Jeff the Chef - Rants & Raves

FIRE HALL COOKING WITH JEFF THE CHEF: SUREFIRE RECIPES TO FEED YOUR CREW

January Magazine, Dec. 2, 2007

In his introduction to Fire Hall Cooking , cookbook author and genuine fire guy tells a story that illustrates exactly where his head -- and his heart -- are at. Derraugh tells of putting in a shift at a firehall across town from his own. Someone called the guys for breakfast, and they all descended, fire guy style, to tuck in. Someone asked how many pieces of bacon each man was allowed. The cook responded “Nine.” And when Derraugh restrained himself, someone asked if he could have Derraugh's. “That man had 14 pieces of bacon,” Derraugh writes. “That's why our fire trucks now carry defibrillators, so that we can jump-start each other after we send that breakfast barge of cholesterol to our hearts.” So here's what we can understand about this author: he knows from feeding hungry guys, he is concerned about health, he likes variety. And, additionally, he's funny and he can write. The recipes in Fire Hall Cooking are mostly solid, well thought out versions of classic dishes, though some of them have been given funny names. (Funky Fire Hall Chili, Mozzasaurus Chicken, Scorchin' Lasagna and so on.) This is a fun cookbook with lots of easy-to-follow recipes featuring the type of food most families will enjoy.

http://januarymagazine.com/2007/12/holiday-gift-guide-cookbooks.html

FIRING UP THE GRILL

Ciao! Magazine August/September 2007 issue

Local fireman Jeff Derraugh has made an alarming buzz in the local culinary community with his new cookbook ‘Fire Hall Cooking with Jeff the Chef.’ The energy it takes to extinguish a roaring blaze calls for apt refueling, and after years fighting fires on the job and cooking over them in the fire hall kitchen, Derraugh knows how to provide for a ravenous crew. Sitting down to a meal together boosts morale and creates a familial bond between crewmates. This book is a surefire hit for big family get-togethers, with recipes including lighter ‘rabbit food’, asian-inspired dishes and barbecue favourites such a beer can chicken. - JF

FIRE HALL FLAVOUR

By Wendy Burke, Winnipeg Free Press, June 12, 2007

Jeff Derraugh’s been in the kitchen extinguishing his colleagues’ hunger pangs for years, and his new cookbook promises to rescue a few dinners.

Jeff Derraugh is a Winnipeg firefighter who loves to serve on the fire truck... and off. In between calls he trades his helmet for an apron and serves up meals for his crew. He’s been doing it for so long, it was time to write it all down. And now, at 48, the senior firefighter is a published cookbook author with Fire Hall Cooking with Jeff the Chef (Touchwood Editions, $19.95).

The former CITI FM radio personality wasn’t one of those guys who grew up dreaming of becoming a firefighter.

“I had three friends from university who were firefighters already and a neighbour who was a firefighter and they talked me into doing it. They said it’s a great job, a stable job, unlike radio. I’ve never regretted a moment of it. And besides — radio station, fire station — what’s the difference? They both have radios.”

He signed up in February 1990.

Fire chef

So how does the guy wielding a hose end up with the spatula?

Derraugh says he volunteered to pick up groceries one day and that was it.

“I was just really fortunate that I worked with excellent cooks and I learned from them. They taught me the tricks of the trade, things like cooking under a deadline. You know you’ve only got two-and-a-half hours from when you come in at 5:30 until you eat at 8 o’clock. And that time also could have practice drill sessions and calls.”

“There are three components to the successful firehouse meal that I mention in the book. One is ample quantities. If you don’t have enough for the guys to eat, you’re gonna hear about it. If your prices are out of line, if you shop at 7-Eleven and you picked up groceries and the price is $12 per supper, that’s unacceptable. And flavour... you’ve cooked it right. So if you’ve messed up on any of those three components, you’re in for a long night! And they’re not gonna let up. They are the worst food critics. But they’re true critics, because they really appreciate it when you do it.”

Fire hall family

Cooking for firefighters is like cooking for a family, only in larger quantities.

“I’ve been raising kids for a long time. My eldest is 26 and the youngest is 12. You have picky eaters in both (home and fire hall). And I certainly have with five kids. Three of them are still at home. I’ve got a vegetarian, two carnivores; Carbo-man, and the boy who only eats pepperoni pizza and chicken fingers. And I’ve got two grandchildren as well. My little guy, I think all he eats is croutons!

“And it’s the same thing at the fire hall; you’ve got people who don’t eat seafood, or don’t eat onions or, ‘I’m allergic to green peppers they give me heartburn!’ So you’ve got to steer around those people as well.”

“When firefighters come to work, we sit down to a meal, just like a family does. We sit together and we have our laughs and everything else. We talk about fires we’ve fought, or calls we went on or how our day went. And that’s what brings us together. That’s why the fire hall cook job is revered in some ways. The line that’s often said is, “Don’t mess with the fire hall chef.’ They cut you a little bit of extra slack.

“The book covers the lighter side of our job that people don’t necessarily get to see. They share the heavier side, the fires, the car accidents and the medical calls. This is the yin and the yang. It’s the balance — it’s the lighter side which is us at the hall — our camaraderie and meals together and practical jokes and trying to keep things light because we do have to deal with all this stuff.”

The family-style meals build family-style relationships among the crewmembers who depend on each other for their safety. Every call that comes in potentially means a crew going out on a dangerous mission. And while Derraugh is an easy laugh, he is equally emotional about the tragic loss in the line of duty of two of his colleagues on Feb. 4.

“The book is dedicated to (Capt.) Harold Lessard and (Capt.) Tom Nichols. I worked with Tom for many years, and Harold, I didn’t know as well, but I worked with him the night of Feb. 4. I stayed on the crew an extra hour waiting because they were short a member on their crew. So I was with them for the first hour on their shift and then an hour later the call for the fire came in.”

Derraugh says all the firefighters were deeply affected by Feb. 4 — he says the date with the same emotional expression some people say 9/11. It’s a harsh reminder:

“Oh yeah... we’re mortal.”

But he’s grateful for his experiences.

“Firefighters are a great bunch of guys and I’m just so happy that I’m a part of it, from all the people that I’ve met and all the good times that we’ve had and all the recipes that we’ve shared.

Where Can I Get It?

Need a Father’s Day gift? Actually, this cookbook would be great for anyone— rookie cooks and veterans alike. The recipes are tasty, hearty, they use readily available ingredients and are easy to follow. Filled with anecdotes, Fire Hall Cooking is a peek at real life at the station. It’s available on-line and if people order through the links at www.stayingalive.ca, a non-profit safety site, (Derraugh has been involved with them for several years) will get a commission on sales from Amazon and Chapters. McNally Robinson has it, too.

Here’s a sample.

Teriyaki Steak Over Asian Mixed Greens

Here’s a light meal for a hot day

Place your favourite vegetables in a salad bowl

Choose a selection of your favourite greens: spinach, leaf lettuce, bok choy, beet tops, red Swiss chard, packaged Spring Mix: lawn trimmings, etc. (hey why compost?) Use a variety of colours to maximize the salad’s presentation.
Chopped green onions or red onions cut into strips.
Mushrooms – feel free to go exotic, like Shitakes - minus the stems.
Hey, let’s lightly toast sunflower seeds and almonds in a saute pan with a little brown sugar and butter. Allow to cool, and in they go!

Then add this delicious dressing to the veggies

125 ml (1/2 cup) soya sauce
125 ml (1/2 cup) white or rice vinegar
60 ml (1/4 cup) vegetable oil, preferably peanut or canola
30 ml (2 tbsp) white sugar
20 ml (4 tsp) sesame oil
30 ml (2 tbsp) ginger - fresh and finely diced
10 ml (2 tsp) or more - minced or pressed

Here’s how to make the salad a meal in itself

Marinate steak or chicken breasts in teriyaki marinade (recipe follows). About 4 hours in the fridge basking in the flavour bath should do it.
Barbecue the breasts until no longer pink inside or barbecue the steak until it is medium rare inside. Let stand 5 minutes and slice into strips.
Place a serving of salad on a plate and top with strategically placed strips of teriyaki beef or chicken. Sprinkle sesame seeds over top.
Go for broke by boiling the marinade for 5 minutes Then drizzle it over the beef or chicken.

Teriyaki Marinade

The goods

175 ml (3/4 cup) teriyaki or soy sauce
60 ml (1/4 cup) vegetable oil
45 ml (3 tbsp) liquid honey — melt in microwave if necessary
5 ml (1 tsp) ginger powder
5 ml (1 tsp) garlic powder
5 ml (1 tsp) or more chili-garlic sauce to fire it up
3 green onions, chopped small

The directions

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl.
Place the steak or chicken in a plastic bag, toss in the teriyaki and let it soak for 4 hours for chicken to overnight for a juicy steak.

Sunshine Salad

The walnuts mixed with butter and brown sugar put this salad over the top.

So go out and find

2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp brown sugar
125 ml (1/2 cup) pecans or walnuts, chopped into bits
2 heads of butter lettuce or 1 large head of leaf lettuce
2 bananas sliced
250 ml (1 cup) pineapple tidbits — reserve juice for dressing
500 ml (2 cups) red or green grapes — sliced in half
2 kiwis — sliced
500 ml (2 cups) strawberries, sliced
(You can substitute a tin of mandarin oranges for any of the above. Any combination of your favourite fruits will work.)
3 sliced nectarines or canned peaches

Oh, and for the dressing you’ll need

125 ml (1/2 cup) canola or another lightly flavoured oil, such as corn
60 ml (1/4 cup) frozen orange juice concentrate
30 ml (2 tbsp) soft or liquid honey
3 ml (1/2 tsp) salt
5 ml (1 tsp) ground ginger
15 ml (1 tbsp) of reserved pineapple juice

Then simply

Warm a sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add a couple of tablespoons each butter and brown sugar and lightly brown the pecans or walnuts.
As the nuts cool, wash and break up the lettuce. Give it a spin dry.
Combine the dressing ingredients and refrigerate along with the lettuce.
Let’s chop up the fruit shall we? Dinnertime is approaching quickly.
We have the fruit, we have the dressing: let’s bring them together!
Just before serving add the lettuce and nuts and toss them through.
So easy and so incredibly flavourful. This one is a keeper!

Orange Seafood-Sauce Chicken

This is Derraugh’s most requested fire hall dish. He had to marry his wife, Lori, before she’d let him have it.

What you need is

A 1963 mint-condition split-window coupe Corvette……No, that’s what I need. Where is my mind here? Okay, how about…..
750 g (1 1/2 lbs) large chicken breasts for a main course,
or 1.5 kg (3 lbs) wings or drumettes for an appetizer
2 eggs, beaten up – relax, they won’t press charges
20 or so crushed up Breton crackers
1 jar seafood sauce
Equal part orange juice - measure with empty seafood bottle
Equal part sugar – use the empty seafood sauce bottle again. Reduce, reuse, recycle!
1 tsp kosher salt

Hey, this should be easy enough

Turn that oven dial to 205C (400F).
Dip chicken in the eggs and then roll it around in the beat-up crackers.
Place chicken in a lasagne dish or roaster.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, uncovered.
Mix the heavenly sauce ingredients together – the seafood sauce, the orange juice, the sugar and the salt.
Pour the sauce over the chicken and bake for 15 - 20 minutes more or until chicken is cooked through – i.e salmonella free.
Let the chicken stand for 5 minutes and serve over rice.

Here’s a nice touch

Why not top the chicken with pre-cooked shrimp before layin’ on the sauce? Just excellent!

Sure, this recipe is easy, but it’s also very different and decadent. When your guests, family or family of firefighters start handing out the praise, suppress the desire to admit how trouble-free this dish actually was to prepare. Oh, and let them do the cleanup!

To check out a VIDEO of Jeff with writer Wendy Burke that accompanied this piece, follow this link and click on ‘‘view video interview.’ http://heritagehouse.ca/press_releases/fire_hall.htm