When Saveur was building a new kitchen, the Test Kitchen Director, Hunter Lewis, insisted on including Sub-Zero and Wolf appliances. Hunter not only talked with us about why he wanted Sub-Zero and Wolf, but about his background, his influences, his love of cooking, and what's it like running a test kitchen for a major food publication.
Q. What made you want to become a chef?
I was inspired by my grandmother and my aunt, two great home cooks, when I was in high school. I was impressed by their ability to cook for our large extended family gatherings. Food plays a central role in the celebration; I wanted to be a part of that.
Q. Describe the steps in your career.
I worked several stints as a short-order cook before becoming a newspaper reporter in North Carolina. It was a great gig, but I wanted to write about what I was passionate about: food. So I quit, moved to New York City to learn more about cooking. I thought I’d only cook for a year, but I stayed in the kitchen and worked my way up. I fell in love with cooking.
Q. What is your cooking specialty?
Seasonal, ingredient-driven food. I love regional American cuisine. At Saveur, we cook so many different recipes from around the world that I can’t help but be influenced by other ingredients and cultures.
Q. What’s your favorite meal?
Taco truck tacos. With a cold beer.
Q. Who are the people that you are most excited about preparing a meal for?
My grandparents.
Q. What’s it like in the test kitchen?
Busy. Between the shopping, prepping, cooking, tasting, and cleaning, the kitchen staff hustles. We test upwards of 12–15 recipes on a busy day. And each of those recipes is tested anywhere between 3–10 times, depending on the difficulty.
Q. What made you select Wolf cooking and Sub-Zero refrigeration products in the Saveur test kitchen?
Wolf and Sub-Zero’s strong reputation. The appliances are dependable and elegantly designed.
Q. What’s the difference between Wolf and Sub-Zero products and others?
We chose Wolf and Sub-Zero because we wanted professional results that could be achieved in the home kitchen.
Q. What is your favorite Wolf cooking product?
The ovens. We have three in the test kitchen, and they’re in use daily. They’re consistent, easy to use, and reliable. Oh, and easy to clean.
Q. What do you see as the emerging trends/styles of cooking?
People are embracing simplicity and a return to the fundamental roots of cooking. No matter what trend is in — be it molecular gastronomy, the locavore movement, whatever — food has emerged as a major topic in the U.S. in the last 20 years. I’m just happy that there’s a passionate dialogue taking place, no matter what trend comes along.
Read about the Saveur Test Kitchen
Take a photo tour of the Saveur Test Kitchen
Below are images of Hunter Lewis in the new Saveur Test Kitchen.
