Culinology - June 2020 - 28

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"I love the intellectually
stimulating work...
I love the challenge."
products that retain more moisture, resulting
in juiciness and higher yield," he said.

frozen dinners involves maintaining product
quality. "Microwaving can be hard on wholemuscle proteins, drying them out and making
them chewy, so we customize the preparation
and cook cycle specifically for each product,"
he said. "Additionally, reheating and frozen
storage can affect the flavor of proteins, so
we employ marinade techniques to ensure a
delicious product to the consumer."

Customers are stars of the show
The daily double

Ed Miniat Inc,
specializes in the
use of sous vide, a
method of cooking
animal proteins
under vacuum and in
a water bath.

Beef and chicken are Miniat's top-selling
proteins. "As executive research chef, I
develop products and menu items for the
frozen food industry and national restaurant
chains," Chef Draz said.
And the proteins need to be a logical fit
for sous vide cooking. "Not all food products
do well in this platform," he said. "If products
can be cooked sous vide, there needs to be
a distinct benefit to the product to justify the
process and cost."
Menu items include meats for frozen
dinners in supermarkets and for soups in
foodservice. "We are also starting to expand
our line with new products such as chicken
cooked in an enchilada sauce, beef braised in
stout gravy with vegetables and an au gratin
potato dish," he said. "We also recognize the
trend toward more plant-based diets, and to
that end we have been working on offering
some legumes and whole grains."
One challenge in producing proteins for

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Culinology | JUNE 2020

Miniat takes pride in offering customers
what they request. "Specific cuts of meat and
poultry are customized to our customers'
needs taking into account raw material prices
and what grade it is, and we hand trim it
to their specifications," he said. "We can
also sear the protein; grill mark it; and cut,
slice and dice it the way they want. We can
likewise add flavor profiles to the meat, which
can include marinades, rubs and
topical seasonings."
One food trend, particularly with millennials,
involves more adventurous and international
cuisine. "We do a good job of addressing
their desire for more authentic flavors and
products," he said, "and Latin- and Asianstyle proteins are a definite request." For
example, Miniat has created a chicken thigh
product cooked in a chili paste, Korean style,
as an Asian spicy chicken for foodservice.
Customers are also requesting clean
label products, specifically meats with no
antibiotics ever or responsibly raised, and
sometimes organic meats, which may be in
shorter supplies.
Before joining Miniat 16 years ago, Chef
Draz was a founding faculty member/
instructor of the Culinary School of Kendall
College in Evanston, Ill., and served as
a chef in several restaurants, fine-dining
establishments and hotels in the Chicago
area. He once was the chef and co-owner of
his own restaurant and banquet facility called
Plentywood.
He said he liked teaching because of the
dynamic environment of the classroom, and
enjoyed working with the guest chefs and
lecturers at Kendall. "I especially was excited
to greet Julia Child when she was a guest
lecturer, and also Charlie Trotter when he
was a guest chef and when several of my
students later went to work for him," Chef
Draz said. "It was an honor to meet and later
Culinology - June 2020

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