Make Poutine - A Canadian Favorite

John and I are always on the lookout for unique recipes especially

something that is characteristic of a locality. On our visit to Ottawa we stayed at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier, and didn’t think we would find something uniquely Canadian since the culinary cultures of Canada and the United States are so closely linked. But we did! On the menu at La Terrasse, a patio restaurant at the hotel with a great view of the Parliament buildings, one item caught our attention – Truffled Poutine: Fresh Cut Fries, Truffled Gravy, House Made Curds.

It is a dish that originated in Quebec about 50 years ago. Legend has it that the name “poutine” comes from Fernand Lachance of Warwick, Quebec. He had a customer who asked him to add cheese curd to his takeout order of French fries to which Lachance replied, "ça va faire une maudite poutine," ("it will make a damn mess").  Today it is a popular comfort food dish especially in ski resorts. I never associated truffles with French fries and comfort food.  When I asked about the truffle gravy the waitress said she’d get the chef so he could answer all my questions.

Executive Chef Louis Simard said that poutine was a new addition

to the Chateau Laurier menu, “When people travel they often look for comfort food.  Once in a while one needs to indulge.  Here at the Chateau Laurier we step up the poutine with the truffle gravy.”  I was surprised to learn that the hotel makes its own cheese curd.  Simard said, “…it took two months to get the process just right.”  When I mentioned using frozen French fries he said, “The French Canadians would never forgive us if we used frozen fries. Poutine will never be a dinner item at the hotel but we will keep it on the La Terrasse menu.” Simard said poutine is adaptable and that he once set up a poutine station at an event where people could add crab, lobster, foie gras, and Montreal smoked brisket.   Simard invited us into the kitchen to see it assembled and shared the truffle gravy recipe. While Julia who was from South Africa was assembling the poutine she said when she first arrived in Canada she didn’t care for it but now she enjoys it – but not every day.  I think it makes a good dish to share. 

Truffled Poutine Gravy 
40 oz chicken stock
5 tsp butter
2 garlic cloves finely chopped
4 tsp flour
Bundle of fresh thyme
Bundle of fresh oregano
2 tsp of cornstarch
1 oz black truffle oil
French fried potatoes
Cheese curd
  

Reduce Chicken Stock to ½(one-half) set aside. Lightly sauté garlic in butter, add the flour and cook over low heat until golden brown (4-5 minutes), stirring with a wooden spoon constantly (making a brown roux). Using a whisk, slowly incorporate the reduced chicken stock to the butter-flour mixture. Bring to a boil stirring occasionally.  Add the fresh herbs.  In a small bowl, add enough cold water to the cornstarch to dilute and mix in the boiling sauce. Cook for 2-3 minute at low boil then add the truffle oil. Stir.

To assemble poutine, start with a layer of French fries, sprinkle with cheese curd and a splash of truffle oil. Repeat twice and top with truffle sauce, enough to coat the entire dish. Place under broiler for 1 minute for a crispy top.

Unique Aspects of Ottawa

I love discovering unique aspects of a city.  At the Remic Rapids in

Ottawa there is one of the most incredible art displays I have ever seen. Each spring John Felice Ceprano, using riverside stones, creates balanced sculptures that seem to defy gravity. Visitors are cautioned to avoid touching. Most people have heeded the warning, but I did a small portion of one of the works of art that had toppled mostly from being touched. I can see why people touch them because it is hard to believe that some of them are not glued in place but they are not.  They are perfectly balanced.  Each year during high water the art is washed away only to have new balanced creations created by Ceprano again when the water recedes.  We drove to the spot but it is also accessible via the bike path.

At the National Gallery of Canada don’t miss the amazing reconstruction of the Rideau Chapel from the Convent of our Lady of Sacred Heart. The Chapel, called by some the most “beautiful chapel in the land,” was on the road to destruction when it was purchased by the National Gallery. It was moved, piece by piece, and rebuilt in the center of the museum. I was so busy looking at all the other great art at the museum I almost missed it. The entrance is tucked off to the side. Take note of the towering columns that reach the ceiling in unique fan vaults, the three altars, statues and other artwork.  

One afternoon we drove out to the Mackenzie King Park Estate. The beautiful country estate in Gatineau Park was home to Canada’s 10th prime minister. It is a great place for a hike and afternoon tea. But, what interested me were the ruins in his garden and woods. What looks like ruins in situ are actually pieces Mackenzie rescued from destruction and had them placed throughout the property. The entrance pillars of the old Bank of British North America make a triumphal arch with a view of the forest and the most extensive display are called the Abbey Ruins with stones that came from various places including the old Parliament building that was destroyed by fire in 1916. 

At Rideau Hall we didn’t have time to tour the official residence of Canada’s Governor General but did walk around the property where over 120 commemorative trees have been planted.  The first one was by Japan’s Prince Fushimi in 1907 and most recently Prince William and his wife planted an Eastern Hemlock to commemorate their marriage. I was especially interested in the Inuit stone markers called Inukshuk that have been found throughout the arctic.  It is thought that these stone figures resembling humans were a means of communication indicating someone passed by here or that the traveler was on the right path.  There were many people picnicking, playing games, and walking about.  I tried to envision such a scene on the equivalent property in the United States – the White House. 

People seem to love paranormal stories and that was evident on the

Haunted Walk of Ottawa. As our group wandered from location to location we learned where the “spirit” of the person who suffered an untimely demise haunts the property. While it is their most popular tour they also offer other tours that have been thoroughly researched to reveal a darker side of Ottawa’s history.

First Visit to Ottawa

Ottawa, Canada’s capital, is a world-class city closer to Central New York than New York City. The architecture of the Parliament buildings and colorful changing of the guard brings to mind London. Local wits like to say Ottawa was picked as the capital because Queen Victoria threw a dart and claimed that was where she wanted the capital.  However, Ottawa was picked because it was nearly midpoint between Toronto and Quebec City and its location in the back country made it more defensible should their neighbors to the south decide to attack again plus it offered access via the waterways.

We stayed at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier which is just a short walk from the Parliament and looks like a European castle.  In fact people often refer to it as “The Castle.” The Fairmont Chateau Laurier has free iPad tours of the hotel, one of the first tours of its kind. We signed out one of hotel’s iPads and following the easy directions toured the hotel. The Chateau Laurier opened in June of 1912. The opening was originally scheduled for April but the General Manager, Charles Hayes, was returning from Europe with some additional furnishings for the hotel on the ill-fated Titanic. His wife and daughter survived but he did not. Originally the hotel had separate sleeping quarters for men and women, as well as a separate entrance for female guests. The rooms were priced at $2.00 a night. The tour points out the Tiffany windows and other interesting points including the portraits of prominent people by Yousuf Karsh that grace the Reading Lounge. The tour took us through the public parts of the hotel including Peacock Alley lined with historic pictures of the hotel and continued down to the saltwater swimming pool.

Between the Parliament and the Chateau Laurier is the Rideau Canal where we visited the Bytown Museum housed in Ottawa’s oldest stone building and watched boats lock through the flight of eight locks, the largest set of locks in the Rideau system.  The locks raise boats 79 feet from the Ottawa River to the canal. The Rideau Canal connects Ottawa with Kingston and opened in 1832. It was constructed because of the military threat posed by the United States. Lieutenant Colonel John By supervised the construction which, like the Erie Canal, brought workers from around the world creating a worker’s town, Bytown.  While the Erie

Canal predates the Rideau and the Erie Canal is longer the Rideau has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the Erie Canal has not.  Mainly because the Rideau Canal can be traveled in its entirety whereas the Erie Canal has changed over the years and much of the original Erie Canal is not open to navigation plus the Rideau still has hand-operated locks. In the evening we took a ride on the Rideau with Paul’s Boat Tours. It passed the National Arts Center and other sites.

We returned to the Chateau Laurier to spend a little time at Zoe’s Lounge where there was a singer who sang our favorite songs. There were several unique cocktails on the menu. One was a Canadian specialty – a Triple-Pepper Caesar, a sassy cocktail that is based on a Bloody Mary but the Canadians use clamato juice instead of tomato juice and have spiced it up and garnished it with a red chili.  It was awesome just like our first day in Ottawa.