She's a Rare one - Chef Colleen McClean

Our Industry Interview with ...

Colleen McClean
Chef - Rare One Restaurant
Vancouver, BC



You don't mess with Chef Colleen. That is, not unless you fancy kissing the linoleum. Colleen McClean, the talented new chef of Rare One restaurant, may be a woman working in the often macho environment of a restaurant kitchen, but she knows how to stand up for herself, and what's more, she's not afraid to speak up, especially when something needs to be said and everyone else would rather hide behind the stock pots. That hasn't always earned her the affection of her employers, but we love her for it, and her staff know to take her at her word. As actor James Cagney once said with admiration in an old movie. "Yah, she may be a woman, but she's a real dame!

How does your menu at Rare One differ from that of previous chefs, Quang Dang or Brian Fowke?
It's not necessarily different. The concept of Rare is to use ingredients not seen too often and cooking techniques not seen too often. And of course pairing with a rare wine.

Can you give some examples?
Sure, green garlic, Saskatoon berry, birch Syrup, espelette pepper, stinging nettles, turtle, musk Ox, deer tongue … as for techniques, we are doing interesting things with sous vide and molecular gastronomy and experimenting with soy lecithin -- an interesting product that we use as a stabilizer for cold foam (it is mainly used commercially as a stabilizer for ice cream)...CONTINUE READING...



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