Chefs Cantu pushes boundaries with dishes, gadgets

By Richard Leong
NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - Chef Homaro Cantu describes the energy-saving cooking gadgets he invents with the same passion as the cutting-edge dishes he creates.
Cantu, 33, is the executive chef at Moto, a Chicago restaurant where diners can literally eat their menus and enjoy fish cooked and served inside a special polymer box designed by Cantu.
His inventiveness goes back to his childhood when he dismantled and rebuilt his father's lawnmower. He spoke to Reuters about his inventions and creating memorable meals.
Q: How do you describe your cuisine?
A: "Some people call it post-modern. I call it pleasurable, outside-the-box food."
Q: What type of diners does your restaurant cater to?
A: "They are people looking to be wowed. They want to see something they've never seen before. My goal is that I want them to remember every course in the next 10 years."
Q: Given your fascination with science, why did you decide to become a chef?
A: "If you choose to work in the scientific field, it's usually a very specialized subject you are working on. You are confined to that area. In the kitchen, as long as it runs and can turn a profit, a chef has so much ability to work on so many different things from hydrotechnology to storing energy to polymer ovens for increased efficiency in cooking ... That's a powerful thing."
Q: Do you see yourself as more of a food scientist than a chef?
A: "Everything in the kitchen is an opportunity. I don't know if it's science or physics or it's just cooking. When I turn on the faucet, I see untapped, recoupable energy that could be sent back to the grid."
Q: You have been working with algae in your kitchen. Why?
A: "Algae grows faster than anything else. We have been experimenting with it and creating biofuel out of it. The cool thing about it is that plants can grow really quickly from algae water instead of fortified water so you can spend some of that and use it as biodiesel while you are feeding the plants."
RECIPE
Crispy Sushi Hand Rolls (Makes 4 hand rolls) Continued...
Source: Reuters