Marcus Samuelsson Quotes

Since truffle oil and caviar aren't always in the budget, learning to tweak and enhance just a few ingredients and flavor combinations can help you transform those ordinary ingredients into the extraordinary!

Use spices for flavor in food rather than adding a bunch of oils, fats, or sauces.

I believe in the magic of preparation. You can make just about any foods taste wonderful by adding herbs and spices. Experiment with garlic, cilantro, basil and other fresh herbs on vegetables to make them taste great.

Some of the best cooks that I've cooked with, whether it's in New York or Chicago or even here in Philadelphia, are actually Ecuadorians. And there's something about their palates that really just inspires me, and has a really deep sense of flavor.

Shop often, shop hard, and spend for the best stuff available - logic dictates that you can make delicious food only with delicious ingredients.

I always have a good quality extra virgin olive oil. A cheap quality oil will end up cheapening your dishes. And I love sweetening my dishes with maple syrup. It has a bit of a bitter kick at the end that works wonderfully in savory dishes.

The range of ingredients available to home cooks has expanded dramatically. People are incorporating herbs and spices like lemongrass, smoked Mexican chile, sumac, and za'atar mix.

I used to watch my grandmother make fancy, Julia Child-style beef bourguignon. And growing up in New York City, I was exposed to many cultures. I experimented with Puerto Rican and Jamaican food.

Finding exciting ways to use leftovers is what we all struggle with. There's one simple thing that you can do to transform them: Stock your pantry.

For me, it's the unexpected and surprising combinations of produce that are the most exciting and lure me into the kitchen for a little bit of experimenting. Apples and sweet potatoes together? Who knew? Carrots with grapes? Okay. I may not be Julia Child, but I can do pretty well with a simple recipe and a lot of enthusiasm.

I love to cook. I make an award-winning turkey chili.

I do a lot of recipe creation. Translation: cooking tempting dishes that must be eaten.

I love making Italian food. And coconut chicken.

There are three reasons why this book came into being. First, throughout the 33 years I've been writing recipes - although I'm not vegetarian myself - I have greatly enjoyed creating vegetarian recipes, and cooking and serving them at home.

English food writer Elizabeth David, cook and author Richard Olney and the owner of Domaine Tempier Lulu Peyraud have all really inspired the way I think about food.

We can use all the scientific tools, but it will never replace the palate or the talent of the chefs who are in the kitchen.

I went to school for culinary arts. I love to cook. That's a talent not a lot of people know about.

You have to know the classics if you want to cook modern food.

I love 'The Gourmet Cooking School Cookbook' by Dione Lucas. A huge source of information and inspiration. The book is organized by menu, and the recipes are unusual and exciting.

I pride myself in figuring out how to elevate a dish with a little preserved lemon or, then, a sprinkle of Maldon salt.

Garlic oil is one of my favorite things on the planet. You can roast 20 cloves of garlic in oil and use it in everything - you can even slide those soft whole cloves into a dish of hot mashed potatoes.

I feel like a princess with a knife. I've wanted to be an Iron Chef forever.

As I grew steadily more comfortable in the kitchen, I found that, much like gardening, most cooking manages to be agreeably absorbing without being too demanding intellectually. It leaves plenty of mental space for daydreaming and reflection.

The opportunity to be a star chef, to imagine it would be here in Las Vegas, I couldn't comprehend it.

I've always loved to cook, and then my love of it just grew as I got older and started traveling and started entertaining.