UChicago Bite Issue XV: Winter 2021

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dear foodies & friend s

It is with happy hearts and loudly growling stomachs that we present to you the Winter 2021 issue of Bite Magazine! With restrictions beginning to lift and weather turning warmer, we hope these pages will inspire you to try some of our new favorite restaurants as you begin to (safely!) leave the house. Or, if you’ve come to the realization that a night in with friends and family is really all that you need (we don’t blame you), spice up your time at home by heading to the kitchen and experimenting with some of the delicious and comforting recipes our writers have shared.

For one of the best new sandwiches in town, be sure to head over to Humboldt Park and check out Jewish deli Jeff & Judes (7). And hey, while you’re in the neighborhood, why not double down and visit Ørkenoy for some Nordicinspired seasonal fare (6)? If you’re more in the mood for a modern Mexican and French upscale dining experience, treat yourself to a delectable meal at Tzuco (9). Looking to warm yourself up after the freezing winter? Learn how to create a unique tea blend to keep in your cupboard for rainy days (14). Or fill your apartment with the warming scent of gumbo, and teach yourself one of our three variations (24). If you’re looking for ways to simultaneously minimize food waste, try your hand at alt-milks, and indulge in dessert, meet okara: your new favorite ingredient (22).

As the pandemic and harsh Chicago winter kept us inside, we reminisced about how much we missed drip coffee (12), as well as were determined to learn more about the neighborhood we live in and how food inequality is affecting those around us (20). As we begin to think of sunnier (and hopefully, safer) days, we’re especially thankful for our friends, families, and foods that kept us warm as winter raged on. Enjoy the break, stay safe, and don’t forget to tag us on Instagram (@uchicagobite) with all your epicurean adventures.

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table of contents / 5 Ahjoomah’s Apron 6 ORKENOY 7 JEFF & JUDES 8 GAREEB NAWAZ 9 tzuco 10 Nothing Wrong with Basic Food 12 A LOVE LETTER TO DRIP COFFEE 14 THE TEA ON TEA 18 Bread Crumbs, Dill, A Bunch of Spices 20 A Tale of Two Cities: The Hidden Reality of Food Insecurity on the South Side 22 Chocolate Pound Cake: Okara, the Decadent Way 23 Back Alley Sandwich 24 Variations of Gumbo 26 Pistachio Old-Fashioned Donuts Editor-in-Chief OLIVIA XIONG Managing editor EMILY JACOBS creative director FELIX GONZALEZ blog editor FIONA LU communications director ANGELINA TORRE programming DIRECTOR EMILY ZHU designers Emily Her, Sophia Koock, Frances Schaeffler, Vivian Soong, Elaine Wan, Connie Zhen, VICTORIA kiElb writers Angélique Alexos, Markis Cheng, Esha Deokar, Kate Kaplin, Lily Levine, Lily Mansfield, Ben Miller, Arushi Mukherjee, Henna Nam, Maya OsmanKrinsky, Ian Resnick, Daniel Simantob, Thomas Song, Sofia Torriente, Evan Williams photographers Jerry Cao, Lina Hajnal, Karina Mak, Grace PegueSE, Shreya Minama Reddy, Angela Sha, COVER PHOTO KARINA MAK

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Credits: Grace Peguese, Jerry Cao, Karina Mak, Lina Hajnal, Olivia Xiong

inside the issue

REVIEW

BY ESHA DEOKAR PHOTOS BY KARINA MAK

AHJOOMAH’S APRON

As restaurants adapt to the pandemic, changing their styles and recipes to attract dwindling crowds of customers, one small Korean restaurant nestled in Chicago’s Chinatown maintained a simple philosophy: comfort. Ahjoomah’s Apron is named after the Korean word ajumma, which means “married woman” or “aunt,” and connects to the homestyle experience of the restaurant. The food synthesized the essential ingredients of Korean cuisine, from the relish of the gochujang sauce to the sweetness of the malt syrup, with an effortless flourish that made me feel as if I was eating a home cooked meal.

Ahjoomah’s Apron is one of the few Korean restaurants in Chinatown; it lies on a quiet street, with no lights or signs pointing to the restaurant. It speaks on its own; focusing more on the flavor and simplicity of the food and eschewing the neon, modern lights of most KBBQ restaurants. The walls are inscribed with cooking philosophies and the history behind staples in Korean cuisine. Paging through the menu, I found that it communicated the same ideas: home-cooked, traditional, uncomplicated. The ordering experience was also relatively easy, and the dishes were packed up and ready to go in under forty minutes.

Unboxing the food once back in Hyde Park released strong, punchy aromas––garlicky, tangy, and pungent. The tofu bibimbap was everything I expected from Ahjoomah’s Apron. If dine-in services were open, the bibimbap would have traditionally been served in a stone bowl, hot enough to continue cooking the rice on the bottom.

As you mix up the contents of the bowl, you can get perfectly crunchy morsels of rice in each bite. Since I ordered takeout, the rice was not as crispy but still had enough of a bite, that, when paired with the piquant gochujang and cool egg yolk, fused perfectly. After a long night of traveling, when I settled home to try the Galbi tang, I immediately felt rejuvenated. The beef was soft and flavorful, with barely any fat left on it to make it more tender and easier to digest. The most pleasant surprise was the japchae noodles. Unsure of how cold, chewy noodles would factor into my palette, I was taken aback by the flavor and texture captured in the first bite. The grayish noodles emanated an almost sweet aroma, tempered with the umami flavor in the soy sauce that was delightfully accompanied by fresh, crunchy seasonal vegetables.

Although eating in person may have made the experience feel even more authentic, ordering takeout was the best measure of how Ahjoomah’s Apron captured the “home cooked” essence thoroughly.

Ahjoomah’s Apron achieves its goal of purity through its food, atmosphere, and presentation. A great restaurant for a quick night out, it successfully imparted the message of relaxation and simplicity.

As restaurants begin to open once more, I look forward to the full experience of Ahjoomah’s Apron, complete with the perfect crunch of the rice in my bibimbap.

>> NEIGHBORHOOD CHINATOWN >> PRICES $$ >> DISHES TO TRY JAPCHAE TOFU BIBIMBAP

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REVIEW

ØRKENOY

BY BEN MILLER PHOTOS BY KARINA MAK

>>NEIGHBORHOOD Humboldt Park >>PRICES $$ >>DISHES TO TRY Salt Beef Smørrebrød, Fish Cakes

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Chicago winters are cold and hard. The sky darkens, the wind howls, and every trip outside becomes a tiring battle against the elements. However, even the most grueling Chicago January can hardly compete with what nature throws at Scandinavia. Nearing the Arctic Circle, temperatures regularly dip beyond midwestern extremes, and sunlight arrives for just a few hours each day. The environment is barely conducive to life, let alone enjoyable cuisine. But Ørkenoy, a self-described “brewery, kitchen and synergetic haunt” in Humboldt Park, takes a different view of the Nordic north. With a specific winter seasonal menu, Ørkenoy embraces the cold and produces surprisingly energetic fare to distract from seasonal doldrums.

Unfortunately, pandemic realities make Ørkenoy’s much-praised space inside the Kimball Arts Center inaccessible. Ordering delivery online does not offer the same panache, and was in fact somewhat cumbersome, mostly because it requires using two different outside sites to order and track food. When difficulty arose though, the restaurant’s staff was extremely helpful in sorting out technical issues.

The heart of Ørkenoy’s menu, winter or otherwise, lies in smørrebrød, a form of open-face sandwich originating in Denmark. All are served atop a piece of dark and chewy rye bread, whose seeds and crust remained remarkably intact after the trip to Hyde Park. The highlight of Ørkenoy’s smørrebrød selection is the Salt Beef, cured for seven days and topped with mustard, swiss, and homemade pickles. Though the brisket itself is rather mild and sweet, the mustard and especially the pickles impart a briny tang that gradually enfuses the meat. The pickles, a staple of wintertime Scandinavian food because of their longevity, are somewhat sweeter than a typical dill Vlasic, packing a punch of late-hitting heat that creates a pleasing and not overwhelming contrast with the rye and beef.

Ørkenoy’s shareables similarly couple straightforward concepts with inventive sauces and twists. The Caraway Knots are joyfully aromatic, especially when briefly reheated in a warm oven. Their crisp exterior and soft doughy core both pair effectively with the malted mustard and airy Garlic Cream Cheese dips they are served with. The Fish Cakes, which mold fresh cod into a familiar crab cake form, also thrive after a brief stovetop reheat. Though somewhat breading-heavy, the cakes maintain a dark crunch and a moderate tartness even without added horseradish. They are also served with a creamy and satisfying lemon tarragon sauce, whose strong anise flavor evokes the fun of Christmastime baking.

Undoubtedly, Ørkenoy’s food would be even more enjoyable dining in-person.

But perhaps because it was designed with bleak wintertime isolation in mind, its menu does not suffer too much for lack of context and charm. Hearty and filling, but never forsaking an energizing touch, Ørkenoy provides ideal instruction in how to survive these cold and lonely months from a cuisine that knows it best.

JEFF & JUDES REVIEW

A JEWISH DELI

Amid restaurant closures and a panicking food industry, August brought Chicago Jeff and Judes, a new “Jew-ish deli” in Humboldt Park. Owner Ursula Siker left the renowned Hoosier Mama Pie Company to start a bakery paying homage to Ashkenazi classics, with a special focus on bread, the underdog ingredient in deli sandwiches that can make or break the experience.

The restaurant is open for carry-out only, a product of what Siker called a “staggered-opening.” The white-walled interior is reminiscent of the Jewish delis I grew up with in New York City, albeit without the hustle and bustle—indoor capacity is limited to four customers at a time and bottles of sprayable hand sanitizer can be found around the waiting area. A domed-front deli case holds an array of baked goods, from beautifully blistered sourdough (country loaves, marbled rye, and sesame) to more obviously Jewish fare such as challah, rugelach, knishes, and hamantaschen. Though the decor is modest, the food at Jeff and Judes transported me to a blustery day on the Lower East Side. The hamantaschen was an exciting twist on a cookie I’ve only ever had sweet: a flaky rye crust surrounds a cream cheese, onion, and dill filling that recalled the flavor of a bagel. We followed it with the pastrami sandwich, which I can only describe as thrilling. Two slices of Siker’s marble rye slathered generously with grainy mustard held together a pile of thickly sliced pink pastrami, edges caramelized, meat falling apart with the grain. Every bite was proportionally balanced and the sandwich was not overwhelming, a definite improvement from

establishments like Katz’s or Carnegie Deli in New York. At $17 a pop, I would have preferred to eat it sitting at a counter, experiencing the deli in full, but as Siker says in a recent Instagram post, you can’t run a restaurant with top-notch ingredients, everything made by hand every day, paying your employees a decent wage, and struggling through a pandemic without upping your prices to reflect your effort. The $10 pulled brisket sandwich was a more reasonably-priced package of delight, the potato bun soaking up the sweet apple butter, sour pickle juice, and smoky sauce to create a warm, satisfying bite. I’ll be back for the Reuben, a quintessential Jewish deli classic composed of corned beef, Jarlsberg, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing on marble rye. We rounded out our meal with rugelach and cornflake kugel, both of which were last-minute additions to our order because we thought they looked too good to leave without. The rugelach was melt-in-the-mouth delicious, and the kugel was so textured and flavorful that my Orthodox Christian roommate pronounced herself Jewish.

I recommend Jeff and Judes for its honest and unpretentious food, despite its higher-than-expected price point. The deli has come under fire recently for their prices, but the thoughtful marrying of a classic menu with extraordinarily high-quality ingredients felt worth it.

BY MAYA OSMAN-KRINSKY PHOTOS BY LINA HAJNAL >> NEIGHBORHOOD HUMBOLDT PARK >> PRICES $$$ >> DISHES TO TRY PASTRAMI ON RYE RUGELACH

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GAREEB NAWAZ REVIEW

Out of the heavy flurries of the Saturday night winter storm, the corner of Ghareeb Nawaz’s (translating to Stranger’s Love) unassuming building jutted out, punctuating Devon Street’s neon signs and quaint grocery stores with twinkling lights seen through the windows and a terracotta colored exterior. As we stumbled in from the snow, drenched and frozen, Ghareeb Nawaz met us as a little oasis in West Rogers Park, with an enveloping fragrance of butter and spices. Plastered on the wall was an enormous menu, and we marveled at the cheap prices as we huddled from the cold and our appetites grew. People of all kinds milled in the restaurant, and different languages poured in and out of our ears.

In a few short minutes, our orders were called; what would normally be served on metal “thalis,” a large, flat steel plate, was given to us in takeout containers so we could safely enjoy our dinner. The containers held huge, but tightly packed, portions. The largest servings were the biryanis: the basmati rice tasted of saffron and glistened with ghee, sparingly dotted with tender pieces of chicken marinated with yogurt, cilantro, onion, and peppers.

I’m going to be honest; my mom’s biryani is literally unbeatable. But having only paid $5.49 for three meals’ supply of biryani, we were nonetheless impressed with the notes of garlic, ginger, and rose. The chili chicken came with two parathas, a type of layered flatbread with a crisp exterior and chewy interior. The parathas were luxuriously buttery and a blank canvas for the bombastically red chili chicken. Despite its color, the chicken surprised us with its pleasant flavors of lime, tomato, cumin, and smoky green chilies. The spices and vegetables clung to the meat, unlike the saucier curry options on the menu. The side of steamy, pillowy naan was only 75 cents but could have used a brush of ghee on top. Likewise, the samosas were also average—the classically triangular dough had potato filling that boasted a slight nuttiness and tang,

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but the outer shell was closer to puff pastry, far from the crackly, fried texture typically enjoyed. The mango lassis that accompanied our meals were syrupy; they were watered down from our expectations of the thick, creamy yogurt drink but still served as a break from the otherwise rich food.

If I gave into my bias on South Asian cuisine, I would be sorely remiss if I pegged Ghareeb Nawaz as the flavorsome cooking I expect from my trips to Kolkata, India. But that is comparing apples to oranges—from an objective perspective, it was feeling a stranger’s love, as the name suggests, via a comforting pile of food that warmed a hungry group of college students while a snowstorm raged on outside. For someone who’s new to South Asian food, it’s a gateway. It’s not the place you go to take pictures with chic views and hanging plants and art deco plating and truly authentic dishes. But it’s a place where you can go with the last couple dollars in your wallet, an empty stomach, an air of adventure, and good friends who are willing to do the same.

BY ARUSHI MUKHERJEE PHOTOS BY LINA HAJNAL >> NEIGHBORHOOD WEST ROGERS PARK/DEVON STREET >> PRICES $ >> DISHES TO TRY BONE-IN CHICKEN BIRYANI, CHILI CHICKEN WITH PARATHA

REVIEW

TZUCO

Tzuco, an innovative Mexican restaurant located in River North, is one of Michelin-starred chef Carlos Gaytán’s newer forays into the Chicago culinary scene.

Originally hailing from Huitzuco, a small town in Guerrero, Mexico, Gaytán sought to incorporate traditional influences from his hometown in his modern interpretation of Mexican cuisine, infused with French haute cuisine techniques. This vision is immediately noticeable upon entering the restaurant, which is draped in warm, earthy tones of tan and sepia. The restaurant is adorned with circular, globular lamps that infuse the space with soft light, while, in homage to the chef ’s Mexican roots, Mexican-themed pieces of art, including clay pottery, paintings of cacti, and palm branches decorate the walls of the interior, imbibing the space with Gaytán’s interpretation of Mexican artistic tradition.

In addition to the memorable interior space, Tzuco is also currently operating a heated, semi-enclosed outdoor patio during the winter in order to give diners an alternative option to indoor dining if they have any Covid-related concerns.

Moving onto the food itself, the flavors that Gaytán infuses his dishes with complement the homey yet chic ambience of the restaurant that juxtaposes a contemporary, urbane atmosphere with clear references to the chef ’s Mexican roots. Given that we visited Tzuco during brunch hours, we began our meal with the Acapulco-style shrimp ceviche, which was a zesty, refreshing appetizer and palate cleanser. While ceviches are generally known for being light and lemony starters, this particular shrimp ceviche stood out for its sweet, fruity undertones, which were the result

of the addition of orange juice to the pico de gallo. This sugary, citrusy element paired nicely with the tangier, sour components of the pico de gallo, which included lime juice, jalapeños, and cilantro. The combination of sweet and sour was also an excellent way to cut into the rich creaminess of the avocado and added freshness and vibrance to the chilled pieces of shrimp, which were the main component of the ceviche.

After the ceviche, we moved on to perhaps the most memorable course of our meal: guacamole con chapulines (grasshoppers). This dish primarily stood out for its visual features, since it was obviously quite a captivating sight to see around ten 2-inch grasshoppers spread across the pale green-white canvas of guacamole with queso fresco and a side of freshly made tortilla chips.

Some may find the thought of eating actual grasshoppers to be unpalatable, but upon tasting the dish, the grasshoppers’ taste was actually less jarring than initially expected. The grasshoppers were roasted to a crispy golden brown, and the textural crunchiness paired well with the creaminess of the guacamole and the queso fresco to create a well-balanced bite. The taste of the grasshoppers was salty and tangy with an almost earthy undertone, and while eating grasshoppers by themselves may be overwhelming, their savory flavors complemented the richness of the guacamole nicely and added a memorable kick to each bite.

We ended our meal on a more substantial note, having the tlacoyos as our final dish. The tlacoyos consisted of slowroasted pork marinated in citrus juice and annatto seed

BY THOMAS SONG PHOTOS BY KARINA MAK

>> NEIGHBORHOOD RIVER NORTH >> PRICES $$ >> DISHES TO TRY CEVICHE, TLACOYOS, GUACAMOLE CON CHAPULINES (cochinita pibil) that was served on top of crispy blue masa and garnished with a poached egg, black beans, and habanero salsa.

The dish was rich and filled the senses with the meaty tenderness of the roasted pork, the watery savoriness of the poached egg, and the granular umami flavors of the black beans that served as an interesting contrast to the spice of the habanero salsa. The pork managed to retain strong, fragrant flavors while remaining tender, while the masa was effective in soaking up the juices of the various garnishes and salsas. All in all, the tlacoyos were an excellent way to end a delicious meal, and our dining experience at Tzuco proved to be a highly enjoyable experience filled with bold flavors, unique ingredients, and a fantastic ambience.

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Nothing Wrong with Basic Food

By Markis Cheng

Photos by Grace Peguese

When making bao buns with my family, my aunt put me in charge of the important task of making the dough. I had to make sure it was perfect. Her entrusting me with a task in the kitchen meant that my cooking skills were worthy, and with heavy anticipation, I labored away at the buns. Using my own homemade recipe I had made almost a million times, my success was guaranteed; yet, in my haste, I grabbed baking soda instead of baking powder—big mistake.

After placing the buns into the steamer, my aunt was quite impressed.

“Almost as good as your grandma’s,” she said.

I peered into the glass lid of the steamer, eager to see what pillowy treasures were unfolding, but was immediately floored.

The buns had begun to yellow. My aunt, catching a glimpse of the brightly colored buns, stared at me, then the buns, and then back at me with a head shake of disappointment. After twenty minutes, the lid opened to reveal ghastly mustard-brown colored buns, with glossy, latex-tight skins. I was deeply embarrassed, and my mind raced for what could’ve gone wrong. However, while these were not the pristine white buns that were promised, they surprisingly took on a new texture and flavor unlike any other bun I had made before. They were extra supple and delightfully light and bouncy, almost taking on the warm smoky flavors of molasses, but without being too sweet. Most surprisingly, even with its unorthodox appearance, the buns were a hit amongst family, much to my chagrin.

Despite this unexpected success, the baking soda reacted in a way that I had never seen in the flavor and appearance of food. Most of the time, baking soda neutralizes acidic reactions within foods, but baking soda on its own told a very different story. At the molecular level, alkalines concentrate different atoms in the molecules of water differently than those of acids, establishing different chemical properties of foods in the process. By making water more basic, it changes the chemical environment of which carbohydrates, fats, and proteins react, resulting in stronger gluten formations, intensified pigments, and raised pH levels of food (which brings about a myriad of uses).

Unlike acids that use bright and acerbic notes to balance and brighten the flavors of food, basic or alkaline foods produce a distinct taste that isn’t so discernible to the palate, but create a new array of textures 10

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and flavors that add an additional depth to foods. Alkalines have a staggering amount of utility in terms of cooking.

The baos that I had made uncannily resembled the brown, glossy finish of German-style pretzels, and I was surprised to learn that alkaline, or baking soda, was actually used in these pretzels.

When things are exposed to basic solutions, it increases the rate of its Maillard reaction, or the rate at which it browns. The pretzels are boiled in a solution of lye (a base strong enough to be drain cleaner) and water, and when placed in the oven, the reaction of the lye to heat creates a beautiful burnished crust. Not only do the pretzels develop their unique taste and color, but also great crispness, evolving past any normal breadstick.

Alkaline-based ingredients also routinely transform dishes in Asian kitchens, counteracting yeast fermentation in bread making, tenderizing tough cuts of meats, and perhaps most quintessentially, giving noodles their distinguishing slippery and bouncy texture.

The toothsome feel of Japanese ramen or Chinese wheat noodles can be most definitely attributed to alkaline found in baking soda, very different from the texture of mass-produced pasta and egg based noodles.

My mistake may have lost me some face in my family’s kitchen, but I most definitely learned a new ingredient to have in my arsenal—one already in plain sight in my pantry. Whether it be adding baking soda to a batch of chicken wings for extra browning, or creating uniquely textured noodles, I know that acids aren’t the only way to enhance flavor and create balance. Despite what anyone else says, it’s okay for your food to be a little basic.

FEATURES

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B

efore I learned to use a French press, when coffee filters were strictly used to build parachutes and my only association with the word Chemex were titrations and failed stoichiometry quizzes, a cup of coffee fell into one of two categories set by my dad: 1. “Coffee,” 2. “Coffee as good as you get in Europe.” At the time, the latter had less to do with using single origin beans ground to precisely the right size and combined with the perfect ratio of water for exactly the right amount of time to achieve a balanced and full-bodied expression of the region with apricot overtones, dense tobacco base notes, and a bright core of acidity; rather, it only needed to meet a few criteria: it had to be strong enough to question if I was drinking a 16oz cup of espresso and it had to smell really, really, good—the smell that hit me when walking into The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf after basketball practice in fifth grade to get a Chocolate Ice-Blended® with no whipped cream since it would always clog the straw.

My foray into specialty coffee has expanded the once canonic category of “coffee as good as you get in Europe” into hundreds of micro-categories. I now know that good coffee can be bold and brazen, or fool you into thinking it’s tea. America is deep into its “third-wave of coffee,” and I, like many culinarily inclined twenty-somethings with a repressed love of stimulants and a penchant for the esoteric, have paddled out to see if I could catch on. I tried grinding beans by hand and finding subtleties in $7 pour-overs, but instead found myself sore and regretting not having spent the money on cookies.

Taxonomy is fun and fancy coffee is always a treat, but I am fine with my coffee not being as good as you get in Europe. Call it one of my few expressions of patriotism, but I take pride in American coffee, the kind described by Anthony Bourdain, patron saint of all things austere, as “light and sweet, preferably in a cardboard cup… It’s a beverage; it’s not a lifestyle.”

For almost a year, America has been deprived of one of its most valuable assets. We’ve been forced to abandon diner coffee, served in a slightly undersized mug that only narrowly balances out the fact that it’s been refilled 7 times. We’ve lost museum coffee, the kind served from a cart with a line that’s almost not worth waiting in and best savored alongside a giant unbranded rice-krispy treat that your sister ends up finishing after asking for one bite. Coffee dispensers have disappeared from waiting rooms and offices across the country, meaning we can no longer debate whether it’s okay to drink hot liquids after the dental cleaning we’ve put off for 8 months. Drunk college freshmen have been stripped of the rite of passage of running across Baker Dining Commons at 12 AM, shoeless, mug filled to the brim in each hand, hoping that coffee is all it will take to put them in the right mindset to study for their Calculus final.

When this is all over, you can find me at Salonica. I’ll be sitting at the bar with two pieces of rye toast covered in butter and strawberry jelly. My mug will be full of coffee and I will be happy. There’s a time and place for simple things and coffee has a habit of making its way into these moments. My goal is to try and not complicate things more than I have to. The first step? Less thinking, more drinking.

FEATURES

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T H E T E A O N T E A

FEATURES

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hen the weather outside is just not giving you that TLC you need to finally start focusing and getting your work done before the week starts, what better way to warm up than with a nice hot cup of tea? Coffee and hot chocolate enthusiasts may already be reeling at this point, but tea is so much more of a complex, beneficial beverage than one might expect. From the bold Earl Grey to lightly sweet chamomile, the possibilities and options are truly endless. Such a variety, however, does present the problem of which tea to choose.

Each little packet of dried leaves, herbs, and spices is incredibly rich with flavor and even contains its own unique properties. So where does one start? Enough is enough. It’s time to finally spill the tea on, well, tea!

Let’s start with the basics. According to Penn Medicine, all tea comes from the exact same plant: the Camellia sinensis. The differences that provide the distinct flavors of an Oolong or green tea, for example, come from the amount of time the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant are exposed to oxygen, or oxidized. For example, green tea is not given much time to oxidize in the production process, giving it a much lighter taste and color. Black tea, on the other hand, is allowed to oxidize until it turns black, hence its name, color, and bolder flavor profile. In addition, each tea is composed of properties that are thought to aid in a variety of health issues. Oolong tea increases alertness, while green and black teas are anti-inflammatory.

And then we come to herbal teas. Perhaps the white chocolate of the tea world, herbal teas, unlike the name suggests, are technically not tea as they do not contain leaves for the Camellia sinensis plant. Although they aren’t defined as “tea,” herbal teas are also extremely beneficial.

Additionally, when making your own tea blends at home, herbal teas are the easiest and most accessible.

The key to making your own herbal blends at home is to sample your ingredients and be open to experimentation. First, it’s important to taste each individual ingredient before adding it to the blend, as this will give you more of an idea of the flavor and strength that each component will add. As with many things, there is not simply one way to make the perfect cup of tea. A good rule to follow would be to not combine too many overpowering flavors together in one blend, but then again, everyone has different preferences on their ideal cup of tea. To get you started, here are a few specific herbs and spices to use for different tea occasions: When making a blend for relaxation and sleep, chamomile, lemon balm, lemongrass, and honey are all sweet, milder flavors that provide a soothing effect on the body. Ingredients with lemon have a zingier sweetness, versus the more neutral chamomile.

Honey also aids in soothing the throat, and in combination with ingredients including l e m o n , basically creates the

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equivalent of having hot lemon water with honey.

To cure stomach ailments or feelings of sickness, peppermint, ginger, and cinnamon can be extremely calming. While their bold flavors may become overpowering if used with a heavy hand, all of these herbs and spices contain anti-inflammatory properties that may aid in pain relief.

Finally, floral herbs such as hibiscus, rose, and rooibos are great additions to more sweeter, everyday blends. These ingredients not only add rich flavor, but also a beautiful, deep red color to the tea itself. Rooibos and hibiscus have also been shown to lower blood pressure levels. When your blend has been created, you can either add about 2 tablespoons to a kettle with hot water or, for a larger quantity, add about a quarter cup to a large mason jar.

Depending on the amount of liquid, the mixture should be steeped anywhere from 10-35 minutes before it is poured through a strainer and into your cup to enjoy!

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BREAD CRUMBS, DILL, A BUNCH OF SPICES

BY EVAN WILLIAMS

Fried chicken is, to me, synonymous with family reunions. Everyone and their cousin—literally— shuffles in a line that may wind down the hallway depending on the host’s floor plan, picks up in turn their paper plate, their napkin, their piece of hot chicken, their mashed potatoes, their corn, and any dessert offered. They reshuffle to a card table, the kids’ table, or stand in a doorway gnawing away.

Beyond the greasy golden crunch of a proper breading, the best part of that line is chatting with any number of aunts, uncles, cousins, family friends, and the temporary partners thereof. Something about the smell, the way the salt and the oil harmonize with the sugars in the tea and cookies, the way it all seeps into the walls and seems to interfere pleasantly with sound itself, forms a camaraderie between anyone lucky enough to be in that line.

My apartment, a five-person experiment turning friends of friends into close friends, has been coming together every Friday night for dinner since we began sharing the space in September. Having started with a humble Trader Joe’s gnocchi, we’ve honed our culinary abilities since. Highlights include chili made from a family recipe, hot pot, shakshuka, colada morada, and pies upon pies. Every dinner bell rung brought the apartment closer, but none quite so much as our fried chicken.

A fried chicken bond puts covalent bonds to shame. It is not only the ultimate comfort food, but also the ultimate companion food. No one is closer to others than when they’re sharing homemade fried chicken. My roommate, Dessa, took it to the next level.

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bite | winter 2021

She and I wandered Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, and HPP for some three hours on a Friday after classes gathering ingredients. For the breading, the spices must be just right, and the breadcrumbs must be specifically tailored to the event. When I asked her what we were looking for, the answer came: “Bread crumbs, dill, bunch of spices.”

She set up shop on our counter with two glass pans of flour, a colossal bowl of breadcrumbs, another of a haphazard, yet practiced bowl of spices (top secret), a bowl of garlic salt, and a pan of oil, hot. Dessa, knowing the power of partaking in fried chicken, adapted her recipe for the vegetarian among us (me). Blending pressed tofu, flour, a bunch of spices, and dill, she made a doughy ball to be sliced into tenders, breaded, and fried. Meanwhile, I peeled potatoes to be boiled, mashed, and blended with a cream cheese/butter combo that’ll stop a heart and restart it by offering seconds.

The five of us lined up with our plates and our napkins, shuffled around the counter in admiration, then nabbed legs, wings, and faux-tenders, doled out butter-yellow mashed potatoes, and plopped down to enjoy the almost-glowing food before us.

We talked for hours, gave powerpoint presentations on the apocalypse and Doctor Who villains, took photos, got seconds, and then thirds. Come the end of the night there was nothing more than a wing to be thieved by Oates, the apartment cat.

I don’t know when I’ll next shuffle through that line at a family reunion, but I do know that I’ll be telling everyone and their cousin about the wallop packed by breadcrumbs, dill, and a bunch of spices.

FEATURES

19

A Tale of Two Cities: The Hidden Reality of Food Insecurity on the South Side

Fighting a history of food inequity, local organizations work to restore their side of the city

By Lily Levine Illustrations by Victoria Kielb 20

bite | winter 2021

T

he differences between the North and South Sides of Chicago are far greater than mere geographical location. Unequal access to a variety of healthy, affordable, and fresh food illustrates just one health disparity afflicting the people of this city.

Desire Bernard, Program Manager and Executive Assistant to the CEO at the UChicago Charter Schools, has lived on the South Side for many years. She observed that before the Jewel-Osco opened on 61st Street and Cottage Grove Avenue in 2019, there had not been a grocery store in that area for 30 years.

“We need to eat just like everybody else. We need access to grocery stores, just like everyone else. Not just one sparse grocery store here and there,” said Bernard.

Members of the South Side community have been facing challenges with food insecurity long before COVID-19, yet it has taken a pandemic in order for their problems to be brought to light.

Food insecurity—defined as a lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life—can have detrimental social, biological, and political effects. The complex problem can reinforce the cycle of poverty, exacerbate pre-existing health conditions, and negatively impact educational achievement and professional development.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, approximately 13.7 million households, or 10.5 percent of all U.S. households, experienced food insecurity during 2019. In April 2020, food insecurity doubled nationwide. Low-income families with children saw the greatest income loss this year, with the issue disproportionately affecting black and brown bodies.

“What we’ve seen with COVID-19 is [that] white people go into stores, like Whole Foods, and find there is no food. And that’s when they start actually paying attention,” said Connie Spreen, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Experimental Station, a communitybuilding initiative on the South Side, “And that’s where food access finally becomes something that people talk about.”

Despite the pandemic, non-profit organizations on the South Side have continued their mission to alleviate hunger while adapting their efforts for the winter weather and Chicago health guidelines.

Founded in 2006 by Connie Spreen and Dan Peterman,

the Experimental Station has been building independent cultural infrastructure through various initiatives, including Blackstone Bikes, LINK Up Illinois, the 61st Street Farmers Market, and the Market Box mutual aid program, recently created during COVID-19. Over the summer, the new initiative distributed 3,266 boxes of fresh produce to 600 low-income, predominantly Black households.

Close by at Comer Children’s Hospital, Dr. Stacey Lindau and her lab teamed up with Pritzker Medical Students to address hunger in their own hospital. Spanning five different locations within the building, the self-serve, 24-hour Feed1st pantries are free to all staff, patients, and families, no questions asked. According to Dr. Lindau, the decision to make the pantries available without need for identification is an important part of minimizing the stigma and shame that comes with hunger, and it is a critical step in achieving food justice.

Focusing on community development through creating and maintaining neighborhood food systems, Urban Growers Collective (UGC) is another non-profit working to alleviate hunger in Chicago.

The organization, now with 8 urban farms primarily located on the South Side, builds economic opportunities for youth; encourages relationship-building and job readiness; and creates an awareness of urban agriculture. Their Fresh Moves Mobile Market has been delivering produce to well-frequented locations on the South Side every weekday this winter.

“Our work aims to address the inequalities and structural racism that exist in the food system and in communities of color,” wrote Laurell Sims, the Co-Founder along with Erika Allen. “We believe that engaging in this work will ultimately lead to healing trauma on many levels and improving the economic vitality and overall health of communities of color in Chicago.”

Though food justice is far from being achieved, these organizations are working relentlessly towards greater equity. By increasing accessibility to fresh produce and raising awareness of these issues, these programs are closing the gap, one meal at a time.

FEATURES

21

CHOCOLATE POUND CAKE:

OKARA, THE DECADENT WAY

BY HENNA NAM

PHOTOS BY ELAINE WAN

My newest quarantine obsession is making fresh soy milk at home. It’s so simple—soak soybeans overnight, then heat, blend, and strain in the morning— and so much better than anything you can buy out of a box at the store. You can drink it hot, cold, or turn it into tofu! The byproduct of this process is about 2 cups of steaming okara, a pulp composed of the insoluble parts of the soybean. It is high in protein and fiber, and has many applications in Korean, Japanese, Chinese, and Indonesian cuisines. Although I’ve tried some of the many delicious recipes that feature okara, my favorite way to use up my okara is to put it in chocolate pound cake. Every time I’ve made it for my housemates, it’s gone the next day. This recipe is luxurious, decadent, and the most nutritious dessert you never knew you needed.

prep

35 minutes

cook

40 minutes

makes

6-8 servings

GET 2 cups fresh or rehydrated okara ¾ cup brown sugar ¾ cup white sugar 4 tbsp melted butter ½ cup buttermilk 1 egg 2 tsp vanilla extract

½ cup cocoa powder, unsweetened 2 cups flour 1 tsp baking soda 2 tsp baking powder 1 cup chocolate chips (optional)

DO 1. Preheat oven to 350 °F. 2. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper.

3. Combine okara, brown sugar, white sugar, melted butter, buttermilk, egg, and vanilla extract in a large bowl. Mix until smooth.

4. In another bowl, sieve together cocoa powder, flour, baking soda, and baking powder.

5. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients in two batches. Mix until just combined.

6. If desired, add chocolate chips! Because the batter is so thick, they will remain suspended in the cake.

7. Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan, and smooth the surface. Once satisfied, run a knife down the center of the batter; this will provide a direction for the cake to split as it rises.

8. Bake for 45-50 minutes, checking with a toothpick for doneness.

9. Allow the cake to cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. Eat! 22

bite | winter 2021

BY IAN RESNICK PHOTOS BY ANGELA SHA

BACK ALLEY SANDWICH

The Back Alley Sandwich was created while moving into our new apartment on 53rd and Greenwood. We took a break from unloading the boxes and building poorly-designed IKEA furniture, sat down on the couches in our living room, the green velvet couches taken from my parent’s basement. We were tired from hunger, heat, and Jewish bodies not made for lifting. We looked out the window overlooking the back alley, saw the ivy-covered garages and trash cans lined together, the takeout containers, and knew it was time to eat.

This sandwich is made from the cold cuts and condiments smuggled in a cooler by my mother on a six-hour car ride, past cornfields and rusted tractors, custard shops. It initiated a tradition of eating vividly and proudly in our quarantine apartment, adding color and life to the isolating weeks. It is simple and loud, easily scraped together, substituted, altered. It is delicious every time, filling and warm.

The toaster oven is essential for this and most sandwiches. If you don’t have one, I can’t help you. prep

3 minutes

GET

cook

2 slices Italian bread Hebrew National salami 1 tbsp red onion, minced 1 tbsp olive oil Parmesan cheese

20 minutes

makes

1 serving

Paprika 3 cornichons Horseradish mustard

DO

1. Mince the red onion and slice salami into 5, ¼ inch pucks.

2. Place slices of Italian bread on toaster oven pan, lightly drizzle with olive oil.

3. Place three slices of salami on one piece, two on the other, grate Parmesan over top and sprinkle with paprika.

4. Add minced onion to a small skillet with a teaspoon of olive oil over medium heat, sautée until browned.

5. Meanwhile, cook assembled sandwich in toaster oven for approximately 8 minutes, or until cheese bubbles and salami is shimmering 6. Remove from oven, sprinkle browned onion overtop, add slices of cornichon and horseradish mustard to taste.

recipes

23

VARIATIONS OF GUMBO RECIPE AND PHOTOS BY KATE KAPLIN

My friend from Louisiana introduced gumbo to me as an easy, flexible, and comforting stew with as many possible variations as there are ingredients. That being said, the one constant to gumbo is the use of the holy trinity—chopped onions, celery and green peppers—specific to Cajun cooking in the base of the stew. While gumbo is traditionally, and maybe most authentically, made with okra and file powder, there is no steadfast rule that states that all variations of gumbo must be made with those ingredients. This gumbo recipe is certainly not authentic, though that also means that it’s completely customizable and difficult to mess it up. I have made multiple mistakes while cooking gumbo before, but somehow, after 40 minutes of simmering, it always tastes delicious.

prep cook makes

40 minutes 50 minutes 8 servings

GET

Base: 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour Spice Mix:

2 1/4 tsps ground pepper

1 teaspoon powdered mustard

1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons paprika

1 teaspoon granulated garlic 1 cup of vegetable oil 1/2 of a green pepper, finely chopped 1/2 of a medium white/yellow onion, finely chopped 2 medium to long stems of celery, finely chopped 9 cups chicken or vegetable broth 3 cloves of garlic, minced 1 bayleaf Chicken and Sausage Variation: 1/4 cup of flour Salt to taste Excess oil for cooking the chicken 1 3 to 4 lb chicken 2-3 sausages, thinly sliced (andouille or bratwurst work well) Seafood Variation: 1 1/2 lbs of shrimp 1/2 lbs assorted mushrooms Vegetable Variation: 2 zucchini, cut into medium-sized cubes 1 1/2 lbs of assorted mushrooms 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2 inch slices 1 1/2 yellow onion, cut with the grain into 1/2 inch slices

24

bite | winter 2021

DO 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

Make the spice mixture by stirring pepper, mustard, cayenne, paprika, and garlic together.

Add two teaspoons of the spice mixture to the flour in a medium sized bowl.

Heat oil in a large skillet with high walls over medium-high heat.

When oil is hot and almost smoking, add flour gradually while whisking until mixture turns a deep golden brown.

Add the finely chopped green pepper, onion, and celery and stir to combine.

Remove pan with roux mixture from the heat.

In a large pot, add the broth and heat to a boil.

Add the roux mixture to the pot a half a cup at time, whisking to ensure that each half cup of roux has been completely incorporated before adding more.

Cook for 15 minutes on high heat, stirring constantly until the gumbo has thickened considerably. It should leave a noticeable layer on a spoon after being dipped in the pot. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pot while stirring to keep any roux mixture from sticking and burning.

Lower the heat to medium-low and add in your prepared mix-ins, along with garlic and bay leaf.

Cook for about 40 minutes to allow all of the flavors to meld together and salt to taste.

If making the chicken and sausage gumbo variety, this is the point where you would remove the chicken, shred the meat off of the bone, and add the shredded chicken back to the pot.

Serve over rice, pasta, another starch, or even on it’s own!

Chicken and Sausage Variation: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Rub the chicken pieces with 4 teaspoons of the spice mixture and salt.

Add about ½ inch of oil into the skillet you will use for the roux mixture, and heat over high heat until the oil is close to smoking.

Dredge the chicken in the flour, coat well, shake off any excess, and add to the hot skillet.

Brown the chicken all over, cooking in batches if necessary.

Drain the oil from of the skillet, reserving one cup for the roux mixture Add sausage to the gumbo at step 10 before cooking for 15 minutes. Add the chicken at the start of step 11.

Seafood Variation: 1. Saute the mushrooms over medium-high heat until they are brown and tender.

2. Remove from heat.

3. Add one tsp of the spice mixture.

4. Mix 3 tsp of the spice mixture with the raw shrimp and set aside.

5. Add both elements to the gumbo at step 11.

Vegetable Variation: 1. Saute the mushrooms over medium-high heat until they are brown and tender.

2. Remove from heat and add 3 tsps of spice mixture.

3. Combine 1 ½ tsp of the spice mixture to the raw vegetables.

4. Add all of your vegetables to the gumbo at step 11.

recipes

25

PISTACHIO OLD-FASHIONED DONUTS

BY SOFIA TORRIENTE PHOTOS BY SHREYA MINAMA REDDY

prep

3 hours

cook

20 minutes

makes

16 donuts

I used to think you couldn’t really improve the classic, buttermilk old fashioned donut, but that was clearly before I’d tried adding pistachios to the mix! These donuts take their inspiration from the Stan’s lemon pistachio ones that I’ve sorely missed while being away from Chicago this quarter. I promise this homemade version is equally as warming and indulgent as the Stan’s staple, only arguably more balanced with the addition of tangy, bright notes from the buttermilk. Turn this recipe into the perfect weekend baking project by making the dough a night ahead and frying off the donuts the next morning. Make sure you don’t skip out on the double-flip, as it’s that extra fry time that produces those signature old-fashioned cracks and ridges that help the donut hold glaze and seal in moisture!

26 bite | winter 2020

GET

Dough 1/2 cup shelled raw pistachios 3 1/4 cups cake flour 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting 1/2 cup skim milk powder 1/2 cup buttermilk 2 tbsp baking powder 2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg 2 tsp lemon zest 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar 6 eggs, kept at room temperature 2 tsp vanilla extract 1/2 cup melted butter Vegetable oil, for frying

Glaze 2 cups powdered sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 to 4 tablespoons whole milk A couple drops of green food coloring 1/2 cup shelled raw pistachios roughly chopped

DO

1. Place 1/2 cup shelled pistachios in a food processor or blender and blitz until nuts are broken down into a thick paste. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, sift together the cake flour, all-purpose flour, milk powder, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, add the sugar and lemon zest. Rub together briefly with your fingertips to release the zest’s oils into the sugar. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until pale and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes.

4. Stir in the melted butter, vanilla, pistachio paste, mixing at a low speed only to combine.

5. Alternate between adding the dry ingredients and buttermilk, ending with the dry. Stir until the batter is smooth and completely combined, it should be sticky. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours or overnight.

6. Place a generous amount of flour on a clean work surface and roll out the chilled dough to roughly 1/2-inch thickness. Using a 4-inch round donut cutter or two round cookie cutters, punch out the donuts.

Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Repeat this process until you’ve used up all available dough.

7. Using a sharp paring knife, lightly score the donut three times, making a rough triangle around the hole. Return the donuts back to the fridge as the oil heats up.

8. Place a deep-fry thermometer in a large heavy-bottomed pot. Pour the oil into the pan until it is about 2-inches deep. Set over medium-low heat until the deep-fry thermometer reaches 325°F. 9. When hot, fry 2 or 3 donuts at a time. Once the donut floats, about 15-20 seconds, carefully flip it over using a wooden spoon. Fry for about 2 minutes, until cracked and lightly golden, then flip them over and fry the other side for about 2 minutes. Again, flip over and fry for about 1 minute, then flip once more and fry for a final minute on the remaining side. Flipping them twice creates the signature cracked look of the old-fashioned donuts. Carefully remove the donuts, drain, and then rest on a plate or baking sheet lined with paper towels.

10. For the glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar, vanilla, and enough milk to make a smooth, somewhat thick, glaze. Add as many drops of green food coloring as you’d like until the color is evenly distributed and you achieve your desired shade.

11. Carefully dip the top of each donut into the glaze and then sprinkle with chopped pistachios. Allow the glaze to set before eating. recipes

27

28 bite | winter 2021