Linquist Scott - Mod Mex: cooking vibrant fiesta flavors at home

MOD MEX copyright 2007 by Scott Linquist and Joanna Pruess. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of reprints in the context of reviews. For information, write Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC, an Andrews McMeel Universal company, 1130 Walnut Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64106.

E-ISBN: 978-0-7407-8622-8

Library of Congress Control Number: 2007926843

www.andrewsmcmeel.com

Cover design by Tim Lynch
Cover photography by Shimon and Tammar
Food stylist: Brian Preston-Campbell
Prop stylist: Philip Shubin
Photo assistant: Lesley Van Stelten

Photos courtesy of Scott Linquist: 55, 90, 103, 125

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THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED to my family and friends, who have been too frequently neglected while I pursued a career that has been my complete focus for the past fifteen years. Topping the list is my wonderful wife, Carrie Sumner, who brings joy and balance to even the most stressful days. My mother, Janet Stocks, believed in me enough to help me through culinary school, and my father, Ralph Linquist, was the creative cook of my childhood. My sister, Michelle Moreno, helped me even when times were tough. My aunt Linda Cady has always been supportive. Finally, this book is also in loving memory of my uncle Terry Cady, who I wish could be here to sip a bourbon and share some Mod Mex cuisine.

I also thank my friends Mike Greco, John and Gail Onodera, Greg and Lisa Crosmer, Sean Ryan, Ron Soderblom, and Edward McMannus, who are always up for a good party, even if it is only once every couple of years.

Thank you to the B.R. Guest organization, which made all of this possible, especially Stephen Hanson, who has been a great leader and inspiration. Thanks to Michael Jacobs, Donna Rodriguez, and Cheryl Perl, and my bosses Chris Giarraputo and Brett Reichler, who always keep me on the right track, whether I like it or not. Thank you to our fantastic director of operations and my front-of-the-house teammate Wendy Schlazer, and all my fellow corporate chefs and directors of operations: Shawn Edleman, Paul Sale, Elizabeth Katz, Luis Nieto, Pamela Freidl, Lana Trevison, and Anna Marie McCullagh. Also, to Janet Hoffman and Grace Andrews, who have taken us in a great new direction over the past year. And to the chefs, managers, and staff from all of our restaurants in this great company: thank you.

In the restaurants kitchens, I couldnt do what I do without the Dos Caminos team: Manuel Trevio III, executive chef; Roberto Hernandez, executive chef; and Hugo Reyes, executive pastry chef. Our sous chefs: Carmelo Calixto, Alejandro Sanchez, Stacy Casanova, Tim Krause, David Chiavaroli, Agustin Castro, Jaime Caamano, Luis Ortega, Paul Gaytan, and the newest additions to the team, Robert Herrera and Michael Radzio. The leaders of my prep and sauce crew: Hazael Ortega and Miguel Roman.

Also a great big thanks to all the managers, the entire dining room team, and all the people who make the kitchen run smoothly every day, including our cooks, dishwashers, receivers, and porters. To all of them, I owe a debt of gratitude for their tireless efforts over the past five years.

A huge thank-you to my coauthor and wonderful collaborator Joanna Pruess. Without your tireless effort and dedication to this project, not to mention having to act as my personal trainer to get me moving, I would have never been able to complete this book. I am very proud of our accomplishment!

Thank you to our agent, Jane Dystel, and our publisher, Andrews McMeel, with special thanks to Kirsty Melville for your huge enthusiasm for this project. To our superb editors, Jean Lucas and Ann Treistman, and to Tim Lynch for his creative art direction: It was a pleasure working with you. I am also grateful to Brant Stead and Blythe Zava for your conscientious recipe testing; to Pamela Harding for reading the manuscript and offering wise suggestions; to Eben Klemm, our corporate manager for wine and spirits, for some of the beverage recipes; and to Manuel Trevio III (again) for making sure we used the correct Mexican terminology.

To Tammar and Shimon Rothstein for your enticing pictures. Your artistic talent and incredible eye perfectly captured the concept of this book!

Finally, thanks to the professionals who helped me to become the chef I am today. Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger for their inspiration and helping to immerse me in the beauty of cooking Mexican food; Nancy Oakes taught me to embrace the wonderful bounty of ingredients available to chefs today; Alfred Portale: Your artistry is awe-inspiring; and former Dos Caminos chef Ivy Stark, who is one of my best friends and who collaborated on many of the recipes in this book.

PICTURED, LEFT TO RIGHT: Jamie Caamano Alejandro Sanchez

Tim Krause David Chiavaroli Stacy Casanova

Manuel Trevino III Scott Linquist Roberto Hernandez

Hugo Reyes Paul Gaytan

Agustin Castro

After many years of classical culinary training in the restaurants of New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, as well as at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), I have returned to my Mexican roots. You may wonder about my use of roots, since Im Swedish in ancestry, my family originally settled in Keokuk, Iowa, and I was born in Southern California. Well, it began in my childhood.