or twenty minutes. Some Charlestonians call this the “no-peek” style, and it works well with most commercial brands of long-grain rice. True Carolina Gold rice takes a good bit more effort, but the result is the subtle flavors of the rice at their finest. We serve Carolina Gold simply, in bowls, with a dollop of good butter, scattered with herbs and flowers that are in season at the time. Because of its creamy texture, this has been called “Charleston ice cream” for hundreds of years—plus, it can be scooped.

Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
  • 1 fresh bay leaf
  • 1 cup Anson Mills Carolina Gold Rice
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
  • Herbs, flowers, and benne seeds (optional)

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 300°F.

2. Put 4 cups water, the salt, pepper, and bay leaf in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir to be sure the salt has dissolved, then reduce the heat to medium. Add the rice, stir once, and bring to a simmer. Simmer gently, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the rice is al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain.

3. Spread the rice out on a rimmed baking sheet. Dry the rice in the oven, stirring it occasionally, for 10 minutes. Scatter the butter evenly over the rice and continue stirring every few minutes. The rice should be dry in approximately 5 minutes more: all excess moisture should have evaporated and the grains should be separate. Serve immediately with a sprinkle of herbs, flowers, and benne seeds, if you wish.

Extracted fromHeritagebySeanBrock (Artisan, £27.99). Copyright©2014. Photographs by Peter Frank Edwards

See our profile of Sean .

World’s best winner 2014     |     World’s best luxury lifestyle media brand 2022

About

|

Editions

|

Contact

|

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 Four magazine

|

All Rights Reserved

About

|

Contact

|

Editions

|

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 Four magazine

|

All Rights Reserved

four-magazine.com use cookies to deliver an optimised experience. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of all cookies used.
Cookie settingsaccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.

CookieDurationDescription
__cfduid1 monthThe cookie is used by cdn services like CloudFare to identify individual clients behind a shared IP address and apply security settings on a per-client basis. It does not correspond to any user ID in the web application and does not store any personally identifiable information.
_abck1 yearThis cookie is used to detect and defend when a client attempt to replay a cookie.This cookie manages the interaction with online bots and takes the appropriate actions.
bm_sz4 hoursThis cookie is set by the provider Akamai Bot Manager. This cookie is used to manage the interaction with the online bots. It also helps in fraud preventions
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement1 yearThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Advertisement".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
ts3 yearsThis cookie is provided by the PayPal. It is used to support payment service in a website.
ts_c3 yearsThis cookie is provided by PayPal when a website is in association with PayPal payment function. This cookie is used to make safe payment through PayPal.
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Functional

Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.

CookieDurationDescription
akavpau_ppsdsessionThis cookie is provided by Paypal. The cookie is used in context with transactions on the website.
nsidThis cookie is set by the provider PayPal. This cookie is used to enable the PayPal payment service in the website.
tsrce3 daysThis cookie is set by the provider PayPal. This cookie is used to enable the PayPal payment service in the website.
x-pp-ssessionThis cookie is set by the provider PayPal. This cookie is used to process payments from the site.

Performance

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

CookieDurationDescription
YSCsessionThis cookies is set by Youtube and is used to track the views of embedded videos.

Analytics

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

CookieDurationDescription
_ga2 yearsThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to calculate visitor, session, campaign data and keep track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookies store information anonymously and assign a randomly generated number to identify unique visitors.
_gid1 dayThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to store information of how visitors use a website and helps in creating an analytics report of how the website is doing. The data collected including the number visitors, the source where they have come from, and the pages visted in an anonymous form.

Advertisement

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.

CookieDurationDescription
_fbp3 monthsThis cookie is set by Facebook to deliver advertisement when they are on Facebook or a digital platform powered by Facebook advertising after visiting this website.
fr3 monthsThe cookie is set by Facebook to show relevant advertisments to the users and measure and improve the advertisements. The cookie also tracks the behavior of the user across the web on sites that have Facebook pixel or Facebook social plugin.
IDE1 year 24 daysUsed by Google DoubleClick and stores information about how the user uses the website and any other advertisement before visiting the website. This is used to present users with ads that are relevant to them according to the user profile.
test_cookie15 minutesThis cookie is set by doubleclick.net. The purpose of the cookie is to determine if the user's browser supports cookies.
VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE5 months 27 daysThis cookie is set by Youtube. Used to track the information of the embedded YouTube videos on a website.

Others

Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.

CookieDurationDescription
_gat_gtag_UA_120081375_11 minuteThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to calculate visitor, session, campaign data and keep track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookies store information anonymously and assign a randomly generated number to identify unique visitors.
_gat_gtag_UA_83740222_11 minuteThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to calculate visitor, session, campaign data and keep track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookies store information anonymously and assign a randomly generated number to identify unique visitors.
_mcid1 yearNo description
ak_bmsc2 hoursNo description
CONSENT16 years 9 months 2 days 6 hoursNo description
ec_store_chameleon_fontsessionThis cookie is provided by Ecwid and it is used to save the font utilised in the website's online store.
enforce_policy1 yearNo description
l7_az30 minutesNo description
LANG9 hoursNo description
x-cdnThis cookie is provided by Paypal and is used in context with shopping transactions on the website's store.