Introducing John Rush-Indonesian jerked chicken with grilled romaine hearts and "trappist" beans.

In my never ending quest for all things food, I came in contact with John Rush through a mutual friend. After a few e-mails it became very apparent that like me, John has a strong passion for food and we became fast friends. His career in the kitchen began when he was fourteen years old at a restaurant called The Gourmet Chalet in his home town of Northampton, Pennsylvania. He worked there until he graduated high school, and then attended the Culinary Institute of America to hone his chops as a chef, graduating with honors. While in college he interned in Germany at a Michelin Star restaurant and then came to Boston where he fine tuned his skills at Radius, one of Boston’s premier dining destinations. He is currently the Sous Chef at The Ashmont Grill in Dorchester creating awesome comfort food with an exciting twist. John will be providing us with some great recipes and stories for the site, so please join me in welcoming him aboard! Below is one of his signature creations that you can make at home!!!!

http://ashmontgrill.com/

Indonesian jerked chicken with grilled romaine hearts and 'Trappist' beans

“Very well suited for the general home cook. All items are easily available in grocery stores and the price point is very low.”

Indonesian Jerked Chicken (serves 8)

8 ea. Chicken Breasts (thighs will work, too)

1 cup Grapeseed Oil

1/2 cup Lime juice
1/4 cup Cane sugar
1/2 cup Parsley, chopped
2 Tbsp Thyme, chopped
2 ea. Garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp, Paprika, sweet
2 Tbsp. Cumin
1 Tbsp. Cayenne, ground
1 Tbsp. Salt
2 Tsp. Turmeric, ground
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg, ground
1/4 tsp. Star Anise

In a large bowl, combine all wet ingredients (Grapeseed oil and lime juice). In a spice grinder, combine cumin and star anise ...grind until powder. Finely chop parsley and thyme and gently wisk all dry ingredients into wet. Microplane (or mince) garlic into mixture and incorporate. Pour over chix breats and allow to marinate for up to 8 hours. Grill or bake until 160 degrees is achieved.

Grilled Romaine Hearts (serves 8)

4 ea. Romaine Hearts

1 cup EVOO

1/2 cup Lemon juice

1/2 Tbsp. Salt

1 tsp. Black Pepper, ground

Cut romaine hearts into halves. Season with EVOO, salt, pepper and lemon juice. Grill until leaves are tender.

Trapist Beans

2# Black beans, dried

1 ea. Onion, small dice

3 ea. Garlic cloves, shaved

2 ea. Tomatoes, diced

500 mL Trapist beer (Chimay, etc.)

1/2 gal Chix stock

1 ea. Sachet (recipe follows)
2 tbsp fennel seed
1 tbsp coriander
1 tbsp cumin
1 tsp chili flake
2 ea. bay leaf
1/2 bu. cilantro stem
8 sprigs thyme

1 tbsp salt

1/2 bu. marjoram, chopped

1 cup creme fraiche (or sour cream if necessary)

Soak beans overnight. Cook beans until tender, because they will minimally cook in the braising liquid. Any amount of acidity will hinder the cooking process of the beans, so do not assume the beans will cook much further in the braising liquid. In a separate pot, sweat the onions and garlic until tender. Add the tomatoes and reduce until a strong caramelizing is achieved. Deglaze with Trappist beer and reduce by half. Add chicken stock, cooked black beans and sachet and reduce until beans are just covered with liquid. Finish with salt, chopped fresh marjoram and creme fraiche.