5 Easy, Unexpected Wylie Dufresne Recipes to Make at Home

Get a taste of trailblazing chef Wylie Dufresne by preparing one of his clever home-cook-friendly recipes in your own kitchen.

2001 F&W Best New Chef Wylie Dufresne is celebrated for his innovative, science-driven approach to preparing familiar foods in unexpected ways. A pioneer in molecular gastronomy, Dufresne is perhaps best known for his decade-plus run at the helm of Manhattan's wd~50, where he paired unlikely flavors and turned ordinary dishes completely on their heads. Deconstructed Eggs Benedict was served with sous vide egg yolks, cubes of fried hollandaise breaded in English muffin crumbs, and ultra-thin Canadian bacon wisps, for example. If you're in New York City, you can still get a taste of Dufresne's fare by trying one of the improbable pies at his Stretch Pizza — alternatively, whip up one of these home-cook-friendly recipes in your own kitchen.

Roast Chicken Thighs with Tomato-Tapioca Porridge

Dishes at Wylie Dufresne's seminal New York restaurant wd~50 were famously complex and labor-intensive to prepare, but when F&W challenged the chef to develop a fast recipe, he quite literally stepped up to the plate. This inventive dish features a surprising tomato-infused tapioca porridge to accompany simple roasted carrots and crisp-skinned chicken thighs.

Get the Recipe

Sea Bass with Edamame-Rye Crust

This recipe first appeared in Food & Wine in 2001, the same year Dufresne was named a Best New Chef. It's a stunning, verdant dish featuring black sea bass fillets on a bed of Yukon Gold mashed potatoes. The fish is encrusted with finely chopped edamame that's been cooked in butter with rye breadcrumbs; a generous drizzle of chive oil rounds it all out.

Get the Recipe

Onion-Clove Compote

It takes just four ingredients to make this sweet, fragrant condiment that's superb with grilled steak, chicken, or pork — you'll need butter, yellow onions, whole cloves, and salt.

Get the Recipe

Creamy Mushroom Tartlets

“Whether you need passed canapés at your next cocktail party or a stunning side dish to pair with a main course, this dish hits all the marks,” Wylie Dufresne says. To make it, he tops rounds of store-bought puff pastry with a cream sherry-infused cashew spread and heaps of fresh shiitakes, then bakes them until they're delightfully golden.

Get the Recipe

Root Beer-Date Puree

Rehydrating dried dates with root beer and blending them until smooth produces a sweet compote that's a natural match for rich meats and oily fish. “They both have dark, opulent caramel flavors that play off each other,” Dufresne says of his clever ingredient pairing.

Get the Recipe

For more Food & Wine news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on Food & Wine .