Chef of Chef Works – Chef Erik Mauke

A chef that always seeks out local, sustainable and fresh ingredients. He earned his wealth of experience from using creativity to discover bold new flavours by bringing familiar ingredients together. He is an Executive Chef across top Catch Hospitality restaurants and has made every meal a memory for anyone visit the venues. Let’s meet our Chef of Chef Works this December, Chef Erik Mauke.

 

Your Restaurant/Business: 

Catch Hospitality; Cucci, The Firehall, Plank, Tavolo, West End Social, The Bronte Boathouse, Por Vida, Duckies Dairy bar, Catch Catering

 

Tell us a little bit about your kitchen…

A very diverse group of kitchens ranging from Modern Italian fine dining, to the best chicken wings you will ever try. We work hard to find the best products available, using local whenever possible. It’s very simple, start with great ingredients, don’t mess with them and deliver great taste, freshness, quality and value.

 

Your favourite Chef Works item?

I love any of the light and airy chef coats. I also love anything with “Coolvent”. Innovation like that will keep us happy and cool.

 

What was your first cooking job?

I started in a Tex-Mex style restaurant. Slinging Fajita’s, taco’s and enough fresh fried chips with house made salsa to feed an army. Even there, the emphasis was on the freshest food possible. Not opening a can of salsa or buying already fried tortillas.

 

What is your Cooking Inspiration?

I am inspired by big and bold flavours. Nothing makes me happier than seeing the same ingredients we are so familiar with, come together in new and exciting ways. Toasting spices to bring out their full aroma, really caramelizing proteins to get the full depth of flavours, using full fat and great butter to never compromise on flavour potential.

 

 

What is your Specialty Dish?

This is constantly changing. Currently I am working on ways to prepare Provimi Veal Breast. The winner so far is filled with black truffle and aged Parmigiano Reggiano. We cook it sous vide for 20 hours to really render out all the fat. Then slice it thick and caramelize the slice with butter and herbs, before finishing it with sliced truffles and our rich veal jus. It makes you just want to keep eating more!

 

Weirdest Thing You Ever Ate?

On a trip to Mexico City in 2017 we ate “Escamoles” They are Ant and insect larvae or “Insect Caviar”. They were something I could not get comfortable eating. They warmed them in brown butter and spices, then simply served it with guacamole and tortillas. Thankfully that was not everything we had on the menu that day.

 

What are favourite things to do when not cooking?

I really enjoy spending time out doors. I lived in Whistler for 5 years and its what you do when you are there.  Skiing, biking, hiking, swimming… you name it. Not that my waistline shows that to be true, but I assure you, it is!

 

 

Tell us about your latest project?

Currently we are working on developing standard training procedures for all the kitchen management staff. Over the past few years we have grown from a single location to 9 revenue generators in total. I can’t be in every location at once so implementing these standards and procedures will help our managers all on the same page. We are always looking at expanding what we are doing, so laying the groundwork now for growth is crucial.

 

What is your all time best culinary tip?

Don’t be afraid to try new things and experiment. Recipes are guidelines that should be followed, but if you want to try something different, DO IT! If it ends up below expectations, so what, at least you tried and have learned a lesson on what doesn’t work. Every professional chef has made countless mistakes. Remember there is no such thing as perfection in cooking, only the relentless effort to strive for that perfection.

 

Visit Chef Erik Mauke social media:

Website: www.catchhospitalitygroup.ca

Instagram: @erikmauke

LinkedIn: @Erik Mauke CCC