Fat Hen’s Fred Neuville says that he’s wanted to produce a cookbook for about 14 years. Good things come to those who wait, right? After years of customers requesting recipes Neuville has finally published a collection of all of Fat Hen’s most popular dishes (we’re lookin’ at you duck confit).
Neuville says that every recipe included in this cookbook is “right off the menu.” He left some dishes out simply because they require so much time and effort. “A lot of our recipes are extremely difficult, like the bone-in short rib,” he says. FYI, those steps include smoking, steaming, chilling, portioning, and grilling. Yeah, we’ll leave that to the experts.
The cookbook’s recipes were chosen based on their popularity and on the ease in which a home cook can prepare them. Think duck confit sounds fancy? (We do). Well, according to Neuville it’s all about the curing process. “And then you fry it in duck fat.” See, not so hard.
Some of the most requested dishes include: the steamed mussels, the bacon blue cheese coleslaw, shrimp and grits, pan-seared grouper over local succotash, that not-that-hard-to-make duck confit, creamed corn, and collard greens.
Neuville doesn’t have any top secret recipes — he believes in sharing everything with everyone. “Everybody who comes into the restaurant is my intended audience,” he says. “I could sit here for an hour everyday and send out recipes.” Or you could grab one of his quickly disappearing books.
Head to the Fat Hen to get a hard copy today, or order one online. You might want to call ahead, though. Just today six people bought a book from the restaurant and about 30 have already ordered online. Guess the chicken flew the coop.
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