Capturing the crowd with his charm and culinary talent, Justin Haifley delivered a first-rate cooking demonstration and tasting last night for foodies and want-to-be-cooks alike. Guests arrived to the third floor of Macy’s in West County Mall and the aroma in the air made mouths water.
Haifley explained that his Hawaiian-infused cooking stemmed from his four years spent in Hawaii as a chef. “I really like the Asian/Hawaiian cooking style because of the bold flavors. When you put the food in your mouth, you’re like, wow, I really taste that!” His secret? Fresh herbs. “Fresh herbs are my thing. I like to put them into every single dish I make.”
First, Haifley demonstrated how to make an Ahi Poke, an extremely flavorful yet simple dish that he serves at The Tavern Kitchen & Bar. He explained, “There’s not many ingredients, but that’s what makes it taste so good.” While cutting the Ahi into thin pieces he said, “You want to make sure you use the freshest possible tuna you can get.” Adding with a wink, “you can find that at The Tavern.” After seasoning the fish with a reddish-brown Hawaiian sea salt, he started on the Poke sauce, which was composed of eel sauce, soy, spicy chili oil and truffle oil. The dish included vegetables like cucumber and freshly cut avocado. Haifley garnished the Ahi Poke with sesame seeds and microgreens.
Guests sipped on pomegranate juice cocktails from POM as Haifley created his next dish, Baby Back Ribs with an Apricot Hoisin Glaze. First he braised the meat in an herbal broth consisting of ginger, garlic, cloves, jalapeño, green onion, lemongrass and cilantro. Next, he produced the Hoisin sauce, a mixture of soy, sugar, Hoisin, apricot puree, minced garlic ginger, green onion and cilantro. He then put the Hoisin sauce on the hot ribs, garnished the dish and served.
Justin Haifley’s final dish was a Sesame Mahi with Thai Coconut Curry that did not disappoint. He created a Curry sauce made up of canola oil, lemongrass, curry paste and a small bit of pungent fish sauce. He seasoned the Mahi Mahi with salt before sautéing. The space was filled with delicious sizzling sounds as guests watched Haifley transform the fish into a golden brown, crispy masterpiece.
In addition to sampling Haifley’s fantastic food, each guest received a gift bag containing fun surprises from Macy’s, The Tavern and St. Louis Magazine. Click here to check out the Party Pics.
Can’t get enough of Justin Haifley? Either can SLM! That’s why we are so excited about Haifley’s newest restaurant project, The Shack Pub Grub, due to open in the St. Louis University area this fall. For more information about Haifley and The Shack, check out SLM’s Relish Blog post.
