Saturday, June 23, 2012

Bite's Brilliant Chef Shares Scallop Recipe

 Chef Matt Weishampel's Show and Tell: Bite's Popular Scallops



Bite Restaurant and Catering's creative genius of a chef, Matt Weishampel, gave a great demonstration--and imparted some useful culinary knowledge--on the Hampton Roads Show's cooking segment Friday, June 22. (The Hampton Roads Show is a lifestyle, community program that airs on weekdays at 11 a.m. on Wavy-TV10.)

Chef made Bite's Himalayan Salt Grilled Scallops, served with creamed leeks, fresh corn, foraged mushrooms and sorrel have been a favorite since Bite began serving dinner four months ago. When the new summer menu was unveiled, customers  were thrilled to see that the scallop dish was still on it; available, in both a small Bite, a medium Bite, or as mega-Bite a portion as diners would like to order! 

We're waiting for The Hampton Roads Show to upload a video of Chef's cooking segment. Until then, you can check it out here: Old school recording of Chef's demo of Himalayan Salt-Grilled Scallops


Want to know what a great guy Chef is? He's sharing the recipe. Let us know how it turns out!

Bite's Himalayan Salt-Grilled Scallops

Himalayan Salt Grilled Scallops
Yield 2 servings
Scallops
4-6 Scallops (10/20 size)
2 Tbs. EVOO
1 tsp Cracked Pink Peppercorn

Creamed Leeks and Corn
2 Bunches Leeks
¼ lb Unsalted Butter
2 Tbs. Kosher Salt
½ cup White Wine
1 Pint Heavy Cream
2 Ears Fresh Corn cut off cob
Fresh herbs chopped (tarragon, chive, parsley)

Seared Mushrooms
1 ½ cup Oyster Mushrooms
1 Clove Garlic
2 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
1Tbs Canola Oil
1 Tbs Butter

Method of Preparation
(If you are using a salt block, make sure to temper it according to manufacturer’s directions before cooking on top of it. If a salt block is not available, sub EVOO for Vegetable oil when cooking in a pan with high heat)
Leeks and Corn
Trim leeks by cutting off the green half. Split leek in half length, Cut across leek halves in ¼ in cuts (they should look like “half moons”). Rinse leeks under cool running water to break apart layers and rinse away dirt. Set aside.
Begin melting butter on low-medium heat. Butter should be melting, not boiling. When melted, add leeks and kosher salt. Stir to disperse salt throughout. Cover and cook on LOW heat for 10-15 mins. to slow sweat leeks, stir occasionally. Remove lid, Stir again there should be no brown color on bottom of pot (if there is, be sure to scrape it free so it does not burn). Add wine and turn heat up to medium. Reduce wine by ½.  Add heavy cream and corn. Continue to cook on medium-low heat until cream is reduced to the top of the volume of leeks. Taste and season with salt if needed.
Seared Mushrooms
Heat oil in sautee pan on high heat, toss in thyme and crushed garlic clove. When garlic starts to color, add mushrooms to pan. Sear mushrooms for about 15-20 seconds. Add a pinch of salt, toss mushrooms to coat the rest of the way in oil, add butter and continue to sautee until butter is melted. Transfer out of pan to remove completely from heat. (This cooking process should take no longer than 1  minute from the time mushrooms hit the pan.)
Scallops
Remove side muscle from scallop and pat dry with paper towel. Coat scallops in oil and season with cracked Pink Peppercorns. Place Scallops on preheated to High heat salt block. Cook scallop for1 ½-2 minutes. Lift scallop and rotate 90 degrees. Cook for another 1 ½ -2 minutes or until golden brown. Flip scallops over and continue cooking for another 1 ½ -2 minutes. Fresh scallops can be enjoyed medium rare.
Plate Service
Spoon Creamed Leeks and Corn on to plate. Layer Fresh Sorrel on top of leeks. Place cooked scallops on top of sorrel. Spoom Mushrooms on to plate letting them fall around to create and “composed disaster” look. Add a small pinch of Sea Salt to top of each scallop. 

Recipe courtesy of Chef Matt Weishampel

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Specialty Wines Featured at Bite!


For Thursday, June 21, 2012:

To celebrate summer, our new hours and our exceptional new menu, Bite Restaurant and Catering is excited to share some new wines with our customers.

Wine Night Feature: Pic & Chapoutier

From our in-house expert Anita, a little background about the winemakers, and the wines:

Michel Chapoutier, a seventh generation wine maker for Chapoutier wines, has teamed up with Anne-Sophie Pic to create a remarkable collection of wines. A truly celebrated wine maker, Michel Chapoutier has more 90+ rated wines than any Rhône producer, and also has 16 wines rated at 100.

As if high marks and centuries of wine making were not enough for the world to hold him in high regard, M. Chapoutier also broke new ground in the wine making world when he introduced the first bottle labels featuring braille.

Anne-Sophie Pic is a fourth generation Chef who boasts the coveted  top award in the culinary world--three Michelin stars,  as well as the title of World’s Best Female Chef  as part of the World’s Best 50 Restaurants Awards.

We will be featuring three wines from this exciting new list this week for Wine Night:


Crozes-Hermitage Rouge 2010
                  100% Syrah; Rhône, France; 40-year old vines grown in granite; vinified in stainless steel


Luberon 2010
                  Grenache noir/Syrah; Luberon, France


Luberon (blanc) 2011
                   Grenache blanc/Clairette; Luberon, France

Our new Thursday night Happy Hour Wine Specials will definitely apply: 50% off bottles sold by the glass, 25% off the rest of the list!

Please note: if there's a demand for this wine, we'll continue to offer it at Bite.

Our new summer hours are 7 a.m.- 3 p.m., Monday-Friday for breakfast and lunch,  5 p.m.- 12 a.m. Thursday-Saturday for dinner. 

Visit www.enjoybite.com for more information. Make reservations: 757-486-0035 or email reservations@enjoybite.com. Visit us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter: enjoybite!