THE CHOPPING BLOCK – CHEF PROFILES
Nick Orme Dennis
Favorite class to teach
I love to teach basic skills. people need to remember the fundamentals of great cooking and what it requires to get there.
Training/education
Attended Elgin College Culinary Arts program, Elgin Illinois 1982-1984; Culinary Institute of America, Hyde Park N.Y. Continuing Education Unit, School Nutrition 1994; Chef-Instructor, Institute of Technology Culinary Arts Division, Clovis California, 2002-2006
Cooking since
My first cooking experience was as a child, But I started cooking professionally in 1980 at the Mill Race Inn in Geneva Illinois
Favorite childhood food experience
I used to fake being sick so I could stay home from school and I would make candy and confections for my friends, For a nominal fee of course.
What made you want to become a chef?
I have known this was my life from early on. Our kitchen growing up was the meeting place of our home and my parents were great cooks and mom was a canner and master gardener so we were always in the kitchen or in the greenhouse chasing slugs
What is your signature dish?
Anything off the Grill or camp fire. I have a Smoked Salmon Hash recipe that I like to whip out on occasion.
What are the 5 ingredients you can’t live without?
Cream for my Coffee, Salmon, Capers, Garlic and Balsamic vinegar.
What do you love about cooking?
Those who are there to enjoy it.
When you’re creating a new recipe, what influences and inspires you?
Usually an ingredient that I stumble across and can’t get out of my head or can plain, just have fun with.
What advice would you give a new cook?
Don’t be afraid to make mistakes or take chances on new techniques, we’ve all burned a pot beyond repair.
What are you doing when you’re not cooking?
Spending quiet time at home with my Fiancé Kerry and our Boxer. Scooter
Describe your perfect evening.
70 degrees and clear skies, a good breeze, a pile of hard wood for the fire, my hammock and of course my girls and a full belly of ribs.
If you had friends in from out of town, where would you take them to eat?
The Beach!
Where are you from?
I grew up all over the West and Mid-west, early years on the west coast, High school and College here in Chicago and the last Twenty-five years split between California, Washington, Alaska and Colorado
What was your favorite vacation?
Musky fishing at Eagle River Wisconsin or working in Alaska. Worked all day but felt like a vacation every time I looked out on the scenery
What are your hobbies?
I love Physics. Astro, Nuclear, Quantum, String. Contemplating the stars. that sort of thing
What is your favorite band?
Old punk, Violent Femms or Marvin Gaye or Bob Marley or Bob Seager. I am all over the place
What is your favorite sports team?
Da Bears
If you could have dinner with one person, who would it be?
My Mother
What are your guilty pleasures?
Black Pepper Chocolate or Carm’s Chocolate Italian Ice. Can’t get enough
Who is your favorite celebrity chef?
I really don’t have one, Chef Paul Prudhomme was my first culinary idol, Martin Yan is a really neat guy, Alton Brown is a hoot, Bobby Flay is just one of us and don’t get me started on Gorden Ramsy, but no real favorite.
What 5 tools should every new cook have in the kitchen?
Ability to listen and understand, the knowledge that they will get better, A set of sharp knives, a pair of comfortable shoes and a copy of the Joy of Cooking
What resources would you suggest for Chopping Block clients?
The Public Library. Check a book out before you buy it or go on-line to review it.
List/describe three of your favorite tips or techniques you use in the kitchen.
Tip one: Clean as you go, Keep it clean and neat. This helps you maintain sanitation and it makes cooking more fun, especially at the end of a project. Tip two: Buy large cuts of meat or whole products such as whole chickens or whole fish and cutting them down yourself. This will save money but more importantly keep a skill like butchery fine tuned. Tip three: Have fun!! Be outrageous, be creative, try new recipes but “consider your audience”.
Please supply any blogs, links, posts, or other social media that you wish to share.
I am not much of a blogger but I do network through the American Culinary Federation. It is a rich resource of information to find answers and direction to culinary questions and a way to mingle with chefs with all types of backgrounds.