Alon Shaya is a James Beard Award-winning chef, restaurateur, cookbook author, and television personality who combines the food he grew up in Israel with flavors and techniques from around the world, from France to New Orleans. It is known for its unique cooking style. some.
His splashy new venture, Safta 1964, a culinary residency at Wynn Las Vegas, has an ambitious menu befitting the entertainment capital of the world. But the inspiration behind the concept is even more special. Like his Denver restaurant Shaya’s Safta, which he opened in 2018, Safta 1964 is named after his grandmother, whom he calls “the muse of original cuisine.”
The 1964 Safta is “a homage to my grandmother and the kinds of dinner parties she would have thrown in her heyday,” Shaya said.
“With Safta 1964, we travel back in time and imagine the magical dinner parties she would have thrown in the 1960s. For the ultimate celebration, I used my favorite ingredients and We have all the fun tableside productions for you.”
These fun touches include tableside Jell-O service, Salatym platters, and Towers of Gazoz, a retro soda popular in Tel Aviv’s early days before soda became widely available. Masu. However, this does not mean that style is more important than content. The fine Israeli home cooking that Shaya is known for still exists, largely inspired by his grandmother.
“Some of my first memories of food were in my Safta kitchen in Jaffa. She would scorch vegetables directly on the stove until there was no turning back, turning them into rutenitsa and baba ganoush.” It was through Safta that I first fell in love with food because of its aroma, and it was through Safta that I learned to be patient as the humble eggplant charred over a flame until it became smoky and meltingly creamy. So this was one of the first things I added to the menu at Safta 1964,” Shaya told The Nosher.
Check out Chef Alon Shaya’s recipe for Baba Ganoush below. You can also read more about his culinary journey here. (In the meantime, bookmark his slow-roasted lamb shoulder recipe for the next time you want to wow your dinner guests.)
Recipe provided by Alon Shaya, Chef and Co-Founder of Pomegranate Hospitality (New Orleans: Saba at Four Seasons Hotel New Orleans, Saba’s Lounge, Miss River, Chandelier Bar, Denver: Safta, Bahamas: Silan at Atlantis Paradise Island, Las Vegas: Safta 1964, Wynn Las Vegas). author, “Shaya: A food journey, a journey back to Israel”.
- 2 large (1 pound) eggplant
- 1 large clove garlic, crushed
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons raw tahini
- 1 tablespoon ice water
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1/2 teaspoon morton kosher salt
- Prick the eggplant all over with a fork before grilling. When cooking on a gas stove, if you’re concerned about messes, it’s a good idea to line the burners with foil. Place each eggplant directly on its side over a gas stove burner and cook over medium heat for 25 to 30 minutes, until the bottom is haggard and blistered with papery white charred bits. — When you think it’s ready to turn, you can probably cook that side for another 5 minutes.
- Flip the eggplant and cook the other side until browned. If you notice that some parts are not colored, try rotating it a little. It’s done when it’s evenly burnt. You can drill a hole in the neck without any resistance. It will take a total of 40-50 minutes. The uglier it is, the more flavor there is inside. Remove from heat and let cool.
- Soak the garlic in the lemon juice for at least 30 minutes, then remove and discard the garlic. Whisk lemon juice with tahini and ice water. Don’t worry if it seems stuck at first. Keep whisking and it will magically become light and smooth.
- Cut off the stems of the eggplants, cut them in half lengthwise, and gently open them. Scoop out the pulp, being careful not to add too much of the bitter, papery char.It’s not the end of the world if there are a few stowaways. — It just adds a little bit of smokiness.
- Scoop all the creamy pulp through a fine sieve to remove excess liquid, then chop it a few times to make it easier to spread. Mix with the prepared tahini mixture, sour cream, and salt and serve at room temperature.
- Preparation time: 35 minutes
- Cooking time: 50 minutes
- Category: side dish
- Method: Stove
- cooking: Israeli
