First things first, when I say “Gourmet” I am basically referring to any competent cook who like to experiment and push the boundaries of what they can accomplish in the kitchen or on the grill. This will be a person who can competently cook a steak, knows flavors, and likes to test new things. It isn’t necessarily an expert chef but it also isn’t someone who needs to follow a recipe to cook a pot roast.
A person like this will almost always appreciate a thoughtful gift that is food related so here are three great gifts that will make any cook happy:
1. A Unique Cut of Meat – A standard NY Strip steak or a rack of ribs will definitely be appreciated by the gourmet but if you can surprise them with a lesser known but tastier cut of meat they will love it. Most people probably wouldn’t drop $100 on a cut of meat for themselves but by giving them a nice piece of meat as a gift you will be giving them something they might never get to try otherwise. Here are a couple suggestions:
American Kobe Gold Grade Cap of Ribeye – $199
If you want to learn more about what the Cap of Ribeye is you can read my post The Cap of Ribeye for more information. Basically this is one of the most tender, most flavorful muscles on the cow and any steak lover will know how awesome this cut of meat is. It is awesome seared in a pan or on the grill and doesn’t need a lot of seasoning.
American Kobe Short Ribs – $249
Short ribs are a great, versatile piece of meat that a lot of people shy away from. They can be slow cooked, roasted, braised, or smoked and are great with a number of different flavor profiles. These ribs from Snake River Farms are a massive 15 pounds too so while they might seem expensive at first glance it works out to less than $17 per pound. And you can get free shipping with code FREEAFF.
Kurobuta Bacon – $25
If you are looking for something a bit less expensive give this Kurobuta bacon from Snake River Farms a try. This bacon is a definite step above the standard grocery store bacon and worth the price. It makes an awesome gift for nearly everyone and if you are lucky they will even break it out on Christmas Morning for breakfast and give you a couple pieces. And like all products at Snake River Farms it ships for free with code FREEAFF.
2. A Tasting Box from Hatchery.co – What is Hatchery.co? Think of it as a bunch of micro-brew sauces and seasonings from a bunch of different small batch producers from all around the country. They have bbq sauces, hot sauces, mustards, glazes, oils and vinegars, salts and seasonings, and even cocktail mixers. With their tasting box you get a box of 5 or so items each month. You only get sample sizes in the Tasting Box but the great thing about that is it allows people to try a LOT of different flavors each month without having a big bottle clogging up their cupboards or refrigerators.
Hatchery.co sent me a box to test out a while back and here is what it contained:
I got some honey powder (maybe good in a rib rub???), some Glossop’s Hibiscus Ginger syrup (mostly for cocktails), some dipping fudge (and yes, I just dipped my fingers in it), a Pasta Rock (throw it in the pasta water and get perfectly salted pasta), and some Rock and Roll Ginger Sesame BBQ sauce. The highlight of my box was the bbq sauce. I threw some on some chicken tonight and it was delicious.
Every month your recipient will get a new box full of flavors and possibilities. It costs $20 per month and it is a great way to give someone a bunch of different flavors to experiment with. If you don’t want to do a subscription box like this they also have a number of different Holiday gift packs and product bundles you can order.
3. A new cookbook or food book – I am not talking about a standard Betty Crocker cookbook or Rachel Ray’s 30 Minute meals or something pedestrian like that. Pick a type of food they really like and find a specialty cookbook for that particular type of food. Since I am a meat lover here are a few I would look at in that genre:
The Food Lab by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt – Kenji is the guy behind SeriousEats.com and is all about experimenting and figuring out the best way to make a certain dish. I very regularly use recipes from SeriousEats.com as a starting point for most of my dishes.
The Flavor Bible – This isn’t necessarily a cookbook but it gives you a bunch of different flavor combinations that work together. Can you use tarragon with pork? Will a cinnamon-apple compote go well with your chicken? Can I use hickory salt and cardamom together? This book has the answers.
Franklin BBQ – A Meat Smoking Manifesto – Aaron Franklin is a name nearly every meat lover will know and in this book he lays out how to expertly smoke a brisket covering everything from getting the right meat to building a smoker to finding the right kind of wood to use. Anyone who likes to fire up the grill or smoker in the back yard will love this book. I read all 200 or so pages the first night I got it and couldn’t put it down.
The Art of Beef Cutting – This one is on my Christmas list. Chances are whoever you give this to will never get a chance to butcher their own cow but this book will give them a greater understanding of the different cuts of meat, how a strip steak differs from a flank steak, where the t-bone steak comes from and so on.
All in all there are a lot of gifts to give a gourmet or even a good home chef but I think these three ideas will at least get your juices flowing.
