From Pot Washer To Executive Cook, Joe Deas Learned
D.. _m . m a
. I .
Everything From Scratch
By Audrey C. Loda to
1 Poot Staff Wrlter
L When Joe Deaa was btfylx* Us
mother in the kitchen as a young
iter, he may not have thought he'd
ape day be an executive chef, but
; mat’s whet happened.
**» From hia start S3 yean ago as a
•3?01 cleaner and dish washer at die
[Sid Barringer Hotel, Deaa rose in Us
:.T*0,en P*"®*®®!0® to become execu
Sve chef of the Charlotte Athletic
; Jhd}, Inc.
,<Yery few chefs start the way I
:2M.” Dms stated. “Moat go to
_ school and an apprenticeship pro
gram. But going through the back
■floor the way I did was helpful to me
? ^Because I know the business from
3J»e ground floor,”
— It took Urn 10 yean to work Us
Stay up through all the station, he
Jpld, but on the way he learned to do
2 lot of things from scratch. Deas
basically follows tradition in Ms
Rooking but from time to time be
3®joys inventing something. One
•auch dish is "Breast of Chicken
Xori,” named for his 13 year old
•daughter. It consists- of chicken
-breast stuffed with diced ham,
green pepper, onion, thyme, bread
^Crumbs, egg yolk, and topped with
jMornay sauce.
■» Deas said his best dishes are soups
And casseroles. He makes over 100
Varieties of soup, with Us favorite
•being an Italian soup of seafood in a
tomato base.
^Although many soups start with
afresh ingredients, many others can
be made with leftovers, or two
^different soups can be combined to
Create a third, he said.
Deas likes the challenge of being a
•ehef, doing something different
•Avery day, and pleasing people.
“Most chefs enjoy being compU
' -merited on their food,” he remarked,
and Deas is probably no different in
Out respect.
! A couple of challenges Deas has
found at the Charlotte Athletic Club
ire dealing with different nation
4lities and serving a "diet
special” every day. Although the
club is health-oriented, Deas said
moat members haven't dungwi
their diets. His staff has been
working with the Heart Association
to come up with dishes that are good
for the heart and blood pressure.
The basic idea is to stay away from
grease hy cooling stocks and then
removing the fat that rises to the
top; and by heating foods in stock
rather than butter.
Despite his good intentions, how
ever, the favorites at the club
continue to be Chicken Oscar, Dover
Sole, and Charleston Seafood
Ceeaerole, all rich in cream sauces.
Deas is active in the local chefs'
association, the Epicurean Club of
Charlotte. Several months bock, be
was elected to his second two-year
term as president. He Is also a “
member of the United Chefs Asso
ciation, the black chefs’ associa
tion.
In preparation for the 1968 natio
nal chefs’ convention, which will be
held in Charlotte at the Adam’s
Mark Hotel, chefs from both
Carolinas are compiling a cookbook
as a fundraiser. Deas plan to
include six soup, six chicken, and
six beef dishes of his own in the book,
which will be on sale to the public.
Since he works split shifts, Deas
rarely cooks for his family. That
chore is left in the hands of his wife,
Lucille. Deas does, however, pre
pare dishes for big family occasions
like parties and weddings.
* He’s been at the Charlotte Athle
tic Club for two years. like many
chefs, Deas has worked at a number
of locations. He says the reason
chefs move around so much is that
the average stay of a. manager is
three years, and each new manager
may want to bring his (or her?) own
chef. “It’s like politics,” he added.
Deas grew up in a family of nine. A
sister also cooks professionally.
Besides Lori, the Deases have two
other children, Jowanda, seven, and
Joseph m, who is 11.
Chief Deas brought samples of the .
following recipes to the Past earlier
this week. The staff loved every one
of them, and the Oriental Friendship
Soup worked wonders on my cold!
f 1 ORIENTAL FRIENDSHIP SOUP " ' ■
In the Orient, a variety of one
dish meals cooked and served at
the table are called friendship
dishes. This is one of my
l favorites.
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
4 c. beef stock
: 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 4 green onions, sliced
1 4 os. regular onions,
: sliced thinly
HHbs.'betf, sliced
10 oz. fresh spinach
; leaves, washed and
;' tom into small pieces
Pepper to taste
■ 1 pkg. or can chow mein noodles
2 c. very fine egg
noodles, cooked and drained
In a large bowl combine the
cornstarch with beef broth and
soy sauce; set aside. Saute onions
in 3 Tbsp. peanut oil til limp
Push aside, add more oil, and
brown beef on both sides. Add
celery, spinach, and beef stock
mixture. Mix well, season with
pepper, and cook over medium
heat for 10 minutes. Add chow
mein noodlea. and. cooked egg
noodles. Cook 5 minutes longer,
til vegetables are Just tender, not
overcooked.
Tip: Use sirloin of beef. This is a
meal in itself. Serves 6.
Chef Joe Deas
.With ragout and gumbo
____ - i jT.
Bv vh BBBkl Bh
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A place where you can make yourself
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When the spirit moves you, call:
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M. MMMMMWl!**
B^ALLYOU CAN BE.
NEW ORLEANS CHICKEN ANDOKRAGUMBO—*
Tins is a good summer outdoors
dish with Louisianians. The
word gumbo is taken from the
Bantu word for okra. The dish is
traditionally thickened with okra
and file powder, which is made
from ground dried sassafras
leaves.
1 (3 lb.) fryer, disjointed
10 oz. onions, diced
1 c. smoked ham
2 Tbsp. bacon drippings
2Vfc lbs. fresh tomatoes
20 oz. fresh sliced okra
8 c. hot water
V« oz. diced parsley
1 pod red pepper or Vfc tap. cayenne
1 tap. file powder (optional)
3 c. cooked rice
Divide chicken into 21 pieces,
wash and wipe dry. Saute onions
and ham in bacon drippings over
low heat til onions are tender.
Add chicken and fry until golden.
Mix in tomatoes and cook one
minute. Add remaining ingre
dients except file powder and
rice. Bring to a boil, lower heat,
and simmer covered for one
hour. Check, cook 30 minutes
more. Add file powder. Put rice
into 6 soup bowls. Ladle gumbo
over rice. Serves 6.
LOBSTER AND CRABMEAT RAGOUT
3 Tbsp. diced shallots
Green spring onions
,/* c. diced green peppers
v« c. butter or margarine
3 Tbsp. flour
tap. grated nutmeg
4 tap. Worcestershire
Cayenne (1 dash only!)
Salt, pepper to taste
c. whole milk
2 (6 oz.) lobster tails
2 c. lump crabmeat, cleaned
1 c. heavy cream
Soak shallots in l c. whole milk.
Saute green onions and green
peppers in butter in large sauce
pan. Mix in flour to form a roux.
Cook one minute, add nutmeg,
Worcestershire, cayenne, salt,
pepper, and 4 c. milk. Stir
slowly, making sure you’ve
turned heat down. Add 4 c. milk
with shallots. Add lobster, crab
meat, and cream. Heat through.
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