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Burning hot interview: Chef Eric Tucker, Millennium Restaurant
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Executive Chef Eric Tucker
This is the first in my series of San Francisco chef interviews. I will be asking my favorite chefs the following questions. Hopefully, their answers will inspire, amaze and amuse you. Feel free to email me with suggestions of what chefs you'd like interviewed. If you try their recipe, we'd love to hear how it turned out.
Under the guidance of Executive Chef Eric Tucker and his talented kitchen cadre, Millennium Restaurant has been a mecca for all that seek a healthy, vegetarian, sustainable, creative, exquisite, upscale, gourmet dining experience.
Q: How would you describe your restaurant's food on Twitter?
Twitter??? I really don’t care about twitter, but we kind of typify whatever California Cuisine might be. We take a bunch of global influences combined with local food products and make it our own thing, all vegetables bases of course.
Q: Are "sustainable, organic, and locally sourced" just buzz words or a passion?
I moved out here a very long time ago because I was impressed that the owners and chef at Milly’s (it used to be in San Rafael) went to the farmers market and talked to the growers and loaded up the car with produce. Even though there were plenty of farms in my part of New Jersey (my first job was pickin’ corn, beans and peppers) I never knew of any restaurants that bought directly from the farms. At the time, most people could give a _ _ _ _ about quality of produce. That was quite some time ago, and for the last 14 years, Millennium and I have just been doing our thing.
Q: Menu or special ordering suggestions for the customer that's trying to eat healthier?
Millennium’s menu is all vegetable based. Stay away from stuff that might come out of our fryer. If you want low fat- oil free, gluten free, macrobiotic, raw, etc. we’ve got it, or we will prepare it for you with some notice.
Q: What new ingredient really knocks your socks off?
Porcinis aren’t anything new, but it has been a great spring for them. David Little is now growing Choy Sum up in Marshall which is exciting! It’s surprisingly hard to find some of the Asian greens that are organic. We use a lot of Agave Nectar as a sweetener, also not new, but we use more and more of it.
Q: If President Obama was coming to your restaurant, what would you prepare?
I’m sure he’d find plenty of things he’d like on the menu.
Q: What local restaurants/chefs do you think are the real deal?
Most, if not all of them! They have to be to survive in this area. Special props to Jason, Anne, Danielle, Stephanie, and Sarah at Millennium. Look out for Sean Baker at Terrain when it opens; he can do vegan with a passion and cure salumi!
Q: Best culinary trick-of-the-trade you can share with us?
A “U” shaped peeler, made by Kuhn Rikon, is almost the best thing since sliced bread. You can shave all sorts of things with them. Peel long ribbons, then turn them into hair thin julienne, shave a truffle, what have you.
Q: You have a pomegranate, parsnip, and pollack. What are you going to cook?
Well, at the restaurant we’d substitute tofu for the pollack. (Hey, really good tofu if a great thing, go visit Hodo Soy) How about wrap the pollack in thinly shredded parsnip and pan fry a good crust onto it, serve it with pomegranate syrup spiked with Thai chilies, ginger and some other Southeast Asian spices.
Q: If you were going to get a culinary tattoo, what would it be--and where? 
I already have a Chioggia beet and California Gold Chanterelle on my right arm. I’d love to get some more mushrooms, like a tuft of Morels
Q: What would you order for your "death-row" final meal?
Anything my mom would have cooked when I was a kid-- some really good olive oil with good bread, Mapo Tofu made with Lanchi Chile Paste, some sort of perfect ratatouille type thing with really fragrant basil folded into it, a perfect tomato, sautéed chanterelles, a bunch of sweet/tart crunchy cherries, diver scallops from Maine, and a Rolling Rock or maybe Russian River Salvation.
Anything I forgot to ask?
Just eat more vegetables more of the time, not all of the time just a bit more of the time. Got a question on how or why we do what we do, drop me a line, I’ve got no secrets.
Chef’s Recipe:
Chilled Summer Greens and Avocado Soup with a Truffled Cashew Sour Cream
3-4 medium Avocados (ripe)
2 stalks scallion
1 c diced seeded cucumber
2 c watercress or arugula
Juice of 2 lemon
1.5 c water
Salt and pepper to taste
Puree the avocado with all of the remaining ingredients. Adjust salt and Pepper to taste. Serve or chill covered with wrap on top of the soup to keep it from oxidizing. Do not store more than 2 hours.
Serve each portion with:
Fresh herbs of choice
A drizzle of a peppery – grassy olive oil ( Posolivo, Scabicia Tuscan or Sevillano, or Arbequenia varietal oil)
2t of Cashew – Truffle Oil Cream
Cashew –Truffle Oil Cream
4T raw cashews, soaked in warm water 1 hour
2t nutritional yeast
1t balsamic vinegar
Water as needed
Salt to taste
Black Truffle Oil to taste
Blend the cashews and yeast with enough water to just cove the nuts. Slowly add more water while blending until the consistency is that of thickened cream. Add the balsamic, truffle and salt to taste.
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