From Orchard to Skillet

A Chef’s Love Letter to Farm-to-Table Simplicity

By Lynn Nishimura, Columnist

The concept of farm to table has existed for a long time, well before Alice  Waters popularized it through her restaurant Chez Panisse. More and more  establishments seem to now embrace this philosophy. But beyond the trend,  farm to table is above all about connection — a connection to the land, to the  seasons, and to those who cultivate it. 

I have always loved the balance of sweet and savory. The pairing of meat and  fruit is one of the simplest and most elegant expressions of that harmony. Yet  we often tend to overstock — whether at the supermarket or from our own  gardens — without realizing the creative potential these ingredients hold. With  a bit of inspiration, the most familiar products can be transformed into  unexpected dishes. 

For a chef, meeting an exceptional producer feels almost like serendipity. A true  coup de cœur on one instance was a gentleman farmer whose orchards yield  an almost magical abundance each year: fruit grown without pesticides,  harvested at perfect ripeness, bursting with flavor. There is something deeply  inspiring in such generosity. In that moment, farm to table became a living  reality. 

Our conversation lasted nearly half an hour, but it changed the way I think. We  imagined everything a freshly picked apple could become: roasted apples with  onions, simmered with chicken stock and a leg of chicken or other dark meat  that allow the juices flow more freely; apple fritters; chaussons aux pommes; a  delicate tart; compote… The possibilities felt endless. I can say, the chicken  with apples is the dish I learned from this producer of earth, a recipe, which  came from his family, a very generous gesture and a dish I treasure and will  redo time and time again. I also rediscovered the Reinette Grise du Canada, so  often used in French pastry, and confirmed how the tartness of a Granny Smith  elevates a Tarte Tatin, served with a quenelle of crème fraîche. That was farm to table in its purest form.  

Why limit such beautiful fruit to dessert? 

Instead of preparing a large batch of pastries, I chose to roast the smaller  apples in a cast-iron skillet. The result was rustic, authentic, and deeply  comforting: chicken with apples, sweet and savory, slowly simmered in cast  iron, reminiscent of the iconic cocottes by Staub. The dish reflected the land it  came from — simple, generous, sincere. 

And of course, I transform the fruit he cultivates with such care, and he  receives it back in the form of delicacies, offered in another expression.  The last time we met, we simultaneously made an exchange at the same time,  unexpected but full of unassuming generosity which comes full circle. 

My true coup de cœur was not only these extraordinary apples, but the  passion, and the abundance that comes from land cultivated with love and  patience.