Photo By Celida Maldonado

At the culinary extravaganza for foodies this past weekend, the 4th Annual New York Culinary Experience filled participants with delicious food made themselves with the help of top New York City chefs. Hosted by New York magazine's culinary editor, Gillian Duffy and Dorothy Cann Hamilton, founder and CEO of The International Culinary Center, this event allowed food aficionados to schmooze with 30 of the most influential chefs of this country. Tickets for the weekend cost $1,395 each and a portion of the proceeds went to support The Future Chefs Scholarship program. 

In the morning, we took Chef Shaun Hergatt's egg class. He is the executive chef at SHO, where he has received two Michelin stars in 2011 for his incredibly well carried out Modern French menu with a hint of Asian flare. Hergatt has been awarded countless awards for SHO, including "Best New Chef from New York magazine and "Best New Restaurant" from Esquire and New York magazine. since opening in 2009.

In this session, we made a 64 degree Slow Poached Egg, measured in Celsius, with Crunchy Black Rice and Uni. We also made a Plastic Poached Egg with Celery Root and Chervil and a simple Poached Egg with Crouton and Hollandaise. 

Chef also educated us on some egg basics. We learned the ways to tell if an egg is fresh. If fresh, it will have a bright yellow color for the yolk and the albumen layers should be stiff. The shell will also be hard and thick. If three layers exist in an egg, it means it's old.

There are many benefits of an egg. It is high in protein, it is good brain food, it jump starts you metabolism, promotes healthy heart function, improves blood lipids and can prevent aging.

Missed the class? We took notes for you!

Here are the recipes for the dishes we made:

Photo By Celida Maldonado

Ingredients

1 Poached Egg

1 tbspn Fried Black Rice

1 tbspn Uni Foam

3 pieces Uni

3 Pea Tendrils

For the Fried Black Rice

4 tbspn Grape Seed Oil (due to its high smoke point)

1/2 c Wild Black Rice

Salt

For the Uni Foam

200 g Sea Urchin

1/2 c cream

1 1/2 tbspn water

Lemon Juice

Salt

Procedure

For Poached Egg

1. Using a circulator, poach the eggs in its shell for a half an hour in a 64 degree water bath. If you do not have a circulator at home, a regular poached egg would be a good substitute.

For the Wild Black Fried Rice

2. Heat up the oil in a frying pan until you see a little smoke. Add the rice and cook until it is puffy. Drain on paper towels. Add salt.

For the Uni Foam

3. Mix sea urchin, water and cream then bring to a boil. Season with salt and lemon juice and strain. Poor into a siphon gun and charge twice.

Photo By Celida Maldonado

Ingredients

1 Poached Egg

Chervil for garnish

For the Truffled Celery Root Puree

2 c Celery Root, Diced

1 stick and 1 tbsn butter

1/2 c water

3 tbspn Truffle paste

Truffle Oil

Salt and Pepper

Xanthan Gum

Procedure

1. We cooked our poached eggs in a circulator in a plastic bag. If you do not have one at home, poach one normally.

2. Cook the celery root with butter, water and cream in a saucepan until soft. When cooked drain off the liquid. Puree the celery root with truffle paste, truffle oil, salt and pepper. If needed add cooking liquid.

3. At the end add xanthan gum to emulsify the puree.

4. Garnish with Chervil

Photo By Celida Maldonado

Poached Eggs with Crouton and Hollandaise Sauce 

Ingredients

1 Poached Egg

2 Tablespoons Hollandaise Foam

1 Crouton

Chives

For Hollandaise Sauce

8 egg yolks

1/2 c water

2 tbspn lemon juice

2 1/2 tbspn cream

2 c clarified butter

Salt and Pepper

Procedure

1. Poach egg in a pot with simmering water and vinegar.

2. Place yolks and water in a bowl on top of a double boiler. Keeping the bowl over the double boiler, slowly add clarified butter.

3. Take the bowl off the heat. Add cream and lemon juice, season with salt and pepper. Strain and pour into a siphone gun. Toast a piece of bread or make a crouton in a a pan.