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Meet Chef Opelinia:
I’m a first generation U.S. born Filipino from San Francisco, California. I changed careers in my late twenties with hopes at some point opening my own restaurant. I went to culinary school and started working at a bistro style Filipino restaurant. I quickly realize there was much more about the business that I had to learn so I moved on to work at the Ritz Carlton in SF. I worked my way through the hotel kitchens until Chef Ron Siegel, one of San Francisco’s best and most respected chefs, hired me on at the Dining Room, the hotel’s fine dining outlet. It was there where I worked along side Chris Kajioka. Chef Chris soon moved on to be the opening chef of the Vintage Cave, Honolulu’s newest fine dining establishment, and I, his opening sous chef. I then moved back to San Francisco to hone my craft and develop my own style with plans on continuing to promote Filipino cuisine.
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Hometown: San Francisco
Current Place of Residence: South San Francisco
Special memory about adobo or Filipino food:
When I was young, my mom would make a big pot of pancit for our family and then some to share with her coworkers. I remember the smell of chicken stock on the stove, the kitchen table covered with newspaper and me peeling carrots and doing any other small task my mom trusted me with.
My mom worked two jobs to provide for her family so my sister, brother and I often ate frozen dinners or instant ramen because it was quick and convenient. But sometimes, when she had a night off, she would cook one of our favorites and adobo was one of them. So yeah, it was special to have adobo.
Tell me about YOUR cooking style:
I guess it depends on the situation. I definitely don’t cook like this at home. For my family I like to cook good, rustic style comfort food, whether it’s chicken adobo, chicken tacos, or a pot of pasta. Living in the Bay Area we’re spoiled with great produce, so professionally I would say simple, clean and ingredient driven. Naturally the people you’ve worked for and with influence you. My mentors, Chef Ron Siegel and Chef Chris Kajioka are both part of the Thomas Keller lineage so classic French and Japanese influenced.
Tell me how you started your gig at Parallel 37:
I was lucky enough to work at The Dining Room with Chef Ron Siegel at The Ritz Carlton in San Francisco. Then continued on to see the closing and re-opening of Parallel 37, only to move on within a year to pursue an opportunity in Hawaii. I found myself moving back to San Francisco and P37 showed interest and it was a situation that worked best for me at this moment.
What is your proudest moment as a chef?
When someone who I’ve worked with or have taught in some way succeeds, it makes me very proud to have been a part of it. Although my stint at the Vintage Cave in Honolulu was short lived, I would like to believe I had left my mark on something great.
Name your Filipino food experiences in SF:
The first Filipino restaurant I saw growing up was Goldilocks. The cafeteria/hof brau style was the only thing we knew outside of family parties and special events. For many years, if we wanted lumpia or pancit for a family party, my mom didn’t order it she made it. Later on, more and more Filipino restaurants opened up and now there are plenty to choose from here in the Bay Area.
One of my first jobs in a restaurant was at a place called Bistro Luneta in San Mateo with Chef Geomel Santos, which was a small, Filipino restaurant. I thought they had a good idea but for whatever reason it closed after a few years.
Honestly, I might be out of the loop when it comes to Filipino food in the Bay Area now. There are a lot good places to eat and some I crave sometimes, but nothing I’m excited about. Someone asked me the other day what I thought was the best Filipino restaurant and I couldn’t really answer. There’s not one that stands out as being the best.
What inspires you to make adobo or Filipino food?
My family. Whatever they request, I make. Sometimes it’s dishes I’d never made before.
What makes your adobo special?
This is not a dish most people would recognize as adobo. I’ve deconstructed the flavors and have used modern techniques in order to present it a different way.
by Chef Lee Opelinia
Cornish game hen:
Fabricate the breast off the bird and vacuum seal it with olive oil, ginger, garlic, salt and pepper.
Sous vide it at 64 degrees Celcius for one hour.
Fried chicken skin:
Lay chicken skin flat on a sheet pan lined with a silpat. Place in an oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit for an hour.
Fry in a pot of vegetable oil at 375 degree Fahrenheit, place on paper towel and season with salt.
Trim if needed
Adobo sauce:
Sweat one onion diced and three cloves of garlic brunoised in a pot with oil.
Add a quart of brown chicken stock, 1/3 cup of soy sauce, ¼ cup of cane vinegar, teaspoon of black peppercorn, and one bay leaf.
Bring to a boil and let simmer for one hour
Pass through chinois.
Garlic puree:
Peel two heads of garlic
Place in a small pot with cold water and bring to a boil.
Pour off hot water and replace with cold water, bringing it to a boil again.
Repeat process two more times.
After pouring off the hot water the last time, add cream just below covering, bring it to a simmer, until cloves are tender.
Strain off liquid and place in a blender.
Blend smooth and pass through a chinois
Pickled and charred onions:
Peel pearl onions and cut in half
In a hot sauté pan with oil, place cut side down until charred.
Place on paper towel and cool
In a small pot place one cup of water, ½ cup of cane vinegar and ½ cup of sugar and heat to dissolve.
Pour liquid over onions and let sit.
Powdered ginger:
Place two tablespoons of freshly grated ginger in a small pot with a cup of clarified butter. Let simmer for an hour or until the butter is infused with the ginger
In a Paco jet canister, place two tablespoons of the infused butter with a cup of tapioca maltodextrin.
Spin the powder in the Paco jet.
Marble potatoes:
Steam the marble potatoes for thirty minutes or until cooked thoroughly.
To assemble:
Smear a tablespoon of puree.
Smash the potatoes, season with soy salt and place on the puree.
Separate the onion petals and place in between the potatoes.
Sprinkle the powder around the puree.
Trim the ends of the breast so that it sits flat.
Glaze with the adobo sauce
Place the chicken skin on top of the breast
Garnish with lovage, chive blossoms and citrus marigolds.
Aside from adobo, name a Filipino food that everyone should try at least once:
Sinigang. Any type. Extra sour. Another one of my favorite dishes that I can eat anytime.
Where do you think Filipino food will go in the next few years?
I’d like to think Filipino food would gain popularity as a cuisine in the next few years. There are so many people that have never tried it and don’t understand it. I would like to showcase Filipino dishes and present the flavors in a way that’s more refined to a wider audience.
If you can share your adobo with anyone dead or alive, who would it be?
I would love to have shared this dish with my mom. She passed just before I started my culinary career so she never knew what I had become. She taught me to work hard, always. I hope, at the end of the day, I’ve made her proud.
Disclaimer: Opinions expressed on Project:Adobo are not the direct views of The Ritz Carlton, Parallel 37, or any other mentioned restaurants.
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