Born and raised in upstate Poughkeepsie, N.Y. Ché has made tremendous strides from his first externship program from the Culinary Institute of America at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas to graduating top of his class then going on to work at distinguished restaurants such as: Pacific Time & The Shore Club in South Beach Miami, FL, Le Soir in Boston, MA , Chelsea 24 Restaurant Cafeteria and China Grill in NYC, where he served as a line cook all the way to Sous Chef in these establishments, he knew the sky was the limit.
Having been part of the crew on Bravo’s TV’ hit reality show Chef Roblé & Co. viewers were able to see all sides Ché Gravy had to offer from being “The Sauce Boss” to the innovative comedian in the kitchen that kept everyone smiling and coming back for more. You can see Chef Ché Gravy on BravoTV.com.
Check out what Chef Che Gravy had to say:
What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think about food?
Chef Che: Music! Food is the soundtrack to my life. When I’m in the kitchen its all about listening to the nutrition. When I’m in the kitchen and I got the music blasting its like I’m in a zone. I could probably turn out a whole Restaurant by myself listening to BIG’s first album. I definitely want to build a booth in the middle of my kitchen and call it “The Chef’s Chamber” and send people in there for “Time-out”. LOL.
What is one funny food story that you can remember?
Chef Che: I remember when I was kid maybe 10 years old and my Aunt made me these kick ass meatballs and after I ate it I was like “Auntie what did you put in those meatballs?” and she said “that’s that Venison boy’’ I said “what’s Venison” she said “ That’s that dear meat your Uncle just killed in the yard there” I must say I was grossed out but those were probably the best meatballs I ever had.
If you could be one food what would you be and why?
Chef Che: I don’t know if this is considered food but I would have to say seasoning. The reasoning is the seasoning and I like to be the sole component that gives a dish its distinctive flavor.
What would I find in your refrigerator and pantry right now?
Chef Che: Leftovers from last night.. Rib Eye Steak, Baked Potato, Broccoli Rabe and you know the regular Milk, plenty of butter and oh yeah I gotta keep a quart of eggnog in there. I like eggnog.
What was the last thing you made?
Chef Che: Well that would have to be the steak dinner I made last night, with my special steak sauce and a nice glass of Cabernet.
Che Gravy Surf and Turf: Rib eye Filet mignon and Maine Lobster tail with truffle potato hash and a splish splash of herb oil and port wine reduction.
Do you have a quick and easy recipe that you can recommend to our readers that do not have much time to cook?
Chef Che: Well something quick and easy that I like to make would be a Gyro of some sort, and of course as always with my special sauce. You can use either beef, chicken or lamb for this dish. All you need is fresh pita, your choice of beef, chicken or lamb, lettuce, tomato, red onion and cucumber. So simple but yet so tasty. Season your meat how you’d like and you can grill or sear it in a hot pan with a little olive oil. Then once you let it rest, you slice it as thick or as thin as you like. You take your pita and you brush it with olive oil and fresh chopped garlic, then brown it on both sides in a medium heat pan. Then you take a dallop of your special sauce (which normally I don’t give out my sauce recipes.. book coming soon!) which is composed of Greek yogurt, sour cream, tahini paste, fresh chopped garlic, fines herbs (parsley, chives, tarragon, chervil), salt, cracked black pepper and a splish splash of hot sauce and you’re good to go. Add your meat of choice on top of the sauce then top that off with your lettuce, tomato, red onion and cucumber. Top it all off with some more of that special sauce to really make a statement, now you’re saying something.
What song puts you in a great cooking mood? Have you ever created a dish based off of a song?
Chef Che: Ooooh when I get that feeling I want sex-ual healing!! See that Marvin Gaye will make me whip up a creme brulee or something sexy like that.. and if I’m feeling rat pack-ish I’ll throw on a lobster to some Frank Sinatra.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years as a chef?
Chef Che: Running a nice Restaurant or a cool sandwich shop and hopefully to have made my mark in the industry with my brand Culinary Market Brothers Enterprises (CMB) and the slew of products we’re about to put out.
If you could dress anyway you want, what would you wear in the kitchen?
Chef Che: Str8 kitchen swagg wear. Something we’re working on is integrating urban street fashion with culinary threads. The freshest gear you could find with some mean footwork.
What was the biggest mistake you made when you were a new chef?
Chef Che: I was a hot head when I was young. I used to work for Restaurants that would demand high quality food and impeccable service. So as a Chef I had to set and impose that standard and sometimes cooks and servers wouldn't perform the way you’d like them to and you would have to kick their ass. Maybe I should of took a different approach.
What would you say your signature dish is? What drink would go great with it?
Chef Che: You might not believe this but I’m big sandwich kind of Chef. Although I can cook anything.. I loooove SANDWICHES! I have this mean Black Bean Burger that I make with roasted corn, cilantro and caramelized onions. Topped off with my Guava Lava BBQ SauChe and served with “Soul’ Slaw (The Che Gravy version of Cole Slaw) and a haystack of sweet potato and hearts of palm fries. I usually take this all in with a cool glass of lemonade. “Lemonade was a popular drink and it still is”
If a person can invest in only five things for their kitchen, what should they buy as a home cook?
Chef Che: I would invest in a nice cutting board, a good knife block, a kitchen aid mixer, a blender and a pannini sandwich press.
Do you use any molecular gastronomy techniques?
Chef Che: I’m not a big gastro freak but I’ll pull out some liquid nitrogen in a heartbeat! That stuff is cool.
What do you think about microwaves?
Chef Che: Microwaves are only good for popcorn and heating up stuff.. not for cooking. There is no way you can control the heat in a microwave making your finished product inconsistent.
Why are you called the “sauce boss”? What is a quick and easy sauce that can be put on almost anything?
Chef Che: Well my name is Che Gravy and the “Gravy” was inherited from my Grandfather. He was the true gravy master. And sauce boss came from my Dad. He used to always call me “Boss” then I made him this sauce one day and he started calling me Sauce Boss. That was a long time ago and I just took it and ran with it. I also took the word “sauce” and added a “h” in it for the name “Che” so I could make it my own so now its pronounced “sawshhh” and spelled “SauChe”. If you like sweet and spicy there is this one bottled sauce that I particularly like called Sweet Chili Sauce and you can find it in most Asian markets. I even dip my french fries in this stuff its fawesome!
What are 3 things you absolutely DO NOT eat?
Chef Che: Well I don’t eat pork for various reasons, I’m allergic to shellfish ( I know right) so I can’t eat that and I don’t eat caviar. I’m sorry its just not my twist.
Can you share with us one of your food preparation secrets?
Chef Che: Well I can’t stress this enough, The reasoning is in the seasoning! Treat it right then you could eat it right. Sometimes you can get away with under or over cooking something if its seasoned to perfection.
Finish the sentence: Before I die, I want to… have a signature cereal on grocery store shelves across the globe. I want a little kid in Malaysia to be eating a bowl of “Gravy O’s” and say “Sedap!” when he/she is finished.
What was your worst kitchen injury?
Chef Che: I remember I got splashed out with some hot oil while making a big batch of Short Ribs. I mean it was a big splash of piping hot oil right on my wrist, my skin bubbled up immediately and I had to be rushed to the ER. I learned my lesson and never got burned again.
Congratulations on your new baby! Will you be making gourmet baby food?
Chef Che: Thank you so much and I don’t know sounds like a good idea hmmmm :)
Conducted by Celeste
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