Toronto Chef Daniel Craig is part of the new delegation of “Aussie Beef Mate” chefs helping us introduce Canadian chefs and diners to Australian beef in all its forms. A newly-minted Aussie Beef Mate, Chef recently hosted an event for foodservice pros in Toronto with Aussie Beef & Lamb and Trade Investment Queensland. We caught up with him to get to know him a bit better, and get the details about some of the dishes he and his team cooked up at the event.
What should our readers know about your background?
I’ve been at this a while! Over 28 years Industry experience around the world, and proud to be a homegrown Canadian chef. I lived and worked in France and in Australia at some amazing restaurants; Quay restaurant, Tetsuya’s and at the Four Seasons in Sydney. To this day, my Tetsuya and Quay cookbooks are always within reach!
In total I’ve been in the hotel chef life for almost 20 years now, having held Executive Chef roles at the Ritz Carlton Toronto, The Delta Toronto, The Grand Okanagan in Kelowna, British Columbia and I’m currently Executive Chef of one Canada’s largest hotels, the 1000-room Westin Harbour Castle. I’m also proud to represent team Canada on our Bocuse d'Or team this year.
What do you and team like about the quality and flavor of the Aussie Beef you’re serving at the Westin?
I hadn’t used a lot of Aussie beef here in Canada prior to a year ago; when I discovered the Little Joe’s, a truly amazing grassfed product, it quickly became part of the rotation. The marbling is so good, I didn’t really believe it was grassfed! Post-pandemic Toronto has become quite the steak town, so we have to have those signature proteins on the menu.
How are you using Aussie meats at the Harbour Castle?
We have a “Butcher’s block” weekly feature where we rotate in different proteins and cuts; a lamb shank, beef cheek, 16oz bone-in ribeye, etc. We change it 2x a week or weekly, and it’s a great platform to offer variety, use different cuts and experiment a little. Guests love it, and it keeps the cooks interested, too!
We use Aussie lamb as well, I have some dry aging in my chamber right now in fact. The grassfed beef is in our burgers, and the Black Opal Wagyu Picanha might be my favorite cut of meat right now. Outstanding stuff.
Tell us about that “bonus station” at the event you hosted…a brisket ssam? We’ve definitely been seeing Korean cuisine popping up all over.
Yes! We had plenty of that beautiful Aussie beef, so I made it a challenge for my excellent sous chefs, who happen to be Korean. They made their own ssamjang; that fermented, spicy condiment for leaf-wrapped snacks known as ssam. After a couple of days in a gochujiang cure, the Aussie brisket got a fairly straightforward 14-hour smoke. Guests got to put together their own little adventures with brisket wrapped in betel leaves, the ssamjang, and a scallion kimchi. So good!
Great stuff chef! Can’t wait to see (and taste) what you get up to next…