The following piece is part of our Out of Body issue, now available for purchase online & IRL. Intro by Emma Leigh McDonald.
At Cove, we often start our four-course menu with a broth. The small bowl is meant as a welcoming gesture, and a cue to settle into the space, into your body, and to trust us with your next hour or so. This is borrowed from so much of dining culture in Japan, where soup is often served as a palate cleanser—or, more accurately, a palate ready-er. Miso at the beginning of a Japanese breakfast, or a clear dashi at the beginning of kaiseki. For us, it’s also a way of using the new herbs and produce of the season to introduce some of the flavors that you’ll taste throughout the rest of your meal.
Another part of starting a meal this way: there is something about a liquid that you can feel move through your body in a way that’s different from a solid. Maybe it’s their more direct route, in the absence of chewing? Think of a shot of liquor, a sip of coffee or tea, a gulp of water, or a spoonful of soup. Their impacts are felt quickly, whether they are to comfort or refresh; calm or revive. Whether hot or cold, ingesting a liquid is what comes to mind more often than not when we need to create a change in how we feel.
With all that in mind, is sharing two essential recipes with you from Gem Home and Cove—a tea and a soup—to get into your body this summer and beyond.
Yuzu Chamomile Tea
3/4 lb honey
2 cups dry chamomile tea
2 quarts water
150 ml Yuzuco Yuzu Super Juice
1/2 tsp citric acid
Spoon the honey into a pan over medium heat—allow it to liquify and bubble, being careful not to burn. Add the dry chamomile tea and water. Bring to a simmer and stir, scraping the honey from the bottom of the pan, until you’ve brewed a strong tea.
Strain the honey chamomile tea onto twelve quarts of ice to dilute it, then mix the strained and diluted liquid with the Yuzu Super Juice and citric acid. Taste for sweetness and serve cold.
Makes a big batch—3 to 4 L.
Cucumber Soup
500 grams cucumber, diced
60 grams cooked and peeled potato
360 grams buttermilk
40 grams water
11 grams marigold or thyme
11 grams basil
20 grams lovage or parsley
100 grams shio koji (or, substitute with 30 grams miso)
Blend all ingredients until smooth, season with salt to taste. Serve chilled. Serves 4.
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