SOU!_Spring20_Ed-3rd ad ending-final.qxp_Road Trip_Cinci.qxd 3/2/20 11:31 AM Page 24
profile | sou! southern kitchen
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BY ROGER BAYLOR PHOTOS BY DAN DRY
smiling Chef James Moran asked, “So…. How can we make our steak frites original?” We were seated at SOU! (“so you”), his new restaurant on Linn Station Road in the East End, and Moran was talking about his approach to reinventing a classic bistro dish: the 8-oz hanger steak. “We went Korean on them. I didn’t think people would take to the Korean flavor profile, but now it’s our top seller.” And the frites? “For the umami fries I take shaved bonito tuna, nori, mustard seeds, tons of dry spices. We toast them, blend it up and get a spicy, kind of fishy, crazy seasoning. It’s like upscale hot fries.” Moran’s hanger steak frites is accented with a beef fat aioli boasting expressive gochujang (a Korean chili paste that is rapidly becoming a staple condiment in restaurants and home kitchens around the country), and pineapple brown sugar tamari. Moran garnishes the dish with pickled carrots, watermelon radishes, cilantro, basil, fresh lime, olive oil and sea salt. “Let those beautiful herbs and ingredients speak for themselves,” he says. “That citrus salad’s going to cut through all the spice, all that brown sugar, and balance out the dish.” This, in a nutshell, is James Moran’s toolbox.
24 Spring 2020 www.foodanddine.com
SOU! Southern Kitchen & Bar 9980 Linn Station Rd.
502.614.6499 sou-louisville.com