June 15--At the West Loop Whole Foods over the weekend, I saw a name that stopped me cold: Charlie Trotter. The name, with that unmistakable serif-T logo, came on a package of smoked salmon in the refrigerated seafood section.
I've probably passed by that product a hundred times without a second thought, but this time something resonated. "It's 2015, and you can still eat Charlie Trotter's food?" I wondered.
Trotter died unexpectedly of a stroke in 2013. His eponymous restaurant closed a year earlier, as did his Trotter's To Go gourmet takeout store in Lincoln Park.
What stopped me in the supermarket aisle was the realization these 4-ounce, vacuum-sealed packages of salmon are likely the last remaining consumable manifestation of Charlie Trotter's culinary legacy. They're a food the public can purchase and taste right now, and lay claim: "I got to eat Charlie Trotter's cooking."
The cold-smoked salmon is the only food product offered by Charlie Trotter Enterprises, confirmed Derrek Hull, executive director of culinary education nonprofit The Trotter Project. (The organization is hosting the second annual Charlie Trotter Day on Aug. 14 with Taus Authentic, Boka Group restaurants and m.f.k. More details here.) The fish is made by Spence Co., a smoked seafood company in Brockton, Mass. just south of Boston, and sold in Whole Foods nationwide and at specialty grocers.
Tom Higgins, sales manager at Spence Co., said the company's relationship with Trotter began 12 years ago. Trotter came up with two flavors: one cured with Darjeeling tea and ginger, and the other with citrus. Higgins said that, of all the smoked fish the company offers, the Trotter recipes are "one of the most involved."
The curing process takes 48 hours -- ingredients listed in the Darjeeling tea salmon include ginger brandy, celery and fennel seeds, allspice, tarragon, tea leaves, chili peppers and star anise. The salmon then gets cold smoked with oak wood for 15 to 18 hours (cold smoking means the temperature never exceeds 94 degrees). Higgins said the Trotter salmon is among the company's top 10 best-sellers.
I bought both varieties from Whole Foods. Both were exquisite (at $10.99 per package, they better be), and I especially loved the citrus salmon, luscious and subtle, sweet smelling, with flavors of lemon peel and the crunch of fennel seeds.
The salmon is a reminder of Trotter's cooking ethos. He never rendered ingredients into unrecognizable states. He was never one to oversauce and overpower. Trotter possessed a light touch, allowing ingredients to live and let live, while using spices and flavors to underscore the freshness of the product.
For the majority of us, our connection to Charlie Trotter -- perhaps except a passing hello if he stopped by the table -- wasn't one of personal interaction. It was through his dishes. That's how he spoke to us. So finding his name on a package of salmon came as a happy surprise. It's like finding "Sandinista!" by The Clash in the back of your records bin. You know The Clash will never make new music, but putting the album on reminds you just how awesome the band was.
kpang@tribpub.com
Twitter @pang
