Damn You, David Chang!

When it comes to cooking, inspiration can be a vital piece to the puzzle. It can take that boring dish you know so well and elevate it to a whole new level. Personally, I never know when or where I am going to get inspired to create new foods. When I do, I have to stop what I'm doing to start writing down all the ideas I get before I forget them. In the case I'm going to tell about you here, I didn't just feel inspired, I felt challenged. I felt like everything up to now had been put into question. And it all started because of the man pictured above, Chef David Chang.

Chef David Chang of the Momofuku Restaurant Group is doing big things right now. He has numerous restaurants in New York and has expanded to Canada and Australia. The truth is, I hadn't really known about this guy until recently. My brother told me about him first. Then, I saw him kickin' it with Anthony Bourdain. He seemed like a decent guy, but I never gave it too much thought.

One day, while screwing around on twitter, I saw someone put a post that David Chang had a show premiering on PBS. I figured I'd check it out and see what all the fuss is about. Plus, I've always liked the cooking shows that PBS puts out. They seem to be a bit more raw, with less bullshit and more cooking.

The show is called The Mind of a Chef. That night, they showed 4 episodes. I have DVR, so I just recorded all of them with the intention of watching them later. I ended up watching one, and that one episode left a serious mark on me.

The episode was all about noodles. And when noodles are the main topic, instant noodles always have to be addressed. Here, is where they say, the plot thickens.

They show him in the kitchen and he says he's going to do a couple dishes using the instant ramem. The first dish was ok. It was like a play on an Italian dish. Whatever.

Then he said he was going to make Parisian Gnocchi from the instant ramen. To illustrate that, he took this:

And turned it into this:

The second picture is not of Chang's finished product, but it's the closest representation that I could find.

For those of you that don't know, Parisian Gnocchi isn't potato based. The base is pretty much the same you use to make eclairs and cream puffs. Instead of just baking the mix, you poach it in hot water, then saute to a golden brown.

Now, when I heard him say that he was going to make gnocchi, I had to rewind it. I knew I didn't hear that right. "Gnocchi? No fuckin' way!" But that's what he said.

He started off by barely cooking the noodles in milk until they just started to soften up. He then threw the noodles in a blender with a little of the milk and 4 egg yolks. He blended that until gooey.

He poured the mix in a piping bag and let it cool. Once cooled, he piped small pieces into boiling water for a quick poach. They were then tossed in olive oil. The last step was to saute in butter for color and texture. He served it topped with parmesan and green onion.

It's tough to tell how many emotions I went through while watching this. I was shocked at first. Then disbelief. Then anger. Then amazement and awe. It seriously blew my mind.

My thoughts went from "What?!?! You can't do that!" to "HOLY SHIT! He's doin' it!". Then, another rewind on the DVR, to "HE'S REALLY FUCKIN' DOING THIS!" By the end, my jaw was on the floor and my brain was nowhere to be found.

As I laid in bed that night, my thoughts and feelings were more of jealousy and envy. "I can't believe this mother fucker made gnocchi from instant ramen! Son of a BITCH!" Part of me was mad at Chef Chang for doing it. Part of me felt like "How come I didn't think of that???" Plus, he made it look so easy! That Bastard!

After even more thoughts, I felt like he was even showing off a bit. "OOhHh, look at me! I can make instant ramen into anything!" Then, it hit me. He wasn't showing off. Ok, maybe he was showing off a little bit. But what he was doing was showing that it's just food. It's just cooking. This isn't rocket science.

I saw it as him firing the first shot. Like he almost came out to me and said "This is what I can do. Now, what can you do?"

Ever since I watched that episode, I've had this feeling like there are no limits to what can be done, or what I can do. I feel like I need to push myself even harder in the kitchen to make the best foods I can.

Now, I actually laugh a little at the whole thing. It wasn't a beautiful sugar showpiece that inspired me. It wasn't a fancy 25 course meal from Alinea or The French Laundry that pushed me forward. It was a guy fucking around with instant ramen that lit the fire beneath me.

Inspiration can come from anywhere. Don't be afraid to embrace it and run with it.

I'm out.

J. Miller